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I'm still using that one, fliper! I was thinking about getting the second book, but then I remembered that I bought "Christmas For All Time, Book 2" (Faber)last year, and only learned one piece from it.

Last year I learned "Carol of the Bells" from the Faber book, and the short version of "O Come, O Come Emmanuel" from David Nevue, and just relaxed with level one pieces for the rest of my Christmas repertoire. I'm waiting a little bit longer this year because last year by the time Christmas day came, I was already burned out on Christmas carols. LOL

In case anyone is interested in some jazzier versions of classic carols, I have two arrangements available now:

Swingle Bells

and

Three Blue Kings

Both are about Grade 3 difficulty

Love the titles!

This may not be "politically correct," but it seems apropos... and yes, I started practicing Christmas music a couple of weeks ago!

I'm working on Christmas music already. I started by playingthe pieces that i learned last year out of the Faber level 4 Christmas book. I played about 4 pieces last year (they are on my youtube page.) I decided to play a few more pieces out of that book for this Christmas. I should have them ready when the Christmas thread gets started.

Most of the pieces that I played last year took a couple of weeks per piece. I am finding them to be much easier this year.

Do you know which Christmas songs are the classics to listen to in Lima, Perú?

Weeds,

I picked up a couple of books from that thread figuring they'd make good reading fodder if nothing else.

I've also been searching for jazzy arrangements and just last night found the one I want to work on........a real nice Dan Coates arrangement of Merry Christmas, Darling. Once I heard those lush chords I knew I was hooked for the holidays, even though it is going to take some work to get it sounding good.

I'm working on some Christmas music now, and loving it! It is some of my favorite music. My teacher is using some carol books to go through to work on sight reading skills, and I figure I'll pick 4-5 of them to work up to play for fun for family and friends this Christmas.

LOL, when I played through it last night I didn't even realize the song (Merry Christmas, Darling) was the one done back in the 1970's by Karen Carpenter. Ugggh, if there was ever a group or a singer that made me gag it was the Carpenters in the 70's. I may have to rethink my Xmas strategy here.

Same here.
I hope you can focus on the music rather than that bit of unfortunate history.

Started lessons 8 weeks ago. Jingle Bells is kicking my butt!!

Last year I spent a month learning a couple songs from Alfred's Basic Adult Christmas Piano Book, level one. Last weekend I played most of it while sight-reading

Granted, many of the songs are so familiar, but it still felt like progress.

Allard that is excellent progress! Good for you. This is where you see/hear/feel the progress with the materials from last year. Good for you!

Newest student hang in there. You will tame the Jingle Beast. Give it some time. You will see it will come together.

The Dan Coates arrangement of "Merry Christmas, Darling" is an excellent intermediate level arrangement of a wonderful holiday classic - it has just the correct number of slightly dissonant chords placed at just the ideal spots to make it "edgy" and interesting - I worked on and recorded this arrangement a couple of years ago and posted it to Mr. Super Hunky's annual holiday music thread...

Keep working on it and you'll be very glad you did - don't allow your very unjustifiable and unreasonable prejudice against The Carpenters stop you from learning and playing one of the best popular Christmas songs ever from one of the finest and most remarkable voices ever...

Perhaps you might want to give her another in depth and at length hearing, which would be a fair hearing now that you have probably gained much in wisdom with age and maturity...

I agree with TrapperJohn. I'm sure any of us wished we had the piano/arranger chops Richard Carpenter had and what can you say about Karen Carpenter's voice -- she was amazing.

I hear you TJ, but the gag reflex is strong. And I will be the first to admit it is a nice arrangement as I originally stated. I will even agree that she had a good voice and was/is talented.

"Prejudiced and unreasonable"? Nahhhh. Sometimes music or a musician or a song can be tied in our minds with specific people, places, and moments in time. That's just the way it is....baggage. As I told my first wife, "go ahead, take alllllll the Linda Rondstadt albums, just leave me the Dead, the Airplane and the Who.

Ref. under R - Rostosky, Jazz, icepick in eyeball.

Ha! Saying Karen Carpenter has a good voice is sort of like saying that Playboy's Playmate of the Month has nice assets - it's true, but seems to be a slight understatement