German composer
Michael Praetorius made at least one absolutely indelible contribution to Christmas music; his setting of Es ist ein Ros' entsprungen (Lo How a Rose E're Blooming) is an eternal Christmas classic no matter what language it's sung in. Marquis Classics' Praetorius Christmas Vespers presents the
Toronto Consort and Toronto Chamber Choir under the direction of David Fallis in a complete vespers service largely drawing from
Praetorius' 1619 publication Polyhymnia Caduceatrix. The centerpiece of this program is
Praetorius' setting of the Magnificat, which is then framed by a number of liturgical movements drawn in some cases from other publications. It is a very complete Vespers service, made to match the liturgical model in the Lutheran church of the early seventeenth century, even up to and including a scripture reading sung on a psalm tone. The Toronto Chamber Choir is an amateur group, but an especially good one, filled out with the
Toronto Consort's vocalists who take the solo spots; bass John Pepper contributes some especially strong and likeable singing.
The major drawback to this disc is that it takes a long time to get off the ground; the spirit of the thing doesn't seem to pick up until the Jubilate Domino, or the fifth track, and until that time the combined forces sound rather like any decent church choir, making the listening experience an ordinary one; fine for a church service, none too exciting for a recording. However,
Praetorius Christmas Vespers does get better as it goes along, and David Fallis' liner notes on
Praetorius' sacred music are well written and highly informative. This might not be the first thing on a Christmas shopper's retinue to seek out in terms of holiday fare, but it isn't bad if you are looking for non-standard background music appropriate to the season; like your hands in from out in the cold, it just takes awhile to warm up.