Our Review
This CD could have been as easily placed in Classical, because of the selections and the primarily instrumental nature of much of the CD. But I found the Choral work to be quite interesting. The music was performed primarily by the Concentus musicus Wien under the direction of Nikolaus Harnoncourt, and the Leonhardt-Consort directed by Gustav Leonhardt. The voices of these choral groups were clear, unpretentious and sweet, to my ear.
This is as fine a collection of classical and baroque Christmas music as you are likely to find. Featuring works of Bach, Handel, Monteverdi, and Pachelbel, and crowding the CD format with a total playing time of almost 79 minutes, this is what some people call a "best buy."
This is one of nine fine Christmas CDs available from Celestial Harmonies.
--Richard Banks
(Reviewed in 1998)
No More
Various Artists
Celestial Christmas
Order from Amazon
Artist site
Label: Celestial Harmonies
Length: 78 minutes
Genre: Classical
Release: 1989
Track List
| Song Title | Artist |
|---|---|
| Conditor alme siderum (excerpt) | Capella antiqua Munchen |
| Introductio: Domine ad adiuvandum me festina Deus in adiutorium from Marienvesper | Arnold-Scholberg-Chor |
| L'Orfeo (excerpt) | Concentus musicus Wien |
| Fantasia: Three parts on a ground in D, Z | Leonhardt-Consort |
| Da pacem Domine | Alsfelder Volalensemble |
| Gloria patria et filio, et spiritui sancto | Alsfelder Volalensemble |
| Magnificat (excerpt) from Marienvesper | Arnold-Scholberg-Chor |
| Fantasia from Suite Nr. 2 in F | Leonhardt-Consort |
| dagio from Capriccio stravagante | Concentus musicus Wien |
| In nomine from Suite Nr. 3 in B | Leonhardt-Consort |
| Adagio from Capriccio stravagante | Concentus musicus Wien |
| Hymnus: Ave maris stella (excerpt) from Marienvesper | Arnold-Scholberg-Chor |
| Arioso from Capriccio for Harpsichord BMV 992 | Gustav Leonhardt |
| Chorales from Christmas Oratorio BMV 248 | Concentus musicus Wien |
| Sonatina from Cantata 106 | Leonhardt-Consort |
| Adagio for Concerto for Two Harpsichords in C Minor BMV 1060 | Leonhardt-Consort |
| Chorale "Herr, ich hoff' je, du werdest die in keiner Not verlassen" from Cantata 184 | Leonhardt-Consort |
| Largo e piano from Concerto grosso IV in A Minor, op. 6 Nr. 4 | Concentus musicus Wien |
| Corale "Lobe den Herren, was in mir ist, lobe den Namen" from Cantata 137 | Concentus musicus Wien |
| Partitas 1, 2, 6, and 5 from Was Gott tut, das ist wohlgetan | Siegfried Hildenbrand, organ |
| Chorales from Cantata 140 | Concentus musicus Wien |
| Choreale "Jesus bleibet meine Freude" from Cantata 147 | Siegfried Hildenbrand, organ |
| Variationen 1, 2, and 6 from Partita uber "Wenn wir in hochsten Noten sein" | Wilhelm Krumbach, organ |
| Chorale "Dein ist allein die Ehre" from Cantata 41 | Concentus musicus Wien |
| Chorale "Alleluja! Gelobt sei Gott" from Cantata 110 | Concentus musicus Wien |
| Dona nobis pacem from Mass in B Minor BMV 232 | Concentus musicus Wien |
| Variation Nr. 10 from Partite diverse sopra: Sie gegruBet, Jesu gutig BMV 768 | Herbert Tachezi, organ |
| Aus meines Herzens Grunde | Wilhelm Krumbach, organ |