Early Christmas Music and Carols from the British Isles, France and Canada Performed on
Period Instruments
Packed full of engaging and appealing seasonal offerings, Winter's Delights is Quadriga Consort's new album and welcome addition to Yuletide.
English composer and poet Thomas Campion (1567–1620) famously wrote 'Summer hath his joys and Winter his delights,' and the consort has taken this memorable line as its starting point for this attractive collection of popular and lesser-known winter melodies.
The album includes traditional English carols such as "The First Nowell," "The Three Kings" and "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel," together with Scottish tunes such as "Gloomy Winter," "The Traveller Benighted in Snow" and "Leanabh an Aigh" (The Blessed Child), better known in recent years as the hit song "Morning has Broken." From Ireland comes the traditional jig "A Merry Christmas" as well as the medley consisting of "Early in the Morning" (trad. hornpipe) / "The Ivy Leaf" (trad. reel) / "Christmas Comes But Once A Year" (trad. jig). Nova Scotia beckons with "The Stormy Scenes of Winter" and France happily presents "Noel Nouvelet – Sing We Now of Christmas."
There is a charm and freshness to this unconventional edition and, most importantly, a sense of joy and delight in music-making that cannot fail to cheer and lift the spirits, even on the bleakest of winter nights.
