Like clockwork, holiday music shows up every year.  This year, there is a nice flow of music that should interest everyone in one way or another.  One of those is the 22-track, friend-assisted collection of Holiday songs from beloved cellist, Yo-Yo Ma.  Yo-Yo Ma has created a wealth of music in many different ways to add to his growing catalogue of splendid works.  When Yo-Yo Ma undertakes a project, like this, he often excels at it, like this.

Songs of Joy and Peace brings together 22 songs from a wide variety of collaborations.  Within the span of these songs, you’ll enjoy wonderful talents by Dave Brubeck, Diana Krall, Natalie MacMaster (“A Christmas Jig”), Alison Krauss (“The Wexford Carol”), noted soprano, Renee Fleming (“Touch the Hand of Love”), and Chris Botti (“My Favorite Things”).  There are many others that bear mentioning and will have you selecting tracks before you listen to it as a ‘top to bottom’ album. 

But not only are the collaborations varied, the song selections are as well.  Some of the songs are tunes that have graced our consciousness outside of the Holiday periods but given their meaning and excellence, find a home in this album.  The oft-recorded Harrison tune, “Here Comes the Sun” is an arrangement by James Taylor that is sung and musically accompanied by him as well cello provided by Yo-Yo Ma.  “You Couldn’t be Cuter” is an arrangement by John Clayton, who plays acoustic bass on the track, along with vocals and piano by Diana Krall and cello by Yo-Yo Ma.  There is the sax-filled arrangement of “My One and Only Love” that is just rapturous.  He is joined by Yo-Yo Ma on the cello.

The traditional and popular favourites are here as well.  Edgar Meyer provides acoustic bass with mandolin by Chris Thile, and Yo-Yo Ma’s cello on “The Wassail Song/All Through the Night.”  Dave Brubeck provides piano on his arrangement of “Joy to the World” accompanied by Yo-Yo Ma and Matt Brubeck on cello, along with Paquito D’Rivera on clarinet.  There are several recorded improvisations of a traditional song, “Dona Nobis Pacem (Give Us Peace),” four of them with the final one a fabric that beautifully incorporates “Auld Lang Syne” with the entrancing trumpet of Chris Botti to emphasize it.  Lennon’s warm and well-loved contribution to the tradition of Peace and Holidays, “Happy Xmas (War is Over),” is beautifully covered here with ukulele by Jake Shimabukuro, and, of course, the cello by Yo-Yo Ma.

Songs of Joy & Peace is a wonderful album to enjoy the Holidays with.  Whether you indulge yourself in a full immersion of the album (very effective) or you put it on as background music in any situation, both types of listening will reward for years to come.