Christmas with the Grand Omroepkoor: Saint-Saëns' Christmas Oratorio

The Groot Omroepkoor sings Saint-Saëns' lyrical Christmas oratorio. Vasily Petrenko further conducts the choir and Radio Philharmonic Orchestra in an intimate Mass by Schubert. The start of a sparkling Christmas season!

Christmas with Saint-Saëns' Christmas Oratorio

Saint-Saëns may have been organist of the Paris Madeleine, but that didn't mean he was a lover of too much religious ceremony. Perhaps that is why his Christmas oratorio picks up so "humanly": simple but stirring. Saint-Saëns begins his oratorio with a prelude in the style of the then not at all common Bach. A beautiful tribute that could not be more Christmassy.

Grand Broadcasting Choir

Saint-Saëns' lyrical Christmas oratorio is sung by the Groot Omroepkoor. Among the soloists is mezzo-soprano Iris van Wijnen. Her "dazzling feats of virtuosity" were praised by The Telegraph. Tenor Alessandro Fisher was found to be "an engaging storyteller" by Opera Today, and Bachtrack praised the warm timbre of alto Claudia Huckle. Leading the chorus and Radio Philharmonic Orchestra is Vasily Petrenko. 'You don't need words to understand classical music,' he told Classic FM. 'It's a direct connection from heart to heart.' That certainly holds true for today's opening work, Schubert's heartfelt Mass in G. The start of a sparkling Christmas season.