Russian Christmas Music facts for kids

Russian Christmas Music is a famous musical piece written for a symphonic band. A symphonic band is a large group of musicians who play wind, brass, and percussion instruments. The American composer Alfred Reed created this music in 1944. It is one of the most popular pieces ever written for concert bands.

How the Music Was Born

Alfred Reed was asked to write this special piece of music for a concert. The concert took place in Denver, Colorado, in 1944. Its main goal was to help improve the friendship between the Soviet Union (which was a big country that included Russia) and the United States.

The concert was planned to feature new music from both countries. Another piece was supposed to be the "Russian" part. However, it turned out that piece had already been played in the U.S. So, Alfred Reed was given the big task. He had only 16 days to write a brand new piece of "Russian music"!

The music was first played on December 12, 1944. It was broadcast across the whole country on NBC radio.

Exploring the Music's Sections

Even though Russian Christmas Music is played as one continuous piece, it has four clear parts. Each part tells a different story or creates a different feeling.

Part 1: Carol of the Little Russian Children

This first section is calm and slow. It lasts about three minutes. The music is based on an old Russian Christmas song from the 1500s.

It starts very quietly with the chimes, contrabass clarinet, and string bass. Then, the clarinets play the main tune. Other instruments slowly join in, making the sound fuller. This part ends with a series of rich musical chords.

Part 2: Antiphonal Chant

This section is faster and louder than the first. It lasts about two minutes. The main tune is first played by the trombones, horns, trumpets, and cornets.

Soon, the woodwind instruments join in. The music gets more and more exciting and powerful. This part ends with a huge crash from the cymbals and tam-tam. Then, it suddenly becomes very calm again, with the trombones, low clarinets, and bassoons playing softly.

Part 3: Village Song

This part is much softer and more peaceful. It lasts about five minutes. The cor anglais (a type of oboe) plays two beautiful solos. The flutes, piccolos, and oboes also have special solo parts. The horns play solos at the end of each of these sections.

The music changes its rhythm to a 6/4 time signature. The band plays gentle, singing phrases that pass back and forth between the woodwind and brass instruments. The string bass plays fast, flowing notes, which are then taken over by the bells. This section becomes quiet again and finishes with another solo from the English horn.

Part 4: Cathedral Chorus

The final section, lasting about five minutes, starts quietly, just like the end of the "Village Song." But then, the trombones and percussion instruments grow louder and louder. This brings in the rest of the band in a grand and majestic way.

The music builds up to a big, powerful moment. Then, it softens for a final, hymn-like tune played by the woodwinds. The sound builds up one last time, and the piece ends with a thundering, powerful sound. The chimes and tam-tam are used a lot here, along with soaring horn melodies.

Performance and Other Uses

A typical performance of Russian Christmas Music usually lasts between 14 and 16 minutes.

Alfred Reed wrote this piece to sound like the music from the Eastern Orthodox Church. This church's music mainly uses human voices. Because of this, the entire piece should be played with a very lyrical, singing quality, almost as if the instruments are voices.

Alfred Reed also created a simpler version of parts of this music. It's called Slavonic Folk Suite. This version is for younger or less experienced bands. It includes the "Carol of the Little Russian Children" (called "Children's Carol" in this version) and the "Cathedral Chorus."

The song is also the official corps song for the Crossmen Drum and Bugle Corps, a marching music group.