Victorian Christmas

URL: http://www.gourd.com/125A.HTML

When previewing the above you will note that the Christmas music that most Christians today listen to, participate in and enjoy, originated during Queen Victoria’s reign and earlier. The music of the masses enjoyed then is equally enjoyed today by many people. Some of the most favorite Victorian carols include The Wexford Carol, a long-time favorite Greensleeves, The Wassail Song, Un Flambeau, Jeanette, Isabella, and finally, Wherefore This Great Joy. All these familiar songs play an important role in the Christmases of today, for many nationalities and people of many religions.

This particular site provides examples of how these songs were played in days gone by, and tell a bit about the types of instruments used to play them. Today, these songs are performed by large symphonies, and recorded for prosperity so that everyone, from every walk of life, can enjoy music they consider their own, no matter how old they actually are.

Equally important and enjoyed during the Christmas season would be the music of Tchaikovsky, such as what is found at URL: URL: http://www.rosemck1.tripod.com/jukebox-classical.html

The Nutcracker Suite, Op. 71, was composed by Pyotr Illych Tchaikovsky in 1891 – 1892 near the end of Queen Victoria’s reign and first performed as a ballet on December 18, 1982 in St. Petersburg, Russia. Though Queen Victoria may never have had the pleasure of watching the Royal Ballet perform to this, or hear the Royal Symphony perform Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker, due to the vision of her late husband in constructing the Crystal Palace that brought cultural events to his beloved England; the British people in the early 20th Century could appreciate the splendour of such a music and perhaps be caught up in the glamour and wishful thinking that both the ballet and symphony created.

Since the Nutcracker Suite is such a classical piece, it appeals to all genders. Granted it tends to be somewhat romantic, but women are not the only human creatures who are capable of being romantic; afterall, it was a man who composed the music. Because of the classical lineage of such a piece, today, we can hear and see The Nutcracker in such animated films as “Fantasia”, where favourite tunes such as Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy, Dance of the Reed Flutes and Waltz of the Flowers can be enjoyed by all viewers and listeners. The classical animated film, “Sleeping Beauty” also contains songs from The Nutcracker Suite, signifying that this historical cultural music can not only be appreciated by an adult audience, but can also be inspirational to very young viewers, who by the gaiety of the music alone, and the performance of the ballerinas, have inspired hundreds of young people to take up dance, and learn to play an instrument that can be used to play the music themselves. Classical music is not just for the rich; it can be owned now by everyone; people can listen to it on their CDs in the comfort of their own homes, knowing that the Victorian era of the great performances such as this, can be heard over and over again, with or without any other audience, other than oneself.

The second URL provides hint of the music contained in The Nutcracker Suite that is suitable for all audiences and should be listened to and appreciated as a piece of fine history that never died.