The Christmas Story is one of the masterpieces of Heinrich Schütz’s old age: it was probably first performed on Christmas Day 1660 at the Dresden court, where the composer had been working for more than 40 years. It tells the familiar Nativity story in a colourful, modern idiom, inspired by Carissimi’s oratorios. The Evangelist sings in recitative and the various characters are accompanied by appropriate instruments, violas for the angel, rustic recorders and a dulcian(early bassoon) for the shepherds, majestic trombones for the high priests, and regal cornetts for King Herod.

The first half of the concert is an anthology of seasonal music by Schütz’s German contemporaries, including settings of Lutheran chorales by Michael Praetorius and Samuel Scheidt for divided choirs of voices and instruments, a virtuoso duet by Schütz’s friend Johann Hermann Schein, and instrumental canzonas for cornetts, trombones, dulcian,strings and organ by Schütz’s teacher Giovanni Gabrieli.

QuintEssential, one of the leading British cornett and sackbut ensembles, joins the home team of performers for what promises to be an exciting and  memorable concert.