This piece is written is based off the Hebrew prayer Elu D’vorim, meaning, these are the things. The text reads as follows:
“These are the obligations without measure, whose reward, too, is without measure: to honor father and mother; to perform acts of love and kindness; to attend the house of study daily; to welcome the stranger; to visit the sick; to rejoice with bride and groom; to console the bereaved; to pray with sincerity; to make peace when there is strife. And the study of the Torah is equal to them all, because it leads to them all.”
Chaconne from Partita No. 2 in D minor by J.S. Bach.
UMD’s performance of Tchaikovsky’s “Nutcracker” alongside David Lang’s “Little Match Girl Passion.” The interweaving of these two pieces shows a different side of Christmas, one that is often silenced by the media blitz and commercialism during the holiday season.