Christmas Cantata / A Ceremony Of Carols

This 1968 Supraphon release couples two pivotal 20th-century choral works: Benjamin Britten’s A Ceremony of Carols and Arthur Honegger’s Christmas Cantata. Produced during a period when the state-run Czechoslovak label was gaining international acclaim for its high-fidelity classical recordings, the album features the Dětský sbor Čs. rozhlasu (Czechoslovak Radio Children's Choir) and the Prague Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Serge Baudo. The recording captures the distinctive, crystalline aesthetic favored by East European conductors of the era, emphasizing precision in choral articulation.

The selection of these two compositions reflects a mid-century interest in neoclassical and sacred choral textures. Britten’s work, composed in 1942, was intended to showcase the ethereal quality of boys' voices, while Honegger’s 1953 cantata serves as a massive, liturgical counterbalance. The production was well-regarded by critics for its balance of intimacy and scale, serving as a testament to the technical capabilities of Prague’s recording engineers who utilized the city’s historic concert halls to achieve a warm, resonant acoustic space.