We end the service with John Rutter's traditional Candlelight Carol and Silent Night as the single candle of the Spirit of Christmas is passed from one to another to fill our hearts with a renewed light of hope and peace.

Will Sherwood, AAGO,ChM, Director of Music & Organist
Alesia Tringale, soprano
Jean Gough, soprano
Tracy Kraus, flute
Bob Gordon, timpani & percussion

MUSIC FOR 2010 CHRISTMAS EVE SERVICE

Prelude (3:40 & 5:10 p.m.)      Festival Music of the Season (including Sonata for Flute, J.S. Bach) 
Musical Introit                         “O Holy Night”                                                Adolph Adam (1850)
Choral Processional                "Adeste Fideles"
Choir and Soloists process, then during the organ & timpani fanfare,
           Congregation stands and sings “O Come, All Ye Faithful.”
*Congregational Carol           "O Come, All Ye Faithful"                                Adeste Fideles
Anthem                                    “Once in Royal David's City”                      Traditional
*Congregational Carol            "It Came Upon the Midnight Clear"                Carol C.M.D.
Offertory Anthem                    "Glory to the Newborn King”                          arr. Moses Hogan
Anthem                                    “O Magnum Mysterium”                            Morten Lauridsen
Anthem                                    “Cover Him, Joseph”           
Anthem                                    “Before the Marvel of this Night"            Carl Schalk        
Anthem                                    “Lo How A Rose E'er Blooming”                   arr. Sherwood
*Congregational Carol             "O Little Town of Bethlehem"                         St. Louis
Anthem                                    "Candlelight Carol"                                          John Rutter (1980)
*Candlelighting                       "Silent Night, Holy Night"
Choral Response                     "Ukranian Bell Carol"                                  arr. Wilhousky
Organ Postlude                        Overture from "Nutcracker Suite"                  Tschaikowsky

(*) Congregation sings

Program Notes

Carols are among the oldest music still performed; they were popular communal songs which began as circle dances in 12th-century Europe. In the 15th and 16th centuries they evolved into “Church music” and began being performed at services and festivals (while we mainly know them as Christmas music, there are Advent and Easter carols). During the Reformation carols fell out of favor — they were considered ”too Catholic” (despite Martin Luther’s love of them) — and were not revived until the 19th-century. The Salvation Army began performing carols with their brass bands in 1878 and in 1880 they began to be reintroduced to church services. Also beginning at this time in England and Eastern Europe was the practice of caroling, groups of people going from house to house and singing with great fervor, bringing carols back to their original place as public celebrations.

Infant Holy, Infant Lowly is based on the old Polish carol Spiewniczek Piesni Koscielne (“In a manger lies”). It first appeared in English in 1922, its lyric interesting for adding a bit of the Book of Revelation (referring to Jesus as “King of Kings and Lord of Lords”) to Luke’s nativity story. In today’s arrangement, the ostinato (repeated chords) Christus Natus Est (Christ is born) provides an aural backdrop to depict the cold and frugal manger. The choir enters with verse 2 from a single note and quickly builds in loudness and texture to represent the flurry of Angelic activity to celebrate the Christ Child’s birth. The Christus Natus Est theme returns with the soloists in canon to recount the opening phrase.

The Coventry Carol dates from 16th-century England. It was part of an ancient “mystery play” which told the nativity story from Matthew. The carol, which is the only surviving part of the play, is about Herod’s slaughter of the innocents. This arrangement begins with a simple texture of three-part voices and grows in harmonic complexity to the third verse, where a sigh-motif is used to depict the tears for “This poor youngling for whom we do sing.” (premiere)

Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming is based on the German carol Es ist ein Ros Entsprungen and first appeared in the late 16th-century. Michael Praetorius wrote the well-known harmonies in 1609, and Johannes Brahms wrote a chorale prelude based on it in 1896. Although it can be comforting to hear traditional carols sung with exactly the same (hymnal) harmony each year, it is refreshing to explore the emotional response and harmonies that are outside the traditional settings. The first verse is four-part women’s choir in tight harmonies that parallel the gentle spirit of the text, followed by the full choir exploring additional textures in the second verse. The carol is instantly recognizable throughout, but with a fresh perspective to help us examine our own response to this special season. (premiere)

– Jay Lavelle