Our recommended offerings through the end of 2024 are all vocal. (’Tis the season…) Two core classics, a contemporary cantata of conscience, and a clutch of ancient English carols bring us to the close of the year in choral splendor.
Spotlight: The Crossing @ Christmas 2024 – Friday, St. Mark’s Church (Locust Street); Sunday, First Presbyterian Church of Chestnut Hill
Philadelphia’s superb chamber choir specializing in new works offers a rare but welcome reprise. The Crossing premiered David Lang’s poor hymnal to acclaim a year ago, and its message is ever relevant. Lang describes his inspiration thus: “Many religions – mine included – profess that an important part of their belief is to care about how people who are comfortable should act towards people who are not… I wondered if the hymns of a community that did not want to forget our responsibilities to each other, and that wanted to make our responsibilities to each other the central tenet of our coming together, might be different from the hymns that we are singing now. I wrote poor hymnal to find out.”
If you miss these Philadelphia performances, there’s another opportunity on Feb. 4 in Princeton — or listen to The Crossing’s new recording of this moving score.
Dec. 20 at 7 p.m., Saint Mark’s Church, 1625 Locust Street, $22-$43; tickets and information.
Dec. 22 at 5 p.m., Presbyterian Church of Chestnut Hill, 8855 Germantown Avenue, $22-$43; tickets and information.
Piffaro with New York Polyphony: Nova! Nova! – Friday, Church of the Holy Trinity (Rittenhouse Square); Saturday, First Presbyterian Church of Chestnut Hill; Sunday, Westminster Presbyterian Church, Wilmington
Piffaro presents a bouquet of medieval and Renaissance delights each Christmas season. This year they’re joined by the four voices of New York Polyphony for English music from the 12th century to… today? The Piffaro pipers have commissioned two pieces from a 21st-century composer, Andrew Smith, to complement a program that also includes polyphony from ancient manuscripts and 15th-century carols, including one by King Henry VIII.
Dec. 20 at 7:30 p.m., Church of the Holy Trinity (Rittenhouse Square), 1904 Walnut Street, $25-$49;
Dec. 21 at 7:30 p.m., Presbyterian Church of Chestnut Hill, 8855 Germantown Avenue, $25;
Dec. 22 at 3 p.m., Westminster Presbyterian Church, 1502 West 13th Street, Wilmington, DE, $25-$49; tickets and information.
The Philadelphia Orchestra: Handel’s Messiah – Saturday and Sunday, Marian Anderson Hall
If Messiah is your must-hear each Christmas, the annual offering from The Philadelphia Orchestra and Philadelphia Symphonic Choir is the one to choose. This year’s outing is led by Yannick Nézet-Séguin, whose experience and love of choral music is broad, deep, and sincere. The top-drawer soloists include the radiant English soprano Lucy Crowe, fast-rising mezzo-soprano Emily D’Angelo, the up-and-coming tenor Spencer Britten, and distinguished bass-baritone Christian Van Horn.
Dec. 21 at 7 p.m. and Dec. 22 at 2 p.m., Marian Anderson Hall, Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, 300 South Broad Street, $42-$147; tickets and information.
Bach’s Mass in B Minor – Dec. 31, Church of the Holy Trinity (Rittenhouse Square)
It’s hard to imagine a more perfect prelude to your New Year’s Eve celebrations. Whether your midnight plans include a boisterous party or an intimate gathering to ring in the New Year, a 4 p.m. performance of Bach’s transcendent Mass in B Minor is a worthwhile addition to the festivities. Performed by Choral Arts Philadelphia and Bach Collegium Philadelphia, this early evening show will add both joy and gravitas to the last day of 2024.
Dec. 31 at 4 p.m., Church of the Holy Trinity Rittenhouse, 1904 Walnut Street, $15-$50; tickets and information.
