Winter Magic | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 16 November 2009 | |||
Genre | Classical, Christmas music, Traditional music | |||
Label | Decca Records, Universal Music Group | |||
Hayley Westenra chronology | ||||
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Winter Magic is a Christmas album by Christchurch, New Zealand soprano Hayley Westenra. The album was called Christmas Magic in some territories, and was released in Japan as Winter Magic: Fuyu No Kagayaki – Koibito Tachi No Pure Voice.[1] The album features traditional Christmas songs (like Coventry Carol) and more contemporary Christmas songs (as Joni Mitchell's classic, River).[2]
Winter Magic includes "The Little Road to Bethlehem", "Silent Night", "Veni Veni Emmanuel", "The Little Drummer Boy", and "The Coventry Carol", among other seasonal songs. These Christmas tunes combine Westenra's voice with the accompaniment of a choral group. Westenra herself wrote three new songs for the CD: "Peace Shall Come", "All With You", and "Christmas Morning". The variety of melodies, as well as the different genres, of the songs included were designed to showcase the versatility of Hayley's voice to perform classically, as in "Corpus Christi Carol", as well as in a considerably more "pop" style for songs like "Peace Shall Come".[3] Westenra’s ability to achieve such variety in a single album has garnered her critical praise.[4]