Sounds like: Keith Jarrett, Bill Evans, Vince Guaraldi, Liz Story's "The Gift", George Winston's "December", early Windham Hill solo piano artists, and "A Winter's Solstice" compilations.


Transcribed by: David Shenton ( https://www.shentonmusic.com/ ) verbatim to the sound recording

Contents:
1. Bring A Torch (Bring A Torch, Jeanette, Isabella)
2. Children Go Where I Send Thee / The Holly & The Ivy
3. Star Of Wonder (We Three Kings of Orient Are)
4. Silent (Silent Night, Holy Night)
5. Midnight (It Came Upon the Midnight Clear)
6. What Child Is This?
7. Greensleeves (homage to Liz Story)
8. Three Ships (I Saw Three Ships, Come Sailing In)
9. The Coventry Carol (Lully, Lulla, Lullay)
10. Sing We Now Of Christmas (Noël Nouvelet)
11. Carol Of The Bells

Album & Songbook review by: Kathy Parsons (MainlyPiano.com):

I have discovered a real wealth of great solo piano Christmas CDs this year! Isadar?s In Search For the Meaning of Christmas definitely falls into this category! Thoughtful, introspective, and a bit moody, Isadar?s arrangements are true to the carols (with some small melody changes in ?Bring a Torch? and ?Carol of the Bells? that bother me just a little) and still seem very personal. ?Bring a Torch?, ?The Holly and the Ivy?, and ?I Saw Three Ships? are given a lighthearted, joyful treatment. ?Star of Wonder (We Three Kings)?, ?What Child Is This??, ?The Coventry Carol?, and ?Sing We Now of Christmas? are all minor, somber, reverent pieces, and all four are given loving arrangements that keep the dark, mysterious nature of the songs and reflect Isadar?s own sensibilities. ?Carol of the Bells? and Isadar's take on Liz Story?s arrangement of ?Greensleeves? are energetic without losing all abandon. ?Silent Night? and ?It Came Upon a Midnight Clear? present us with a very cold, deep solitude - both feel like late night with moonlight reflecting off the snow. Both are moody, but very beautifully so. George Winston?s ?December? is one of my all-time favorite holiday albums, and I feel In Search For the Meaning of Christmas holds up exceptionally well next to it. This is an excellent collection of Christmas music, and I highly recommend it!

In Search For the Meaning of Christmas is the companion songbook to Isadar?s 1999 solo piano release by the same name. Meticulously transcribed note-for-note by David Shenton of New York Music Publishing, the music is faithful to the recording in every way (except for the pianist - YOU!). The scores are clear, concise, and easy to read, and also include chord indications for improvisation or the use of instruments other than or in addition to the piano. Isadar?s arrangements cover a whole range of emotions, from very dark and somber to joyful and buoyant. All of the pieces from the CD are here, including Isadar?s homage to Liz Story and her beautiful version of ?Greensleeves.? My personal favorites of the eleven songs in this book are the bright and cheerful ?Bring A Torch,? ?What Child Is This??, ?Greensleeves,? the darkly gorgeous ?The Coventry Carol,? and ?Sing We Now of Christmas.? Other titles that I really like are ?Children Go Where I Send Thee/The Holly and the Ivy,? ?Star of Wonder (We Three Kings)," ?Carol of the Bells,? and the effervescent ?Three Ships.? ?Silent? (Silent Night) and ?Midnight? (It Came Upon a Midnight Clear) are a bit too dark for my own holiday tastes, but are interesting and very personal arrangements. This book will make a great addition to your holiday sheet music collection and is available from isadar.com and amazon.com.

Isadar is an artist on both Enlightened Piano Radio & Whisperings Solo Piano Radio, the latter featuring some of today's biggest names in solo piano music, including Ludovico Einaudi, David Nevue, Brian Crain, Kevin Kern, Robin Spielberg, Michele McLaughlin, Philip Wesley and over 300 more...

Also available as sheet music in physical songbooks, digital downloads, as well as software for Yamaha Disklavier player-pianos.

For more information, visit his website at: http://www.isadar.com

This sheet music collection of 20 folk songs is notated for 13-note (one octave, C to C chromatic scale) instruments with Handbells on one staff and Boomwhackers® on a second staff creating an instrumental ensemble (requires one set of each instrument). Handbells play the melody while the Boomwhackers® keep a steady beat with three-note chords. For each song, there is a combined score with both parts on a grand staff plus a separate 1-staff score for each individual part. A note and chord reference chart is also provided for each song.

The songs in this digital book are ordered by difficulty with the easiest songs presented first. The songs progressively incorporate more challenging rhythms, some requiring rapid chord changes. Many of the songs include two verses. The first verse is ?easy? with fewer notes. The second verse is ?intermediate? and expands the melody by adding more notes (sometimes including harmony notes). If you want to learn (practice) only the ?easy? verse, an optional ending is provided or it can be skipped to perform the two verses together.

Though this sheet music is notated for Handbells and Boomwhackers®, these arrangements are playable by any 13-note, C to C chromatic scale (one octave) instrument such as a xylophone or glockenspiel. The melody could also be played by a recorder.

This set of scores uses colored noteheads corresponding to the Boomwhackers® color scheme. If you have a set of bells or tubes with a different color scheme, ?Chroma-Notes Stick Ons? can be purchased and applied so the instruments match the Boomwhackers® color scheme. This set of scores is also available (separate purchase) in black and white which will print clearer if you do not have access to a color printer.

Only filled noteheads (quarter and eighth notes) are used so the notes are full color and easier to see (this does not indicate the bells need to be silenced immediately before the next beat). Also, only quarter and eighth rests are used to help visualize the number of beats per measure. Lyrics and chord names are provided as well to aid in the learning and teaching of this song.

The number of ringers and whackers needed will vary depending on the skill level of the participants. For more advanced players, each person could be assigned two or three notes. For beginners, it is best to assign one or two notes to each person. Instrument assignment suggestions are provided for each song.

Other suggestions and uses:
* have both parts played by bells or both parts played using only Boomwhackers®
* form a choir using multiple sets of bells and/or Boomwhackers® (this would amplify the sound and allow more people to participate)
* use as part of the music education for children at school, home, or church
* these colorful, inexpensive instruments can be enjoyed by all ages and add a fun, unique element to activities and programs: senior centers, family reunions, church retreats, home school groups, children?s ministries


Each of the 20 arrangements in this collection is also available separately with accompanying preview pages and audio samples.

Titles included in this collection:
Alphabet Song
Be Kind to Your Loved Ones
B-I-N-G-O
Doo-dah-day!
Good Morning, Merry Sunshine
He?s Got the Whole World In His Hands
Hickory Dickory Dock
Hokey Pokey
Hot Cross Buns
I Love the Mountains
Itsy Bitsy Spider
Little Robin Red-breast
Old MacDonald
On Top of Old Smokey
Rain, Rain, Go Away
Row, Row, Row Your Boat
Simple Gifts
Skip to My Lou
Take Me Out to the Ball Game
The Water Is Wide

Boomwhackers® is a registered trademark of Rhythm Band Instruments, LLC, Fort Worth, TX. Used by permission.