"A Christmas Festival" for Orchestra by Leroy Anderson:   Complete reference: recordings, audio files, published music, performances, official website

Composition:  "A Christmas Festival" for Orchestra
Composer:  Leroy Anderson
Completed:  June 12, 1950 Woodbury, Connecticut
Instrumentation:  Symphony Orchestra
Structure:   Overture
First Performed:  June 12, 1950, Boston Pops Orchestra, Boston, Massachusetts; Arthur Fiedler, conductor;
Publisher: Woodbury Music Company LLC; Available from Alfred Publishing

Arthur Fiedler asked Leroy Anderson to write a special concert piece for a Christmas recording in 1950.  Anderson selected eight of the most popular Christmas carols and one Christmas song, "Jingle Bells".  Using the themes, Anderson built a concert overture that was nine minuutes in length (8:48), whose title at the time of the June 12, 1950 recording was "Christmas Festival".  For publication in 1952, Anderson eliminated "The First Noel" and shortened the overture overall to a length of 5:45.  Anderson adjusted the title to "A Christmas Festival".

Christmas Festival 1950 (8:48)
Choral setting
A Choral setting for this original longer version of "A Christmas Festival" will be available through Alfred in 2022.  See the Printed Music page on this website to purchase the music from Woodbury Music Company LLC.

  1. Joy to the World
      music: Handel (1685-1759), arr. Lowell Mason (1839)
      texte: Isaac Watts (1719)
      @ 0:00

  2. Deck the Halls with Boughs of Holly
      music & texte: John Parry (1741)
      from a traditional Welsh carol
      @ 0:45

  3. God Rest ye Merry Gentlemen
      music & texte: 16th century traditional English carol
      @ 1:39

  4. Good King Wenceslas
      music & texte: John Mason Neale (1853)
      @ 2:45

  5. Hark the Herald Angels Sing
      music: Félix Mendelssohn (1809-1847);
      texte based on poem: Charles Wesley
      @ 3:26

  6. The First Nowell
      music & texte: Davies Gilbert (1767-1839)
      from a traditional Welsh carol
      @ 4:18

  7. Silent Night (1818)
      music: Franz Xaver Gruber;   texte: Joseph Mohr
      @ 5:26

  8. Jingle Bells
      music & texte: (1857) James Lord Pierpont (1822-1893)
      @ 6:45

  9. O Come All Ye Faithful (Adeste Fideles)
      music & texte: John Francis Ward (1710-1786)
      @ 7:30

Choral setting
A Choral setting by Nathan Zemp for this original longer version of "A Christmas Festival" will be available through Alfred in 2022.  See the Printed Music page on this website to purchase the music from Woodbury Music Company LLC.

"A Christmas Festival" 1952 (5:45)

  1. Joy to the World
      music: Handel (1685-1759), arr. Lowell Mason (1839)
      texte: Isaac Watts (1719)

  2. Deck the Halls with Boughs of Holly
      music & texte: John Parry (1741)
      from a traditonal Welsh carol

  3. God Rest ye Merry Gentlemen
      music & texte: 16th century traditonal English carol

  4. Good King Wenceslas
      music & texte: John Mason Neale (1853)

  5. Hark the Herald Angels Sing
      music: Félix Mendelssohn (1809-1847);
      texte based on poem: Charles Wesley

  6. Silent Night (1818)
      music: Franz Xaver Gruber;   texte: Joseph Mohr

  7. Jingle Bells
      music & texte: (1857) James Lord Pierpont (1822-1893)

  8. O Come All Ye Faithful (Adeste Fideles)
      music & texte: John Francis Ward (1710-1786)

Choral setting
A Choral setting for this shorter version of "A Christmas Festival" is available through Alfred.

Sheet music available for purchase through: TotalSheetMusic.com. Website: https://www.totalsheetmusic.com/digital-sheet-music/a-christmas-festival-674713/ Alfred Publishing Co., Inc. https://www.totalsheetmusic.com/digital-sheet-music/a-christmas-festival-674713/ A Christmas Festival - Copyright

  Copyright to "A Christmas Festival" (1950 & 1952) and other music by Leroy Anderson was assigned to Woodbury Music Company LLC in the Extended Renewal Term.

Recordings in Chronological Order:

OrchestraConductorLengthYearFormatLabel ID #
Boston Pops OrchestraArthur Fiedler8:241950Mono 45RCA Victor 12-1289
Pops Concert OrchestraLeroy Anderson8:531952Mono 78Decca 16041 (45-83582)
Pops Concert OrchestraLeroy Anderson8:531955Mono LPDecca DL-8193
Boston Pops OrchestraArthur Fiedler8:371959Stereo LPRCA LSC-2329
Pops Concert OrchestraLeroy Anderson8:571959Stereo LPDecca DL-78925
Pops Concert OrchestraLeroy Anderson8:571980Stereo LPPickwick SPC-1036
Boston Pops OrchestraJohn Williams9:101980Stereo LPPhilips Classics 416 287-1
Boston Pops OrchestraJohn Williams9:101980Stereo LPPhilips Classics 416 287-1
Rochester Pops OrchestraErich Kunzel6:271984Stereo CDPro Arte CDD 220
Black Dyke Mills Band
United Kingdom
Roy Newsome6:241988Stereo CDChandos 8679
Pops Concert OrchestraLeroy Anderson8:571990Monaural CDMCA
Boston Pops Orchestra
Tanglewood Festival Chorus
John Williams9:271992Stereo CDSony Classical SK 48232
Boston Pops OrchestraArthur Fiedler8:371994Stereo CDBMG Classics RCA 61685-2
Philharmonic Symphony
and Chorus
Richard Hayman 1994Stereo CDNaxos
U.S. Army Air Force
Symphony Orchestra
1997Stereo CDAltissimo
Concordia University
Wind Symphony
Richard Fischer 1999Stereo CDMark Masters Records
Philadelphia Pops
Orchestra
Peter Nero7:352001/2003Stereo CDDRG 91478
Philharmonic Symphony
and Chorus
Richard Hayman 2006Stereo CDNaxos
BBC Concert OrchestraLeonard Slatkin 2008Stereo CDNaxos Records
Keystone Wind EnsembleJack Stamp 2008Stereo CDKlavier Records
Denver BrassWarren Deck 2012Stereo CDDenver Brass Records
Dallas Wind SymphonyJerry Junkin 2012Stereo CDReference Recordings
The Salvation Army
Legacy Brass Band, Canada
Geoffrey Linklater7:262015Stereo CD
California State University
Northridge Wind Ensemble
Lawrence Stoffel 2016Stereo CDMark Records
University of Florida
Clarinet Ensemble
Mitchell Estrin 2016Stereo CDMark Records
Pops Concert OrchestraLeroy Anderson8:532019Monaural CDReal Gone Music RGM-0954
Pops Concert OrchestraLeroy Anderson8:572019Stereo CDReal Gone Music RGM-0954
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Royal Scottish National Junior Chorus
Christopher Bell 2020Stereo CDSignum Classics


Other Recordings:
  1. "A Christmas Festival" performed by Nathan Zemp
    "A Christmas Festival" by Leroy Anderson, arranged by Nathan Zemp for piano, © 2020 Woodbury Music Company LLC


Composer quotes:
(From a 1960's interview with Dick Bertel of WTIC Radio, Hartford, Connecticut)

Question: When you wrote "The Christmas Festival", what were you trying to achieve?

Leroy Anderson: "Well, I was trying to write a Christmas festival. You see, there are all types of things that have been written for various occasions and in this particular case I was working at the time for the Boston Pops, I was the arranger and orchestrator for them for years, and they wanted to record a special concert number, using Christmas songs, carols and other Christmas music, for records, so they asked, Arthur Fiedler asked me to do a concert overture, and this is how it came about. I selected the ones that were the most popular and best known, and then I took them and tried to give instrumental treatment to them; in other words, it's not a medley, that isn't what we wanted to do here, certainly what I didn't want to do. I rather took the themes and built you might say a concert overture, around the Christmas songs. They're not just carols because in this we end with "Jingle Bells", that is, of course, a secular song, it's not a carol, but it's associated so much with the gaiety and spirit of Christmas that you certainly couldn't leave it out."

Question: You were telling me earlier that the days of 78 rpm records presented a problem to you as far as composing was concerned.

Leroy Anderson: "That's right, when this was done, I think it was in 1950 or 1951, they still had single records as the main part of the market; LP's were just about coming in. so while it was played all the way through, that is, when it was recorded, for the LP, we also had to make a split after four minutes - the Christmas Festival runs about 8 minutes so that meant that when I wrote it I had to make a place in the middle where you could stop and this is a problem I had with many other things I did for the Boston Pops such as the musical comedy selections, where they ran 7 or 8 minutes and had to go on two sides of a record, it was necessary to write so there was a spot in the middle where you could make a logical break, and at the same time also pick up again for the other side, and it had to be as satisfactory as it could for that purpose; but, at the same time, it had to be done so it wasn't noticeable when you played the whole thing all the way through. In other words, you couldn't have the seams showing. This was done in the Christmas Festival and if I may brag a bit, I defy anybody to find out the exact spot where that occurred because, of course, we don't play it stopping any more, it's played all the way through be cause now with LP records we don't have to stop every three or four minutes."

Composer Quote: "I wrote A Christmas Festival originally for recording on two side of a single record, which had a playing time of eight minutes. In preparing it for publication, I realized most conductors would not want a selection of this length, so I made a shorter version myself, rather than have them try to make makeshift cuts. This also reduced the amount of engraving and printing so that it could be made available at a lower price. The full version is available in manuscript from Alfred Music for anyone who wishes to perform it." Videos:



Christmas Day

Published 1948

Written for chorus in 1948, "Christmas Day" is an arrangement by Anderson for standard 4 part SATB (Soprano, Alto, Tenor, Bass) Chorus of the traditional German carols: Good Christian Men Rejoice; God Rest You Merry Gentlemen; Come Ye Lofty, Come Ye Lowly; The First Nowell.  Since it was published before being performed, the first performance is unknown.

Note: "Christmas Day" was originally scored by German composer Gustav Holst who was a guest professor of composition at Harvard from February to May 1932.  It was during this time that Anderson was the organist and choir director at the East Milton Congregational Church.

"Christmas Day" is a setting of a German folk song I made many years ago for the junior choir of the church in Milton, Massachusetts where I was organist.  In 1948 I rewrote it for mixed choir with an organ part and it was published.  I am glad to see it is still being performed.

Leroy Anderson, letter 1972

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Copyright

Copyrights to the music of Leroy Anderson
are held by Woodbury Music Company LLC.
For information concerning the use
of Leroy Anderson's music,
contact the Leroy Anderson family at:
info[at]woodburymusic[dot]com.



Also visit the official website
of the
Leroy Anderson Foundation
established by his family.


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