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Carols & Lullabies: Christmas in the Southwest

Cypress Choral Recordings, Catalogue No. 0703 (released 1999)
Distributed by SRI, Peterborough, ON
Recorded in Vancouver, BC

This renamed and repackaged version of Chor Leoni's first Christmas recording (Magnificat) presents three substantial and endearing seasonal works.  The sunny Carols and Lullabies: Christmas in the Southwest by Conrad Susa derives from the folk music of Hispanic America, and sets the Holy birth in the context of a Southwestern pinata party.  Italian composer Ottorino Respighi was an early twentieth-century composer who looked to the past for inspiration and musical materials, e.g., in his well-known Ancient Airs and Dances.  This tendency can also be heard in the Laud to the Nativity of Our Lord, Respighi's self-described "personal Christmas card to the world.”  The disc also includes the premiere recording of a Chor Leoni commission, Magnificat by Vancouver composer Rupert Lang.  Using the unusual combination of mezzo-soprano soloist and male chorus, Lang seeks to express Mary's personal, human response to the formal biblical text, with wonderful results.

Special guests for this recording include mezzo-soprano Mariateresa Magisano (winner of the 1998 Metropolitan Opera Auditions), soprano Lambroula Maria Pappas (winner of the 1999 Metropolitan Opera Auditions), and Elektra Women's Choir (four-time consecutive First Place winners in the CBC Competition).

Please note that the only difference between this edition and our earlier Magnificat CD is the packaging and new name. Carols & Lullabies: Christmas in the Southwest contains all of the music and notes from Magnificat.

Reviews

• CD Review: Carols & Lullabies [previously released as Magnificat] (ChristmasReviews.com) (December 1, 1999) The musicianship is first class, and the music is captivating ...
• CD Review: Carols & Lullabies: Christmas in the Southwest [previously released as Magnificat] (BC Christian News) (December 1, 2001) This is an undeservedly overlooked album by a fine Vancouver-based men's choir. ...

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Playlist

Carols and Lullabies: Christmas in the Southwest Conrad Susa
1. ¡Oh, mi Belén!
2. El Desembre Congelat
3. Alegría
4. A la Nanita Nana
5. Las Posadas
6. Campana Sobre Campana
7. En Belén Tocan a Fuego
8. El Noi de la Mare
9. Chiquirriquitín
10. El Rorro

11. Lauda per la Natività del Signore Ottorino Respighi

Magnificat Rupert Lang
12. Recitative
13. Mary's Song
14. Magnificat
15. Quia Fecit
16. Fecit Potentiam
17. Suscepit Israel
18. Gloria