Sarah Brightman - A Winter Symphony (Deluxe) [B&N Exclusive Version] (2008)

This is Sarah Brightman's first Christmas album.
This holiday season, Sarah is releasing her first-ever Christmas album.

A Winter Symphony will bring her virtuosity and originality to many of the season's classics. Her angelic voice will glide through an array of season favorites, including "Silent Night," "In the Bleak Midwinter," a resplendent performance of "Ave Maria," and others.

A pearl….

Before you decide to buy this very wonderful and unique album of Christmas music be forewarned that this is NOT your typical album of American Christmas music, nor is it a "new age" Christmas album. If you are buying "A Winter Symphony" to satisfy those kinds of urges…be warned that this will work will probably not satisfy them!

BUT if you want a very different, very unique and yes…spiritual experience and are willing to embrace some European/British Christmas traditions then jump on in and buy "Winter Symphony."

Sarah Brightman did something which is by all standards quite a bold move…and that is to create a distinctly European and specifically British Christmas Album and release it overseas.

The songs on this album are songs most often heard in Europe/Britain…and NOT the USA. In fact, some of these Christmas songs I haven't heard since I moved back to America. Note: I mean BRITISH…songs British people listen at holiday time to: not songs Americans THINK the British listen to. Now let's deal with the album itself.

You can see just how European this album is with the very first song, which was co-written by the men from ABBA. Being a Japanese-Swedish-American I was struck by how Swedish the first song, "Arrival" is. In fact, "Arrival", reminds me a lot of a talented Swedish folk-singer, Merit Hemmingson, (who sadly is unknown outside of Sweden.) Given that this folk tradition is unknown outside of Sweden, "Arrival" is a pretty bold inclusion and shows you that this album is going to start out strong and it just gets better from there.

If you analyze the content of the album you can see that once again, Sarah Brightman and Frank Peterson imagined an album of music that would work like a themed "mini-musical." More specifically, and more exciting is the fact that they tied this "Winter Symphony" in with Sarah's most recent album "Symphony." The two albums deliberately compliment each other: even the art work on the two albums is inter-related with Sarah in "Winter Symphony" looking like the White image of herself that soars above the dead Red image who died in the labyrinth in the "Symphony" album.

I won't bore you with dissecting each song on the album, other than to say that both versions of "Ave Maria" on "A Winter Symphony" are distinctly different from each other and also from the more famous, controversial earlier version of "Ave Maria" that Sarah released previously. I particuarly like the first new version duet with Fernando Lima because of it's distinctly Hispanic flavor (I live in Southern California and can imagine someone singing this version in an old Mission at midnight on Christmas eve.)

Some reviewers criticized Sarah in this album for singing in a very high register…obviously these people never went to a C of E (Church of England) service. Sarah nails the classic C of E choir technique in what is most likely a nod to her childhood. (Again, that very British theme of the album.)

Sarah also includes some really lively songs. like "I Believe in Father Christmas" that remind me of songs you'd hear on the radio in London around Christmas time…the British version of our Fifties Christmas songs.

In closing, knowning just how polarized things have gotten over the years in America, let's address the issue of whether or not a non-Christian fan of Sarah Brightman's can enjoy this music. Being raised in an inter-Faith family of C of E'ers, Swedish Lutherans and Buddhists I can say…yes…both Christians and Non-Christians can enjoy this album.

A non-Christian fan of Sarah Brightman's should not be afraid of this album, even if there are some classic Christian religious songs in it. The religious songs in this album are very classical and very beautifully done…I especially like her version of "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring." Her "Ave Maria" with Fernando Lima is…well…I'm a Buddhist and I think it's awesome.

Conversely, a Christian fan of Sarah Brightman's should not fear this is some kind of "new age" perversion either. A Christian fan can also enjoy this album not fearing the inclusion of secular songs because these songs are in the European Yule tradition from whence all our current Christmas traditions sprang. In fact, I'd even venture that it might make an American Christian appreciate the European traditions more and slow down and not make their Christmas a frenzied, frantic shopping spree coupled with equally frenzied "Joy of Christmas" religious pagents.

Sarah Brightman's done something quite extraordinary…and that is to create an album of Holiday music which EVERYBODY, regardless of their religion (or lack thereof) can enjoy. Sarah's life the past few years has been challenging to say the least, and she's overcome those challenges in a most amazing manner which has been reflected in the joint "Symphony"/"Winter Symphony" albums. Like all true artists, she's taken her personal life with it's triumphs and tragedies, integrated it into her works and once again given her fans a transcendent experience that allows us to rise with her into a more hopeful future.

Sarah Brightman once described herself as being "very, very British" and that's reflected in her very, very British, very, very enjoyable "A Winter Symphony." And yes…I'd say an American can enjoy a very British album of Christmas music. So if, you're curious, buy the album, jump on in and have a Merry Christmas.

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A Winter Symphony [B&N Exclusive Version]
Disc 1
1 Arrival 3:16
2 Colder Than Winter 4:03
3 Ave Maria / Fernando Lima 4:10
4 Silent Night 3:09
5 In the Bleak Midwinter 3:44
6 I've Been This Way Before 3:52
7 Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring 3:58
8 Child in a Manger 3:07
9 I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday 4:41
10 Amazing Grace 3:06
11 Ave Maria 2:54
12 I Believe in Father Christmas 3:44
13 When a Child Is Born B&N Exclusive Bonus Track 3:41
14 Carpe Diem / Mario Frangoulis B&N Exclusive Bonus Track 3:58
15 Happy Christmas (War Is Over) B&N Exclusive Bonus Track 3:28



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