It's beginning to sound a lot like Christmas

.... at every church you go.

For church choirs, the holiday season doesn't begin in November after Thanksgiving. It started for some groups on Sunday night when the annual decision on which cantata took place in the chancel areas.

There's always some debate among choirs and congreations on what type of music best connotes the Savior's birth. There's always intense debate (at least in our church) among whether to go easy or light on the cantaa's difficulty. I'm in the alto section, and the only reason to sing in the alto section is to perform harmony. I fall asleep singing in unison, so I'm all about the four-part harmony for choir. I believe beautiful, skillfully presented harmony gives the Lord a bit more to pay attention to. He's got a lot on his hands -- the whole world, as the song goes -- so some fine-tuned, four-part musical worship will provide some sonic relief.

That kind of music takes a running start to get geared up. But, like everything important, it takes a work and a lot of commitment to do beautiful music justice.