swap_horiz El Niño Alternatives

1

The Dream of Gerontius

Elgar’s *The Dream of Gerontius* is a sacred oratorio based on Cardinal Newman’s poem. Composed in 1900, it depicts the...

Romantic English Sacred Catholic

9.4 Excellent

2

Elijah

Mendelssohn’s *Elijah* is a German oratorio based on the biblical story of the prophet Elijah. Composed in 1846, it show...

German Romantic Sacred Biblical

9.3 Excellent

3

Belshazzar's Feast

Walton’s *Belshazzar’s Feast* is a 20th-century oratorio based on the Book of Daniel. The work depicts the final, opulen...

20TH Century English Sacred Biblical

9.3 Excellent

4

The Creation (Die Schöpfung)

Haydn’s *Die Schöpfung* (The Creation) is a sacred oratorio composed in 1798. It portrays the biblical narrative of crea...

Classical Austrian Haydn Sacred

9.2 Excellent

5

Christmas Oratorio BWV 248

J.S. Bach’s Christmas Oratorio BWV 248 is a substantial musical work comprising six cantatas created in 1734. These piec...

German Baroque Christmas Sacred

9.0 Excellent

6

L'Enfance du Christ

Hector Berlioz’s L’Enfance du Christ (The Childhood of Christ) is a 1854 oratorio exploring the biblical story of the Ho...

Romantic French Christmas Sacred

9.0 Excellent

7

St. Luke Passion

Krzysztof Penderecki’s St. Luke Passion is a 20th-century Polish oratorio commemorating the 700th anniversary of Münster...

Polish Passion 20TH Century Sacred

9.0 Excellent

8

Saul

Handel's 1739 English oratorio dramatizing Israel's first king, notable for its psychological depth and the use of a car...

Baroque English Sacred Biblical

8.8 Great

9

Jeanne d'Arc au bûcher

Arthur Honegger's 1935 dramatic oratorio Jeanne d'Arc au bûcher is renowned for its unique blending of theater, music, a...

Swiss 20TH Century Sacred Honegger

8.8 Great

10

Membra Jesu Nostri

Dieterich Buxtehude's Membra Jesu Nostri is a 1680 German Passion oratorio notable for its seven-part structure focusing...

Baroque Passion Sacred Buxtehude

8.8 Great

11

Israel in Egypt

Handel's 1739 English oratorio notable for its unusually large proportion of double choruses over solo arias, making it...

Baroque English Sacred Biblical

8.7 Great

12

Passio (Pärt)

Arvo Pärt's setting of the Passion according to St. John (1982), composed in his tintinnabuli style for soloists, chorus...

Passion Contemporary Sacred Estonian

8.5 Great

13

Christmas History (Weihnachtshistorie)

Weihnachtshistorie (SWV 435) is Heinrich Schütz's 1664 Christmas oratorio narrating the Nativity with distinct concertat...

German Baroque Christmas Sacred

7.8 Good

14

The Gospel According to the Other Mary

John Adams's oratorio (2012) retelling the Passion from the perspectives of Mary Magdalene and Mary of Bethany, with a l...

American Contemporary Sacred Biblical

7.8 Good

15

St. John Passion (MacMillan)

James MacMillan's St. John Passion (2008) for chorus and orchestra, a major work by the Scottish composer premiered at t...

Passion Contemporary Sacred Scottish

7.8 Good

16

Hodie

Ralph Vaughan Williams's Christmas cantata (1954) for soloists, chorus, and orchestra, setting a broad range of Christma...

Modern Christmas English Sacred

7.5 Good

17

Water Passion after St. Matthew

Tan Dun's Passion oratorio (2000) commissioned for the 250th anniversary of Bach's death, blending Chinese musical tradi...

Passion Contemporary Sacred Chinese American

7.2 Good

18

Oratorio de Noël

Camille Saint-Saëns composed this Christmas oratorio in 1858, creating a gentle, pastoral choral work that remains his m...

Romantic French Christmas Sacred

7.0 Good

19

Legend of St. Christopher (Parker)

Composed by Horatio Parker in 1898, A Legend of Saint Christopher is a significant American choral work based on the med...

Romantic American Sacred Hagiographic

6.3 Fair

20

Der Stern von Bethlehem

The German oratorio Der Stern von Bethlehem depicts the biblical story of the Magi and remains a beloved staple of the t...

German Romantic Christmas Sacred

5.5 Mediocre