Advent Calendar - 25 December

So, where do we end? T.S. Eliot once wrote:

We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.

I often think art is like that. We are constantly seeking something new, but the real purpose of this searching is to identify works we can come back to time and time again. And with the really great works we come back to, we always hear, see or feel something new.

So, in this spirit, back to where we started and Bach, and one of the Cantatas for the first day of Christmas, and one of my personal favourites. In deference to Shallow Blue, this performance is by Philippe Herreweghe and his Collegium Vocale.

YouTube

Art is one of the human constants, but unlike religion and politics is so often, one where most of us can accept that we can hold strongly opposing views without one of us being right or wrong.

So, whether you are Christian or not, religious or not, or even if you don’t celebrate Christmas, I would like to wish you all the best for the season and a happy, healthy and cultural New Year.