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If Christ Had Been Born in Another Time single work   poetry   "If Christ had been born in another time"
Issue Details: First known date: 1984... 1984 If Christ Had Been Born in Another Time
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

'Opening with the distinctive calls of Laughing Kookaburras, the scene is set for a new, Australian take on the age-old story of the Nativity. Through a series of questions posed, the poet depicts Mary and Joseph travelling through the Australian outback. "Would there have been no room in the pub?" "Would they have been turned away while drovers and stockmen jostled the bar toasting the end of the day?" Would the Wise Men have brought gifts of "perfume and oil from the eucalypt tree" or "gold from a river's bed?".'

Source: Matthew Orlovich, composer, in information provided to AustLit.

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

Form: musical notation
First known date: 2008
Notes:
Commissioned by The Oriana Chorale for premiere performance at the National Museum of Australia, Canberra, Sunday, 21 December, 2008. Duration: 3 minutes 45 seconds.
Notes:

Composer's note: 'Inspired by Edwards' strong imagery and fired up by the excitement and sense of celebration which is inherent in the story of the Nativity, I arrived at musical ideas which exhibit an energy and a rhythmic drive that propels the music to an uplifting conclusion, whereupon the choir sings, once more, the poem's opening verse...'

(Provided to AustLit by Matthew Orlovich.)

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Last amended 8 Jan 2009 11:06:23
Subjects:
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  • Australian Outback, Central Australia,
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