On Sunday I caught two Christmas concerts.

The first was, you guessed it, The Messiah at Point Loma Nazarene University and the second was two Bach pieces at First United Methodist in Mission Valley.

The Point Loma Messiah was largely a student endeavor with some community singers in the chorus. There were some nice moments but most of the time I was wondering what possessed me to go to The Messiah.

There was a day when I loved The Messiah. That day is gone. I don't hate it but I think I need a break.

I need to have "the talk" with The Messiah. You know, the one where I say, "It's not you, you're great. It's me. I just can't handle this."

It's as though The Messiah and I have been married for 30 years and I've heard all of its stories 20 times too many--and there was Bach. He was all new and sexy.

Bach had 20 children. It's tough to get sexier than that.

The Methodists put on Bach's Wachet Auf and Magnificat. There were more nice moments in this concert. The orchestra was loaded with San Diego Symphony players and the chorus almost reached 200 members.

The structure of Bach's music appeals to me as an audience member whereas Handel appeals to me as a singer.

If I have to choose between singing Handel and Bach, I'll take Handel every day. However, if I have to listen to Bach or Handel, I go with Bach.

If I were a better musician I might enjoy singing Bach more than I do.

Both concerts were well attended and I enjoyed some chitty-the-chat with friends after each performance. It felt like the holiday season and I think that's all I really wanted.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bo1x-62WmrI