I fell in love with this Spanish carol from the mid-1800s when I was searching for traditional holiday music for Monterey's annual "Christmas in the Adobes" event.
After teaching it to a few of my violin students who were interested in learning some more obscure holiday tunes, I decided to compose and record a full quartet arrangement. Including the sheet music for intermediate string quartet seemed a natural progression thereafter. Then, in addition to the performance audio track, I've created five practice tracks - the complete ensemble version and the four karaoke versions. Each karaoke version provides a different piece of the ensemble missing so you can fill in your part. Each practice track contains a six beat count-off to give you plenty of time to get ready to play.
California, and Monterey County in particular, where I’m from, has a large Hispanic population. I offer this lovely tune in appreciation for all the hard working people, both legal and undocumented, who work in the fields to help feed our country (and other countries!) and who otherwise work behind the scenes to keep our businesses, yards, and homes clean and functioning. Just as the tune has happier and darker moments, their lives are filled with stories of triumph and struggle. May they be blessed in their pursuit to create a good life for their families.
Click here access the tracks and sheet music: https://laurelthomsen.bandcamp.com/album/a-la-nanita-nana
