Some years I leave Christmas decorating until the last moment, and some years I have essentially given up on it all together. This year our tree is up and since it came pre-lit, it has lights. And that’s about all it’s going to have. I just don’t have the desire to do any more than that.

If we end up staying home for Christmas (versus traveling to see my family), I’ll probably make some cookies and probably plan a fancy home dinner. And ever since, well, Election Day, I’ve been watching the new Hallmark channel Christmas movies. OMG, I started watching them back during the height of the pandemic and I now have my favorite actors and plots (Lacey Chabert and anything involving incognito royalty).

I don’t start listening to Christmas music now though, and that’s because we’re now in Advent, which has its own set of music. I was raised Catholic so I knew a little Advent music (like O Come O Come Emmanuel), but until I started attending an Episcopal church, and then singing in the choir, I didn’t know how much Advent music there was—and only a few weeks to sing them. So here are some of my favorites.

First the one so many people know:

This version gives a sense of the sparseness of the chant-like setting, and then the arrangement brings in harmonies and different meters.

This carol is heard a lot as part of Christmas, but it’s actually an Advent carol:

I love its quiet beauty which makes the 17^th century seem accessible.

I had forgotten about this one until we sang it last Sunday:

Do you get the sense that I love choral music in a minor key? Well, I’m an alto so sometimes it gives more interesting lines, and Advent and Lent are great sources for minor key hymns.

And I’m not ready yet to move to a major key—this is one of my favorites, even in its most stripped down form:

There’s Bach, too, in our Episcopal hymnal:

You may recognize that from its source material:

I’ll leave you with my favorite Advent carol: