Handel's Oratorio Messiah

Classical Music / Oratorio:  Handel's Messiah

Greatest Oratorio of all time, with its powerful "Hallelujah Chorus"

George Frideric Handel's sacred music, Messiah, remains the most famous oratorio for Easter and Christmas. Facts and other information are revisited in this article. Messiah, a fixture of the Christmas season most especially the "Hallelujah Chorus", is in fact not originally created by George F. Handel for Christmas but for Lent.

Brief Information of Oratorio Messiah

George Frideric Handel's oratorio Messiah is first performed on April 13, 1742, the Tuesday before Easter, in a small theatre in Dublin, Ireland. In particular, it is customary for the audience, Christians and any believer of Christ's birth and resurrection, to rise during the singing of the "Hallelujah Chorus" being carried away by the magnificence of the music.

 

 George F. Handel set Charles Jennens' Biblical libretto to an oratorio music with much speed in the summer of 1741. In just 24 days, Messiah was completed, August 22–September 14. Like many of Handel's compositions, Messiah is much adapted liberally from his earlier works. He wrote the piece while staying as a guest at Jennens' country house in Leicestershire, England. It is thought that the work was completed inside a garden temple.

 

Starting in 1745, the performance of the Messiah became an yearly event in Dublin during Holy Week. It was only during the 19th century when it crossed the Atlantic that performances of the oratorio became associated with the Christmas season. 

 

Below, watch and enjoy one of the best performances of Handel's immortal Messiah: Collegium & Collegium Vocale 1704, conducted by Vàclav Luks. I've been an avid listener, and in my youth and adulthood, blest to be a chorister (alto) to this gloriously sublime oratorio in numerous performances (my most precious, with Sydney Philharmonia Choirs conducted by endeared Brett Weymark and Elizabeth Scott); every performance awe-inspiring with the orchestra, choir, and the soloists. In particular, I find the Collegium soloists simply incredible. No vibrato and never flat, totally at their best. I never tire listening to their performance over and over. Conductor: Vàclav Luks. Collegium & Collegium Vocale 1704. Soloists: Hana Blažíková, soprano; Delphine Galou, contralto; Markus Brutscher, tenor; Marián Krejcik, bass. I've also enjoyed various CDs collected through the years.

Georg Frideric Handel's Oratorio Messiah

Mozart's Der Messias:

On the initiative of Gottfried van Swieten, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart adapted Handel's 1741 oratorio Messiah for performances in Vienna: 'Der Messias, K. 572', in German-language version in 1789. The libretto of Mozart's adaptation was largely based on Luther's translation of the Bible.

Mozart re-orchestrated about three-fifths of Handel's composition, mainly providing additional parts for an extended section of wind instruments, which was called Harmonie at the time. In general, a half-century after the inception of the work, Mozart adapted an English-language work conceived for a baroque orchestra in a public venue, to accommodate the constraints of private performances and the musical tastes of Vienna. 

Mozart's arrangement, first published in 1803, was instrumental in making Handel's Messiah most widely known oratorio. However, the adaptation has had few supporters amongst Mozart or Handel scholars. 

Trivia:  Our own Sydney Philharmonia Choirs perform Handel's Messiah every biennial. The year 2015 is significant: for the first time a sign language is incorporated in our Handel's Messiah performance.  then in 2017, our Handel Messiah concert was conducted by Elizabeth Scott, the first woman to conduct Messiah at the Sydney Opera House.

 

Recommended Listening: 

Handel's MESSIAH with London Philharmonic. Uploaded by Jose Garcia. Accessed Feb. 23, 2018. 

Hallelujah - Choir of King's College, Cambridge live performance of Handel's Messiah 

W. A. Mozart - KV 572 - Händel's Messias. YouTube, uploaded by ComposersByNumbers. Accessed February 23, 2018. (A wonderful performance of Wolfgang A. Mozart’s Der Messias KV 572, Lynne Dawson & Bernarda Fink, sopranos; Hans Peter Graf, tenor; Chris de Moor & Stephen Varcoe, basses; Choeur de Chambre de Namur; La grande écurie et la chambre du Roy, conducted by Jean-Claude Malgoire.

Suggested Reading:

The Glorious History of Handel's Messiah. Written by Jonathan Kandell. Smithsonian Magazine. Accessed February 13, 2010.  

Video Credit:
G.F. Hansel: Messiah HWV 56. YouTube, uploaded by classicalplus.  Accessed April 13, 2017. Director is Vaclav Lucs, conducting the Collegium 1704, in Prague.

Resources:
 
1. Pahlen, Kurt. The World of Oratorio. Portland, Oregon: Amadeus Press (1990)
2. Mozart's Der Messias. en.wikipedia.org. Accessed April 13, 2017. 

Note:  I first published this  piece for Suite101.com last April 13, 2008, and have amended for Inspired Pen Web since then.    

(c) April 2013. Updated April 15, 2019. Tel. Inspired Pen Web.  All rights reserved.