This Time of the Year: SATB Choral Octavo

Mark Hayes has arranged this piece with enough harmonic sophistication to keep experienced singers engaged while keeping the melody front and center, exactly what holiday programming needs. The bluesy foundation and jazz idiom feel fresh in a December concert, offering an alternative to traditional carols without sacrificing warmth or accessibility. Recorded accompaniments and optional instrumental parts give you flexibility whether you're performing with a rhythm section, full band, or voices alone.

Soft lamplight and memory. The piece moves through quiet, intimate verse moments where small details of past Christmases surface, then opens into a warmer, more expansive chorus that feels like coming in from the cold. There's a touch of melancholy beneath the festive surface, the kind of bittersweet reflection that makes the holidays meaningful rather than merely celebratory.

Choirs at the high school and college level, or advanced community ensembles looking for holiday material with real musical substance. Directors seeking a secular alternative that doesn't sacrifice sentimentality will find this piece rewarding to teach and deeply satisfying to perform.

• Lean into the bluesy quality of the harmony by allowing chord extensions and passing tones to breathe; this isn't straightforward diatonic writing, and the color matters as much as the tuning.
• Bring out the text painting in the verses, where nostalgic lyrics benefit from a conversational, almost spoken quality before the melody opens up in the chorus.
• Balance the crooner melody so the soloist or soprano section sings over ensemble texture rather than through it; the intimacy is the point.
• If using recorded accompaniment, let a full rehearsal pass without it first to establish your own phrasing and ensemble vowel shapes before locking to the track.

Slot this late in a holiday concert to create a moment of genuine emotional connection after higher-energy carols and secular songs. It pairs naturally with other jazz-influenced pieces or with arrangements that honor African-American musical traditions, allowing you to program thematically rather than chronologically.

• Jazz harmony interpretation and voicing balance in SATB texture
• Phrasing and expression in bluesy melodic material
• Blend and balance between solo or featured voice and ensemble accompaniment
• Rhythmic nuance in swing or laid-back ballad contexts