The Strasbourg Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Aziz Shokhakimov, presents a rarely performed work by Camille Saint-Saëns: the Christmas Oratorio. Composed in 1858 when the composer was just 23 years old, this piece, which is close in form to a cantata, is seldom performed on stage, making this interpretation particularly unique.
With his Christmas Oratorio, the young French composer Camille Saint-Saëns reconnects with the grand Baroque tradition of celebrating the Nativity through a mass written especially for the holiday season. The prelude stylistically echoes the cantatas of Johann Sebastian Bach. Like his illustrious predecessor, who left behind a vast repertoire of sacred music, Saint-Saëns draws from the Old Testament (books of Jeremiah and Isaiah, psalms) as well as the Gospels of Luke and John. He conducted the premiere of the piece himself on December 24, 1858, at the Church of La Madeleine in Paris.