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Jingle Maria

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Jingle Maria - A Happy Song For Christmas

Merry Christmas! Jingle Maria is a happy Christmas song. I love Happy Christmas Music, I hope you do too - there is something very special about a Happy Christmas song. As a child, I often suffered the glooms in October and November. These were only lifted by the coming Advent season. The school plays, visiting the Christmas tree shop, making decorations, Mum making her own Christmas puddings and most of all the preparation for the Carol Concert. Our school concert took place in a large music venue rather than the school, it involved soloists, reading and both Junior and Senior Choirs and was unashamedly traditional and festive too.


Then as time moved on it became unfashionable to admit you were Christian, the season became Xmas and was all about buying, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, wrapping gifts, sending, receiving - and the sales which followed. Hard on the heels of this came guilt. Half the world was starving and all we could do was gorge ourselves and give expensive presents to each other.


The magic had all but died. Christmas songs became protest songs. Merry Christmas, War Is Over is a fine example. Along came BandAid and wonderful things were achieved by top rank musicians - but the joy of a simple family Christmas was eclipsed by all the self-doubt and guilt at consumerism. Of course, none of this ever put a stop to consumerism, if anything the worship of Brand took over from the worship of God, but it gave a respectful face to the festival which was fast becoming "Winterval" to avoid alienating non-Christians.


This lens is about a song that tries to put the joy and wonder back. Simply, it is about a little girl who is as excited as she can be about the real meaning of Christmas.

Looking back on a lens last visited in November, I can only hope that the coming weeks bring you all a beautiful Christmas season. Jingle Maria may be quiet for eleven months of the year, but she will always return in the Winter to cheer hearts as the nights grow longer again. Thank you for visiting my page, I hope you will enjoy the song and remember Jingle Maria at Christmastide.



O Christmas Tree Vintage Christmas Card card
O Christmas Tree Vintage Christmas Card by lkraniericard

Flying To Meet The Sunrise

Listen to Jingle Maria on Jango

And create your own radio station

With Jango, you can create your own radio station. You select established artists that you enjoy and newer music is played along with them. You vote for the songs you like! It is all free. Of course, my hope is that you will enjoy my song and vote to keep it playing on your station, maybe even become a fan. It is easy to sign up and doesn't cost a penny!
Jingle Maria on Jango
The link will take you to my page where you can sign in (or sign up if new) and create your own radio station. You can vote for the song too if you like it. Please do.

The First Idea

How Jingle Maria was born

If you have read my other lenses you will know I am a keen composer and arranger. I submit my music to several sites, but the Sibelius Music site is the main one. Back in the Spring, this site underwent a massive overhaul - fine tuning still continues now - and the Top Ten categories on the former site were dropped. The Beta site had only one Top Ten and it was immutable. That list contained more Ave Marias than anything else.

Virgin & Child, Ave Maria Mouse Pad mousepad
Virgin & Child, Ave Maria Mouse Pad by CatholicTraditions


Top Scores were also displayed for stores and composers, but Jingle Bells featured more than any other - and this was Spring! We commented on the Sibelius forum that these were the two songs that were overwhelmingly popular and that, to succeed as composers, we needed to write Ave Marias or arrange Jingle Bells.

Weihnachtskarte
Weihnachtskarte "Jingle bells" by fanvonhorn


The germ of an idea was born. Colin and I sat down to Sunday lunch and played with the idea of Ave Bells for a while - then the chorus of Jingle Maria came into my head. I scribbled the idea on paper and filed it away.

It was late Summer when Jingle Maria demanded "out" and I worked well into the night writing the main tune and lyrics and scoring it for male lead singer, children's choir, strings and latin percussion. The next day I worked on an MP3 for demonstration, uploaded it to the site and waited.... and waited.... and waited....

I knew it was a joyful song and that it brought together the family and traditional aspects of Christmas in a hopeful way but it remained firmly undiscovered in the depths of Sibelius Music. It was then that I took my singing voice out of semi-retirement, transposed the tune into a key that was friendlier for female vocalists and recorded it. I had read about Tunecore in another Squidoo lens and I thought I would put out my own happy song for Christmas.

Angel and Shepherds card
Angel and Shepherds by prawny


Baccarat Nativity Mary



My First Very Easy Christmas Carol Book [Spiral-Bound]
My First Very Easy Christmas Carol Book [Spiral-Bound]
Carols for beginners to play. Single note melodies with chord letters. Very easy large font notes with notename noteheads.
My First Very Easy Christmas Carol Book [Spiral-Bound] price

Traditional Christmas Carols For Guitar Solo [Paperback]
Traditional Christmas Carols For Guitar Solo [Paperback]
Easy and intermediate arrangements of well loved Christmas carols for fingerstyle guitar. Includes TAB as well as music.
Traditional Christmas Carols For Guitar Solo [Paperback] price

Traditional Christmas Carols for Guitar Ensemble [Paperback]
Traditional Christmas Carols for Guitar Ensemble [Paperback]
Arrangements of well loved Carols for flexible sized guitar ensembles, these are full scores, not separate parts.
Traditional Christmas Carols for Guitar Ensemble [Paperback] price

Jingle Maria on Amazon

Amazon MP3 and On Demand CDs

The first store to feature my song was Amazon, which is a neat reason to give them a whole module to themselves!
Jingle Maria

Jingle Maria

Amazon Price: $0.89 (as of 02/14/2012)Buy Now

You can simply purchase this song as a download, or as a shrink wrapped CD. As it only has the one song, it would be an expensive CD, but if you want to give it away as a gift it should soon be possible to do so with Amazon's print on demand service.

ProStarAudio - a great team for DJ and Recording Equipment

ProAudioStar.com Lowest Prices, Live Chat, Great Service

Jingle Maria on Emusic

The cutting edge?

A fish out of water?
Download Jingle Maria from Emusic
When I signed up for stores I somehow slipped this one in. Emusic is actually the in place for hard music - indie, punk, metal etc by new and up and coming bands. Maria must be giggling loudly among the rockers about this little faux pas! Nevertheless, if you subscribe to emusic, you can download Jingle Maria here!
Jingle Maria on Napster
USA citizens can listen free here. Otherwise, the song is available to Napster subscribers to stream or download

The Recording Revolution

Vinyl gives way to digital

Early recordings when I was younger were done to half inch tape. This tape carried 8 tracks of music and a skillful engineer would mix them using a desk, then produce a master tape. This could be used to produce vinyls, cassettes and later CDs. Now the computer revolution has made it possible to record to a portastudio hard drive, mixdown on computer and produce your own CDs or music files. This revolution has democratised the recording industry. Whereas once expensive gear and expert knowledge were essential, amateurs can mix their own music, upload it and let it take its chance along with the best that money and the music industry can produce. Although CDs will be available to special order on Amazon, my song is available as a digital single and is gradually being released by various internet outlets. It is quite exciting really.

Nativity Scenes

Join the fun on Ebay!

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What Is The Future For Jingle Maria

Where will this all lead?

Who can say whether Jingle Maria will be dancing around one Christmas Tree this year or many. Perhaps when I am old and grey she will be dancing around millions. Perhaps the ambition of a three year old to be a pop star when she grew up will be achieved. (Although growing up seems to have taken a LONG time! LOL...) Perhaps a real star will hear about her and ask to record her next year so that she dances ever more brightly.

Whatever the outcome, I can say that she dances pretty continually in my head! My compositions usually do this for a day or two, but Maria has been at it since September you know. It gets pretty loud at times and causes one or two late nights. Having said this, I hope you will take little Maria into your home for Christmas; but equally well I hope that ALL your days will be merry and bright - and the light, the love and the joy of a true family Christmas will be with you always!


Christmas Globe print
Christmas Globe by prawny

Jingle Maria on Sibelius

Vocal Score for male lead, choir and strings

The original score, in the original key. The MP3 here is fully computerized.
Jingle Maria - Full Sheet Music - Male Vocal
My version of the song is a rearrangement more suited to a female vocal range, but the original score would be fine for a choir to perform with a competent string group and rhythm section. Parts are also available for sale.


Manger Jesus Postcard Christmas postcard
Manger Jesus Postcard Christmas by forbes1954

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How Do You Feel About Christmas

Has it become more about selling than celebrating?

I know that the Christmas I had as a child was capable of lifting me out of quite a serious case of S.A.D. It wasn't the presents, the food or even the holiday so much as the family warmth, the belief that through Jesus birth all would be well and that magical story we all know so well. A Christmas of Innocense. If that sounds trite, I am sad, but Maria was me and I hope that there will be many, many Marias to come....

Do you agree?

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About Photahsiamirabel

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Photahsiamirabel

As a songwriter I sometimes just love to play with happy ideas. The new Christmas carol Jingle Maria was born of one such happy idea... more »

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