The Hallé
Christmas Oratorio
- When
- Sat 14 Nov · 19:30
- Where
- The Bridgewater Hall, Manchester
The programme
Sir James MacMillan
Christmas Oratorio (105')
The evening
Immerse yourself in the tale of the nativity through the magic of James MacMillan’s Christmas Oratorio.
Known for his majestic, spiritual music, Sir James MacMillan is our Featured Composer this season. His Christmas Oratorio, first performed in 2019, brings the Christmas story vividly to life.
Unfolding through endlessly inventive music, including astonishing writing for the choir, it’s dramatic and colourful, moving and profound. It illuminates the joyful birth of a child while tracing the shadows of events to come.
Mary Bevan, described by Opera World as a ‘crystalline and delicate soprano’, performed in the Oratorio’s world premiere. And at the first UK performance, The Guardian praised Roderick Williams’ ‘peerless capacity for storytelling’.
BBC Music Magazine calls the Oratorio ‘… one of MacMillan’s finest ever pieces … a heady mix of wonder, trepidation and profound mystery …’
On stage
Sir Mark Elder
Conductor
Mary Bevan
Soprano
Roderick Williams
Baritone
Hallé Choir