Merry Wayfaring Stranger

Description

Tyler Arcari has a knack for smashing unrelated tunes together, especially for Christmas! This clever new addition to Tyler’s chaotic caroling is no exception. Musicians will love the drama in this work, as they mix “Poor Wayfaring Stranger” with the likes of “God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen” and “Patapan.” This will be the star of your next holiday program!

Program Notes

Ever since I started exploring the possibility of writing music, I have been fascinated with arrangements that put two seemingly dissimilar works together. I always think of it like a puzzle, where the composer is trying to get all the pieces to fit. However, being the impatient person that I am, I often end up having to cut, smash, and remake the puzzle pieces to fit my board. The trick is to do all that without the audience noticing (or caring).

A couple of years ago, I wrote a similar style mash-up, “Carol of the Rising Bells,” which was very successful. It mixed the folk song “House of the Rising Sun” with the “Ukrainian Bell Carol.” I thought to myself, “Well, that worked so well; let me see if I can find another folk song to smash into Christmas carols…” and here we are!

“Merry Wayfaring Stranger” mixes the folk tune “Poor Wayfaring Stranger” with “God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen,” with a sprinkling of quotes from “Patapan.” I had a lot of fun writing this one, and no, I didn’t lose a bet. I hope that you find some merriment in this mash-up of unlikely tunes!