Kid On Christmas (feat. Meghan Trainor) (arr. Mark Brymer): SSA Choral Octavo

Mark Brymer captures the infectious energy of the original recording while writing for SSA voices in a way that feels like a gift rather than a compromise. The arrangement respects the pop sensibility students know and love, giving your choir contemporary musical currency without asking them to sacrifice vocal technique or ensemble focus.

Bright, modern, and irresistibly rhythmic. The piece radiates holiday warmth without a trace of the cheesy; instead it channels the joy of a catchy pop song performed live. Singers experience moments of vulnerability in the verses, then the payoff of driving together through fuller sections.

This arrangement serves choirs who need contemporary holiday music that their students actually want to sing. It works for programs ranging from middle school through community ensembles, provided you have singers with solid blend and secure intonation in the upper register.

• Keep the rhythmic articulation crisp throughout. Pentatonix built their brand on crisp attack and release; anything loose will feel like it's missing the arrangement's DNA.
• Balance the solo moments carefully so featured singers don't overshadow the vocal texture. The arrangement works when listeners hear five voices as one unit.
• Lock the unison and two-part sections early in rehearsal. This is where the arrangement's foundation sits, and solid intonation here makes everything else easier.
• Pay attention to Brymer's dynamic markings. They're deliberate about shape and they prevent the piece from settling into monotony.

Pair this with traditional holiday fare in a December concert to signal that your choir lives in the real musical world students inhabit. It works equally well as a feature for a student-run assembly or a closing number that leaves audiences smiling. The contemporary energy also makes it ideal for recruiting performances or open houses where you want to showcase that choir isn't just about candles and carols.

• Rhythmic precision in syncopated figures
• Intonation across sustained upper register lines
• Vocal layering and part independence
• Balance between featured and background voices
• Contemporary style and diction in pop idiom