A CRADLE IN BETHLEHEM

Music: Larry Stock
Text: Alfred Bryan
Arrangement: Ryan Murphy

Even though American songwriter Larry Stock had studied at New York’s most prestigious music schools, he decided to turn to popular styles instead of classical composition. One of his frequent collaborators was Canadian lyricist Alfred Bryan, who first made his mark in Broadway musicals and Hollywood films in the 1910s and 1920s. Their gentle Christmas lullaby, “A Cradle in Bethlehem,” dates from 1952.

When Nat King Cole recorded this song on his 1960 album, The Magic of Christmas, it became an instant classic, and has since been covered by Vince Gill, Paul Anka, Wynton Marsalis, and many others. Kelli O’Hara announced at the concert that this is one of her father’s favorite Christmas songs, and she dedicated this performance to her family, many of whom were in attendance.