Cantata Sunday

Cantata Sunday Slated for December 15
Additional Singers Welcome!

Mark your calendars for Cantata Sunday, this year on December 15. The Chancel Choir (with soloists from its ranks) and orchestra will tell the entire Christmas story through four relatively brief and engaging works. The choice of these works stems from what I heard and pondered while at the Three Choirs Festival in Worcester, England, this summer (as a part of my sabbatical leave).

We will begin with Mary’s great song of praise, the Magnificat (Luke 1:46b-55), in a majestic setting by Charles Villiers Stanford. We then will move to the fields and the manger on Christmas Eve via the Christmas Cantata by Daniel Pinkham. Not much time goes by, as we will celebrate Christmas Day with Gustav Holst’s lovely suite of carols, titled – appropriately – Christmas Day. Our musical journey will conclude, as does the liturgical Christmas cycle, with a setting of the Nunc Dimittis (Luke 2:29-32), that by Stanford paired with the Magnificat the choir will have offered to begin the story.

Following the service, a festive reception will take place in the Assembly Room. Cantata Sunday is made possible by the generosity of Susan and Dod Fraser, Marian and Richard Bott, and Pamela Kindler. Thank you!

We will begin rehearsing these pieces on November 3, within the Chancel Choir’s regular Sunday morning rehearsal (beginning at 11:15 a.m.). Please let me know (Jason Charneski) if you would like to sing!

And/Or, Join the Choir for Christmas Eve

Perhaps your schedule precludes you from joining the Chancel Choir for Cantata Sunday. Fret not, as it is possible to sing in the choir on Christmas Eve (the 10:00 p.m. service). Please let me know (Jason Charneski) if you are interested. To help you plan accordingly, the Christmas Eve-focused rehearsal will be on December 22, from 11:15 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.