Music for Advent and Christmas

Started by Harry, November 20, 2007, 02:10:28 AM

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pjme

An unusual discovery - to be played very loud!

Otto Nicolaî's 1833 Christmas overture on " "Von Himmel hoch, da komm ich her" for orchestra, organ and chorus.

https://www.youtube.com/v/AlLX1Gb6as0

Maestro267

Quote from: vandermolen on November 06, 2022, 08:22:40 AM
It's that time of year. I'd recommend this. I attended the live concert from where the recording emanates:


Oh fantastic! I'll have to give that a listen on Spotify. I've been curious to hear this since it was premiered.

vandermolen

Quote from: Maestro267 on November 07, 2022, 11:24:13 AM
Oh fantastic! I'll have to give that a listen on Spotify. I've been curious to hear this since it was premiered.
I hope that you enjoy it. The concert was quite an experience.
"Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm" (Churchill).

'The test of a work of art is, in the end, our affection for it, not our ability to explain why it is good' (Stanley Kubrick).

Maestro267


Peter Power Pop

#504
My favourite classical Christmas album:

Pascha: Christmas Mass, Christmas Carols



Here's a taste:


Florestan

Every kind of music is good, except the boring kind. — Rossini

Harry

#506
O, Jolly good, this thread gets alive again, for Christmas is Icumen, it really is you know, despite......
Quote from Manuel, born in Spain, currently working at Fawlty Towers.

" I am from Barcelona, I know nothing.............."

pjme

Quote from: Peter Power Pop on November 08, 2022, 07:23:53 PM
My favourite classical Christmas album is this:

Pascha: Christmas Mass, Christmas Carols



Definitely one of my favorites aswell! I bought first this LP . Just lovely -music that smells of incense, stables, pine wood and hay....




pjme

#508
Quote from: Florestan on November 09, 2022, 01:30:15 AM
Anyone heard this? How is it?



I'm listening on YT and will try to report later. It seems to be very accessible...

The combination of Latin texts and poetry sung by two soloists, makes me think of other (older) choral works by William Mathias, Britten, Gordon Crosse's "Changes", Alun Hoddinott.... even RVW "Hodie"...

From the press:
In the fourteen-part Christmas Oratorio, Macmillan mixes the influence of Bach's sinfonias, chorales and arias with old English Christmas poetry by John Donne and John Milton, among others, contemporary sonorities and Scottish folk music.
Immediacy, radiance and an ability to welcome the past into the present: not all there is to say on the matter, but an attempt to pinpoint the essence of James MacMillan's music. For MacMillan (b.1959), a Scottish-born Roman Catholic, spirituality has been key to his work since a childhood fascination with plainchant and liturgy. His faith has empowered him to freewheel against fashion, gathering a large and responsive audience, from every domain, with him.

Who else would dare write a full-length Christmas Oratorio (2019), with Bach's own example and Handel's Messiah already cramming the limited seasonal space available? And who would start this work, after a gurgle of woodwind and a lilting Scots air, with that most tinkling, twinkly of instruments, the celesta – best known for its use in a sweeter Christmas favourite, the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy from Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker
The celestial reverie is soon punctuated by a volley of solo timpani, an anger unleashed. Human suffering, characterised by Herod's massacre of the innocents, figures prominently in this two-part work, each half opening and closing with orchestral interludes. Texts, in Latin, English and Scottish Gaelic, are drawn from poetry, liturgy and scripture, deftly interwoven. Scored for a moderate sized orchestra, with a percussion section including the different timbres of hi-hat, cabasa, timbales, vibraphone and xylophone, as well as harp and celesta, it achieves sonic range via economic means.

The entire composition – its UK premiere given by the work's co-commissioners, the London Philharmonic Orchestra and Choir, conducted by Mark Elder – is riven with short fortissimo outbursts as brutal as the four-part choral writing is at times exquisite and hushed. The babe-in-manger chorus at the start of Part 2, O magnum mysterium, from the matins for Christmas Day, could stand alone, though this majestic work deserves full performance.

The two soloists, soprano Lucy Crowe at her ethereal best and baritone Roderick Williams, expressive and articulate, provide meditative arias – poetry by Robert Southwell, John Donne and John Milton, sometimes with elaborate, Bach-like violin solo (Pieter Schoeman). The London Philharmonic Choir (director Neville Creed) sang impressively throughout.

Anyway, thanks for mentioning this work. I sincerely hope some choirs and orchestras will perform it in the future...I'll buy tickets.
However, the Christmas story has inspired so many composers. It would be good to hear -live - Gabriel Pierné's "Les enfants à Bethléem", Frank Bridge's (short) opera The Christmas rose, Hilding Rosenberg's The holy night, Frank Martin's Le mystère de la nativité ...

Maestro267

Quote from: Florestan on November 09, 2022, 01:30:15 AM
Anyone heard this? How is it?



I loved it! As was pointed out, quite accessible and distinctly MacMillanic. Some wonderfully voiced string chords in a couple of passages. And the structure as well is interesting, the symmetry of it all. The 2x7 instantly recalls to mind Messiaen's La Transfiguration.

Florestan

Every kind of music is good, except the boring kind. — Rossini

VonStupp

Dyson's Concerto da Chiesa uses snatches of 'O Come, O Come Emmanuel' in its opening movement and 'Of the Father's Love Begotten' in its 2nd mvt, both of which reappear in its finale.

The use of string quartet against string orchestra is quite an effective texture. An unbidden advent surprise from the WAYL2N thread.

VS

https://www.youtube.com/v/29Bw6_fwiEs&ab_channel=Rodders  https://www.youtube.com/v/yY8icyRcuc4&ab_channel=RichardHickoxTopic
https://youtu.be/29Bw6_fwiEs    &    https://youtu.be/yY8icyRcuc4
"All the good music has already been written by people with wigs and stuff."

vandermolen

Quote from: Florestan on November 09, 2022, 03:42:28 AM
Thanks, guys.
I was at the original concert and greatly enjoyed. It had a few longueurs but also many wonderful moments.
"Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm" (Churchill).

'The test of a work of art is, in the end, our affection for it, not our ability to explain why it is good' (Stanley Kubrick).

vandermolen

Quote from: VonStupp on November 09, 2022, 04:04:34 PM
Dyson's Concerto da Chiesa uses snatches of 'O Come, O Come Emmanuel' in its opening movement and 'Of the Father's Love Begotten' in its 2nd mvt, both of which reappear in its finale.

The use of string quartet against string orchestra is quite an effective texture. An unbidden advent surprise from the WAYL2N thread.

VS

https://www.youtube.com/v/29Bw6_fwiEs&ab_channel=Rodders  https://www.youtube.com/v/yY8icyRcuc4&ab_channel=RichardHickoxTopic
https://youtu.be/29Bw6_fwiEs    &    https://youtu.be/yY8icyRcuc4
I like those Dyson recordings very much.
"Courage is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm" (Churchill).

'The test of a work of art is, in the end, our affection for it, not our ability to explain why it is good' (Stanley Kubrick).

JBS

Quote from: Que on October 28, 2022, 11:03:56 PM
The end of year is nearing and Christmas is coming up!  :)

One of my own musical traditions is to buy each year a new Christmas recording.

I'm open to suggestions, it doesn't need to be a new issue. But please do post some new issues here.

One release I noticed lately:



My copy landed yesterday, after an unusually slow transit time (for Presto). I have not listened to it yet. It's about 96 minutes long on two CDs.

Using Monteverdi's name alone on the cover is a bit misleading: it's a program of music such as Monteverdi might have led during his tenure in Venice, but no more than half the music (10 out of 22 tracks) is by him.
Organ music by Gabrieli (7 "intonationes del **** tono" and a "sonata in loco antiphonae") , two motets by Grandi, one by Valentini, and a "sonata a 8 con quattro soprani" by Usper form the rest.

I'll report more when I've listened to it.

Hollywood Beach Broadwalk

Harry

#515
Maybe anyone is able to help me. I looking for the following CD, if there was ever a CD of this recording that is!

Altdeutscher Weihnacht
Elly Ameling, Bernhard Michaelis, Hans Ulrich Mielsch, Barry McDaniel.
Members of the Collegium Aureum
Harmonia Mundi (1961)


I would be very grateful for the help.
Quote from Manuel, born in Spain, currently working at Fawlty Towers.

" I am from Barcelona, I know nothing.............."

pjme


Harry

Quote from Manuel, born in Spain, currently working at Fawlty Towers.

" I am from Barcelona, I know nothing.............."

Pohjolas Daughter

#518
Quote from: Harry on November 21, 2022, 05:04:23 AM
Maybe anyone is able to help me. I looking for the following CD, if there was ever a CD of this recording that is!

Altdeutscher Weihnacht
Elly Ameling, Bernhard Michaelis, Hans Ulrich Mielsch, Barry McDaniel.
Members of the Collegium Aureum
Harmonia Mundi (1961)


I would be very grateful for the help.
Harry,

Take a look here:  http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2005/Dec05/Renaissance_Christmas_82876699962.htm

I believe that it's also included in the huge set:  Deutsche Harmonia Mundi:  100 Great Recordings (at a very pretty penny!).  Track listing here:  https://musicbrainz.org/release/a25179c2-d476-4cfa-b3fc-44f49e6b9871  See CD listings 98 and 99.

EDIT:  Download available here:  https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/7940699--renaissance-christmas-music

PD
Pohjolas Daughter

Pohjolas Daughter

I just update my above posting with a link to it (download).  Maybe you can find a used CD copy?

PD
Pohjolas Daughter