Look, it has not been a great year. We all know that. And now, as we head into Christmas season, the usual bright hustle and bustle of the holidays have been replaced with pandemic anxiety, political tension and an unending invisible chyron of bad news scrolling in your brain. And while we’re all capturing whatever festive cheer we can in fleeting moments under the tree, it’s tough to remember that such cheer could be disrupted by yet another news alert or the somber reminder of upended travel plans.
So you’ve got to capture whatever Christmas spirit comes your way and hold it close, which is why this two minute video of a cellist playing the Wexford Carol on the Irish coast is worth wrapping yourself up in like a cozy blanket.
Patrick Dexter is a cellist who’s been releasing music in lockdown to provide a little bit of warmth and beauty to a world that could sure use some. He’s set up a Patreon where you can donate to his efforts, which you should definitely do if you can do afford it.
The Wexford Carol, also known as “Good People All, This Christmas Time” isn’t one of the best-known Christmas Carols here in the U.S., but it is one of our oldest surviving Christmas songs, likely dating to the 16th century. The lyrics, translated to english from their original Irish, are a pretty straightforward retelling of the Christmas story. Allison Krause sang them for a beautiful Yo-Yo Ma version of the song in 2008.
