Chanticleer Releases “Joy to the World” on Delos

The GRAMMY® Award-winning vocal ensemble Chanticleer offers a truly sublime holiday listening experience and a new collaboration with Delos, releasing Joy to the World ahead of an extensive US Christmas tour. Famed for its “accuracy of intonation, purity of blend, of color and swagger of style” (Boston Globe), the group makes its label debut with a new Christmas collection that blends tradition with innovation, combining Renaissance motets and fresh arrangements of classic carols with contemporary compositions, including two new commissions from Joanna Marsh. Showcasing the ensemble’s extraordinary ability to move seamlessly and expertly between styles, Chanticleer’s first Delos release conjures a wintertime world of magic, light, and wonder.

Joy to the World, traditional Christmas carols and new works by: Lowell Mason, Sarah Quartel, Michael Praetorius, Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, Cristóbal de Morales, Henry Gauntlett, John Jacob Niles, Steven Sametz, John Francis Wade, Franz Xaver Gruber, Richard Rodgers and Joanna Marsh.

Listen here.

The magic of Christmas lies in old meeting new: beloved traditions earn deeper meaning with each passing year. Family and friend structures develop, roles change, experiences multiply, and life accumulates, while the familiar rituals of Christmastime pass from one generation to the next. Similarly, the magic of Chanticleer’s Christmas offerings come from the ensemble’s extraordinary ability to move seamlessly and expertly between styles, allowing not only the juxtaposition of ancient and contemporary, but also fresh interpretations of enduring melodies.

In Joy to the World, we pay homage to the centuries-old tradition of Christmas choral music by singing motets composed by some of the finest Renaissance composers: Michael Praetorius, Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, and Cristó bal de Morales. We also include many timeless Christmas carols – familiar tunes with words that resonate across generations. However, since this is Chanticleer, we bring a new perspective to each one. This album features seven new arrangements of holiday favorites: “O Come, All Ye Faithful” by vocal jazz expert Amanda Taylor, “Ding Dong Merrily on High” and “Joy to the World” by Chanticleer’s longest tenured singer, countertenor Adam Brett Ward, “Good King Wenceslas / Little Girl Blue,” “Once in Royal David’s City,” and “Silent Night” by Chanticleer’s own vocal jazz star, bass-baritone Jared Graveley, and “I Wonder as I Wander,” arranged by Music Director Tim Keeler. Keeler has also arranged a little-known Appalachian folk tune, “And the Trees Do Moan,” bringing it to many ears for the first time.

In addition to carols, the album features several contemporary compositions sure to become Christmas favorites. Composers Sarah Quartel and Steven Sametz contribute two joyful, winning works: “This Endris Night” and “A Christmas Fanfare (Angelus ad Virginem).” Finally, Joanna Marsh completes our exploration of winter and the Christmas season with two brand new commissions, “Hands and the Hour” and “Arrival at the Lantern Festival.” These pieces were written for us and for our friends at the choir Zero8 in Stockholm. The works were inspired by Marsh’s 2019 composition “In Winter’s House,” which has become a favorite of both groups. When asked to compose a companion piece, Marsh responded with “Hands and the Hour” and “Arrival at the Lantern Festival,” each setting a newly commissioned poem by Jane Draycott. The resulting triptych is full of wintertime magic, light, and wonder. –Music Director Tim Keeler