European Christmas Music

http://www.amazon.com/Best-German-Christmas-Songs/dp/B002T9PCGW Did you see this? There are others. Type "German Christmas Music"

At least two traditional American Christmas carols came from Germany and Austria- Oh Tanenbaum (Oh Christmas Tree) and Silent Night. While very familiar, I wouldn't call them trite.

@Toni... thought about O Tannenbaum, but I could not find a version that I thought was really beautiful or just an instrumental (which I would prefer) I keep thinking there is some song that will 'feel' right with the images of my trip, but I haven't found it yet. This trip went from Normandy to Paris and then to the markets and I have the perfect music for the first two parts of the trip, but I am obsessing over this last part. I could also use something that is not necessairly Christmas, but would invoke the feeling of the beautiful German and Austrian countryside.

On the Vince Guaraldi A Charlie Brown Christmas album there is an instrumental version of O Tannenbaum. Actually, there are a few instrumentals from that CD that you might find would work for your project, depending on what type of mood you'd like to set (this album is a little jazzy).

Try listening to some Straus waltzes, some Rochmaninoff, Bach , Beethoven, Brhams, or Motzart or other classical artists. Also listen to some recordings by the Von Trapp Family singers (not the movie- though I enjoy that)- they do alot of the very old madrigals, etc. Or (on a totally different tack) try something by the Trans Siberian Orchestra or Manheim Steamroller.

My favourite is "Kling Glöckchen Klingeling" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCafnL6g5S8 Happy new year!

"but definitely do not want a trite American Christmas carol for this." How about trite European Christmas music? Try looking up the combination of "schlager" with the various European words for Christmas (Weihnacht, Kerst, Noel, etc) on Google or Youtube. Some of these make the dogs barking Jingle Bells sound like Bach in comparison. Speaking of Bach, he wrote a Christmas Oratorio, although unless you understand the German text, it doesn't sound particularly Christmas-y. Amongst classical composers, though, my absolute favorite piece of Christmas music is Ralph Vaughan Williams' "Fantasia on Christmas Carols". "Come All You Worthy Gentlemen (aka "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen") never sounded more glorious.

Thanks everyone... lots of suggestions I had already tried and remain on the 'maybe' list.
Some new ones as well, which might be just what I need. We have not celebrated our holidays yet as my daughter lives out of state so if I can finish this soon it will be a special addition to my gifts. I do a slideshow and a book for each of the grandkids from their trips. Thanks to music suggestions here a while ago I found some great music for a slideshow of Turkey & Greece. I knew someone here would have the answer for me!