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A Note from the Artistic Director
The central players in the Nativity story are clearly the infant itself, and the mother, as there could not be one without the other (especially as traditional theology has robbed Joseph of the father's usual contribution to the normal birth!). But to my mind, there are two other roles that are integral to the story: The
Announcers (angels) and the Adorers (shepherds, wise men, and everyone who celebrates Christmas -- thus, you and me). Hence, this concert is made up of a section for each of these four categories of persons.
The drama begins with the announcement -- the Angels appearing in the dead of night to the shepherds (or, in one case, appearing to Mary at the annunciation). This is the joyous and indispensable prelude to the wondrous events of the night, and it includes ancient and modern works that both describe, and even attempt to mimic, the song of the angels. Two Renaissance works, two Baroque, and two 20th century works lend variety to this section.
The next section is devoted to the mother, the person honored for millennia in Christian circles for her humility, her courage, and her selfless offering of herself for divine purposes. In this section, both traditional and modern offerings of homage are presented, including most notably three Marian carols by founding St. Martin's member Glen McGrath.
After the intermission we focus on the infant itself, as he takes his first earthly nap in his mother's rocking arms. A cornucopia of cradle songs from around the world fills this section of the concert, including selections from Tudor England, Bohemia, Hungary, Mexico, Brazil, France, and modern England.
Finally, the important role of those who knelt around the crèche, and who continue to do so century after century in subsequent celebrations of the Incarnation, is acknowledged in the final section. St. Martin’s offers new arrangements of traditional carols that are sure to bring a smile to your face, and to keep this ancient celebration, with all its precious connotations, fresh and new with each passing year.
On behalf of the singers and board of directors of St. Martin's, I wish you and your loved ones a blessed and joyous holiday season.
Timothy J. Krueger
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A Note About St. Martin's Upcoming Recording
As many of you know, 10 years ago St. Martin's Chamber Choir recorded its first CD,
A Marian Christmas, and it became an instant local hit, selling the first print of 1000 copies within weeks. We are now in our fourth printing of it. Before Tower Records in Cherry Creek closed, it was their consistent seasonal best-seller, and the reviews we have received, from local critic Mark Shulgold to international audiophile magazines like "Classics Today," were uniformly positive.
10 years and eight CDs later, we have thought fit to record our second Christmas CD, to be called
A Marian Christmas II (why tinker with success?), and it is going to include tonight's repertoire. In early January the choir will reconvene in St. Elizabeth's Church to record each number you hear tonight, with the hope of releasing the recording in late 2007.
Some of you will notice works that have appeared in recent St. Martin's concerts -- notably the very first work,
Gloria in excelsis by Thomas Weelkes, which also began our 2005 Holiday concerts. While it is normally not my practice to repeat works in such close proximity, the recording of a CD caused me to comb through our last five or six years of Christmas concerts and choose what was best for possible inclusion -- as well as a number of new works that have never been performed by St. Martin's. So for anyone who has a good enough memory to recall some of these works from seasons past, I pray that the above explanation will suffice to explain their presence.
Timothy J. Krueger
December 2006
© 2006 Timothy J. Krueger |