“The O Antiphons (also known as the Great Advent Antiphons or Great Os) are Magnificat antiphons used at Vespers on the last seven days of Advent in Western Christian traditions. They likely date to sixth-century Italy, when Boethius refers to the text in The Consolation of Philosophy. They subsequently became one of the key musical features of the days leading up to Christmas.

December 18 is the birthday of American composer EDWARD MACDOWELL.

MacDowell "was an American composer and pianist of the late Romantic period. He was best known for his second piano concerto and his piano suites Woodland Sketches, Sea Pieces and New England Idylls. Woodland Sketches includes his most popular short piece, "To a Wild Rose". In 1904 he was one of the first seven Americans honored by membership in the American Academy of Arts and Letters." (Wikipedia)

December 18 is the birthday of Swiss-German painter PAUL KLEE (1879-1940).

"A line is a dot that went for a walk."

Klee's "highly individual style was influenced by movements in art that included expressionism, cubism, and surrealism. Klee was a natural draftsman who experimented with and eventually deeply explored color theory, writing about it extensively." (Wikipedia)

To see samples of his art, CLICK HERE.

December 18 is the birthday of American bandleader, pianist and composer FLETCHER HENDERSON (1897-1952).

"He was one of the most prolific black musical arrangers and, along with Duke Ellington, is considered one of the most influential arrangers and bandleaders in jazz history. Henderson's influence was vast. He helped bridge the gap between the Dixieland and the swing eras. He was often known as Smack Henderson (apparently because of his skill as a batter playing baseball in college)." (Wikipedia)

THIS DAY IN HISTORY: On December 18, 1892, Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky's ballet THE NUTCRACKER was first performed. The premiere was given at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia on a double-bill with Tchaikovsky's opera "Iolanta."