Winter Solstice
Few sounds suggest an idyllic Christmas as readily as the hammer dulcimer, which McCutcheon performs here with violinist Freyda Epstein and members of the string quintet Washington Bach Consort. It's a global Yuletide to boot: Shuffling from traditional Shetland airs ("Christmas Day Ida Moarnin") to French carols ("Un Flambeau") to Israeli Chanukah songs ("Moshe Dor") to eastern Kentucky hymns ("Jesus, Jesus, Rest Your Head"), McCutcheon spans the world of winter song. McCutcheon originals include the heartfelt "Willie's Waltz" and the tragic lament "Christmas in the Trenches," featuring McCutcheon's bardic singing and mournful harmonica. There's even an elegant reading of "For Unto Us a Child Is Born" from Handel's Messiah, arranged for several dulcimers and chamber group.--James Rotondi