I am over the moon with joy and excitement as I share this wonderful news with you all. My brother Tom and his lovely wife Anna have welcomed a beautiful baby boy into the world. Little Benjamin Ruairidh Hoather has arrived, and our hearts are absolutely brimming with love and happiness.
The moment I laid eyes on baby Benji, I was overwhelmed with a sense of awe and wonder. He is truly a bundle of joy, and I can already tell that he will bring so much happiness and light into our lives. Seeing Tom and Anna embrace their new roles as parents has been incredibly heartwarming, and I am so proud of them.
As you might imagine, my thoughts quickly turned to music and how I could welcome baby Benji into our world with a gentle serenade. There’s something so magical about lullabies, those sweet, soothing melodies that can cradle a baby to sleep and fill their dreams with peace. George and I have been thinking about recording a few lullabies for baby Benji, and we’d love to hear your suggestions!
What lullabies did you or your little ones love? Are there any special songs that hold a cherished place in your heart? Your input would mean the world to us, and we would be thrilled to create a beautiful collection of lullabies for Benji, inspired by your favourites.
To kick things off, I wanted to share a special video with you all. A little while ago, I recorded a lovely American lullaby composed by Aaron Copland called “The Little Horses.” It’s one of my personal favourites, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.
As we celebrate this precious new addition to our family, I am reminded of the incredible community we have built here. Your support and love have always been such a source of strength and inspiration for me. Now, as we welcome baby Benji, I am so grateful to share this joy with you all.
Please leave your lullaby suggestions in the comments below, and let’s create something truly special for baby Benjamin. Thank you for being a part of this wonderful journey with us.
Congratulations to the entire family. Your parents must be delighted too.
Now lullabies… There is one that occurs to me, not exactly a lullaby but my parents sang to us when we were little. “C’est une chanson douce”. In “Frog” of course but what can I do? I also sang it to my daughters, and later to my grandkids…
Lemme see if I can find a link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekUQpDDBzY4
I don’t know whether there is an English version…
Congrats again to all…💕
Thank you for the link I would love to sing it in French. Have you heard the Poulenc cycle ‘La Courte Paille’ I learnt it at the RCM I must refresh it.
Merci beaucoup.
Best wishes
Charlotte
It’s a very pretty song. Reminds me of African nights.
I know close to nothing about Poulenc. Just a vague idea that he is “contemporary”? I’ll check him and la courte paille up.
Avec grand plaisir.
Bonne semaine.
B.
I see he worked on texts by Eluard… Definitely “contemporary”.
Great news. Can we call you auntie Charlotte now? Looking forward to the lullaby compilation.
Indeed Auntie Charlotte or mătușa Charlotte in Romanian or Tusa for my Romanian nephews and niece. Thank you Mart.
Best wishes
Charlotte
My lullaby for my older son was a Christian song called “O How He Loves You and Me.” Fo my daughter, it was a song that my wife and I wrote, “Walk Up to the Savior.” She struggled with colic and that song was the only thing that would calm her, but only if it was sung by me carrying her while I sang (and it had to be me singing) that song over and over.
Thats lovely Michael, perhaps I should write a song with George. I shall look up O How He Loves You and Me that sounds a lovely choice.
Best wishes
Charlotte
How wonderful for your family!!!! Keep tuned up for “BambinO”, Auntie Charlotte and Uncle George will on-call!!
Haha, I sang him The Skylark Song but couldn’t remember the whole song, it gives me a good reason to refresh them.
Best wishes
Charlotte
Congratulations! May you and George enjoy being the favored auntie and uncle. In our family, several songs were used as lullabies: Hush little baby, You are my sunshine, and twinkle, twinkle little star were all used for our sons (and occasionally for our grandkids). I’ve heard that some have used Blackbird as a lullaby. I would love to hear your version of that. There is also a collection of nursery rhymes performed by Natalie Merchant that you might look into. Again…congratulations to your family.
Great suggestions thank you John. I’ve always liked You are my Sunshine, I do enjoy happy songs.
Best wishes
Charlotte
Congratulations to the parents and I am so excited for you, Auntie Charlotte! I would suggest a lullaby that I have loved for a long time: Garten Mother’s Lullaby. Here’s the link to Meryl Streep singing it:
That is absolutely beautiful!
Congrats to your brother and his wife! Family is precious! ❤️😊🙏🏻🇬🇧
Thank you John it is. It’s just a shame we live so far from him but FaceTime is great now and Tom sends me lots of photos.
Best wishes
Charlotte
Yay for technology! Be well, Charlotte. ❤️
I am slowly catching up with you posts. Congratulations to Tom and Anna, Charlotte! That is a lovely song you are singing so beautifully there! Ones that I remember from childhood are “You Are My Sunshine” and “Sleep Little Boy” from one of Chad & Jeremy’s albums. And then there is always Greg Lake’s “Watching Over You” I think was written for his daughter Natasha.
I’m very grateful that you took the time Lavinia, I love You Are My Sunshine. I don’t know Sleep Little Boy or Watching Over You, so thank you for the suggestions. At the moment I have my hands full with preparing Peter Pan but as soon as summer comes I will try to get the recording done.
Best wishes
Charlotte
I found this YouTube of Chad and Jeremy’s “Sleep Little Boy”
Congratulations!!!! Exciting new!
Thank you Rebecca, we had a lovely mini break in Scotland to greet Benji.
Best wishes
Charlotte
Warmest best wishes!
Thank you 😊
Best wishes
Charlotte
You all look so happy. Congratulations.
Thank you Timothy. We had a lovely mini break in Scotland.
Best wishes
Charlotte
Congrats Auntie!
Thank you Tony 😊.
Best wishes
Charlotte
Congratulations to the family. Thanks for sharing this wonderful event.
My brother is so proud he was delighted for me to share his and our families good news. It’s just a shame it’s a ten hour drive to his place.
Best wishes
Charlotte
That is a long way for sure.
Hearty congratulations to Tom and Anna and all the extended family. I have a new grand-niece born two weeks ago “en caul” (in the amniotic sac). Very unusual, but even more unusual, on the same day as my girlfriend who was born partially en caul (with a veil over her head) about 70 years ago. Some cultures say these babies will have a fortunate life as they were born still protected.
Anyway, to lullabies. It’s not novel, but my go-to is Brahms ‘Lullaby and Goodnight’. With fractious babies I hold them close and sing it low and repetitively near the ear. (Because I only know a bit of it, and even then I mash up the words). I think the murmuring over and over, and the vibration from my chest (I’m practically a tenor-baritone even though I’m female 🙂 ) calms them. Also, if you stroke downwards on the forehead at the same time, they are encouraged to close their eyes. Seems to work a treat with most babies.
The rest I hand back to the parent with – ‘Okay, your problem’. Nahhh – just kidding 🙂
Wow I love coincidences like that. I’ve not heard of en caul but I like the ‘fortunate’ life part. Great song suggestion I’m gathering up several ideas and I hope to record something this summer I just need to co-ordinate with George. I’ve been learning violin this year so I might try a simple lullaby recording with piano and violin, challenging myself!
Best wishes
Charlotte
Wishing every blessing upon his head!
Thank you Annette I will pass on your blessings. He is doing well and putting weight on now.
Best wishes
Charlotte
While Lullaby and Goodnight is also one of my favourites, I also sang others to my children when they were tiny. Two were Christmas carols, Away in a Manger and O Little Town of Bethlehem.
I love Christmas Carols a great suggestion Carolyn I remember at school we used to practice them for a couple of months before Christmas each year.
Best wishes
Charlotte
Such wonderful news! Congratulations to you , and of course the new parents. I had a Lullaby album when my son was a baby ( he called them byes) and I played it at bedtime for him. So, your plan is an excellent one. Rock A-Bye Baby was a simple tune but somehow I always sang that one to him. ❤️
Thank you Holly, I found a nice version of Rock A Bye Baby where the mummy catches the cradle and a couple of new verses, not quite right but…I might adapt. Have a lovely day ❤️
Best wishes
Charlotte
Congratulations 🎉
Thank you Amrit. Good day to you.
Best wishes
Charlotte
Congratulations
Thank you very much.
Best wishes
Charlotte
You, personally, look so very happy – as, of course do the rest of the family. I guess Anna took the photos.
Thank you Derrick, he is George and my fifth nephew/niece. Yes you are correct Anna was snapping away, she has lots of lovely photos and they actually went for a photoshoot at a little local photography studio last week I think it was a gift from the baby shower.
Best wishes
Charlotte
Congratulations, Charlotte! Best wishes to all.
Thank you, he was actually due to be born this week so his arrival was a lovely surprise.
Best wishes to you
Charlotte
Congratulations to your family, Charlotte. He is wonderful and will definitely love your beautiful voice singing to him.
Thank you, we’re all thrilled. I’ve been getting some great suggestions to record.
Best wishes
Charlotte
Best wishes to your family, Charlotte. My recollection is “Rock-A-Bye-Baby” was our go-to in our family for little ones (including myself). Enjoy those new “positions” as Aunt and Uncle!
Thank you Bruce, it’s the first nephew on my side but I already have three lovely nieces and nephews on George’s side, three boys and a girl.. I love Rock a Bye Baby, great suggestion I’ve found a nice long version where mummy catches the cradle!
Best wishes
Charlotte
I used to sing our first boy to sleep. The problem with most lullabies is that they’re too short to put the kid out. I finally settled on “99 Bottles of Beer,” whose verses go on and on. One night, he closed his eyes and fell asleep after only 6 bottles of beer. Far too fast. It occurred to me that he was
pretending to be asleep, so I leaned close and whispered, “Adam, sleeping people don’t smile.” Knowing what he mustn’t do, he couldn’t stop from breaking out in a great big beautiful grin.
Haha I used to sing Ten Little monkeys jumping on the bed…perhaps I’ll have to start at 99 (only joking). Lovely story Jeff. My Dad used to make up his own verses to songs to make them last a bit longer. Actually he told great made up stories too about waterfalls and the fairies that lived behind the water.
Best wishes
Charlotte
Congratulations, Auntie Charlotte! How lucky is this lovely lad to have an auntie who can sing to him 🙂
Thank you Dale, I’m sad he lives so far away so I thought a little set of recordings would bridge the gap.
Best wishes
Charlotte
I bet you are. At least he gets to hear your voice between visits.
Congratulations on your adorable nephew, Charlotte! Strangely, I am learning a couple lullabies just now for my diploma – but upon review I realized they are quite sad lullabies, which really doesn’t quite work! But one I recall from my childhood is ‘Hush Little Baby, Don’t Say a Word.’ It’s very simple but there are probably arrangements that would suit your voice, Charlotte. And ‘Song to the Seals,’ a favourite piece of mine, may not be termed a lullaby in the proper sense, but it sounds like one.
And I definitely think you and George should write one together! I would love to hear that!
All the very best,
Cate
Thank you Cate, as he is Scottish I sang him the Skye Boat Song it has a nice melody but lads fighting and dying are not the perfect lyrics for a child. Those sound like perfect suggestions thank you Cate, I’m hoping to start work on them in July so I’ve plenty of time to look them up. Good luck with your diploma.
Best wishes always,
Charlotte
Congratulations Auntie Charlotte, and Uncle George!
It’s bee a long while since I held a baby, but I remember smelling like freshly baked cookies.
I’d like to suggest “Dream a Little Dream”. It’s so beautiful. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4T3tMkjRig
Great choice Resa, I love that song.
Best wishes
Charlotte
Best to you!
Oh,
Thank you for Little Horses. I love it! I love it when Charlotte sings and George plays piano!
❦❦❦
Charlotte,
Besides the mom and dad, congrats to the new auntie and uncle. What a lucky little baby Benjamin is to have such talented relatives to bring such musical joy into his life.
When I returned home at age 4 after spending 9 months in a convalescent home due to polio my mom would sing me to sleep each night as I readjusted to being home. Her song wasn’t a lullaby, but it was to me as my mom’s angelic voice lulled me to sleep. The song was “Good Night Sweetheart” made famous by Rudy Vallee. I refenced this event in my autobiography “The Little Red Chair”.
-Alan
Congratulations to your brother and his growing family! I enjoyed the music 🙂
Dear Charlotte, I thought I had already commented to send our love and congratulations to your whole family. We share your joy and we know well what great happiness your parents will feel. Grandparental love is a new and different love and your parents fully deserve all the joys it brings (plus permission to crawl again and make as many silly faces and noises as takes their fancy!) So welcome, Benjie and big congratulations (and lots of stamina) to Tom and Anna – with fond wishes, Hilary and Edwin
Thank you Hilary, Tom is very lucky to have a job that gives him six months off and he is loving it. I’m just back from a family holiday, we were supposed to go as a family last year to celebrate my parents 40th wedding anniversary but times conflicted for everyone.
We had an extra unexpected extra day away because the boat we were on broke down (no hardship hehe) and we had to rearrange flights and all sorts. Sadly Tom and Anna and Benji didn’t come with us but we will be visiting them soon. George and I now have to catch up on practice and get some more duo programs planned before I get back to work in September, which is all going well, I’m starting my pgce whilst leading the department so I’m going to be hectic. My violin and BSL lessons are going well too, I must do a post about it next week to update everyone with the adventures.
Best wishes
Charlotte
The first lullaby I can remember is in German, we had a German refugee staying with us when I was a baby and I can still remember the opening lines and tune of Alle Meine Entchen https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3fBQoB8EtAY
I could only find youTube versions for little ones to watch.
Wow, that’s lovely story.
How funny George and I were just brainstorming that we should continue with the lullaby project for my blog and use it as a practise diary like when I was a student. Although releasing albums now as an unsigned artist has become lots harder as the fees from streaming is much lower and its more difficult to recover the cost of the recording, some things don’t change for the better, thank goodness cd baby was around years ago.
Best wishes
Charlotte
Congrats to all and many happy years ahead to Benjamin!