THE York Early Music Christmas Festival opened with a recital by lutenist Elizabeth Kenny and Welsh soprano Elin Manahan Thomas. Entitled Now Winter Comes Slowly (a Purcell piece on the programme), it promised songs suitable for the run-up to the festive season.

So Shall The Lute And Harp Awake, from Handel’s Judas Maccabeus, didn’t quite come off: a single lute did not seem an adequate substitute for Handel’s simple yet vigorous orchestration. But a sequence of wintry scenes from Purcell semi-operas was remarkably successful—including the Frost Scene from King Arthur, in which Thomas sang the parts of both Cupid and the Cold Genius.

Monteverdi’s cadential decorations in the motet Exulta Filia were appropriately ecstatic, with a properly exultant Alleluia. Chorale melodies by Bach showed how an apparently simple tune can be elevated by startling touches of colour, such as the remarkable sequence in the middle of O Jesulein süss, o Jesulein mild.

Tarquinio Merula’s Canzonetta Spirituale Sopra Alla Nanna, based on the simplest rocking motif, benefited from Thomas’s expressive, warm tone, made even more affectionately tender when Mary finally lulls her baby Jesus to sleep. Kenny’s artful accompaniment injected extraordinary intensity and variety.

Traditional Noels were lovingly sung, particularly an authentic unaccompanied Welsh Plygain carol—a tradition Thomas grew up with.

Thomas’s intonation was not always spot on, but her manner is enchanting, and her captivating smile pervades her voice. She and Kenny obviously love this repertoire. It was good to see a packed hall for these stylish performances.