The Christmas story has a rich history of images and associations that have evolved through the ages.

Celebrating this heritage with a selection of works by composers from the Middle Ages to the present, this Music in Mind concert for choir and orchestra explores the commonalities of “light” in Jewish and Christian celebrations of the season with music of Ernst Bloch, Aaron Copland and Arcangelo Corelli (from the “Christmas Concerto”).

Images of Mary and the infant and Jesus in our literary and musical history appear in works of Claudio Monteverdi, Hugo Distler and Francis Poulenc, as well as J.S. Bach’s beloved “Wachet auf” (“Sleepers wake”) cantata, a work with deep metaphorical connections to the season of Advent.

The Music in Mind series celebrates the role of music in our culture and our lives, explores sources of inspiration and points of intersection in musical traditions, and presents music in a context that encourages reflection and discovery.

Proceeds from Music in Mind concerts benefit the UMD School of Music’s undergraduate scholarship fund.