One of the more impressive things about A Christmas Celebration is its glowing immediacy. The record's rich vocals and colorful instrumentals create a concert-like setting, reprising the season's most loved hymns, carols, and pop standards, along with a Gaelic version of "That Night in Bethlehem." Unexpected numbers such as "Christmas Pipes" and "Carol of the Bells" (here led by the spirited violin playing of Meav Ni Mhaolchatha) only enhance an already engaging disc that finely weaves between the piety of classical music and the playfulness of pop. Chloe Agnew, Orla Fallon, Lisa Kelly, and Mariread Nesbitt combine their Celtic voices against orchestral arrangements and sparser settings--spiked with the traditional Irish fare of uilleann pipes, harp, and ancient choral harmony--to deliver an assortment of reverent but lively arrangements that wouldn't be out of place at a church, concert hall, or good Irish celli. --Martin Keller

Track Listings
1. O Holy Night 
2. Away in a Manger 
3. Ding Dong Merrily on High 
4. White Christmas 
5. Silent Night 
6. Christmas Pipes 
7. Christmas Song 
8. Carol of the Bells 
9. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas 
10. Panis Angelicus 
11. Don Oíche Úd I mBeithil (That Night in Bethlehem) 
12. O Come All Ye Faithful 
13. Little Drummer Boy 
14. Wexford Carol 
15. Let It Snow!