A Christmas Suite: String Orchestra Conductor Score & Parts

Del Borgo resists the urge to overcomplicate these beloved carols, instead layering them with thoughtful voicing that lets students hear how arrangement serves the music itself. Four carols in one suite means you get substantial holiday programming without hunting through multiple catalogs, and the Grade 2 difficulty keeps rehearsal time focused on musicianship rather than technical survival.

These arrangements honor the spiritual warmth of the carols while giving them room to breathe. You'll hear traditional harmonies enriched by thoughtful string writing that feels generous without becoming dense.

String orchestras at the Grade 2 level looking for substantial holiday repertoire that respects both the carols and their musicians. This works equally well for December concerts, winter assemblies, or community performances where accessibility and musical integrity matter.

• Balance the melody across your first violin section; these carols are recognizable, and the audience expects to hear them clearly even as inner parts create harmonic depth.
• Treat each carol as a distinct musical statement rather than rushing through them sequentially. Brief pauses between movements let the audience absorb the shift in character.
• Listen for opportunities to shape phrases with gentle dynamic swells rather than literal forte-piano contrasts; at this level, control of weight and color matters more than extreme dynamics.
• Check that your cello line has definition, particularly in "God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen," where it carries essential harmonic movement.

Open a holiday concert with one carol and close with another, using different two as shorter pieces between more substantial works. Alternatively, perform the entire suite as a focused 8-10 minute block that showcases how arrangement can renew familiar material.

• Balancing melody and accompaniment across four-part string texture
• Sustaining tone quality through longer phrase lines
• Following harmonic movement through inner voices
• Shaping dynamics for emotional effect rather than technical contrast