Welcome to the best site on the Web
for free Christmas Carol music!
No other web site offers all of these features:
All of it is free! No hidden costs, no teasers, no bait-and-switch.
Sheet music for every carol, in standard PDF
(Adobe Acrobat) format.
No need to purchase or download special software!
Sheet music in 4 parts (SATB) for most carols. Just the thing for caroling!
Lead sheets (melody, chords & lyrics) for most carols.
Additional guitar lead sheets in easy keys, when the piano lead sheet
is in a horrible key for novice guitarists.
Instrumental parts for C, F, Bb, and Eb instruments.
Play in 4 parts with any combination of instruments!
MIDI files for every carol (so you can hear what they sound like),
with both 4-part (SATB) and melody-only versions.
New! A list of CD's
where you can hear each carol, with easy links to buy them from
Amazon.com, and (in most cases)
a sound clip of a sample of the carol from the CD.
Background music only when you ask for it, instead of playing automatically
whether you want it or not!
Lyric sheets for every carol. (Okay, so this is no big deal, but this site wouldn't
be complete without them.)
Credits (author, composer, translator, arranger) for every carol.
No obnoxious animations or pop-up ads.
And did we mention that all of it is free?
FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
Where's Rudolf? White Christmas? Winter Wonderland?
They're not here, for two reasons:
first, this site is for Christmas carols, and those
are Christmas songs; second, those songs are still
protected by copyright.
In the future, we may seek permission to include such songs,
but for now, you'll have to try less reputable sites.
All right, Mr. Squeaky-Clean, I see a carol on your site that is
still under copyright!
I'm looking for a carol that's not on your site, and I'm pretty
sure it's not under copyright. Can you add it?
Please let us know, and we'll add it to our list of possible
future additions. If enough people request it, we'll add it.
You can reach us at
info@christmas-carol-music.org.
Hey! These guitar chords aren't easy!
Okay, they're easier guitar chords.
Is your URL spelled with or without hyphens?
Either will work: "ChristmasCarolMusic.org" or "Christmas-Carol-Music.org".
Why can't I see the scores?
Very few people have reported problems viewing the scores.
This can be the result of an improperly configured web browser.
If you're seeing a mostly blank page where the music should be,
try clicking anywhere in the blank area, or on the link at the
bottom of the page that says "Having trouble viewing this score?"
You can also try downloading the score rather than opening it
directly in your browser. In Netscape or Internet Explorer
for Windows, right-click on the "Having trouble viewing this score"
link, and select "Save [Link] Target As". Once you have the
file on your local hard drive, you can try opening it directly.
On a MacIntosh, launch Adobe Acrobat first, and then try clicking
on the "Having trouble viewing this score" link.
Remember that you must have Adobe Acrobat installed, which you
can download for free (legally) from
http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readermain.html.
Why do the scores have funny shapes where the notes should be?
The most likely reason is that you have an old version of
Adobe Acrobat. Make sure you have the latest version, which
you can download for free (legally) from
http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readermain.html.
Some of the CD's don't really contain the carol they're supposed to!
The lists of CD's were compiled automatically by software that searches
Amazon.com. Some errors are due to typos in Amazon's database.
Others are due to limitations inherent in the search process;
for example, "Joy to the World" includes, unfortunately, both the
Christmas carol and the Three Dog Night song that starts "Jeremiah was a bullfrog".
This is a new feature for the 2006 Christmas season, and we're working
to improve it.
Can I publish or perform your arrangements?
Arrangements that are not credited to me (Edward L. Stauff) are,
to the best of my knowledge, in the public domain.
Regarding my own arrangements:
You have my permission to make up to 24 copies for personal,
non-profit use in live performance and rehearsals. For other
use, including publishing or mass duplication in any form
(including but not limited to print media and audio recordings),
or for-profit use, please e-mail me at
ed@mewsic.com.
Future Additions
We are considering adding the following features to this site.
If you'd like to see any of these, please let us know; the feedback
we get will determine what we add next.
You can reach us at
info@christmas-carol-music.org.
separate MIDI files for Soprano, Alto, Tenor, and Bass parts
arrangements for two or three voices or instruments
arrangements for easy piano
Links
The Hymns and Carols of Christmas
http://www.hymnsandcarolsofchristmas.com
"The purpose of this site is to preserve the rich history of Christmas carols
and hymns which might otherwise be lost. The ultimate goal is to have the
largest collection of Christmas lyrics and music ever published in the
English language."
This is an exhaustive and scholarly collection.
It's probably overkill for the average person, and you have to download
special software to get most of the sheet music. Still, it's an excellent site.
The Cyber-Hymnal
http://www.hymntime.com/tch
"Thousands of Christian hymns & Gospel songs from many denominations -
lyrics, MIDI files, scores, pictures, history & more.
Searchable, advanced Autoplay feature, free downloads.
A new hymn every day. Biggest site of its kind on the Internet."
This site also requires that you download special software to get the sheet music.
Note: do not use the website "cyberhymnal.org" (also known as NetHymnal, "nethymnal.org").
This site is run by a thief who stole the original CyberHymnal domain name and content.
Choral Domain Public Library
http://www.cpdl.org
"The Choral Public Domain Library (CPDL) is the largest website
devoted exclusively to free choral sheet music. Begun in December
1998, the site has over 300 contributors and 7,600 scores."
Any information we may collect is used only to gather statistics for
improving our site. We do not sell, transfer, or otherwise make available
this information to any other parties. If you send us e-mail, we promise
not to sell your e-mail address or make it available to any other parties.
We value our privacy, and respect yours. We hate spam, too!
