New Christmas Musicals

2 65/2098&99L-2 Foreword What makes a story a good story? Interesting characters we can identify with is an excellent start. Some intriguing dialog or conversation between these characters is another important inclusion. Insight into what these characters are actually thinking, or what motivates their actions, is always a fascinating component. And if we can picture in our minds the location of the story – where it all takes place – well, that's another engrossing feature. Then, of course, there's the plot line itself; the very reason we're telling, or listening to, the story in the first place. When a dilemma is presented, a decision made, an action taken, and a conflict resolved, we find ourselves engaged, caught up in….the story. And that's why we love the story of Christmas. Not legends of elves (ancient or modern), or of animals (flying or otherwise), or even of inanimate objects like snowmen or nutcrackers, but the Christmas story; the one where the Author actually takes on the leading role, seeing the predicament and resolving the conflict in the most unimaginable way. This story speaks to our hearts in such a way that we arrange practically our entire calendar around celebrating it. But most of all, we love this story because it's true. The Christmas story is one of hope, peace, joy, and love. It's a story of the infinite touching the finite with exquisite timing in the perfect location. On first reading it, we might be tempted to think that it's only Israel's story. But in reality, it's our story. Only an omniscient God could clearly see our desperate need. Only a compassionate God could provide an answer. And only a loving God would send His Son, a Savior. —Marty Parks Production Notes A Child, a King is flexibly conceived for Advent and/or Christmas programming. The individual anthems may be presented during the weeks leading up to Christmas, or the entire cantata may be performed as a whole in a single worship experience, depending on programming needs. Small and large choirs alike will find the choral writing appealing and versatile. Accompaniment options ranging from piano only to full orchestra with CD accompaniment or live instruments ensures maximum flexibility for your unique programming needs. From the Publisher Some of the cover-art images and graphics from this work are available as free downloads. We hope that you can use them to assist in the making of your bulletins, posters, flyers, website and email announcements, and in any other way that's within your organization and in conjunction with performances of this work. To access these files, please visit www.lorenz.com/downloads and navigate to the desired folder. PC users should right click and choose "Save Target As…" and Macintosh users should click and hold the link, then choose "Save Target As…" We have provided standard file formats that should be usable in most page layout or word processing software. Due to the vast number of differences in computer system setups, we are unable to provide technical support for downloadable images/graphics by either phone or email. For Preview Only

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