Vancouver Chamber Choir breathes new life into Benjamin Britten’s first masterpiece, December 16 and 17

Wassail features the British composer’s A Boy Was Born, plus other holiday works

By Gail Johnson

The singers of Vancouver Chamber Choir.

Vancouver Chamber Choir presents Wassail on December 16 at 11 am and December 17 at 7:30 pm at Pacific Spirit United Church.

BENJAMIN BRITTEN STARTED composing as a child and was just 19 years old when he wrote A Boy was Born, Opus 3. The British artist’s first masterpiece was his final project at the Royal College of Music.

An ambitious work with variations on a simple theme, it was written in 1932-33 and published in 1934. Britten dedicated it to his father and chose it for his dad’s funeral the following year.

Vancouver Chamber Choir breathes new life into A Boy Was Born at Wassail, its upcoming holiday concert. Under the baton of artistic director Kari Turunen, the ensemble will also perform English carols from the here and now and from days gone by.

For more information, see Vancouver Chamber Choir.

 

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