First Sunday in Advent

The Boys Air Choir, a chamber ensemble of young choristers drawn from such cathedrals as St Paul’s, Salisbury, Winchester, and Westminster Abbey, perform a simple arrangement of the traditional Advent hymn ‘O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.’ 
 

O come, O come, Emmanuel!
Redeem thy captive Israel
That into exile drear is gone,
Far from the face of God’s dear Son.

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, thou Branch of Jesse! draw
The quarry from the lion’s claw;
From the dread caverns of the grave,
From nether hell, thy people save.

O come, O come, thou Dayspring bright!
Pour on our souls thy healing light;
Dispel the long night’s lingering gloom,
And pierce the shadows of the tomb.

O Come, thou Lord of David’s Key!
The royal door fling wide and free;
Safeguard for us the heavenward road,
And bar the way to death’s abode.

O come, O come, Adonai,
Who in thy glorious majesty
From that high mountain clothed in awe,
Gavest thy folk the elder Law.

I believe that some of the young people singing here in 2002 have gone on to study music at a high level and are adult members of cathedral choirs.