Ragazzi Boys Chorus Celebrates the Season with "Wintersong"

Harried shoppers are invited to take a few moments from their shopping lists and gift wrapping, and celebrate the holidays with the soaring voices of Ragazzi Boys Chorus, when the renowned choral training and performing organization presents WINTERSONG, a December homage to the season. Spanning the ages from centuries past to just last year, from sparkling upbeat tunes, to rich, complex compositions and familiar carols, this festive treat for the whole family will feature songs such as Eatnemen Vuelie, known to audiences as the opening for the instant classic Disney film Frozen. Joining modern holiday spirit and classic Yuletide joy, the concert will include Edward Elgar’s The Snow, the unearthly Allegri Miserere, Biebl’s popular, enchanting Ave Maria, and invites audiences to reconnect with ancient tradition by joining the chorus in singing favorite winter carols. WINTERSONG will be presented 5pm Saturday, December 6 at St Matthews Episcopal Church, San Mateo, 5pm Sunday, December 7 at Messiah Lutheran Church, Redwood City, and 4pm Sunday, December 14 at Old First Church, San Francisco.

A celebration of traditions old and new, WINTERSONG will highlight pieces spanning the centuries, from the contemporary to the Renaissance. The concert opens with a meditative rendition of Alleluia introduced by Nariman Pournejat on the saxophone and includes songs in the spirit of the colder months such as Blow Winter Wind, by John Rutter, and In the Bleak Midwinter by Harold Daarke. Eatnemen Vuelie by Norwegian composer Frode Fjellheim, the twinkling opening song of Frozen, was inspired by indigenous Saami and Scandinavian culture and captures the mythic spirit of winter.

The chorus is proud to perform the glorious Miserere, one of the most frequently recorded examples of Renaissance music by Allegri, who studied music as a boy chorister. This polyphonic setting of Psalm 51 was originally written to be performed in the grandeur of Rome’s Sistine Chapel, and still retains the reverent beauty it encapsulated when it was first written.

WINTERSONG will close with a rousing audience sing-a-long of traditional Christmas carols including The First Noel, Away in a Manger, Silent Night and O Come All Ye Faithful.

For Peninsula concert tickets ($10-$30) visit www.ragazzi.org or call (650) 342-8785. San Francisco tickets ($14-$17, free for children under 12) are available at www.oldfirst.org or by calling (415) 474-1608.