THE KNIGHTS BEFORE CHRISTMAS | TEXTURA

Two of the primary guiding lights on this smartly curated collection of holiday music are violinist Christina Courtin, who arranged six of the album's tracks, and Eric Jacobsen, who conducted all eleven. It's nevertheless very much The Knights' release, even if the Brooklyn instrumentalists are themselves augmented by guests, among them countertenor Anthony Roth Costanzo, the folk trio I'm With Her, and singer Magos Herrera. In an inspired set-list, pieces by Holst and Bartók join versions of Prince's “Another Lonely Christmas” and Vince Guaraldi's “Christmas Time is Here,” and in those cases where a familiar Christmas tune is featured, it receives a refreshing makeover, the use of pipa player Wu Man as the lead voice for “Do You Hear What I Hear?” a case in point.