O Christmas Tree

We picked our 4-5′ Douglas fir up yesterday. We used to get 5-6′ ones, and it’s amazing how much weight that extra foot adds.

Here’s “O Tannenbaum.” From Wikipedia: “The modern lyrics were written in 1824 by the Leipzig organist, teacher and composer Ernst Anschütz. A Tannenbaum is a fir tree. The lyrics do not actually refer to Christmas, or describe a decorated Christmas tree. Instead, they refer to the fir’s evergreen quality as a symbol of constancy and faithfulness.”

This video version just appeared this year, and there’s quite a story behind it. During the 2015 Big Band Holidays concert at Jazz at Lincoln Center, Aretha Franklin was a surprise guest. She played and sang this without warning either the orchestra or the host, Wynton Marsalis. Watch the musicians in the background.