Word: natalis
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Dates: during 1960-1969
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Samuel Barber, 50, saw his Die Natali: Choral Preludes for Christmas given its first New York performance by the New York Philharmonic. The remarkably successful piece is essentially a patchwork of familiar Christmas carols artfully embedded in unfamiliar harmonies-0 Come, O Come, Emmanuel, We Three Kings of Orient Are, Silent Night, God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen. The mood for the most part is reflective, the tone intensely lyrical, as most of Barber's best music is. The only truly shocking section of the piece is also one of the most effective: the brasses suddenly explode into a jazzy...