Christmas time is singing time, whether you enjoy Christmas tunes on the radio or listening to carol singers. Being able to hold a tune is truly a blessing at this time of year.
Table of Contents
Singing in Tune
Alack and alas, I was at the back of the line when tuneful vocal chords were being handed out.
To be honest, I sound a little like a half-strangled turkey when performing a party piece. The situation is so bad my children plead with me not to sing along to the radio.
Being Irish, and not being a good singer is a little bit of a disappointment. As we all know, my countrymen love a good tune.
One day I shared my deepest wish with my husband.
"I would like to be able to sing in my next life," I confided.
Without lifting his head from his book, he quickly replied:
"Judging by this life, your singing career is at least two lives away."
And so, I'm a hopeless, out-of-tune mess. I don't mind my lack of talent until Christmas comes around. Being able to sing in tune is a very handy skill at this time of year.
Christmas Caroling in Ireland
Tuneful renditions of lovely Christmas carols ring out on street corners. I try not to be cajoled into join in, since I know if I head for a high note, my poor voice could get stuck in the wrong key for a few hours.
I tremble when I think of my high school singing test. I inadvisedly chose Annie's Song for my performance. I remember examining the piano on stage. For a moment I was tempted to hide behind it, rather than face my teenage audience.
Somehow I found my courage and launched into my acapella tune. Our music teacher, seemed pleasantly surprised initially. I was in tune for the first two lines, but then disaster struck.
I reached for a high note, and try as I might I couldn't switch down a register. That strangled turkey took the stage once again, and doomed me to a role of back stage helper throughout my high school years.
Now when my little ones sweetly croon at their school nativity plays, or carol singing with their class mates I do not join in.
No matter how nostalgic I may feel listening to my little shepherds and angel with her tinsel halo, I refuse to sing. Mouthing the words is a perfect way to compromise. Once I get my timing right, they think mom is singing away.
Some people, my husband included, could sing the list of ingredients for fruit cake and sound absolutely fantastic.
I thought about asking Santa or maybe even St. Jude, the patron saint of hopeless cases, for a singing voice this year. But I don't think talents are ever on their delivery lists. Probably just as well. If I could sing, I would never stop humming and crooning away, driving my family, and maybe even the world, crazy.
Christmas - A Time for Singing
So my advice to all you singers this year. If you have been blessed with the God given talent of a tuneful voice, please share it with the world.
If your vocal chords emit sweet sounds and you don't sound like an off-key turkey, then:
Sing with gusto;
Lead those sing-songs;
Take a bow;
For Christmas,
'Tis the season for singing.
Wishing you all happy December days of singing.
Slán agus beannacht,
(Goodbye and blessings)
Mairéad -Irish American Mom
Pronunciation - slawn ah-gus ban-ock-th
Mairéad - rhymes with parade
Here are some more of my Irish Christmas Recipes:
- Easy And Delicious Cranberry Brie Bites Recipe
- Spiced Red Cabbage
- White Chocolate Peppermint Truffles
- Cranberry White Chocolate Chip Christmas Cookies
- Chocolate Dipped Holiday Strawberries
- Mixed Spice - A Traditional Festive Baking Ingredient in Ireland
- Perfect Mini Cheesecakes For Any Party
- Christmas Pinwheel Sandwiches For The Festive Season
Aimee
Merry Christmas to you and yours Mairead! Thanks for the laugh this morning. 🙂
Irish American Mom
Aimee - I'm glad you enjoyed my Christmas carol ramblings.
I hope you and your lovely family have a wonderful Christmas and best wishes for the New Year.
Mairéad
brian@irelandfavorites
I'd rather hear a hundred dreadful voices full of enthusiasm than one bored virtuoso. Granted a virtuoso full of enthusiasm is hard to beat and a blessing to hear, but I say strike a chord and let your music flow, if nothing else it may put a smile on someones face.
Merry Christmas and Happy Christmas as well,
Cheers,
Brian.
Irish American Mom
Brian - Well said! I think one of the reasons I love a good old sing-song in an Irish pub, is that perfection is never expected. Enthusiasm, feeling and emotion gives talent a whole new meaning.
Hope you have a lovely Christmas.
Mairéad
Patricia
Well Mairead, there is always singing in your car when you are alone! With the windows rolled up or down, who cares? I agree with Brianthough, and at church, I would rather hear someone singing along during mass than sitting there like a lump! Let it rip! 🙂
Irish American Mom
Patricia - It's funny how I'm always "in tune" when I sing alone in my car. There's nothing like a few miles on the highway singing at the top of your voice. And believe it or not, I sing along at mass. God gave me my vocal cords so he can choose to listen or laugh. 🙂
Have a lovely Christmas.
Mairéad
T.M. Johnson
Ah, Mairead--hark the herald angels sing! I have a voice that seeks key variety. In otherwords, it's likely to jump from one to another at the most inopportune times. I love the feeling of "busting a note," but realize like all artistic endeavors, proper aesthetics is the sublime goal. Thus, I shun "lead" or solo roles in favor of the safety of crowds (unless said crowd is the Mormon Tabernacle Choir!). I've found one can safely bellow in a crowd of voices and not be "outed."
Your husband's comment, by the way, shows no little wit. And one can't help but appreciate wit, which helps to temper his "slamdown." My wife, who by the way, has a fine voice, used to sing in the car while transporting my daughter to daycare, school events, and shopping sprees. Young children, sadly, are mindless of insults (unless they come their way), and my daughter was no exception. At one of her mom's songfests, she proclaimed: "Mom, you think you can sing, but you can't!"
Mairead, it's your God-given right to "lift your voice in song." If you think your singing would assail finely tuned ears, I suggest you join a flash mob--and show up late. Or, as the saying goes, you may have to be satisfied with a "song in your heart." This post would be a difficult one for a reader to "tune out." TMJ
Irish American Mom
T.M. - Tuning out my out of tune renditions of Christmas carols is a skill my family are perfecting year by year. But the "song in my heart" is definitely in tune. And as for my husband's witty comment, it is more than well deserved. He has listened to my croaking for over twenty years now. He made me laugh with his quick response.
Hope you have a melodious and happy Christmas.
Mairéad
Ray Brown
Dear Mairead,
I always enjoy your comments and I want to share singing with you. My father was a very good singer and people asked him up to sing. My brother was shy but I think he may have been a better tenor than my father.
I always asked my dear mom why I couldn't sing and she just told me just keep practicing and when I got despondent she said "God gives us all different talents." I always told my mom that I wanted God to give me the talent to sing. As a child I could not understand it. Here my brother was shy and I was not shy. I would have sang up a storm.
Future forward, too when I was in an all boys Catholic school and we had to rehearse for graduation. I was so happy to sing. The Christian brother , who was directing us, said some one was either clowning around or way off key. He said eventually that he would listen. I thought this was not me.. That I may be singing like my brother and I was so happy. You guessed it. It was me off key. I was asked if I was clowning around. I told the brother I was not. He told me to just lip the words.
I have now been married 15 years and my wife had 15 years of singing in a choir prior to our marriage. She started singing as a teenager and has a beautiful voice. She wanted to join the church choir with me when I told her I can't sing . (She moved to my church when we got marries). She encouraged me and reluctantly I did. We both joined a Spanish choir first as we both speak Spanish. Everyone helped me. Later, we both joined the Filipino choir at our church (We are two of three non Filipinos.) In fact, tonight we will sing at the midnight mass with our wonderful Filipino friends. The old adage, "practice makes perfect" is not completely correct, but I am a lot better now. No one has me sing solo, like my wife, but a choir is more than just singing. It is a way to meet great friends for life. I encourage you to join. I found out, my Catholic choir buddies are very understanding. God Bless you and your family. Merry Christmas!
Irish American Mom
Ray - I really enjoyed your singing story. I laughed at how you had to lip the words for your school's graduation performance. I too remember being instructed to mouth the words when singing with my class. It was the year I made my communion, and the teacher was in a flap because the priest was going to be visiting our classroom to check up on our communion preparation progress. Lo and behold she heard an out of tune student, and her mission soon was to quell the disturbing sounds as quickly as possibly. Well, it turns out I was the off-key culprit, so like you I had to lip sync for the priest's inspection.
I love your suggestion that I should join a choir. I'd need to find some deep seated courage for that.
Anyway, thanks so much for joining in our little singing discussion and I hope you have a lovely Christmas.
Mairéad
Ray Brown
Dear Mairead,
I hope you and your family had a wonderful Christmas and New Year. I loved your piece on Peace. It was great hearing so many wonderful sayings from so many Irish writers. I just wanted to tell you that if (and I hope you do), you join a choir you need to shop around like anything else. Don't worry if you can't make a certain not, I can't make any of the high notes. I once joined a choir and there was a nun who directed it. She was great but a guy next to me that had a beautiful voice really was very mean and said something to the fact that I was off key and needed to go home and practice a great deal. That reminded me of the Christian brother when I was graduating from high school asking me if I was clowning around when we were practicing for our graduation. Thank God I graduated and I did not have to deal with the Christian brother and shortly I left the choir that the wonderful nun directed. She had a great voice and never said anything mean, it was just that one guy that was mean.
Your husband is a very good singer, like my wife, and maybe he can accompanying you to practices, like my wife does with me. Believe me, you get better as time goes on. I have been in the two choirs now, one for about eight years and the other for about ten years. All the people are wonderful both in the Filipino choir and the Spanish choir that I am in. I got help from them and met some very good friends. I am never asked to sing solo, and I no I can't hit the higher chords. That's O.K. I realize my limitations and I live with it. My wife has told me that I have gotten much better and like the adage states: Practice makes perfect. Well, the perfect is not in my case but I have gotten better. I encourage you to be brave and join a choir. Hopefully, your husband will join with you, but maybe you could get a friend to join with you if he does not and you will get better and better. If you can't make the high notes, don't worry about it since I can't either. I'm a baritone but half the fun is being with nice people and just enjoying yourself. The head of our Filipino group gives our entire Christmas group presents each year. (We don't come for the presents to practice), but everyone is just wonderful. Try out a couple of choirs, if you like, and you will find eventually a great group of wonderful Catholics. God Bless!
Irish American Mom
Dear Ray - Thanks so much for sharing your wonderful experiences of singing with your choirs, and I really appreciate your encouragement and suggestions for me to start singing with a choir soon. Once my kids are a little bit older and I don't need evening baby sitters if my husband is at work, I may just follow up on your suggestion and join a choir. In the meantime I'll just sing away when I'm alone in my car.
Best wishes for a very happy and prosperous New Year.
Mairéad