The weeks leading up to December 25th are marked by cold weather, Christmas decorations, and the soundtrack of the holiday season. Classic and modern pop singers celebrating the traditions of the holiday season, backed by cheerful choirs and sleigh bells, can be heard around the country throughout December. The Arcata High School community holds a deep appreciation for this kind of music.
Mrs. Moulton, AHS music teacher, teaches and conducts holiday music with Arcata High School music groups. She named “O Holy Night,” the 1847 Adolphe Adam carol about the night of the birth of Jesus Christ, as her favorite Christmas song. She also named the Trans-Siberian Orchestra holiday albums as favorites. “I think the combination of rock and roll and symphonic strings is pretty fantastic,” she said.
Mrs. Moulton named “Santa Baby,” the Eartha Kitt song listing off all the luxurious gifts the singer wants for Christmas, as her least favorite holiday song. “It’s misogynistic,” she said. “I feel like it sends the wrong message for today’s women, or even women of that time.”
On December 10, the Armack Orchestra performed the 1948 Leroy Anderson winter classic, “Sleigh Ride,” as well as Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s “Trepak” from The Nutcracker. The choir performed the Fleet Foxes song “White Winter Hymnal.”
Alex Mizoguchi expressed a love for the Christmas hits of the ‘80s and ‘90s, specifically, “Last Christmas” by Wham! and “All I Want for Christmas is You” by Mariah Carey. “I throw those on repeat in my car, especially last year. Whenever somebody would come into my car, I always had full volume to listen to that sh*t,” he said.
Jonathan Haynes, a sophomore, said that his favorite Christmas song is “Christmas Cookies,” by country singer George Strait. “Christmas Cookies” details Strait’s love for his wife’s Christmas cookies. “It’s George Strait,” Jonathan explains. “He makes good songs.”
Arcata’s Jewish community has their own musical traditions. Dinah Sullivan, co-president of AHS’s Jewish Student Union, named “The Chanukah Song” by Adam Sandler a favorite song for the Jewish holiday. “It’s classic for me,” she said. “There aren’t as many [Hanukkah songs] as Christmas songs,” she added.
“I really like Klezmer music,” said Alina Smith of her favorite music for the Jewish holiday. Klezmer is the traditional folk music of the Ashkenazi Jews and is often enjoyed during the Hanukkah season.
Whatever your plans are for the winter break, we hope you have a delightful holiday. You can listen to the songs mentioned in this article, along with picks by The Pepperbox staff, in this playlist.
