For many of us, we have been trained never to accept gifts. We are reluctant to receive that which we have not earned, and we may consider a gift something that comes with hidden motives. There is an old saying that, “you should not look a gift horse in the mouth.” We do just the same. After all, who wants the dental bills that may come with a gift-horse. What happens when we are faced with a gift that means the difference between living or dying? What happens when we are presented with a gift given that can never be given back, returned or repaid? …a gift that takes every ounce of energy to refuse, reject and forget?
For this arrangement, I am rendering it in four verses with the use of bass, drums, tambourine, keyboard and acoustic guitar. This download includes:
Amazing Grace — demonstration track in .mp3 format — melody is demonstrated with a piano sound.
Amazing Grace — accompaniment track in .wav format
Amazing Grace — accompaniment track in .mp3 format
One of the most favored songs of the Christmas season has got to be the Cantique Noel. O Holy Night embodies the Christmas message of hope and peace in it’s words and music. It is perfect for creating the ethereal sounds associated with the miracle story. Freedom from bondage is a very present theme in this song. It’s meaning continues to be relevant to this day, as slavery has never been fully eradicated from the face of the earth.
I am presenting here a classic piano accompaniment of this piece, and it is appropriate for both soloist or choir. As the sheet music markings suggest, the accompaniment is “slow and majestic.” Included with this download is:
O Holy Night piano accompaniment in .mp3 format
O Holy Night piano accompaniment in .wav format
O Holy Night demonstration track with a demonstration vocal.
For my first offering in a while, I am uploading an accompaniment track for The First Noel. I have seen up to five (5) verses available for this song, and there may be more. As it goes, the tradition was to teach the Christmas story through song and stain glass windows. Sometimes the lyrics were straight forward, and at other times it was an allusion to the content found in the Biblical narrative.
Here I am offering 3 verse and 5 verse accompaniments. The three verse version starts off with the refrain as the introduction. It ends with the refrain being repeated and ending with the phrase, “born is the king,” being repeated. Catching on to it’s form should be no problem. The 5 verse version starts with the refrain as an introduction, then it continues straight through the five verses. The demonstration track has a scratch vocal. Feel free to choose any verses you may find available for this song.
These accompaniments should be easy enough to follow for congregational singing. They should also work for the choir director wishing to be a bit more creative with solos and additional voices. Also, the lyrics should be easy to find on the internet or in a hymnal.
Included with this background track:
The First Noel – Performance/Accompaniment Track – 3 verses (as an .mp3 256Kbps, 44,100 Hz 16 bit audio)
The First Noel – 3 verses – demonstration track – sung by David E. Gonzalez (as an .mp3 256Kbps, 44,100 Hz 16 bit audio)
The First Noel – 5 verses – demonstration track (as an .mp3 256Kbps, 44,100 Hz 16 bit audio)
