Best: A Christmas Fantasia on Old English Carols
By William Thomas Best
Level: Advanced
Item: 00-PC-0005498
$8.95
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Description
This Classic Edition Christmas piece features "God Rest You, Merry Gentlemen," "A Virgin Most Pure," "The Babe of Bethlehem," "A Rare Song in Praise of Christmas," "Christ Was Born in Bethlehem," and "The Boar's Head Carol," set in a wonderful medley for performance by the experienced organist. The comb binding creates a lay-flat book that is perfect for study and performance. The notation is large and readable with registration suggestions included, and will make a memorable concert piece for the Christmas holiday season.
Don't just read it, hear it, play along with it, and watch your students grow with it. In MakeMusic Cloud, Best: A Christmas Fantasia on Old English Carols comes alive with professional accompaniment, adjustable tempo, and built-in practice tools that turn solo practice into real progress.
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Additional Details
Series:
Kalmus Edition
Publisher:
Alfred Music
Page Count:
28
SKU:
00-PC-0005498
More about this title
About the Composer: William Thomas Best
William Thomas Best (1826-1897) was one of the nineteenth century's most celebrated organists and a prolific composer for his instrument. A British virtuoso who performed across Europe and established himself as both a recitalist and respected musician in London's concert halls, Best brought the technical brilliance and compositional ambition of the Romantic era to organ literature. His arrangements and original works remain central to the concert organ repertoire, valued for their musicality and practical understanding of the instrument's capabilities.
Why we love this
Best's medley approach weaves six beloved English carols into a cohesive, musically sophisticated arc that never feels scattered or mechanical. The registration suggestions and large, clear notation in this comb-bound edition acknowledge that advanced organists deserve both technical support and the practical ease of a lay-flat score during performance. This is the kind of Christmas programming choice that respects your audience's ear and your own musical standards.
What to expect
The piece unfolds like a Victorian parlor remembering Christmas through song, moving from reverent intimacy to festive pageantry. Best's harmonic richness and elegant voice-leading transform familiar melodies into something both warm and sophisticated, creating a meditation on tradition rather than mere celebration.
Who it's for
This work is written for organists with solid command of counterpoint, comfortable registration choices, and experience performing at the advanced recital level. It will serve experienced church musicians looking for a substantive holiday piece that honors both the carols and the liturgical season with musical integrity.
How to get the most out of it
- Study the registration suggestions as a starting point, then adjust them to your instrument's unique tonal character; Best's indications are thoughtful guidance, not rigid requirements.
- Map the transitions between carols carefully; each shift is an opportunity to refresh texture and color rather than a seam to hide.
- Balance the lyrical character of "A Virgin Most Pure" and "The Babe of Bethlehem" against the processional weight of "The Boar's Head Carol" to showcase the full emotional range of the piece.
- Give yourself time in rehearsal to inhabit the Romantic harmonic language; Best's chromaticism and voice-leading are beautiful but require clear touch and voicing control.
How to use it
Schedule this as the centerpiece of a Christmas concert or as a substantial holiday prelude or postlude for a liturgical service where the music deserves unhurried attention. Its length and musical weight make it an ideal anchor for a program mixing shorter seasonal pieces or pairing it with works from the same era.
Skills your students will build
- Registration choices and tonal balance across manual changes
- Legato phrasing and voicing clarity in Romantic harmonic textures
- Harmonic analysis of chromatic voice-leading and modulation
- Stylistic interpretation of arranged carol material in a concert context
- Independent pedal technique and bass line control