Praetorius: Christmas Vespers

This recording recreates a Vespers (evening) service for Christmas as it might have sounded in a large north German church in the early 17th century.

Last Christmas, the Toronto Consort undertook one of its most ambitious projects ever when they recreated a Christmas Vespers. Michael Praetorius is one of the most prolific and influential composers of the early German Baroque. Here, in one of his most important masterworks, one encounters all the wonderful new musical techniques: masterful use of madrigalian word-painting; contrasting vocal and instrumental forces, combined and recombined in seemingly infinite variety. A melding of voices and baroque instruments such as cornetto (a hybrid instrument with a small trumpet-like mouthpiece and fingerholes like a recorder), sackbut (the trombone ancestor) and theorbos (a type of archlute developed in the 1500s) makes up a powerful ensemble of more than 60 talented artists. The rich German sound of the organ, combined with the delicate tones of the recorder and the soaring voices of the choir combine to create an unforgettable Christmas experience. This wonderful recording of this beautiful work is the only one currently available. Catalog: MAR 335