Johann Sebastian Bach wrote his cycle of cantatas, known collectively as the Christmas Oratorio, for the Christmas season of 1734. Constrained by time, he repeated his familiar habit of re-using musical excerpts from previous cantatas, including some from his secular works. Each of the six cantatas is written for a specific day of the Christmas period. The composer dedicated the first to the birth of Jesus, while the second treats the story of the annunciation, when the angels brought the good news to the shepherds. Omitting the third cantata at this concert, the fourth relates the story of the baptism of Jesus. The sixth and final cantata, after also skipping the fifth, closes the oratorio by commemorating the visit of the adoring magi (using the more everyday term "three kings”). The music of the Christmas Oratorio expresses light and splendour, and joy and solemnity, just as much as it does the intimate inner state of faith and devotion.
The French early music ensemble joining the international collection of soloists, Les Musiciens du Louvre, was founded 35 years ago and initially specialised essentially in the French Baroque repertoire. It is now one of the world's top musical groups and its 55-year-old founder, Marc Minkowski is a multifaceted conductor of extraordinary dynamism brimming with a spirit of discovery and originality.


Presented by: Müpa Budapest