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Our Review

This captivating and unusual recording is only the latest in a series of Revels productions celebrating traditional folk and early music.

A Victorian Christmas Revels seeks to recreate the music and ambience of Christmas in Victorian London. Along the way, the production includes a number of curious carols, period jingles, and traditional yule favorites. Splendidly accompanied by the Cambridge Symphonic Brass Ensemble, the Revels Chorus does an excellent job with well-known seasonals Silent Night and In Dulci Jubilo.

I enjoyed the traditional arrangements but regret that I only heard the production without actually seeing it. I am certain that seeing the show would be a superior experience.

A Victorian Christmas Revels will be staged in Tacoma, Washington, from December 17-19, 1999, at the Rialto Theatre. Nine different Revels productions will be staged in nine U.S. cities during the month of December. Those interested in purchasing tickets to see one of these unique performances should click up the Revels site to learn the details.

What a wondrous prospect, to revel with the Revels as a new millennium dawns.

--Richard Banks
(Reviewed in 1999)

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From the liner notes:

Revels Records is a division of Revels, Inc., a national non-profit cultural organization dedicated to promoting the understanding and appreciation of traditional folk materials from around the world. Founded in 1971 by musician John Langstaff, Revels produces a line of CDs, songbooks and educational products, as well as The Christmas Revels, large-scale celebrations of the winter solstice, now performed annyally in 11 cities across the country.

Revels

A Victorian Christmas Revels

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