Song List: A Song About Me A Worthy Woman Above the Hills of Time All In The Name Of Jesus Alleluia (Schubert) Amazing Grace Because He Lives Because You Are God's Chosen Ones The Birthday of the King The Blood Will Never Lose Its Power The Body of Our Lord Born Again Bread Of The World In Mercy Broken Bridal Prayer Bring Back The Springtime Chosen of the Lord Christ Living Within You Clean Before My Lord Come, Praise the Lord! Communion Song Eternal Life Flee As A Bird For Those Tears I Died Gentle Like Jesus The Gift Of Love Give Me Jesus Give Them All To Jesus Grace Greater Than Our Sin Great Is Thy Faithfulness Have Thine Own Way, Lord! He Carried My Cross He Died for Me He Shall Feed His Flock He Turned The Water Into Wine He Was There All The Time He's a Wonderful Lord The Heavens Declare His Glory Help Us Accept Each Other Here's My Life Here's One His Eye Is On The Sparrow Ho! Everyone Who Is Thirsty The Holy City How Big Is God How Quiet Is the Night How Real! Hush Now I Am His And He Is Mine I Am the Vine I Am Willing, Lord I Heard About A Man I Just Came To Praise The Lord I Know Where I'm Going I Saw the Lord, and All Beside Was Darkness I Walked Today Where Jesus Walked I Want Jesus to Walk with Me I Wonder as I Wander I Wonder Why? If Jesus Had Not Come If My People Will Pray If with All Your Hearts If You Need a Helping Hand I'm Goin' Home In Jesus' Name In the Image of God Into My Heart It Was His Love It Won't Stop Ivory Palaces Jesus Is Lord Of All Jesus Revealed in Me Just A Closer Walk With Thee Just Because I Asked Lead Me To Calvary Learning to Learn Life Indeed Like A Child Little Baby Jesus Lonely Voices The Lord Is My Light Lord, Listen to Your Children Lord, Show the Way Lord, Take Control of Me The Lord's Prayer Love Came Down At Christmas Love Theme Love Was When Marvelous Mystery May the Mind of Christ Mirror More (Than You'll Ever Know) My Cup Overflows My Jesus, I Love Thee My Tribute The New 23rd New Wind Blowin' No One Ever Cared For Me Like Jesus No Power of My Own Nothing ... Everything O Father in Heaven O Glorious Love! O Holy Night O Lord Most Holy O Rest in the Lord O The Deep, Deep Love Of Jesus Of Love I Sing Oh, What Love! Open the Gates of the Temple The Palms Praise The Lord, He Never Changes Reach Out to Your Neighbor Ring The Bells Rise Again Savior, My Heart Is Thine Seek Ye First Shepherd Of Love Something Beautiful So Great Is His Mercy Spirit Of God Strength to My Soul Sweet Is the Name of Jesus Take God By the Hand Take My Life Ten Thousand Angels Thank You for These Gifts Thanks to God That Someday Is Now That's Why We Are Beautiful Then shall the righteous shine forth There's A Quiet Understanding They Led Him Away This Is My Commandment This Is The Time I Must Sing The Touch Of The Master's Hand The Twenty-Third Psalm (Malotte) Until Then Wedding Song Welcome Home, Children What God Hath Promised What Grace Is This! What Have They Done? Whither Thou Goest Who Are You to Disagree? Who Is This Boy? Who Shall Separate Us? Who Will Go? Worthy Is The Lamb Yes, God Is Real You're Something Special

Song List: Let Our Gladness Know No End Oh! Infant Jesus When Christ Was Born Of Mary Free O Come, All Ye Faithful Angels, From The Realms Of Glory Angels We Have Heard On High As Each Happy Christmas I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day As Joseph Was a-Walking As with Gladness Men of Old Away In A Manger Hey, Hey, Ho A Babe Is Born in Bethlehem In a Manger He Is Lying The Babe Of Bethlehem Jingle Bells Beautiful Savior Bring a Torch, Jeannette, Isabella Cantique de Noel The Cherry Tree Carol Child Jesus Came To Earth This Day Come, All Ye Children Everywhere, Everywhere, Christmas Tonight The First Noel From Every Spire On Christmas Eve From Heaven Above Gather Around the Christmas Tree Glad Christmas Bells The Golden Carol Good Christian Men, Rejoice Infant So Gentle Hark! The Herald Angels Sing O Little Town of Bethlehem O Come, Little Children Lullay, Though Little Tiny Child Silent Night Oh, How Joyfully O Christmas Tree Joy To The World Lo, How a Rose Little Children, Can You Tell? Hark the Glad Sound I Saw Three Ships It Came Upon the Midnight Clear We Wish You a Merry Christmas From Earthly Tasks Lift Up Thine Eyes As Lately We Watched God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen The Other Night A Child This Day Is born Sleep, Holy Babe Christ Was Born on Christmas Day Companions, All Sing Loudly The Seven Joys of Mary Deck the Hall Come, All Ye Shepherds In Bethlehem, The Lowly Immortal Babe Wassail, Wassail Jolly Old Saint Nicholas The Happy Christmas Comes Once More Oh! Night Among The Thousands While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks To Us Is Born A Little Child Hark Ye Shepherds Hark, from the Midnight Hills Around We Three Kindgs of Orient Are Good King Wenceslas Shepherds, Shake Off Your Drowsy Sleep Noel, Noel Here We Come A-Caroling Whence Comes This Rush of Wings? The Holly and the Ivy Oh! Dear Jesus How Brightly Beams The Morning Star What Child Is This? March Of The Three Kings On Christmas Night Joseph, O Dear Joseph Mine There Comes a Vessel Laden Mary, Dear Mother Of Jesus How Vain the Cruel Herod's Fear Rise Up, Shepherds, an' Foller Go, Tell It on the Mountains O Come, O Come Emmanuel Ring, Christmas Bells The Sleep of the Child Jesus My Sheep Were Grazing A Joyful Christmas Song O Holy Night We Do Worship Thee

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