Choir Master Sir David Willcocks

Sir David has been called “England’s Choirmaster” and he has worked with Vaughn Williams and Benjamin Britten, among others. We have a special Christmas conversation with Sir David about performing choir music…and about Handel’s Messiah.

INTERFAITH

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A survey found that 28 million Americans lived in mixed-religion households. Two clergy of different faiths offer their perspectives: Mary Luti, pastor of the First Church in Cambridge, Mass. Rabbi Rim Meirowitz of Temple Shir Tikvah, in Winchester, Mass.

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

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We rebroadcast our conversation with Hugh Martin, 93 years young. He wrote “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” with Ralph Blane. Martin says the original version of the song, which was never recorded, was more gloomy than merry.

The Great Debaters

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A film that opens today tells the story of the Wiley College debate team in the 1930s Jim Crow south. The small black college took on and defeated many larger white universities and won the national championship in 1935. In the film, Denzel Washington portrays the team’s dynamic coach, Professor Melvin Tolson. We speak with the Wiley College historian, Dr. Evelyn Bonner.