Boston Cecilia Concert

On Sunday the 9th, I went to the Boston Cecilia Christmas concert. It was really delightful. I particularly enjoyed the Victoria "O Magnum Mysterium" and "Ave Maria". I'm such a sucker for Renaissance polyphony. The program as a whole was quite good - there were a lot of 20th century pieces. Most of them were fairly conservative in sound, but lovely all the same. I was intrigued by Tavener's "Village Wedding", although I did not think it was his most compelling work. I was kind of disappointed by "A Shepherd's Carol", the second Britten piece on the program. I don't think he was at the top of his game when he wrote that one. However, I really liked "There Is No Rose", by Eleanor Daley. It had a wonderful use of ascending arpeggios. I should find out more about her.