Holiday Gift Guide 2011 Celtic Christmas by Putumayo World Music Review and Giveaway

Music is an inseparable part of Christmas. Christmas Carols (Noëls) have been around and sung from house to house and in churches for ages. I remember singing with my mother the carols around the piano and loving the family togetherness that I felt. That feeling all comes rushing back to me when the radio starts playing Christmas music during the holidays. I love the holidays, they are truly "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year".

If you are looking for a great gift this year for someone who loves music, Putumayo World Music is a wonderful pick. They have so many albums that are really great. I have reviewed the Putumayo Kids albums before and I love them because they are so multicultural and give the whole family a different musical experience than maybe they are used to.

I received the Celtic Christmas album by Putumayo World Music for free to listen to and review. I love this Christmas CD! Some of the songs on this CD I have heard before, but this CD makes them have a Celtic flair. You will hear traditional instrumentation from the music of Irish, French, Welsh, Norse, Scottish Cornish, and Old English. My favorites are: their version of O Come, O Come Emmanuel, the entrancing Noel Nouvelet, and the beautiful Manx Jezebel Carol! The whole album is a lovely addition to my holiday season.

TRACK LISTING:
01. The Albion Christmas Band - Here We Come A Wassailing - (United Kingdom)
02. Charles T. Cozens - O Come, O Come Emmanuel - (Canada)
03. The Gothard Sisters - Little Drummer Girl - (United States)
04. DruidStone - Noel Nouvelet - (Ireland Republic)
05. David Huntsinger - Angels We Have Heard on High - (United States)
06. Charles T. Cozens - Good King Wenceslas - (Canada)
07. Lasairirfhíona Ní Chonaola - Nollaig Bhan (White Christmas) - (Ireland Republic)
08. Steve Schuch & Night Heron Consort - Joy to the World - (United States)
09. Áine Minogue - Manx Jezebel Carol - (Ireland Republic)
10. David Arkenstone - God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen - (United States)
11. Dougie MacLean - Auld Lang Syne - (United Kingdom)

BUY IT:
You can get Celtic Christmas for $14.98.

WIN IT:
Beth at Putumayo World Music is giving one lucky reader a chance to win the Celtic Christmas CD.

Mandatory:
1. Go to the Putumayo World Music website and tell me what other CD you would be interested in.

Additional entries:
1. Subscribe to my blog by feedburner or by email and let me know which way. (3 extra entries each)

2. Fan/Like me on facebook and write something on my wall. (1 extra entry)

3. Follow me on Google Friend Connect (GFC) on the right sidebar and/or Networked Blogs Let me know what your user name is. (2 extra entries each)

4. Blog about this giveaway on your blog and provide me with the link. Make sure you have the link to this post and Putumayo World Music in your blog entry or it won't count. (2 extra entries)

5. Give me a brief POSITIVE review on Alexa and provide me with your user name. (3 extra entries)

6. Grab My Button (see sidebar to the right) AND/OR Put My Blog URL in Your Blogroll - Leave Your Link. (1 extra entry)

7. Technorati my blog and let me know your link. (1 extra entry)

8. Fave me on Momfaves. (2 extra entries)

9. List this giveaway on any giveaway listing website or blog Linky/Link-up and tell me where you listed it. (2 extra entries)

10. Write about this giveaway with a link to this post on your Facebook wall, Kirtsy, StumbleUpon, Google+ or other social media website besides Twitter. Let me know where. (2 extra entries for each)

11. Comment on my regular (not giveaway) posts. Let me know which one. (1 extra entry per post you comment on)

12. Follow me on Twitter. (1 extra entry)

13. Tweet this: @finamoon: @PutumayoMusic WIN: Putumayo World Music Celtic Christmas CD http://bit.ly/uNsDui (Daily Extras are Available)

14. Fan/Like Putumayo on Facebook. (1 extra entry)

15. Follow Putumayo on Twitter. (1 extra entry)

Make sure you leave me your email in all posts so that I can contact you. Don't forget to leave a comment for each task and the correct amount of entries for each task. This contest ends on Friday December 16, 2011 at midnight (GMT-08:00) Pacific Time (US & Canada). This Giveaway is open to all 18 years and over in the U.S. only!!

DISCLOSURE/DISCLAIMER: Thanks to Beth Blenz-Cluc​as of Sugar Mountain PR for sending me a Celtic Christmas by Putumayo World Music for free, information about the CD and an extra Celtic Christmas by Putumayo World Music to give away for free. My thoughts are mine and my family's own opinion and have not been altered by anyone else. I did not receive any other compensation for doing this review.

Putumayo Kids Review and Giveaway

ABOUT PUTUMAYO KIDS:
Putumayo Kids is the children’s and educational division of Putumayo World Music. They are committed to introducing children to other cultures through music from around the world. Their CDs are a beautiful multicultural, multilingual mix that is sure to please and inspire any child. Around the world they have sold more than 3 million Putumayo Kids CDs and with each CD sold at least one percent of the CD sales benefit non-profit groups that support children, families, schools and other charities. They have already contributed more than $1 million dollars to non-profit organizations that do good work in the regions where the music originates. They have both a Playground (which is upbeat) and a Dreamland (which is soothing and relaxing) series.

Watch this video to learn more about Putumayo Kids!

MY THOUGHTS:
I homeschool and I love to learn and teach about different cultures. I absolutely love world music and actually seek it out for my children so that they can experience and learn to appreciate different cultures by music. I think that it is very important while my children are still young to instill in them an importance of culture and immerse them in the diversity. One of the things I am doing this year is teaching my kids Spanish. I have found that by giving them an opportunity to also learn about the culture in the different places that speak Spanish that I am giving them a wider view of the world.

I was given Picnic Playground and European Playground to review and then also went out and bought the African Playground at a gift shop in the Portland Children's Museum. I love all of them!

Picnic Playground is Putumayo Kids' newest CD. It is packed with 12 great songs about food. My favorite song from that CD was #7 Beautiful Day by Kheswa from South Africa.

European Playground is is a collection of 15 songs from Europe's rich cultural variety. My favorites were #12 Tarantainas De La Casa Sin Pared by Biella Nuei from Spain and #15 Sandy River Belle by Sharon Shannon from Ireland. Get the Teaching Guide HERE, the lyrics translated to English HERE, and a map HERE.

My absolute favorite so far is the African Playground CD. It has 13 wonderful songs on it. My favorite song on it is #3 Mbube by The Mahotella Queens from South Africa (The Lion Sleeps Tonight). It is a very different version from what you are used to, but it is fabulous! Get the Teaching Guide HERE, the lyrics translated to English HERE, a fun craft activity HERE and a map HERE.

Get other Teaching tools for other Putumayo Kids CDs HERE! Visit their blog HERE.

WIN IT:
Beth at Putumayo Kids is giving one lucky reader a chance to win the Picnic Playground CD.

Mandatory:
1. Go to the Putumayo Kids website and tell me what other CD you would be interested in.

Additional entries:
1. Subscribe to my blog by email and let me know. (2 extra entries)

2. Become my fan on Facebook. (1 extra entry)

3. Blog about this giveaway on your blog and provide me with the link. Make sure you have the link to this post and Putumayo Kids in your blog entry or it won't count. (2 extra entries)

4. Grab My Button - See Sidebar to the left - Leave your link (1 extra entry)

5. Technorati my blog and let me know your link. (1 extra entry)

6. List this giveaway on any giveaway listing website or blog and tell me where you listed it. (2 extra)

7. Follow me on twitter and retweet this: @finamoon: @putumayokids WIN: Putumayo Kids World Music Picnic Playground CD http://bit.ly/incgv
(Daily Extras are Available)

8. Fave me on Momfaves. (2 extra entries)

9. Comment on any other of my posts and tell me which one. (2 extra entries per post)

10. Become a Putumayo follower on Twitter. (1 extra entry)

11. Become a Putumayo Kids follower on Twitter. (1 extra entry)

12. Become a fan of Putumayo and Putumayo Kids on Facebook. (1 extra entry)

Make sure you leave me your email in all posts so that I can contact you. If you subscribed by email, blogged about this, listed it, commented on another post, or faved me on Momfaves leave 2 entries saying you did. This contest ends on Friday September 25, 2009 at midnight (GMT-08:00) Pacific Time (US & Canada). This Giveaway is open Worldwide!!