Discography of medieval and Renaissance Christmas music

The following disks can be found in the classical room of any major record store (Tower, Virgin, etc.). Some can be found at public and/or University libraries, and most can be found at our house.

The Recordings

Altramar.  Nova Stella: a Medieval Italian Christmas.  (Dorian Discovery DIS-80142, 1996)

The Indiana University-based ensemble Altramar studies the literature, art and music of both East and West to create medieval  musical synergy.  In this album, they present their interpretation of music (about the Annunciation, the birth of Christ, and related miracles) that might have been performed at a Nativity tableau staged in 1223 by Francis of Assisi.  The original 13th-century notation was rhythmically ambiguous, so Altramar do some pieces in a free “chant” style, and others in complex rhythms inspired by Arabic musical tradition. Voices and medieval string instruments: harp, gittern, lute, vielle, and rebec.

Anonymous 4. On Yoolis Night. (HMU 907099)

This NYC women's vocal quartet (which "stopped touring" in 2004, although all the members are still active individually) was famous for their extraordinarily pure tone and blend. This album contains a variety of Englich chant and polyphony from the 12th - 15th centuries. Not the album to keep you awake on a long drive, but excellent for washing away the day's troubles.

La Capella Reial. Cant de la Sibil-la. (Astree/Auvidis E 8705)

For those interested in straying far from the old standards, these settings of Sibylline prophecy were traditionally performed at the Christmas Eve mass in medieval Catalonia. Deliciously dark.

Andrew Lawrence-King. Weihnachtliche Harfenmusik: the Harp at Christmastide. (Ambitus amb 97 812, 1986)

The world’s foremost early-harp player interprets a variety of Christmas carols (e.g. "Es Ist Ein Rose Entsprungen" and "In Dulci Jubilo"), mostly sixteenth-century German plus a few Bach favorites, on reconstructed medieval, renaissance, and baroque harps. This instrumental album makes ideal background music for holiday parties, or for decompressing at home.

Mediæval Bæbes. Salva Nos. (Virgin 0 6700 301412 20, 1997)

Unlike Anonymous 4, these ladies use a very nasalized Balkan-style vocal placement, and a variety of period instruments such as recorders and hammer dulcimer. The Bæbes also differ from Anonymous 4 in their laissez-faire approach to historical accuracy. Several songs on this recording have medieval lyrics with melodies composed by one of the group members, but there’s a higher proportion of period songs here than on other Bæbes recordings.

New York Ensemble for Early Music. Nova: a Medieval Christmas. (Ex Cathedra EC-9001 70070-29001-2)

A survey of Christmas music from 200 years and several countries. Worthy of note is countertenor Marshall Coid, whose voice is light and supple, without the hooty "bargain-countertenor" quality that sets this reviewer's teeth on edge. The recording has a nice balance of unaccompanied vocal pieces and instrumental ones, and also balances the obscure bits (e.g. "Rex Virginum Amator") with more widely-known songs (e.g. "Orientis Partibus," known in the SCA as "Oriental Party Bus").

Maddy Prior with the Carnival Band. A Tapestry of Carols. (Saydisc CD-SDL-366, 1987)

Or “A Very Steeleye Christmas.”   The Carnival Band uses more period instrumentation, and fewer electrified instruments, than Steeleye Span, but the rollicking arrangements, and Ms. Pryor’s unmistakable vocal stylings, will invite comparisons with the aforementioned Brit folk-rockers.

Sequentia. Shining Light: Music from Aquitanian Monasteries (DHM 05472 773702)

The oldest extant Western polyphony is the 12th-century Aquitanian repertoire referred to as the "School of St. Martial de Limoges." Sequentia, under the leadership of Benjamin Bagby and the late Barbara Thornton, present this music with their typical combination of meticulous scholarship and thoughtful performance. The pieces are tied together by the theme of light, and performed variously by men’s voices, women’s voices, and medieval strings.  The crystalline precision of the voices as they soar through voluptuous melismas and linger over suspensions is a spinetingling delight. Savor it on a moonlit snowy evening....

Sinfonye. Gabriel's Greeting. (Hyperion CDA66685)

A "rambunctious" interpretation, with fiddles, hurdy-gurdies, and a Balkanesque singing style. An acquired taste, with a refreshing pungency.

The York Waits. Old Christmas Return'd. (Saydisc CD-SDL 398)

13th-16th century songs, with a few "traditional" items, played on soft instruments and loud. And who wouldn't want to be serenaded by shawms at Christmas, right?

The York Waits and Deborah Catterall. Christmas Musicke 1400-1800. (Brewhouse Music BHCD9607, 1996)

About half of the tracks on this album are “Olde English” Christmas carols, like “I saw three ships come sailing in” and “Ding dong merrily on high”; there are also French, German, Spanish, Italian, and Spanish pieces. Performed variously on voice, flute, recorder, crumhorn, bagpipe, hurdy-gurdy, cornett, sackbut, and shawm.