Today I went to the Chan Centre in Vancouver BC to a prouduction of the Northwest Baroque Masterworks Project (musicians from Portland, Seattle, Vancouver and Victoria BC and Toronto) of J.S. Bach’s Magnificat in D Major BWV 243. In Vancouver we have a healthy early music scene sponsored by Early Music Vancouver and our Pacific Baroque Orchestra.

One of the additional works by Bach featured a chorale Zion hört die Wächter singen sung by tenor Aaron Sheehan.

It immediately transported me to Mexico City when I first heard a record, Jazz Sebastian Bach — Swingle Singers. The chorale was featured as the first cut on the first side of the Swingle Singers record. The Swingle Singers (I was 21) introduced me to a lifelong love of Bach and baroque music.

My wife and I drove home (lots of snow something not usual to Vancouver). The first thing I did was to put my original record (an Argentine Phillips pressing on the turntable). I suddenly felt happy. The record is perfect Christmas music without any pathos. Its happy and immediately took me back to moments in my life before life became awfully serious.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yy8ka_6loJQ

Merry Christmas to all of you in Medium

Alex Waterhouse-Hayward

Vancouver BC