Today’s post was going to be the gorgeous King’s Singers version of The Truth Sent From Above, but then I realised that it might be better to save my crush on the King’s Singers for later in December. Besides, I’m…
Tag: advent
Advent Calendar Day 6 – 12 Days of Christmas Confusion
A bit of a change of pace today, because Friday is a day for Frivolity, or at least for taking a break from fruit-themed carols. Though, of course, there is a little bit of fruit in this carol too. The…
Advent Calendar Day 3 – Adam Lay Y Bounden
It’s not advent without Adam Lay Y Bounden. This has been a favourite carol of mine for a long time, particularly the version by Boris Ord, with that gorgeous soaring ‘Deo Gracias’ at the end of it. Admittedly, my initial…
Advent Calendar Day 2 – Wachet! Betet! (J.S. Bach)
I am in the midst of a fairly intense obsession with Bach’s oratorios and cantatas, which is currently manifesting itself in me learning every alto (and sometimes soprano) aria I can get my hands on from any Bach aria (it…
Advent Calendar Day 1 – Advent Responsory (Wadsworth)
Hello! It’s been a long time since I last posted here, and this blog is being a bit dodgy at the moment, but today is the first Sunday in Advent, which means it’s Musical Advent Calendar Time! (And yes, I…
Advent Calendar Day 24 part 2: O Magnum Mysterium (Lauridsen)
A bonus carol for your Christmas Vigil! I love the lyrics to this piece of music – they are perfect for Christmas night, translating “O great mystery and wonderful sacrament, that the animals see the Lord born, lying in a…
Advent Calendar Day 24: The Holly and the Ivy (Trad. Arranged Shaw)
The Holly and the Ivy has been one of my favourite Christmas Carols since I was quite young – I think I first heard it when my family stayed for a few months in England when I was six, and…
Advent Calendar Day 23: Rorate Coeli (Rheinberger)
Today’s carol is a very different interpretation of yesterday’s text – it’s romantic to the point of swooniness, and sweet to the point where it narrowly escapes being cloying. (Actually, when we sang this in choir a few weeks ago,…
Advent Calendar Day 21: O Holy Night (Adolphe-Charles Adam)
This is one of those carols that I feel a bit guilty for liking, because I suspect I only really like it because I can now hit that top A effortlessly. When I couldn’t, I hated it. And I don’t…
Advent Calendar Day 20: Magnificat (Telemann / Ensemble Planeta)
I seem to come back to this one every year, but there’s something compelling about the combination of the Book of Hours illustrations and the almost ethereal sound of the Ensemble Planeta’s voices. And I do love the way they…