Our friends Jeri and Steve Covey kindly invited us to their welcoming home last night (along with quite a few others, including a number of friends) for an evening of excellent Christmas music — violinists, pianists, vocal solos, choral quartets and sextets, a harpist, along with a couple of superb dancers — followed by excellent Christmas food. The musical portion of the program concluded with all of us singing the “Hallelujah Chorus” from Handel’s Messiah. It was a great night.
And one of the high points, for me, was the opportunity to hear Clayne Robison in person again.
Among many other things, Brother Robison participated in the first recording of Robert Cundick’s great oratorio The Redeemer. Speaking of which, it wouldn’t be inappropriate to watch the Interpreter Foundation’s 25-minute film on Robert Cundick at this Christmas season. It’s available to you on the Interpreter Foundation website at no charge:
https://interpreterfoundation.org/now-available-for-viewingrobert-cundick-a-sacred-service-of-music/
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This is the kind of story that really, really illustrates the spirit of Christmas:
“Gary Sinise Foundation gifts 1,750 Gold Star children a trip to Disney World”
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If there’s one in your neighborhood — and if you haven’t yet given to one of the “giving machines” — please, please, consider doing so. Ideally with your family in tow, if that’s appropriate for your situation and if you can. It will be a great teaching opportunity, and they will enjoy it.
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In my judgment, one of the most unearthly, ethereally beautiful pieces of modern classical Christmas music is Morten Lauridsen’s setting of O magnum mysterium. As far as I’m concerned, you don’t really need to listen past the 6:25 marker:
- Like Es ist ein Ros entsprungen, O magnum mysterium seems sheer perfection to me, and, as I said of that piece, it is achingly and piercingly lovely.
Latin text
- O magnum mysterium,
- et admirabile sacramentum,
- ut animalia viderent Dominum natum,
- jacentem in praesepio!
- Beata Virgo, cujus viscera
- meruerunt portare
- Dominum Christum.
- Alleluia.
- English translation
- O great mystery,
- and wonderful sacrament,
- that animals should see the new-born Lord,
- lying in a manger!
- Blessed is the Virgin whose womb
- was worthy to bear
- Christ the Lord.
- Alleluia!
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