Christmas Piano [CD]

German pianist Martin Stadtfeld recorded a special Christmas album featuring well-known Christmas melodies such as "Stille Nacht" (Silent night), "In the bleak midwinter" and "Maria durch ein Dornwald ging" and "Vom Himmel hoch" which are newly arranged by Martin Stadtfeld himself for "Christmas Piano". In addition, Stadtfeld contributed to "Christmas Piano" his own pieces, especially the eleven-part contemplative piano cycle "Christmas Time", two variations after Praetorius' "Es ist ein Ros' entsprungen" and two intermezzi after Praetorius' "Vom Himmel hoch". Already at the end of 2020, when no concerts could take place due to the pandemic, Stadtfeld had sent short musical Advent greetings to his audience via social media channels to cheer them up. The experience of this sharing and the positive response to his music gave him the idea for his new album. Right at the beginning, Stadtfeld's "Christmas Time" sounds, consisting of 11 atmospheric miniatures. Titles like "Happy Time", "Wish List" or "Anticipation" conjure up images of joyful anticipation and shining children's eyes during Christmas times. Just as in his own piano cycle, Martin Stadtfeld let's listeners participate in his Christmas imagination in his arrangements of traditional carols and pieces by classical composers. "Christmas Piano" also includes "Canonische Veränderungen über Vom Himmel hoch" (Canonical Changes on High Heaven) by Johann Sebastian Bach arranged for piano and trumpet, in which Martin Stadtfeld's brother Stephan also makes a guest appearance on the trumpet.