A great work of festive music. The Christmas Oratorio is the sublime outcome of a vast project that Bach completed between December1734 and January 1735. This monumental fresco inspired by the history of the Nativity for narrators, soloists, choirs and orchestra comprises no fewer than six sections, each one a huge cantata. The general tone, reconciling the most daring polyphony with the spirit of Christmas and a moving naiveté, endows this masterpiece with an extraordinary freshness.