I've fallen in love with Vincent Persichetti's WINTER CANTATA which I discovered quite by chance when I plucked a CD of the composer's choral works off the shelf at the library a couple weeks ago.
Composed in 1964, the work was inspired by a collection of haiku ('A Net of Fireflies') which Persichetti's daughter had given him as a gift. To the intriguingly spare accompaniment of flute and marimba, the chorus of women's voices weave a magical tapestry of wintry images. Intricate harmonies and tapering sustained notes are particularly pleasing vocal elements; the flute and marimba evoke cool air and gently swirling flakes of snow. There are eleven brief movements, and an Epilogue which draws its text from one line of each of the previous eleven poems.
The CD, featuring the Mendelssohn Club of Philadelphia conducted by Tamara Brooks, may be found here.