Different takes on holiday music, one loopy, the other astonishing and clever.

First up is a production of Nutcracker that Maurice Béjart made. A very odd evening with strange musical interpolations, there is one very charming moment…the Waltz of the Flowers with accordion obbligato.

(If you’d like to see the complete Béjart Nutcracker, it’s here.)

Second up is my favorite holiday album of recent years, Béla Fleck and and the Flecktones – Jingle All the Way. Fleck’s nouveau banjo playing is always worth a listen, but this album is delightful with its cleverness and beautiful playing.

One high point is their take on Jingle Bells, complete with Tuvan throat-singing. You can listen to it: Jingle Bells. Another Tuvan-tinged chestnut is: What Child is This – Dyngyldai.  (Hit the triangle symbol to play…won’t work in Firefox.)

I think you can listen to the entire album for free at Yahoo Music. If you have a subscription, you can grab it at Rhapsody. And if you want to buy it, head over to Amazon.

Happy Holidays!