James Kreger Have Yourself a Merry Cello Christmas

James Kreger writes of his new album: Why should a cellist who has devoted his recording career over the decades to such works as concertos by Dvorak and Ibert and sonatas by Mendelssohn now be offering a program of Christmas music? To answer this question, I think I should offer a few words that show why this latest album also very much represents who I am. I was born and raised in Nashville, also known as Music City USA, bastion of country music. My uncles furniture store was next to the landmark Ryman Auditorium, where for years the Grand Ole Oprys concerts were broadcast live. I listened to the likes of Minnie Pearl, Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs and the Foggy Mountain Boys as well as other wonderful singers on the radioThe genesis for this Christmas album is a logical outgrowth, coming of age realization, as it were, of just what singing, the voice and the musical line are all about. I have known the producer, a valued friend, Dr. Hsing-Lih Chou for more than 35 yearsHe suggested we do a Christmas album. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that the thrill of engaging the most profound and challenging cello masterpieces does not inhibit my deep affection for these Christmas melodies