New age christmas music in New Age Music

Description:

"The Ultimate Relaxation Christmas Album" (10/15/2002) New Age Various Artists, Decca (USA)Includes liner notes by Joseph S. Szurly.

Description:

Description:

"A Windham Hill Christmas" (09/01/2003) New Age Various Artists, Windham Hill RecordsIncludes liner notes by Dawn Atkinson. While they may not be everyone's cup of herbal tea, the pioneering New Age label Windham Hill could never be accused of being anything less than tasteful. Accordingly, A WINDHAM HILL CHRISTMAS is far from the crass, mass-market commerciality of so many hastily assembled pop-crossover holiday collections. For this outing, Windham Hill gathered together some of their finest artists to create an all-instrumental album featuring re-interpretations of traditional Christmas Carols. So if you think you've heard say, "Deck the Halls" before, just wait until you catch what the sophisticated pianistic skills of Liz Story add to it. The same goes for piano guru George Winston's take on "Christmas is Coming," and on and on. And hey, Thirtysomething lovers, W.G. "Snuffy" Walden, the acoustic guitar whiz who provided that show's theme music turns up here too, delivering his version of the tried and true "The First Noel."

Description:

"Christmas Extraordinaire" (08/29/2005) New Age Mannheim Steamroller, American Gramaphone RecordsAlso available in the CHRISTMAS COLLECTION box set with CHRISTMAS, A FRESH AIRE CHRISTMAS and CHRISTMAS IN THE AIRE. Mannheim Steamroller: Chip Davis (arranger, conductor, recorder, drums); Ron Cooley (guitar, lute, bass); Arnie Roth (violin); Roxanne Layton (recorder, horn); Bobby Jenkins (oboe); Jackson Berkey (harpsichord). Additional personnel includes: Johnny Mathis (vocals); The University Of Michigan Men's Glee Club, The Soli Deo Gloria Cantorum Women's Choir (background vocals). Engineers include: John Richards, Hank Neuberger, Roger Arnett. Principally recorded at O'Henry Sound, Burbank, California; University Of Michigan Hill Auditorium, Ann Arbor, Michigan; Chicago Recording Company, Chicago, Illinois. Includes liner notes by Louis Stout. Digitally remastered using HDCD technology. Chip Davis has been yoking his electronic keyboard skills to Yuletide musical themes for enough years to have become a cottage industry, and his 2001 offering under the long-standing Mannheim Steamroller name, CHRISTMAS EXTRAORDINAIRE represents no dip in quality. Davis wisely plays to his huge, faithful audience's expectations by providing simple, straightforward instrumental versions of such well known Christmas classics as "Silver Bells," "Do You Hear What I Hear," and "White Christmas." The focus of the arrangements is, of course, Davis's own poignant, extremely melodic synthesizer work, neither as grand as the Yanni/Tesh school, nor as introspective as George Winston-style new-agers. While vocal tunes are in the minority in the Mannheim Steamroller catalog, pop icon Johnny Mathis does turn in a nice cameo on the old holiday chestnut "O Tannenbaum," adding an effective change of pace.

Description:

"The Best of Narada Christmas" (09/01/2003) New Age Various Artists, NaradaAll tracks have been digitally remastered.

Description:

"Christmas Collection [Box]" (08/29/2005) New Age Mannheim Steamroller, American Gramaphone RecordsThis collection includes the albums CHRISTMAS, A FRESH AIRE CHRISTMAS, CHRISTMAS EXTRAORDINAIRE, and CHRISTMAS IN THE AIRE. All tracks have been digitally remastered using HDCD technology. Issued in 2001, the CHRISTMAS COLLECTION box set presents four of the finest Yuletide albums by composer Chip Davis's amazingly successful Mannheim Steamroller project, including the original 1984 runaway hit, "Christmas." For those seeking a generous dose of Davis's holiday tunes, this is an excellent compilation, as it ranges from Steamroller's majestic, synth-laden take on "Deck the Halls" to a spare, gentle version of "O Little Town of Bethlehem."

Description:

"Christmas in Santa Fe" (10/17/2000) New Age Romero, Ruben, New Earth RecordsPersonnel includes: Ruben Romero (guitar); Robert Notkoff (violin); Ronald Roybal (Native American flute); Ben Lucero (bass); Carlos Guzman (bongos, congas, maracas, sleigh bells). Recorded at Stepbridge Studios, Santa Fe in 1999. Includes liner notes by Mary Crouchet.

Description:

"Christmas" (09/01/2002) New Age Janis, Tim, Koch InternationalPersonnel includes: Tim Janis (piano, synthesizer); Sean Witty (acoustic guitar); Viktoria Kehler (violin); Cinnamon Creeden (flute). Personnel include: Tim Janis (piano, synthesizer); Sean Witty (acoustic guitar); Keith Foley (bass guitar); Scott Kennedy (percussion).

Description:

"A Very Green Christmas" (10/01/1997) New Age Various Artists, Seventh WavePersonnel: Alex De Grassi (guitar); Joel Lindheimer (acoustic guitar, keyboard, acoustic bass, electric bass); Donelle Page (harp); Jeremy Cohen (violin); Doug Haman, Mark Summer (cello); Matt Eakle (flute); Paul McCandles (oboe, English horn, keyboard); Bob Ward (French horn); Suzanne Ciani (piano, synthesizer); Richard Burmer (synthesizer); Wilbur Krebs (bass instrument); Michael Manring (bass guitar); Michael Pluznick (drum, percussion); Peter Maund (percussion).

Description:

"A Windham Hill Christmas: I'll Be Home For Christmas" (10/12/2004) New Age Various Artists, Windham Hill RecordsI'LL BE HOME FOR CHRISTMAS features 14 seasonal songs as interpreted by some of the finest artists on the Windham Hill label. This compilation is filled with many unforgettable classics, as well as two lesser-known seasonal works, "Yazala Abambuti" and "Bring a Torch Jeanette Isabella." Gentle arrangements of "Angels from the Realms of Glory" and "O Holy Night" are both soothing and spiritually invigorating, while Philip Aaberg's piano reduction of the Nutcracker Suite captures the splendor and magnificence of Tchaikovsky's holiday ballet. The highpoint of I'LL BE HOME FOR CHRISTMAS is pianist Liz Story's delicate rendition of "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas." Other selections include Sean Harkness's "Christmas Time Is Here" and Philippe Saisse's "Winter Wonderland," both of which fall into a smooth-jazz feel. On the latter, a muted trumpet and funky backbeat turn this old-fashioned sing-along into a sleek, adult-contemporary single. Windham Hill's I'LL BE HOME FOR CHRISTMAS is the perfect addition to anyone's holiday wish list.

Description:

"Christmas & Santa Fe" (09/01/2001) New Age Liebert, Ottmar, Epic (USA)Ottmar Liebert & Luna Negra: Ottmar Liebert (acoustic guitar); Gary Lyons (slide guitar); Mike Middleton (trumpet); Jon Gagan (keyboards, acoustic bass); Mike Chavez (bongos, cowbell); Mark Clark (cajon, timbales, assorted percussion). Recorded at Spiral Subwave, Santa Fe, New Mexico in 1999.

Description:

"A Windham Hill Christmas II" (10/07/2003) New Age Various Artists, Windham Hill RecordsIncludes liner notes by John Diliberto. This is part of Windham Hill's "Christmas" series.

Description:

"Windham Hill Christmas: The Night Before Christmas" (10/25/2005) New Age Various Artists, Legacy Recordings

Description:

"Christmas Celebration" (08/29/2005) New Age Mannheim Steamroller, American Gramaphone RecordsMannheim Steamroller: Chip Davis (vocals, hammer dulcimer, cornemuse, recorder, dulcian, crumhorn, drums, percussion, bells, wind); Jackson Berkey (vocals, toy piano, Fender Rhodes piano, harpsichord, clavichord, keyboards, bells); Liz Westphalen (vocals); Ron Cooley (12-string guitar, classical guitar, lute, bass guitar); Mary Walter (harp); Arnie Roth (vielle, violin); Eric Hansen (lute, bass guitar); Steve Shipps (violin); John Sharpe, David Low, Gregory Clinton (cello); Willis Ann Ross (flute); Roxanne Layton (recorder, crumhorn); Bobby Jenkins (oboe); David Kappy (French horn). Additional personnel include: Johnny Mathis, Lynndee Mueller (vocals); Chicago, Renaissance Le Doo Dah Band, The University Of Michigan Men's Glee Club, Bielefelder Kinderchor, Cambridge Singers. In 1984, Chip Davis released his first Christmas record on his own label, American Gramaphone, under the pseudonym Mannheim Steamroller. It contained classics and his own compositions done in a synthesizer-heavy, orchestral style he dubbed "18th-century rock & roll." That album would go on to sell millions of copies and 20 years later, the name Mannheim Steamroller was synonymous with Christmas music in many circles. To celebrate his 20th anniversary of rousing, rapturous synth anthems, Davis released CHRISTMAS CELEBRATION, a collection of MS's best holiday moments with one new track, "Celebration." "Celebration" is a fitting addition to the Mannheim Steamroller canon, opening with a light fanfare before elevating to thunderous instrumental flashes of energy and spirited emotion, throwing in elements of the classics "Deck the Halls" and "Joy to the World" for good measure. Davis's interpretation of the former is probably his best-known work, and the festive Steamroller version is also prominently included here. An appealing collaboration with Johnny Mathis on "O Tannenbaum," where a choral rendering gives way to a timeless Mathis vocal, provides another highlight of this compilation.

Description:

"Xmas Ecstasy" (08/26/2003) New Age Kater, Peter, Silver Wave

Description:

"A Romantic Christmas" (10/10/1995) New Age Tesh, John, GTS RecordsPersonnel: John Tesh (piano); Charlie Bisharat (orchestra arranger, violin); John Bisharat (conductor); Paul Viapiano (classical guitar); Juliann French, Maria Newman, Sid Page, Darius Campo, Anatoly Rosinsky, Berj Garabedian, Bob Sanov, Sheldon Sanov, Peter Kent, Michelle Richards, Roger Wilkie (violin); Brian Dembow, John Scanlon, Karie Prescott, David Stenske (viola); Matt Cooker, Sachi McHenry, Armen Ksadjikian, Ed Willett (cello); Dave Stone, Ed Alton (bass); Katie Kirkpatrick (harp); Joan Elardo (oboe, English horn); Vince Denham (saxophone); John Reynolds (French horn); Tim Landers (fretless bass). The Paulist Boy Choristers Of California: Carol Foster (choir director); Joseph Bertolami, Matthew Bertolet, Christian Campos, Timothy Chew, Darren Davies, Hassan Dornayi, Anthony Fournier, Cris Garza, Chris Gough, Michael Graham, Andrew Henning, Gerardo Hernandez, Eric Hwang, Jay Johnson, Tyler Klein, Theodorus Laksmana, Matthew Lawrence, Andrew Lumsden, Jon McIlinay, Michael Martner, Dante Nakazawa, Dominic O'Connor, Jesse Ramirez, Brian Sanchez, Jordan Ste. Marie, Ricky Valenzuela, Hank Wilkes.

Description:

"Christmas Eve" (09/01/2003) New Age Lanz, David, NaradaSolo performer: David Lanz (piano). Recorded at the home of David Lanz, Seattle, Washington from March to May, 1994.

Description:

"A Family Christmas" (09/20/1994) New Age Tesh, John, GTS RecordsPersonnel: John Tesh (piano); John Bisharat (conductor); Paul Viapiano, Bill Kanengiser, Scott Tennant (guitar); Charlie Bisharat (violin); Dan Higgins (soprano & alto saxophones); Rick Baptist (trumpet, flugelhorn); John Reynolds, Steve Becknell (French horn); Jim Self (tuba); Tim Heintz (keyboards); Tim Landers (bass); Dave Hooper (drums); Brian Kilgore (percussion). The Christmas Symphony Orchestra: Charlie Bisharat (concertmaster); Sid Page, Becky Barr, Darius Campo, Joel Derouin, Bruce Dukov, Charlie Everett, Armen Garabedian, Berj Garabedian, Harris Goldman, Clayton Haslop, Norman Hughes, Peter Kent, Vanessa Kibbe, Liane Mautner, Maria Newman, Vladimir Polimatidi, Rachel Robinson, Gil Romero, Jay Rosen, Haim Shtrum, James Sitterly (violin); Evan Wilson, Marcy Dicterow, Simon Oswell, Jimbo Ross, Nancy Roth, Ray Tischer, Herschel Wise, Helaine Wittenberg (viola); Steve Richards, Chris Ermacoff, Melissa Hasin, Armen Ksadjikian, Michael Mathews, Cecilia Tsan (cello); Dave Stone, Dave Carpenter, Tim Emmons, Dave Young (bass); Joan Elardo (oboe). Includes liner notes by John Tesh.

Description:

"The Simple Gift of Christmas" (10/07/2003) New Age Janis, Tim, Tim Janis EnsemblePersonnel: Tim Janis (piano, synthesizer); David Surette (acoustic guitar); Oana Lacatus, Janice Martin, Sergei Kogut (violin); Cinnamon Creeden (flute, pennywhistle); Keith Foley (fretless bass); Scott Kennedy (percussion).

Description:

"A Christmas Classic" (09/03/2002) New Age Gunn, Nicholas, Gemini Sun

Description:

"The Christmas Album" (09/01/2003) New Age Lanz, David, Narada

Description:

"Christmas Guitar" (10/10/2000) New Age Smith, Doug (New Age), Solid Air RecordsSolo performer: Doug Smith (acoustic guitar). Recorded at Sign Of The Scorpion Studios, Studio City, California.

Description:

"Christmas Piano Collection" (10/04/2005) New Age Janis, Tim, Dawn Treader Productions, LLC

Description:

"Christmas Chill" (10/07/2003) New Age Various Artists, Koch Records (USA)

Description:

"A Tribute to Mannheim Steamroller" (06/12/2003) New Age DJ's Choice, Turn Up The Music, Inc.

Description:

Description:

"Peace on Earth: The Best of Tingstad & Rumbel Christmas" (10/05/2004) New Age Tingstad, Eric, NaradaEric Tingstad/Nancy Rumbel: Eric Tingstad (guitar, synthesizer); Nancy Rumbel (ocarina, oboe, English horn, piano, synthesizer, chimes). Additional personnel: David Lanz (keyboards); Garey Shelton (bass guitar); Ben Smith (drums, percussion). Recording information: Cheshire Studios, Seattle, Washington (05/2004 - 06/2004); G Sound, Seattle, Washington (05/2004 - 06/2004); Triad Studios, Redmond, Washington (05/2004 - 06/2004); All The Comforts Of Home, Sammamish, Washington (05/2004 - 06/2004).

Description:

"Christmas Worship" (10/14/2003) New Age Tesh, John, Word EntertainmentThis release includes a bonus DVD. Personnel includes: John Tesh (vocals, piano); Leann Albrecht (vocals); Gary Burnette, Jerry McPherson (guitar); Jim Sitterly (violin, viola); Bobby Taylor (oboe); Mark Hill (bass); Ken Lewis, Dan Needham (drums); Kent Hooper (programming); Kim Keyes, Marshall Hall, Melodie Crittenden, Gene Miller, Nanette Bohannon (background vocals). Recorded at Bridgeway Studio, Franklin, Tennessee. After listening to CHRISTMAS WORSHIP, even the most cynical anti-Teshites might be hard pressed to deny that the new age superstar produces some of the most accessible and finely crafted pop available. Less a straight holiday album and more a combination Christmas/praise-and-worship record, the disc offers creative interpretations of several chestnuts and a generous helping of the same CCM fare Tesh explored on A DEEPER FAITH. Like several of John Tesh's previous albums, CHRISTMAS WORSHIP includes a number of surprisingly strong vocal performances, most notably on the inspirational power ballad "This Is Your Gift," which recalls PIANO MAN-era Billy Joel. The rest of the album casts a wide stylistic net, featuring everything from a version of "Joy To The World" that glides over Paul Oakenfold-esque dance beats, to an interesting spoken-word piece consisting of a September 11th-related first-person essay. Though listeners looking for a traditional, light-hearted family Yuletide album may want to shop elsewhere, fans searching for a deeper holiday meaning will find a lot to explore and enjoy on CHRISTMAS WORSHIP.

Description:

"Merry Christmas" (09/02/2003) New Age Young, David (New Age), Universe

Description:

"A Renaissance Christmas" (09/03/2003) New Age Young, David (New Age), Universe