is a very sweet, gentle vocal collection of familiar sleepy songs. Although I haven't thought to pull this one out in awhile, it is a favorite.For the Broadway lover, there is Mimi Bessette performing Lullabies of Broadway
, including Lullaby of Broadway, Never-Never Land (about which my very young Firstborn puzzled, "How could you never land? Is it some sort of airplane?"), Blueberry Eyes, Castle on a Cloud, Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep, and several others. The sounds are perfectly conducive to sleep: clear and simple. The accompaniments are not overproduced and Ms. Bessette renders a very natural performance; it is musically convincing, not contrived.Marilyn Horne is one of the very great American mezzo-sopranos and her voice certainly shines through in a beautifully unique way on this recording of All Through the Night (Lullabies with orchestra)
. Her rich tones are perfectly made for a recording of night music and this is a long time favorite recording of mine. In fact, my CD pre-dates my children and at about 15 years of age, its health is failing and it needs to be replaced. Ms. Horne performs an eclectic group of songs from the classical music world (Brahms' Wiegenlied/Lullaby) to the traditional (All the Pretty Little Horses and my top favorite lullaby: Too-ra-loo-ra-loo-ral) to the diverse (Japanese, Welsh, Finnish, French, Russian, and Spanish). This CD runs 75 minutes, so even the livliest child is not likely to out last the finale.Guitar Lullaby
is an excellent collection of original guitar music by Ricardo Cobo. The composer took care in researching the rhyme and reason of the lullaby genre. Essentially, he wanted to know what makes a song effective in lulling a child to sleep. After in-depth study, the "tricks" were expertly interwoven into these pure and lovely pieces. The liner notes explain that the 17 tracks are intended as two separate programs, tracks 1-9 for the older set (ages 5 and up) and the remainder for the younger set.We just let the CD run because all of the music is great. However, each set does start with a couple of more upbeat tunes and slowly wind down as if to mimic and direct the child's state of mind, so there is no doubt of the producer's intentions here. Most importantly, the music is excellent and the performance is top-notch.
American Lullaby
Like all of the Ellipsis Arts CDs, the packaging of this disc is great, liner notes very thorough and the production quality is outstanding. This CD is without question one of our all-time family favorites. Fun and homey, we listen to it any time of day. You just can't beat yodeling on a lullaby CD! Old timey, folksy, American roots music with truly talented artists and a variety of great acoustic instruments. I give this CD to every new mom and it is always appreciated.Ninna Nanna: Lullabies (1500-2002)
is the most extraordinary lullaby CD I have ever heard. Evocative. Transcendent. Velvety richness and silken tenderness. Monserrat Figueras' range of expression and style is inimitable on this recording. Seeing a lullaby collection that represents the likes of both William Byrd and Arvo Part on a single disc made it irresistable from a scholarly standpoint, but it was the performance that won me over from the very first moments of the first track. The music covers not only a wide time era, but a represents regions and languages from around the world. The liner notes are fabulous, including each song text in eight languages.A few pretty self-explanatory non-lullaby CDs that often lull my daughters to sleep include: In a Quiet Cathedral
(The Prof got Todd Wilson to autograph our copy!), The Magic of the Harp , and any number of ballet collections.What sounds accompany your children off to dreamland?
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