Kerstconcert

A Swinging Christmas Party

With this Christmas adventure, Johannette Zomer and Bert van den Brink & combo leave the beaten path and combine their baroque and jazzy roots into a surprising, warm, and sometimes moving musical mix: a swinging family concert performed by a captivating quintet!

Johannette Zomer soprano Bert van den Brink piano and accordion Paul van der Feen saxophone Marcel Booij bass Franc auf dem Brinke percussion

The concert opens with the majestic Once in Royal David’s City and subsequently unfolds into an atmospheric journey through diverse Christmas traditions, featuring centuries-old melodies from both Europe and America. From the hushed depths of the medieval *Hoe leit dit kindeke hier in de kou*, a quintessentially Dutch winter breeze blows in, while the subdued, mystical *Maria durch ein Dornwald gäng* takes the listener to the spiritual musical tradition of sixteenth-century Germany. The French *Il est né le divin enfant*, combined with the regal striding *Good King Wenceslas*, then forms a colorful diptych of European Christmas customs, after which Arvo Pärt’s intimate *Weihnachtliches Wiegenlied* stills the atmosphere with crystal-clear simplicity.

This is followed by two beautiful Catalan Christmas carols, sung in the unique language of northeastern Spain. These songs represent a musical tradition surrounding the holidays that dates back centuries.* *El noi de la Mare* is a traditional Catalan lullaby from the 18th or 19th century, originally without a religious background, but which has since become a staple in the Catalan Christmas repertoire. The extraordinarily beautiful melody and the simple, tender lyrics tell a universally human story of maternal love and care. In *El petit vailet*, the story is sung of a little boy, weary from a long journey, who comes to honor the baby Jesus with a basket full of treats.

Next, warm, comforting Baroque music sounds with Flößt, mein Heiland from Bach’s Christmas Oratorio, in which the intimate dialogue between voice and instruments forms one of the highlights. The first half of the program concludes with the sparkling Ding Dong Merrily on High, a festive English folk song.

The second half opens with the jubilant Gaudete, which brings Renaissance energy and rhythmic clarity. Next comes the solemn, centuries-old Veni veni Emmanuel, which makes the anticipation of Advent tangible with its austere melody. The Spanish Riu Riu Chiu sets the listener in motion once again with its driving rhythm and infectious melody, while the Canadian ‘T Was in the Moon of Wintertime presents an early North American Christmas story, full of nature symbolism and serene beauty. This is followed by the joyful medieval In dulci jubilo, in which devout mysticism and colorful folk music meet. With the melancholic-beautiful I Wonder as I Wander, we return to America one last time, where the work adds a poetic, almost floating Appalachian atmosphere to the program. Finally, the American Yuletide Sessions Medley brings together the best of the twentieth-century Christmas atmosphere: warm, radiant, and irresistibly festive — like a musical bow on the program.

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