Christmas

Light of the World By Lauren Daigle (Cover Arrangement)

Marilee Leishman Religious Arrangements 3 Comments
Light of the World By Lauren Daigle (Cover Arrangement)

Light of the World, is the song I chose for the New Testament lesson  “He That Overcometh Shall Inherit All Things”  studying Revelation 15–22. “Light of the World is a contemporary Christian song and was written by Lauren Daigle, Paul Duncan and Paul Mabury and performed by Lauren Daigle. You may have heard it on the Christian gospel radio stations. I was asked to sing this for our ward Christmas party at Church and decided that since I was already working on it, I could record it here as well. The suggested song for this lesson was “When He Comes Again” which I have already posted twice, so I felt this was the perfect week to publish “Light of the World” instead, especially since it is Christmas Eve!

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What Child is This? Vocal Duet with Violin

Marilee Leishman Religious Arrangements 1 Comment
What Child is This? Vocal Duet with Violin

What Child is This, is the hymn I chose for the New Testament lesson “Good Tidings of Great Joy” studying Christmas! “What Child is This” was written in 1865 with the text by William Chatterton Dix and set to the tune of “Greensleeves”, which is a traditional English Folk Song. The context of the carol centers around the Adoration of the Shepherds who visit during the Nativity of Jesus. The questions posed in the lyrics reflect what the shepherds were possibly pondering to themselves when they encountered Jesus, with the rest of the carol providing a response to their questions. This arrangement is a vocal duet with piano and violin. I have three lovely ladies who recorded this arrangement with me, Emily Clark on the Violin, Audrey Nelson on the piano and Tiffany Tolman singing vocals with me. We had a lot of fun with this song!

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Jesus, Once of Humble Birth

Marilee Leishman Religious Arrangements 1 Comment
Jesus, Once of Humble Birth

Jesus, Once of Humble Birth , is the suggested song for the New Testament lesson “Glory, and Power, Be unto … the Lamb for Ever”  studying Revelation 1–5.  Kevin Forbush worked with me again on this song and it was great working with him. We wanted to keep the song sacred and reverent since this is a hymn that is usually sung right before the most sacred part of an LDS church meeting, the sacrament. With his guitar parts and harmony it turned out to sound somewhat like a lullaby, while still honoring the juxtaposition between the extreme suffering Jesus Christ endured with the glorious triumph over death and hell that is now his and really all of ours. 

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Stars Were Gleaming

Marilee Leishman Religious Arrangements 1 Comment
Stars Were Gleaming

This week we are revisiting the Christmas story in our New Testament Come Follow Me lesson, titled “We Have Come to Worship Him.” What a privilege it is to take another look at this beautiful description of the Savior’s birth as it is found in Matthew 2 and Luke 2. “Stars Were Gleaming” is the recommended song for this lesson and comes from the LDS Primary Children’s songbook and, as is usually the case, the lyrics fit perfectly with the scripture passages in this section. 

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Peace in Christ

Marilee Leishman Religious Arrangements 2 Comments
Peace in Christ

Merry Christmas! This song is coming out on Christmas Day, the day before the beginning of our new Come Follow Me schedule for 2023 which will be a study of the New Testament. This week is a broad lesson entitled “We are responsible for our own learning” and doesn’t have a set area of scripture, but acts as more of an introduction to the New Testament. “Peace in Christ” is a beautiful song by Nik Day which speaks of Jesus Christ as being our way toward lasting peace. Some of the ways it suggests to find peace in Christ is by learning of him, feeling his love, listening to his words and coming to know him; some of which can be accomplished in the sincere study of the New Testament. 

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Remember Him – Christmas Song

Marilee Leishman Original Music 2 Comments
Remember Him – Christmas Song

This song came about because of an invitation to sing at my Relief Society Activity at Church. As I thought about what I could sing, I realized that maybe I could write a song that would be exactly about the topic of bringing Jesus into the Holidays. Through working and re-working it, the song eventually evolved to what it is and I am pleased with the result. Creating this song and music video has already affected my intention and feelings about this holiday and a few times, even my behavior. I hope it helps bring others closer to Christ.

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Arranging the song “Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire”

Marilee Leishman Behind the Music 1 Comment
Arranging the song “Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire”

My parents were visiting me and I told them I was trying to figure out what cover song I would do for December. My Mom told me that her favorite Christmas song is Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire. I replied, “ok, that’s the one then.” I arranged a jazzy piano version of this song back in college at USU. It happened to be the only time this one professor seemed to be impressed with me!

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Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

Marilee Leishman Cover Songs 7 Comments
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

I was searching through some Christmas Music to decide which song I wanted to cover for December when I came across the original version of this song. It’s from the movie “Meet me in St. Louis” sung by Judy Garland. I really enjoy the first lyrics. They have a bit more emotional tension than I feel the later versions have. For instance:

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