Bill McLaughlin and Richmond’s All Saints Choir of Men and Boys on December 21st

I don’t know about you but I get very nostalgic around the holidays. One of my favorite things to do is to turn off the TV and turn on the Christmas tree lights and radio and experience the holiday as they once did in simpler times. On Wednesday, December 21st WCVE Public Radio offers two programs that will fit the bill perfectly for this kind of yesteryear activity. 

Christmas Daybreak, 2:00 p.m. - From the earliest times the celebration of light in darkness has played a great part in faith traditions of the northern hemisphere brought on by the perpetual darkness of the year's shortest days. In the European Middle Ages many of the most striking carols were composed on the theme of light appearing in the darkness, as life in the form of a Christmas rose, or the evergreen, holly, ivy, or conifer tree appearing in the bleak darkness of winter. Christmas Daybreak brings together two of the finest groups of singers and actors at the cutting edge of live performance in America today, the singers of The Crossing and actors from the Pig Iron Theatre. Bill McLaughlin hosts this memorable program.

Lessons and Carols by Richmond’s All Saints Choir of Men and Boys, 10:00 p.m. - Less than a month after performing at two cathedrals in England, the All Saints Choir of Men and Boys will present a 75 year Richmond Christmas tradition with their annual presentation of ‘A Festival of Lessons and Carlols.’ Beginning with ‘Once in Royal David City’ and concluding with ‘Hark the Herald Angels Sing,’ nine lessons and more than a dozen anthems and hymns comprise this beloved program. The All Saints Choir of Men and Boys, under the direction of Choirmaster Andy Koebler, was organized in 1899.

Have you ever attended a live performance at any Lessons and Carols service?