Heinrich Schütz
's
Weihnachtshistorie
(or "
Christmas Story
"), in full the
Historia der Geburt Christi, SWV 435
, has never been one of his more frequently performed works; there are editorial problems connected with it, and it doesn't have the splendor of the big polychoral works of the composer's youth. But there are beauties to be found by the likes of the ensemble
Vox Luminis
(just the right size at 16 singers, plus an orchestra of 18), who demonstrated the work's potential here with an album that made classical best-seller charts in the autumn of 2024 and was one of the great successes of that year's holiday season; it will remain relevant in seasons to come. The work is of an intimate sort, with expressive secco recitatives that led to
Bach
's treatment of religious narration, and more minimal treatments of it are possible. But the rich quality cultivated here by director
Lionel Meunier
serves the work well. There are solo parts for an Evangelist, Herod, and an angel, but the emphasis is on groups, on shepherds, wise men, and high priests. The shepherds get a pastoral musical setting, with recorders, of a kind that would become more common as the Baroque era proceeded, and the result is a festive kind of Christmas work, less solemn oratorio than joyous cantata. The soloists are fine; the voice of
Erika Tandiono
as the Angel has a delicate, rustic quality that fits the music perfectly. This underrated product of the late
Schütz
(he was almost 80 when the work appeared in 1664) is a must for lovers of the composer, and it is enjoyable for anyone. The sound from the small-to-medium-sized Notre-Dame of Three Valleys Church in Gedinne, Belgium, is ideal. ~ James Manheim