Friar Alessandro O Holy Night (2016)

Since the release of his debut album "Voice from Assisi" in 2012, Friar Alessandro has captured the hearts of people around the world with his beautiful voice and enormous warmth. "Voice Of Joy" set to fill those same hearts and many, many more with the purest of joy. Voice of Joy is a collection of traditional Christmas carols, seasonal melodies and sacred arias, recorded in two very different locations: the United Kingdom and Bethlehem, the latter in the heart of the Holy Land.

Nathan Pacheco is a classically trained tenor who has a passion for reaching out and uplifting people through music. He has been featured globally in live performances, including touring the United States, Canada, and Mexico with Yanni; performing with Latin singing sensation Olga Tañon; touring England, Scotland, and Wales with Katherine Jenkins and the National Symphony Orchestra; performing for Prince Charles in conjunction with the British Forces Foundation and the USO; and performing with the San Diego and Miami Symphonies.

Decca Records has announced the global signing of Franciscan Friar Alessandro Brustenghi, from the original friary founded by Saint Francis of Assisi: the Porziuncola in Assisi. This marks the first time in music history that a Friar has landed a major record deal. Alessandro was discovered by the legendary Mike Hedges (U2, The Cure, Manic Street Preachers), while in Italy. The album is a masterful blend of traditional and modern sacred songs, including an original track by Royal Wedding composer Paul Mealor.

Re-teaming with Don Was and Jacknife Lee, the pair who produced his 2014 album Melody Road, Neil Diamond cut Acoustic Christmas, his fourth holiday album and first since 2009's A Cherry Cherry Christmas.

The young professional singers of Michael Waldron's London Choral Sinfonia open fresh perspectives on the music of Christmas with a captivating debut album for Orchid Classics. O Holy Night unites familiar carols arranged by Sir David Willcocks, Andrew Carter and Max Pappenheim with little-known seasonal treasures by, among others, Peter Maxwell Davies, Humphrey Clucas, Robert Saxton and ex-Swingle Singer, Carol Canning. The tracklist also includes Lo, He comes with clouds descending and O Holy Night in spellbinding arrangements by composer and theatre sound designer Max Pappenheim, former organ scholar at Trinity College, Cambridge. London Choral Sinfonias Musical Director, Michael Waldron, built his Christmas album around five traditional carols. The recordings repertoire mix includes Martin Neary's fresh take on We Three Kings, a dramatic setting of the Coventry Carol by Jonathan Rathbone, Richard Pantcheff's haunting A Christmas Carol, and the beguiling No Small Wonder by Paul Edwards.

The Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square join with Tony Award-nominated singer Megan Hilty and award-winning actor Neal McDonough for O Holy Night, a moving and inspirational Christmas special. Filmed in front of a live audience at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City, the program features beloved Christmas songs and carols infused with a Celtic flavor reflecting the guest artists' shared Irish heritage. This program captures the true meaning of Christmas in a way you'll want to experience again and again.

Acoustic Christmas is the new holiday album from Neil Diamond on Capitol Records. Set for release on October. 28 and followed Nov. 18 by a vinyl version, the holiday collection includes new material alongside Diamond's singular renditions of yuletide classics. Acoustic Christmas was produced by Jacknife Lee (U2, R.E.M.) and Don Was (Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan), the pair behind Diamond's previous release, 2014 s Melody Road.

The 101 Strings Orchestra established a reputation as one of the finest ensembles in the easy listening genre. Yet the group actually never existed as a performing orchestra: it was a recording-only ensemble made up of musicians whose personnel often changed from one recording to the next. Moreover, many early albums released under the name 101 Strings were actually reissues of recordings made by such groups as the Rio Carnival Orchestra, New World Orchestra, and others. Under its now-familiar name, more than 100 recordings were issued by two labels – both of which owned the name, hired the players in the ensemble, and, most importantly, provided for the music arrangements that have been crucial to maintaining the orchestra's familiar sound – a dreamy, silken sound not dissimilar to that of Mantovani.