Kreuzlinger Franz - Four Christmas verses

Kreuzlinger Franz
Four Christmas verses

for three melody instruments (with Orff’s instruments ad lib.)

The four pieces were created for a Christmas concert in 2019. Each of the small character pieces are based on Christmas melodies. In the quiet first movement, the Bach chorale sounds like “I'm standing at your crib here”, the second movement, on the other hand, is a rhythmic movement about the initial motif of the song “Freu dich Erd 'und Sternenzelt”, which is almost Bartok's and comes along with an optional accompaniment of a percussion virtuoso. The third movement, a quodlibet of two motifs and the chorale “Vom Himmel hoch” is a far-reaching meditation that is particularly impressive when performed with musicians scattered around the room. The concluding “Pastorella canonica” is a small passaglia based on a motif from Handel's “Pifa” from the Christmas scene of his oratorio “The Messiah”.

4 playing scores / 28 pages