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It's no secret that Sting is a serious man, so it's only logical that his holiday album -- his first new music since the Police reunion, not that it really matters -- is a serious endeavor, thank you.
No niceties for him, no comforts of carols; he favors formal over familiar, writing madrigals, not ditties.
It is music made by someone who lives in a castle, which isn't necessarily such a bad thing: the austerity is genuine, not affected, and the cerebral nature of the album is fascinating, albeit mildly so, as this is as sleepy as it is thoughtful.
And it's that thoughtfulness that does distinguish If on a Winter's Night...; no other Christmas album exists in the head like this.
It's a holiday album for people who have never wanted to hear a holiday album, let alone own one.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gabriel's MessageTraditional | Sting | Play | 02:34 | 5 MB | 13 MB |
| 2 | Soul CakeElena Mezzetti, Noel Paul Stookey | Sting | Play | 03:29 | 8 MB | 24 MB |
| 3 | There Is No Rose of Such Virtue | Sting | Play | 04:04 | 9 MB | 23 MB |
| 4 | The Snow It Melts the SoonestTraditional | Sting | Play | 04:04 | 9 MB | 23 MB |
| 5 | Christmas at SeaMary MacMaster, Sting | Sting | Play | 04:38 | 10 MB | 27 MB |
| 6 | Lo, How a Rose E'er BloomingMichael Praetorius | Sting | Play | 02:42 | 6 MB | 13 MB |
| 7 | Cold SongJohn Dryden, Henry Purcell | Sting | Play | 03:16 | 7 MB | 16 MB |
| 8 | The Burning BabeRobert Southwell, Chris Wood | Sting | Play | 02:45 | 6 MB | 18 MB |
| 9 | Now Winter Comes SlowlyThomas Betterton, Henry Purcell | Sting | Play | 03:06 | 7 MB | 16 MB |
| 10 | The Hounds of WinterSting | Sting | Play | 05:51 | 13 MB | 36 MB |
| 11 | BalulalowTraditional, Peter Warlock | Sting | Play | 03:10 | 7 MB | 15 MB |
| 12 | Cherry Tree CarolTraditional | Sting | Play | 03:12 | 7 MB | 14 MB |
| 13 | Lullaby for an Anxious ChildDominic Miller, Sting | Sting | Play | 02:50 | 6 MB | 14 MB |
| 14 | The Hurdy-Gurdy ManFranz Schubert | Sting | Play | 02:51 | 6 MB | 13 MB |
| 15 | You Only Cross My Mind in WinterSting | Sting | Play | 02:36 | 5 MB | 13 MB |
| 51 mins | 117 MB | |||||
| 51 mins | 285 MB | |||||
Note: You are able to listen to 30-second samples for preview purpose.
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Theodore Baker | Translation |
| 2 | Cyro Baptista | Percussion |
| 3 | Daniel Barnidge | Production Assistant, Research |
| 4 | Thomas Betterton | Composer |
| 5 | Allen Blustine | Contractor |
| 6 | Chris Botti | Trumpet |
| 7 | Tracy Bufferd | Publicity |
| 8 | David S. Butchart | Project Manager |
| 9 | Bijan Chemirani | Percussion |
| 10 | John Clark | Horn |
| 11 | Ira Coleman | Bass |
| 12 | Mark S. Crowley | Assistant Engineer |
| 13 | Charles Curtis | Cello |
| 14 | Joshua "Cartier" Cutsinger | Assistant Engineer |
| 15 | Dave Darlington | Engineer, Mixing |
| 16 | Jack DeJohnette | Drums |
| 17 | Daniel Druckman | Drums (Snare) |
| 18 | John Dryden | Composer |
| 19 | Chris Dudley | Trombone |
| 20 | Christopher Dudley | Trombone |
| 21 | John Ellis and His SDB | Clarinet (Bass) |
| 22 | Lisa Fischer | Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
| 23 | Daniel Freedman | Percussion |
| 24 | Kenny Garrett | Sax (Soprano) |
| 25 | Chris Gekker | Trumpet |
| 26 | Clark Germain | Engineer |
| 27 | David Hartley | Harmonium |
| 28 | Donald Hay | Percussion |
| 29 | Donal Hodgson | Engineer, Mixing |
| 30 | Martin Hollis | Assistant Engineer |
| 31 | Daniel Hope | Violin |
| 32 | Royce Jeffres | Assistant Engineer |
| 33 | Bashiri Johnson | Frame Drum, Percussion |
| 34 | Edin Karamazov | Lute |
| 35 | Martin Kierszenbaum | A&R |
| 36 | Rhani Krija | Percussion |
| 37 | Bob Ludwig | Mastering |
| 38 | Ibrahim Maalouf | Trumpet |
| 39 | Mary MacMaster | Composer, Harp, Vocals |
| 40 | David Mansfield | Dulcimer, Guitar (12 String), Mandocello, Mandolin |
| 41 | Lucy Maxwell Stewart | Publicity |
| 42 | Melissa Meell | Cello |
| 43 | Melissa Meell | Cello |
| 44 | Amy Merxbauer | A&R |
| 45 | Elena Mezzetti | Composer |
| 46 | Adam Miller | Assistant Engineer |
| 47 | Dominic Miller | Composer, Guitar |
| 48 | Tim Mitchell | Assistant Engineer, Engineer |
| 49 | Tony Molina | Cover Photo, Photography |
| 50 | Daphna Mor | Recorder |
| 51 | Evelyn Morgan | A&R |
| 52 | MusicAeterna | Strings |
| 53 | Leslie Neish | Tuba |
| 54 | Dean Parks | Guitar, Mandolin |
| 55 | Michael Praetorius | Composer |
| 56 | Henry Purcell | Composer |
| 57 | Danny Quatrochi | Guitar Technician |
| 58 | Marcus Rojas | Tuba |
| 59 | Jochen Rudelt | Booklet Editor |
| 60 | Bassam Saba | Ney, Oud |
| 61 | Robert Sadin | Arranger, Conductor, Mixing, Percussion, Soundscape |
| 62 | David Sancious | Organ |
| 63 | Dov Scheindlin | Viola |
| 64 | Kathryn Schenker | Management |
| 65 | Franz Schubert | Composer |
| 66 | Vincent Segal | Cello |
| 67 | Robert Southwell | Composer |
| 68 | Stile Antico | Vocal Ensemble |
| 69 | Sting | Adaptation, Arranger, Composer, Drums (Snare), Guitar, Liner Notes, Lute, Mixing, Percussion, Primary Artist, Vocals |
| 70 | Noel Paul Stookey | Composer |
| 71 | Joe Sumner | Vocals (Background) |
| 72 | Julian Sutton | Melodeon |
| 73 | Jasmine Thomas | Vocals (Background) |
| 74 | Kathryn Tickell | Northumbrian Smallpipes, Violin |
| 75 | Peter Tickell | Violin |
| 76 | Traditional | Composer |
| 77 | Maria Triana | Mastering Assistant |
| 78 | Svetlana Tsoneva | Violin |
| 79 | Peter Warlock | Composer |
| 80 | Webb Sisters | Vocals (Background) |
| 81 | Todd Whitelock | Engineer |
| 82 | Mark Wilder | Mastering |
| 83 | Chris Wood | Composer |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |