In December: SAB Choral Octavo
Music by Jay Althouse
Item: 00-PO-0006506
$2.25
Minimum order quantity: 20 copies
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Description
You will not find a more hauntingly beautiful piece for your December concerts than this one. The text ("In December we remember our traditions new and old.") focuses on the candle, used as a symbol for ALL December holidays. And the melody, underscored with rich harmonies, is as pensive and thoughtful as the holiday season should be. Your singers and audiences will be touched by its power and simplicity. Beautiful but optional clarinet parts are included in the publication.
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Additional Details
Series:
Alfred Archive Edition: Alfred Choral Designs
Publisher:
Alfred Music
Page Count:
8
SKU:
00-PO-0006506
Instrumentation:
Opt. 2 Clarinets
More about this title
About the Composer: Jay Althouse
Jay Althouse earned his B.S. in Music Education and M.Ed. in Music from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, where he later received the Distinguished Alumni award. His eight-year tenure as a rights and licenses administrator at a major educational music publisher gave him deep insight into choral publishing; during that period, he served on the Executive Board of the Music Publishers Association of America.
As a composer, Althouse has over 800 works in print across all choir levels and is widely performed in English-speaking countries. A writer member of ASCAP, he is a regular recipient of the ASCAP Special Award for his compositions. Beyond choral writing, he has co-written children's musicals with Sally K. Albrecht, compiled respected vocal solo collections including Folk Songs for Solo Singers, and authored or co-authored classroom resources such as The Complete Choral Warm-up Book, Accent on Composers, Ready to Read Music, and One-Page Composer Bios. His choral work I Hear America Singing, created with Albrecht, was performed by the San Francisco Girls and Boys Choirs at President Barack Obama's 2009 inauguration. Althouse resides in North Carolina and has contributed to the Folk Art Society of America's National Advisory Board.
Why we love this
Althouse crafts a piece that honors the essential place of light in December observance across traditions, making it programmatically versatile and spiritually resonant. The melody's simplicity and the supporting harmonies work together to create something genuinely moving without relying on technical complexity or sentimental overreach. Your singers will connect with text that asks them to actively participate in remembrance, and audiences will recognize the authenticity in both writing and arrangement.
What to expect
Contemplative and warm, like candlelight in a quiet room. The piece settles into your singers' voices with an unhurried grace, asking them to sit with reflection rather than celebration, creating a moment of genuine stillness in the concert.
Who it's for
Any SAB choir preparing a December concert that wants to move beyond predictable holiday fare. This works beautifully in schools, churches, and community choirs where singers range from intermediate to advanced and where the text's inclusive message will resonate with diverse audiences.
How to get the most out of it
- Sustain the legit through phrase endings; resist the urge to breathe too frequently or release consonants sharply. Let the harmonies breathe together as one unit.
- If you include the optional clarinet parts, balance them as reinforcement rather than feature. They should blend into the harmonic fabric, not rise above it.
- Explore dynamic contrast between verses and the fuller moments. Pensive doesn't mean static; shape the piece with gradual swells and slight pulls back.
How to use it
Position this as the emotional anchor of your December program, perhaps following upbeat or joyful selections so audiences feel the shift. It also pairs well with other multicultural holiday pieces, strengthening a thematic programming choice around unity and tradition.
Skills your students will build
- Sustaining legit phrasing across longer melodic lines
- Blending SAB harmonies with attention to vertical sonority
- Interpreting text with emotional restraint and authenticity
- Balancing part relationships when optional instrumentation is added