The Best Classical Music at Christmas

By Chris Billingham 

Christmas is a time that most of us connect to music in some way, whether it’s standing outside supermarkets singing carols, singing along to previous Christmas number ones or putting on that Michael Buble Christmas CD that is seemingly reissued every year. Just to be clear that isn’t a complaint! His version of Silent Night is beautiful. On Tuesday The Telegraph selected its Top Ten best pieces of Christmas classical music, a lovely read that you can find here. As regular readers will know, the Southern Sinfonia team selected its favourite pieces of Christmas music last year and I’m pleased to say that some of our choices and the Telegraph’s choices matched! It turns out great minds do think alike.

Bach’s Christmas Oratorio appears in both lists, which is hardly surprising given how popular the piece is this time of year. The six-part piece was written to be performed in church over the Christmas season of 1734, a date confirmed in Bach’s autographed manuscript. It is widely believed that the piece was not performed again until Christmas 1857 when it was played by the Sing-Akademie zu Berlin under Eduard Grell. Each of the six parts was originally intended for performance on one of the major feast days of the Christmas period. However in modern times the piece is commonly performed as one with a running time of nearly three hours. Southern Sinfonia performed the full piece twice last year, once with Windsor and Eton Choral Society and once with Bath Minerva Choir. Both performances were rapturously received and as an audience member for the performance with Windsor and Eton Choral Society I have to say that when watching it, it doesn’t feel like 3 hours. The movements are captivating and the time goes by in an instant.

A piece we have played a number of times this Christmas that is unfortunately missing from The Telegraph’s list is Handel’s Messiah, which we performed with The Old Royal Naval College Chapel Choir. This isn’t that surprising given the fact that this piece isn’t solely a Christmas piece, despite the fact that it is performed most at this time of year. The piece is also performed at Easter because it deals with Christ’s death and resurrection. However as Richard Whittall said in a recent blog for The Guardian, the fact the piece is so popular at Christmas gives it a special place in everyone’s heart:

“Since it has become an annual Christmas tradition, most choristers have sung it in every venue, in every iteration, with every instrumentation and in every tempo, no matter how deranged or pseudo-experimental. And in that time they have come to know the strange miracle of Messiah: after years of the good and the bad and the ugly, there is always something new, something breathtaking, to be rediscovered in Handel’s writing and Charles Jennens’s libretto.”

A choice, exclusive to The Telegraph list is Tchaikovsky’s ‘Waltz of the Flowers’. As Ivan Hewett states in the article “What could be more appropriate for a child’s Christmas than a magic kingdom of sweets and presents? That’s the scene for Act 2 of Tchaikovsky’s last ballet The Nutcracker.” The connection between childhood and Christmas is perhaps the reason this time of year is so special, Christmas music and all the other elements of the season people love (the food! We can’t forget the food!) will no doubt take them back to childhoods filled with Santa’s and presents. Memories that are evoked by this exuberant and youthful waltz.

What are your favourite Christmas pieces? Let us know on our Facebook and Twitter pages what you will be listening to over the next few weeks! Southern Sinfonia has had a fantastic year and behalf off the whole team I would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who has attended a performance, played with us, sang with us and interacted with us online. We have a lot of surprises and treats coming up next year and can’t wait to share these with you. Keep an eye on our website for more. 

We hope you have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Cricket, concerts and a Christmas Down Under

By James Chater

Over the Christmas break, I was lucky enough to visit Perth, Australia. However, I was not so lucky in that my stay coincided with one of the worst Ashes defeats in history. Being half Australian, I have always found the vehement rivalry between Australia and England amusing. Propaganda-like ‘pom-bashing’ in KFC television commercials was an affirmation of that. However, for many, this rivalry is not a joke. In a place which seems to pride itself on being opposed to English culture in every way, then, I was intrigued by what an Australian classical music concert might look and sound like.

The concert took place in the enormous Perth Concert Hall, and the work was Handel’s Messiah, a true Christmas favourite. Although the performers stopped short of coming on to the stage in swimming trunks and sunglasses, there was undoubtedly a more relaxed and informal atmosphere to proceedings. When the doors opened to the audience half an hour prior to the scheduled start, the orchestra were already in their seats, although if anyone needed to make a late application of rosin or even go to the loo they would not hesitate to leave the stage. This may sound rather pernickety, but resulted in what at times looked like a rather hilarious game of musical chairs, made even more humorous by one musician who, when arriving back to the stage, actually did sit in the wrong seat and had to be asked to move by the violinist who was meant to be seated in the row in front of her.

The riveting game of musical chairs was interspersed with episodes of full orchestral practice (still whilst the audience was filing in), which meant that the audience became acutely aware of what movements the orchestra really did find the most tricky. One rebellious violist abstained from this last minute rehearsal, as he was engaged in what looked like an arduous practice session of the 24th Caprice by Paganini.

The 7pm start time edged ever closer, yet there was still no sign of a conductor, soloists or choir. Finally, an announcement over the intercom relayed the information that the harpsichordist was running 15 minutes late (I thought the rehearsal snippets sounded a bit bare) so the concert would start at 7.15pm. The voice on the intercom assured us it was traffic; my very English mother was utterly convinced he was “probably still surfing.” Sure enough, a few minutes later a rather distressed looking harpsichordist wandered onto the stage to finally bring to a close 40 minutes of musical chairs. I could go on, but I think the type of atmosphere is evident!

Whilst mulling these happenings over during the opening bars, I realised my thoughts all shared one thing in common; none were related to the actual music. Aghast, it suddenly dawned on me that perhaps I was exhibiting the fustiness that Australians seem convinced every Englishman harbours. This confirmed to me how important all the ‘trimmings’ of a concert have come to be in conventional classical music performance; the way the performers walk on and off the stage, what they wear, how they stand. But then what is conventional performance practice? Who is to say that what I saw in Australia was the wrong way of doing things?

Both Julia and Chris, in the past two weeks, have highlighted amongst many other things how when we go into a concert, we have a set of expectations as to what might happen; both musically and extra-musically. It is possible that, on this occasion, the ‘trimmings’ had become too great a part of my opinion of the evening before it had even started. So much so, that I had almost convinced myself the music was not going to be of a high quality, when really I had no reason to expect this at all. When the music did (eventually) start, the audience was treated to a great performance; the conductor was excellent, as were the soloists, and the choir were not only of a high quality but really looked like they loved the whole event. It was safe to say that my musical expectations had been far surpassed; interestingly enough, the ‘Australian’ Messiah was one of the best I have ever heard.

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It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

By Julia Hudson 

With Christmas around the corner, we’ve been travelling all over the South of England with performances of Bach’s Christmas Oratorio, Handel’s Judas Maccabeus and much more. We’ve been carol singing, shopping and consuming a healthy amount of mulled wine (although this year I highly recommend mulled cider as an alternative…). Caught up in the whirl of present-buying, tree decorating and social gatherings, and with every politician’s Christmas card portraying themselves, rather than remembering why they’re sending them in the first place, music fortunately gives us a moment to sit and reflect on what Christmas is all about, whatever your religious leanings or otherwise.

 

I have been particularly busy this year carol singing at various venues around London and Berkshire, and have been amazed by the welcome and response we have received. When else would you see five men propping up a bar, joining in with “O TIDINGS OF COMFORT AND JOY” at the tops of their voices? The traditional format of Nine Lessons and Carols, seen everywhere from parish churches to cathedrals, to me embodies the spirit of Christmas. To this end, I’ve been conducting a wonderfully enthusiastic and well-meaning church choir in Wiltshire, my family’s home, whose sole annual performance is at the carol service. After a surprisingly encouraging rendition of Rutter’s ‘What Sweeter Music’ last weekend, I discovered that a few key members have been holding additional rehearsals up to four times a week – if that isn’t the Christmas spirit, I don’t know what is.

Attending a particularly lovely Southern Sinfonia performance last week of Bach’s Christmas Oratorio, with the Windsor and Eton Choral Society in Eton’s beautiful school hall, I felt this again. Not as conventional or as well-known as Handel’s Messiah or the classic Christmas carols, the audience still felt drawn together and unified by the story; with no need for a programme, “there were shepherds in the fields” immediately signposts you (like a star, perhaps), familiarising yourself with the story while allowing you to explore the new music.

Finally, since this wouldn’t be a blog post without giving you a comprehensive account of my free time, my choir spent a day recently at a school which was running a carol composition competition. We sang through all the entries (much fantastically joyous sightreading…) voted for our winners and performed them in a concert at the end of the day. With an age range of 10-18, the standard was wonderfully high – I certainly wasn’t composing for four-part double choir in Latin, aged 10, though you may have been – and there was a huge variety of styles. A few of the younger children focussed on more obvious aspects of the Christmas tradition “Best of all, are the presents underneath [the tree]”, but what struck me even amongst these young musicians was the overriding sense of thoughtfulness and spirituality which pervaded the majority of the pieces. In styles reminiscent of Morten Lauridsen, Eric Whitacre and Bob Chilcott, the tuneful shapes woven by the students created dreamy and pensive musical pictures.

So, as I depart for a few days of Christmassy cheer, let me leave you with some advice for a thoughtful musical moment in your festive celebrations:

• Try and spare time to watch Carols from King’s. Christmas Eve, 6.15pm. An hour and a bit of stunning Christmas music, which I was lucky enough to attend one year. Perfection.

• Seek out the following carols: Howells ‘A Spotless Rose’, Cornelius ‘The Three Kings’, Tavener ‘God is With Us’, Tchaikovsky ‘Crown of Thorns’. My highly subjective shortlist of gorgeous choral music.

• Purchase those lovely crackers which have a whistle as the gift. Find seven friends and a handy conductor. Good luck!

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Seasonal Selections from Southern Sinfonia

By Julia Hudson 

We’re getting into the festive spirit here in the office, and we wanted to share our Christmassy music choices with you – be prepared for some surprises! 

Julia Hudson, Assistant General Manager 

As a singer, I have to try and narrow down beautiful choral pieces I’m lucky enough to sing every year. 

Cornelius ‘The Three Kings’ - Christmas is the time I secretly really wish I was a baritone, and this is one of the reasons why. A stunning solo line tells the journey of the Magi, above the chorale Von Himmel hoch ('How brightly shines the morning star'). It was originally composed as a solo song, and the version with which we are now familiar was made by Elgar's friend and collaborator, the organist Ivor Atkins. 

I would also choose D. Lavinio Virgili ‘Ninna Nanna Gesu Bambino’ - A little-known but beautiful carol with another gorgeous baritone solo, this Italian piece is a lullaby, rocking Jesus to sleep. 

Drew Steanson, Joint winner, Newbury Young Musician of the Year 2012 

I would choose Bach’s Christmas Oratorio, because Bach is just amazing and that piece is fantastic! You can catch Southern Sinfonia performing it for the second time this week with the Bath Minerva Choir in St Swithin’s Church, Bath. 

Kay Lawrence, Managing Director 

Kay has chosen a traditional yet beautiful carol – ‘Es ist ein Ros entsprungen’ (1599, Anonymous). An often-used Christmas text, it tells of the ‘spotless rose’, which represents Mary, or Jesus. ‘Its fairest bud unfolds to light/Amid the cold, cold winter/And in the dark midnight’. Its simple beauty means that it is a tune used in everything from Brahms chorale preludes to the film ‘The Time Traveller’s Wife’ (2009).  

Appropriately for this year given the composer’s sad death last month, Kay has also chosen a modern carol, Tavener’s ‘The Lamb’. Written for four part unaccompanied choir, the piece is a setting of the poem of the same name by William Blake. Bitonal in places and with an interesting interplay between the parts, this is indicative of Tavener’s work, described by John Rutter as capable of bringing “an audience to a deep silence." 

Chris Billingham, Social Media 

Using the same text, ‘Es ist ein Ros entsprungen’, ‘A Spotless Rose’ (Herbert Howells) is a piece that has always reminded me of Christmas, especially the beautiful spiritual side. For unaccompanied choir, the gentle rocking rhythms evoke a sense of tranquillity. 

James Chater, Intern 

I have chosen Corelli’s Concerto Grosso in G Minor Op. 6 No. 8, particularly the third and sixth movements, which are extremely peaceful. I played it at a Christmas concert at school and it was the only one during which it snowed; very atmospheric! 

The third movement begins at 4’45 in this recording. To me, this piece sounds like how Christmas probably was in the 17th Century - a lot more simple and a great deal less commercialised. It speaks to me of the real spirit of Christmas. Also, Holst’s ‘In the Bleak Midwinter’. again the simplicity thing; Holst's setting, "Cranham", is a hymn tune setting of the poem by Christina Rosetti. The hymn is titled after Cranham, Gloucestershire and was written for the English Hymnal of 1906. 

Natasha Wilson, Projects Manager and Southern Sinfonia oboe and cor anglais player 

[To demonstrate our team working closely in harmony…] 

I guess one of my favourites [also!] is the Corelli Concerto Grosso in G Minor Op. 6 No. 8 or the "Christmas Concerto". This evokes many childhood Christmas memories. I was always envious of school friends who got to play this at our school carol services in Salisbury Cathedral as it is a string piece, therefore no oboes! My favourite movements include the third movement, Adagio-Allegro-Adagio and the sixth movement, Pastorale ad lib; Largo. 

Emmanuel Bach, Joint winner, Newbury Young Musician of the Year 2012 

There are two pieces, popular especially at Christmas, that I particularly enjoy. One is a choral work by the American composer Morten Lauridsen, called 'O Magnum Mysterium'. It is an exceptionally beautiful and moving piece of music. 

The other is Corelli's 'Christmas' Concerto… 

[OK, this is getting silly now!] 

…I Iove the tranquil thoughtfulness of the Adagio, and the elegant dance and lightness of the Pastorale, juxtaposed with the sheer vitality of the fast sections, with their solo-tutti dialogues. It's wonderful music, and also a piece that I've enjoyed playing. 

[And just as I was contemplating a rethink of this entire blog post, our esteemed Leader lightens the tone…] 

Alexander Hohenthal, Leader, Southern Sinfonia 

It’s hard to pick just one! I could say all the carols we sing with our children from 1st December when the family is in a jolly Advent mood. For the quieter, maybe slightly melancholic moments I gravitate towards "God rest ye merry gentlemen"...by Mr. Bean

(Performance begins at 0.40)

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