Easter is celebrated differently in different cultures, countries and religions. While easter egg hunts are fun, Easter is so much more than that. In Christianity, for example, Easter is the time to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus after the crucifixion on Good Friday. Pagan festivals, on the other hand, tend to use this time to celebrate good weather, fertility and spring.
Traditions also differ on a local level. In the UK, for example, Maypole dancing is common around Easter time. It is essentially a children’s folk dance around a tall pole - each child holds a ribbon that is attached to the pole. As they dance, the ribbons are woven into complex patterns – it’s mesmerising.
Given that Easter is a religious festival, music is naturally an important part of the celebration. Throughout Holy Week, hymns and songs help people to worship and convey the message of Easter. There are some compositions that have been written specifically for Easter, for example, Johann Sebastian Bach’s Easter Oratorio. Other pieces are used at different periods of the year including Easter, like Handel’s Messiah and Wagner’s Parsifal. Nowadays, there are modern pieces written for Easter that are often aimed at children such as nursery rhymes.
You can celebrate the return of spring and Easter with Tomplay by performing pieces such as Handel’s Messiah and Variation - The Waltz of Easter Bunnies. Our Easter sheet music is available for various instruments and levels.
