Cantate de Noël

Une cantate de Noël (A Christmas Cantata) dates from 1953, and was Honegger’s final completed composition. Scored for baritone, chorus, organ and orchestra, the piece lasts 25 minutes, and sets texts in Latin, French and German drawn from popular carols and biblical sources. The cantata begins with a darkly contemplative introduction on the organ, presaging the doleful choral lament “De profundis clamavi” (“From the depths I have cried”). A bright-toned choir of children’s voices pierces the spiritual gloom, proclaiming the Saviour’s coming, and the solo baritone soothingly confirms these “good tidings of great joy”. Children’s and adult voices combine to herald the happy news, weaving French and German carol tunes (including the well-known “Silent Night”) joyfully together. In the cantata’s closing section, the solo baritone returns to voice a heartfelt prayer of praise to God (“Gloria in excelsis Deo”), which is echoed enthusiastically by the choir and in gleaming trumpet fanfares.