A Feast of Carols
The only Christmas album that every home must have features Sir Derek Jacobi naratting The Night Before Christmas. This recording represents the only complete collection of these Randol Alan Bass works that were originally commissioned by major US symphony orchestras. The renowned National Symphony Orchestra of London creates this collection with the Tallis Chamber Choir.ABOUT THE ARTISTS:RANDOL ALAN BASS ...Mr. Bass has achieved an impressive array of performances by orchestras such as the Cleveland Orchestra, the Boston Pops Orchestra, and the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. Active for more than two decades as an arranger, Mr. Bass is now focusing his talents on original compositions, largely due to the demand for his music. His transcription of Conquest of Paradise, can be heard on the April 30, 1996 release from the Boston Pops, Summon the Heroes which celebrated the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.SIR DEREK JACOBI ...A brilliant English stage actor who has made occasional screen appearances. He studied at Cambridge and trained at the Birmingham Repertory Company until Laurence Olivier saw him perform and eventually invited him to join the National Theatre Company. Jacobi performed in a myriad of roles and was featured in the Olivier produced films of Othello (1965, as Cassio) and Three Sisters (1970, released here in 1974). He has also been featured in The Day of the Jackal (1973), The Odessa File (1974), The Medusa Touch (1978), The Human Factor (1979), Enigma (1982), Little Dorrit (1988), and the Kenneth Branagh films Henry V (1989, as the Chorus) and Dead Again (1991, in an amusingly flashy part). Jacobi won a Tony Award for his role as Benedick in "Much Ado About Nothing," and may be best known in the US for his stunning TV work in the BBC series "I, Claudius" and as Hitler in "Inside the Third Reich."LURETTA BYBEE, Mezzo-soprano ...American mezzo-soprano Luretta Bybee has proven herself to be an artist of remarkable range and versatility in her performances throughout the world in a wide variety of repertoire. International recognition came early in her career when she sang the title role in the world tour of Peter Brook's La Tragedie de Carmen. Bizet's heroine has since figured heavily in Ms. Bybee's schedule, having taken her to several companies both in the U.S. and abroad and marked her debut at New York City Opera as Carmen.ABOUT THE MUSIC ...GLORIA! ... This particular setting of the "Gloria" text makes use of multi-metric rhythmic patterns reminiscent of the dance music found in much of Eastern Europe. It contains moments of bittersweet lyricism and much fanfarish brass writing as well; these qualities have made it a frequent inclusion on Holiday programs, both in church and in the concert hall. The work was especially composed for performances of the New York Pops Orchestra (Skitch Henderson, conducting) and the Texas Christian University Choirs (Christmas, 1990.)A FEAST OF CAROLS ... There are six carols included in the arrangement, set out as follows:Gloucester Wassail CarolIl Est Neé, le Divin EnfantVeni EmmanuelThe Holly and the IvyGod Rest Ye Merry, GentlemenWe Wish You a Merry ChristmasThe orchestral opening introduces all 6 themes and there follow extended arrangements of the various carols, connecting one to the other in rhapsodic fashion.I WONDER AS I WANDER ... This traditional Appalachian folk song was collected in North Carolina in July, 1933 by John Jacob Niles and published shortly thereafter in his 1934 Songs of the Hill-Folk. This most plaintive and serene of carols is here cast in a stark, glassy setting for solo mezzo-soprano, chorus and orchestra. The arrangement retains the simple, questioning quality of the original tune while making effective use of modern orchestral forces for subtle color and text-painting.GLORY TO GOD ... This short choral setting of the famous biblical nativity text comprises a single movement of th