Christmas in the Air – Solo Piano Album

Christmas in the Air by Kathryn Louderback

I’m so excited to share my new album, Christmas in the Air. You can listen to it on every major streaming service, including: Spotify Apple Music (and iTunes): Click Here Amazon Music: Click Here Pandora: Click Here YouTube And pretty much every other streaming service that’s out there. *Please note that I will be uploading […]

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How “The Nutcracker” Became a Christmas Classic

The original production of The Nutcracker, 1892

Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker is one of today’s most recognizable – and influential – Christmas works. The ballet has an interesting history, though – one that began four years before its premiere. Background How Sleeping Beauty’s Success Led to The Nutcracker In 1888, Ivan Vsevolozhsky (Director of the Imperial Theaters, an opera and ballet theater in St. […]

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Combining Old with New in “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel”

The last track on my album Christmas Piano is an arrangement of the beloved carol O Come, O Come, Emmanuel. And because this is my husband’s favorite Christmas song, I wanted to make the arrangement extra special. Check out the sheet music here: A Brief Recap You might remember that O Come, O Come, Emmanual had its origins in 9th […]

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The First Noel Piano Arrangement (and a funny Christmas story)

To kick off December’s first blog post, here is my piano arrangement of The First Noel: You can find the sheet music here: I’ve already talked about the history of this beautiful Christmas carol; check that post out here: Now I want to share a funny story with you about my arrangement of The First Noel.  Back […]

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Angels and Christmas Music

Angels We Have Heard on High Christmas Bells

In the nativity story, angels play an integral part in the proclamation of Baby Jesus’s birth. So today let’s listen to some Christmas music inspired by those heavenly messengers. There are many Christmas carols about angels, two of which are the most popular: Angels We Have Heard on High and Hark! The Herald Angels Sing. Check out my […]

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Mary’s Alleluia: An Original Composition

As part of Christmas this year, I wanted to compose an original piano piece that captured the wonder and awe of the season. With that in mind, please enjoy Mary’s Alleluia: If you like it, check out the sheet music here: This work is special to me. After being inspired to create the main theme, I […]

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What Child is This? – New Video!

This week I posted the video for my arrangement of What Child is This? up on YouTube! For the history behind this beautiful Christmas carol, read my post here. And if you’re interested in the sheet music: I wrote this arrangement in the spirit of a contemporary waltz. Notice the waltz accompaniment in the left hand beginning […]

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Christmas Lullaby (Still, Still, Still and Away in a Manger)

Away in a Manger is one of the most loved Christmas carols of our time. And it’s easy to understand why! The beautiful lullaby describes that special night over 2000 years ago, using text and melody to create an emotional response in the listener. While Still, Still, Still is not as popular as Away in a Manger, it’s just […]

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Christmas Piano: Album, Sheet Music, and More!

Christmas Piano: A Live Album by Kathryn Louderback

To celebrate the start of the holiday season, I am thrilled to announce the release of my own Christmas album: Christmas Piano. Listen to Christmas Piano The album consists of 8 tracks; 7 are arrangements I wrote of known Christmas carols, and 1 is an original composition. Over the next few weeks, I will be writing posts […]

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O Magnum Mysterium by Tomás Luis de Victoria

O Magnum Mysterium is a Catholic church chant sung at Christmastime. As part of the Matins (nighttime worship), the text has been around for centuries. While the exact origins are unknown, historians believe the text (and its use in Catholic Mass) has been around since at least the 10th century. Because the work is so […]

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