For our annual Holiday Concert, Early Music Missouri turns to 17th-century Germany. Inspired by the music and musicians of Venice’s San Marco, German composers including Heinrich Schütz, Samuel Schein and Michael Praetorius created large-scale concertato pieces for voices and instruments, performed in courts and cathedrals north of the Alps. For this unique program of holiday music, Early Music Missouri gathers a chorus, a string band and an early Baroque brass ensemble.
While the Italians Gabrieli and Monteverdi appropriately receive credit for creating and growing the large-scale concertato style, their German disciples – Praetorius, Schütz and others – fully embraced it. The combination of voices, strings and winds is especially appropriate for church festivals, making this ensemble ideal for Early Music Missouri’s Holiday Concert. Led by violinist Samuel Breene, the ensemble will offer fanfares and canzonas for the winds, a cappella motets and several large concertato works for double choir and instruments.
The concert will take place on December 6, 2026 at 3:00 PM at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 110 North Warson Road in Ladue, MO. Free off-street parking, available immediately adjacent to the church, includes multiple handicapped spots. The performance space is accessible for those with special mobility needs. Admission to the concert is $20 (cash, card, or check) at the door with special discounts for students.
Early Music Missouri is the region’s foremost promoter and presenter of Early Music concerts. Its performances feature Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque repertoire performed on period instruments by expert performers from the region and nation.
