G.F. Handel: "Messiah"

Even though it's not a Christmas piece, it tends to get done to death at that time of year in the English-speaking world. Yet its very familiarity tends blind people to the fact that this is one of the supreme masterpieces, all the more amazing because Handel wrote the music to Charles Jennens's libretto in a breakneck 3 weeks. He said he was divinely inspired; I believe him.

Despite my love of Bach, I regard Handel as the greatest choral composer who has ever drawn breath. His sense of drama was unparalleled, his understanding of the human voice unequalled. It was probably all that Italian opera (one-third of Handel's output). When Colin Davis came to record Messiah with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, his first words were, "Forget the B Minor Mass, this is Italian opera". Thankfully, the over-solemnisation and cast-of-thousands performances are now a thing of the past. These had arisen not long after Handel's death, and one 18th century performance featured a choir of 4,000 and an orchestra of 1,000! In his celebrated music criticisms (his job before he became really famous), George Bernard Shaw was a champion of the cause of the original score (written for an orchestra and chorus of 35 and 25 respectively (or was it the other way around?)).

We know that some of Handel's soloists weren't too brilliant, because one was the famous actress Suzanne Cibber, who sang the contralto part in the first peformance at Fishamble Street, Dublin . She hadn't much of a voice, but her rendering of "He was despised" was so affecting that someone shouted from the audience, "Woman, thy sins are forgiven thee!" (actresses of those days not having the best reputations). Some, however, were brilliant. Handel had the services of the Italian castrato Guadagni, and a version of "And who shall abide the day of his coming"/"For he is like a refiner's fire" was written for him. The alternative version is scored for bass.

And this brings a major problem - which Messiah? There is not one definitive score, but many. Handel rewrote his masterpiece to suit particular occasions and forces available. I believe that Paul McCreesh produced a "mix and match" Messiah with all the various arias and choruses and you could program your CD to produce the version you liked - I've never heard it. I have my own preferences - I like the counter-tenor "refiner's fire" (if you get a good one) and "Rejoice greatly" in 3/4 rather than the alternative 4/4 time.

Messiah is simply marvellous music. Thanks to its place in English culture, it is perhaps the most accessible of all the towering masterpieces. And it grooves! In a good version, its famous choruses skip and bounce along with the flair and life that only Handel could bring to a chorus. The solos are great, some virtuosic ("Ev'ry valley shall be exalted"), some meltingly beautiful ("I know that my Redeemer liveth"), some spine-chilling ("The trumpet shall sound", with the famous trumpet obbligato that drove Mozart mad when he came to rescore Messiah for a patron - the trumpet players who could play it no longer existed and he even considered leaving it out). For Christian believers, Messiah is one of the greatest of all statements of the faith, for non-believers and even atheists, it remains among the most sublime music ever written.

There are so many recordings that I don't pretend to have heard them all, but I own or have heard the following:

Mackerras/ECO
Marriner/ASMF
Hogwood/AAM
Gardiner/Monteverdi/EBS
Pinnock/EC
Christie/Les Arts Florissants

I'd like to hear Marc Minowski's version with Les Musiciens du Louvre, because he brings enormous energy to his performances (e.g., Dixit Dominus), but I haven't, and I'm too mean to part with the SFr59 to find out. I've also never heard Harry Christophers/Sixteen recording.

You'll notice the total lack of the "traditional" Huddersfield Choral Society-type versions, which I find too overblown and of interest only for historical reasons. The first two are not original instruments, but I find this no problem, because both conductors are fine Handelians and produce excellent performances, which are now available at bargain prices.

This will amaze you all, but the one I'm going to "can" first is Gardiner. The Monteverdis and the EBS perform wonderfully well, as always, but it's Gardiner's readings that I don't like. He has an irritating habit of starting some choruses quietly and building them up as they go along. This works not to badly with the great last chorus of the B Minor Mass; it does not work at all with either "Hallelujah" and the final great "Amen", which, by their nature and content, should be triumphant from the first note. The "Hallelujah" chorus of Gardiner is strangely subdued and to my ears the worst of those in the abovementioned recordings. To compound a felony, Philips released the thing initially in a 3 CD set (one per Part), which made it monumentally too expensive. It was later repackaged as a 2 CD set. This does not overcome its disadvantages.

Second to can is Hogwood. Yes, I know the guy is a great pioneer of period performance, but I find the AAM performance lacklustre overall. Chrissie Hoggie set out to recreate a particular performance, the first English performance at the Foundling Hospital, and it's an interesting exercise so far as it goes, but it has never really grabbed me - it's just too lacking in life.

As a result, I find that I rarely listen to these two performances.

Bill Christie makes a reasonable fist of it, a lively performance well recorded, but not quite top-drawer. But worth a listen, which I do, from time to time.

Ol' dinki-di Oz Chuck Mackerras and Handel go back a long way, and his now elderly version sparkles with life. In particular, the singing by counter-tenor Paul Esswood of "And who shall abide the day of his coming"/"For he is like a refiner's fire" is goosebump-inducing, the best I've heard in any version. The change from the soft-edged voice in "And who shall abide" to the hard-edged voice of "refiner's fire" proper is thrilling. In addition, it has the wonderful Janet Baker, whose deeply-felt rendering of "He was despised" is again the best I've heard anywhere. This is a great version.

Slightly less great is Nev and the guys and gals of ASMF. As you'd expect, Nev and co. play with all the bounce and verve for which ASMF is renowned, and the ASMF's chorus sing with the same bounce. However, the soloists aren't quite as good as those in the Mackerras recording. Nevertheless, a thoroughly enjoyable performance and as it's a mid-price one, as is Mackerras, it's great to have them both and listen to both as the mood takes me.

However, for me the clear winner overall is Trevor Pinnock and the English Concert. Trev gets it all together in a way nobody else quite does. His original instruments sound great, his tempi are sprightly and he encompasses better than any other both the intimacy and the grandeur of Messiah - when necessary, Trev pulls out all the stops and delivers the goods, including a most impressive "Hallelujah". There can never be a perfect Messiah the way there can never be a perfect St. Matt, but this comes pretty darn close.

 

Tones - i bought myself a Messiah! Purchased at the weeknd - my selection criteria was - well....quite frankly...non - existent. It was in the sale, so i thought it was a no-brainer at the price. I now notice though that it is not in your list of the examples which you have heard - not sure if this is a good or a bad sign

It is Karl Richters version on DG:



I won't be listening to it, until at least the weekend when i may have 2 1/2 hours spare

cheers

 

Never heard it, CM, but it's an oldish recording and if Karl Richter's Handel is anything like his Bach, it'll be a bit on the slow, ponderous side. We've learned a lot since then about period practice, and the newer versions are much quicker and bouncier in tempo. Older versions were often slower out of an artificial reverence for the subject matter - I mean, a religious work must be played, er, religiously (i.e., slowly and boringly), mustn't it? But they didn't in Handel's day, besides which "Messiah" is not a religious work, despite its subject.

If nothing else, you've got an introduction to one of the world's great masterpieces, and that can never be bad.

 

I quite like Richter, although he can be horribly angled or utterly dull.

I heard that version a long time ago. I think I liked it. But try it yourself. The first version one has of a certain work is one's guide to that work, and, Richter being a very good musician and the work a major one, you will most probably like it.

 

MARC MINKOWSKI'S MESSIAH

Praeludium:

I never was a fan of Messiah. It strikes me as too showy a piece and not really profound (I'll be crucified for this! – Sorry, Tones). But my wife asked me for a version. Based on Tone's instructions, I went in search for the Pinnock version. However, I did not find it and bought the Minkowski instead (I considered Colin Davies version, but since it was a gift, I went for the more expensive one – go figure!).

I listened to it last night. I don't really know Messiah very well – I listened to it a couple of times before (by Mackerras and Richter, I think) and was submitted to various bits and pieces during chorale gatherings. I certainly didn't listen to it for at least 15 years. So I lack the knowledge of the piece Tones has, and have no comparative perspective whatever. It is also my first Minkowski record.

Also I am not a very great Händel enthusiast. He manages some very beautiful tunes, has a strong grip of rhythm and pulse, but is somewhat short-phrased; I mean, the phrases are usually shorter and much simpler than Bach's. In certain ways he reminds me of Purcell, a great tune composer that has never been able to master structure (in Handel's case this is relative: I keep Bach as my reference; in Purcell's, I think he couldn't really master structure and was a very short breathed composer; but his tunes are SO beautiful one disregards that fact; just think of Dido and Aeneas). Also, his counterpoint is way inferior to Bach's, and I do love counterpoint.

To compound to it all, I have been giving a lot of attention to The Art of Fugue and the Matthäuspassion, which surely makes the difference between Bach and Händel look like an abyss.

All this makes me rather conscious of the fact I'm really not suited to make critical remarks. I'm just giving you my candid reactions to this record.

Therefore, I should perhaps abstain from any comment. But as there is a previous reference to this version, and Tones expressed the wish to know it, here are my comments.

Fugue:
It is a very upbeat version. This makes for a rather good unity of the piece. It is Dionysian music and rendered as such. The few inward looking arias are beautiful, too. The musicians seem to really be with the music, they are very expressive, and the contrasts between inward looking, tense moments and the extraverted ones are magnificent. Rockers, if they ever chose to stop being proud of their ignorance of good music :clint:, would love it.

I interrupted the writing of this and listened to it again. There are no two ways about it: it is fantastic. The arias are impressive, the chorus bits are extraordinary, you can't but feel dragged into the music. I even really liked Messiah for the first time. Wait till I listen to the final Hallelujah.

Just fantastic. I couldn't keep my head and shoulders still; they had to go with the music.

So Tones, don't be stingy and just buy it! Next Monday!

Postludium:

Well. This is the very first Messiah I really liked. It is intoxicatingly intense, the music is wonderful, the singers, orchestra and choir seemed to have been in an altered state of consciousness when they made the recording (by the way, Minkowski says as much: it was a magical recording experience).

So, let me rephrase what I said at the beginning. 'I was never a fan of Messiah *up to now*'.

Rockers, give it a listen. You may find the choirs more intense than rock drums and bass guitars.

 

Funny, I was in Basel yesterday and I came across it in Ex Libris, Basel's cheaper record chain. Hmmmmmmm, I thought, but then was too mean to part with the SFr59. But I'll think again.

You cannot equate Bach and Handel; one lived his life in north German churches and small courts, the other was a man of the world, consorting with kings and nobility. One wrote nothing for the stage, one-third of the output of the other is Italian opera. The drama, the feeling for the grand occasion, is what makes Handel different. But never underestimate Handel - the quality is there. His concerti grossi are every bit as good as the Brandenburgs. And have a listen to Dixit Dominus, again by Minowski - this astounding tour de force was written by a very young Handel when he was in Rome (before he moved to England).

In the end, comparisons are pointless; Bach and Handel are different (sadly they never met, although they tried). These two giants of the baroque drew the line under the era. When they'd finished, music moved on, because they'd done everything there could be done. Anyway, I'm glad you've found a "Messiah" you liked.

 

So, I did it; I bought the Minowski "Messiah". Annnnnnnnd??? I like it, but I'd still put Pinnock in first place. I find Minowski to be a curious mixture; some parts are taken very slowly, others at Minowski's characteristic breakneck speed. In fact, the speeds are so breakneck that the choir sometimes has difficulty articulating the words ("For unto us a child is born"). It also includes some versions of numbers that I don't care for, for example, the 4/4 version of "Rejoice greatly" (P.S. In retrospect, badly put - I do like it, but I like the 3/4 version much better). Moreover, they get the mezzo (Magdalena Kozena) to sing "For who may abide"/"For he is like a refiner's fire", when it should be a counter tenor or a bass (the two alternatives left by Handel). However, the overall performance is solid and some of the numbers are terrific - "Why do the nations so furiously rage together?" is one where Minowski's high energy approach pays off handsomely, in one of the most electrifying versions I've heard. And the final "Worthy is the Lamb"/"Amen" is also well done. I remain of the opinion that Pinnock paces it much better - suitably brisk (but not too brisk) tempi when required, and no foot-dragging.

I took the opportunity to listen to a couple of versions of "Der Messias", "Messiah" in its German translation, as adapted by Mozart. They are all very ponderous, Handel for elephants. Worst of all, in "The trumpet shall sound", no trumpet! When Wolfie came to rescore "Messiah", trumpeters who could play the high clarino trumpets known by Bach and Handel no longer existed. At one point, Wolfie considered leaving out the whole aria, but thought better of it and put in orchestration and horns instead.

 

Dear Tones:

I'm glad you liked it. But this means I must buy the Pinnock version as well...

And yes, I agree with you about the extreme contrast between tempi.

 

I just listened to Pinnock's version - a friend lent it to me. I must agree with Tones: it is a more musical version than Minkowski's. Where Mink. is slightly hysterical, Pinnock is moving, Also the choral bits are much better: Handel's particular kind of polyphony is much more clear and powerful. Also most arias are better sung (the bass falters a bit).

It has all to do with breathing. Mink rushes things, his breathing seems irregular and sligtly arbitrary, whereas Pinnocks is natural and quite musical.

I'm not absolutely sure of which one is the most historical one, but I'd go for Mink. if you have to listen to Messiah just once, and for Pinnock if you listen to it repeatedly.

 

Hey, RdS, I'm being sorely tempted again! I've just discovered that there's a CD version of this one:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos...41/sr=10-1/ref=sr_10_10_1/026-3480859-7754820

I was pushed for time on Friday when I came across it in my favourite haunt, Musik Hug, badly placed (for me) just 200M from Zürich's main station through which I pass every night. As a result, I could only listen to a bit of it. I'm used to the "original" strings now, so the modern strings of the ASMF sounded somehow a bit rich. But, on the other hand, the soloists (what I heard) were excellent and there was, as always, the irresistible bounce of Nev and the ASMF. I shall go and listen again!

 

I it said tp be a very achieved performance. I myself am being tempted by it!

But now I can't: I must pay for the harpsichord, and it was very expensive!

 

You mean, it's arrived? No, it couldn't have, because you're still posting here! When it arrives, I expect not to hear from you for at least 3 months!

By the way, I located a cheap DVD of that Marriner performance, so I ordered.

 

Tones:

It will arrive by Christmas!! And yes, it is possible that I post here less often after that...

When it does arrive I'll post about it.

 

An outrageous con?

I saw this:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos...1239/sr=1-5/ref=sr_1_10_5/026-7154424-4686065

and ordered it, because it was cheap and I saw it as the CD replacement of my old cassette version of the Marriner "Messiah". I didn't want to buy his one:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00000414Y/ref=pd_sim_cm_dp_1/026-7154424-4686065

at twice the price - I have ordered the DVD of the latter, which I could get cheaply.

So, the CDs arrived yesterday - and I found to my amazement that, far from being the older Marriner version, the CDs
were exactly the same version as in the more expensive one. :yikes: A pretty box for £12, anyone?

 

Good bargain. It is not the first time I see exactly the same version at mid and full price. I think this is because the mid price version is released when the full price one is sold out but you can still find it on the market.

Perhaps we are likely to get a report?

 

If you'd like one! First impressions are positive - a quick run-over "For unto us a Child is bor(-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-hor-horn) (think that's right) and "Hallelujah!" and "The trumpet shall sound". I'll check out the rest over the weekend.

 

Hallo everybody

I went today after work to the Hug store which is as Tones already told you a few hundred times near the main railway station of Zurich, and guess who I met?
And guess what he was listening to?
And who were playing?

 

Hey, Titian, you so'n'so, you set me up! You asked me whether I was going to Hug, 'cos you'd be there too, and you were later than I, so just to pass the time I put on a CD - and it so happened that the "H" section was just beside the CD player and there was a "Messiah" (Gächinger/Rilling) that I hadn't heard!

Anyway, I do have a report on a "Messiah" - this one:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos...9673/sr=1-8/ref=sr_1_10_8/202-4965899-7120616

which is actually the same performance as the more expensive

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos...757/sr=1-12/ref=sr_1_0_12/202-4965899-7120616

which are the audio equivalents of this DVD:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos...757/sr=1-12/ref=sr_1_0_12/202-4965899-7120616

This was performed in Dublin (where "Messiah" was first performed) on the 250th. anniversary of that first performance. This is a "live" recording, presumably without an audience, or else they took the precaution of shooting them all.

The performers are Neville Marriner and the ASMF. This means modern instruments of course, making for a fuller sound than the original instrument versions. And of course it is Nev and the Academy, so you're guaranteed a performance with plenty of bounce and clean articuation. And that's what you get. Tempi are lively, but not the breakneck tempi adopted by some (which is not such a bad idea). The choral singing and playing is up there with the best. The Academy Choir successfully navigates the great virtuoso choruses ("For unto us a Child is born", "All we like sheep"). And they do a great "Hallelujah"!

The soloists are on average good, with a brilliant Anne Sophie van Otter (boy, can that woman sing!) compensated (if that's the word) by a very bad bass, Robert Lloyd. He's one of these basses whose voices seems to originate in the pit of his stomach and as a result comes out sounding as if he's being strangled (one can only hope...). So, when it comes to "Thus said the Lord", when he sings

And I will sha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ke the earth

with each "ha" a clear, distinctive note, they are all run together in a toneless, tuneless mishmash.

Ditto one of the great highlights "Why do the nations so furiously rage together?" He just doesn't handle these repetitive notes (is there a technical term for them?)at all well, yet they are typically Handel. He fares better in the great aria "The trumpet shall sound", I guess because there aren't any of these notes. He's helped by some stellar trumpeting by Mark Bennett on an obviously modern instrument - the trilling is clearly valved. I can't recall the wonderful, silvery, soaring, spine-chilling trumpet obbligato ever sounding better.

So, overall, a good performance, but I think that Pinnock still delivers the goods better than anyone I've heard.

P.S. Got the DVD last night. However, Wednesday night in the Tones household is "Stargate" night, a great favourite of the younger ladies, and they show two episodes in a row, so I got only a very quick look and listen before bedtime. The audience was indeed commendably live (perhaps full of Guinness and therefore comatose until the end). I saw "The trumpet shall sound", with Mark Bennett on the magic stratospheric bugle (as suspected, a modern four-valve clarino trumpet). Good stuff. The final great chorus ("Worthy is the Lamb") and the final "Amen" were also superbly done by Nev and his merry (wo)men. I'm looking forward to Christmas, when the ladies aren't watching the extended version of "Lord of the Rings" Part 2.

P.P.S. The girls went off to see LOTR Part III, so I got my chance to see it all. It's very good overall. The tenor and bass soloists let it down a bit, but counter tenor Michael Chance is excellent and the two ladies, especially Anne Sophie von Otter, are splendid. Nev and the ASMF Orchestra and Choir are splendid. And Nev enjoys it! Each number starts off with a shot of Nev from the orchestra's viewpoint, and when a big number is coming up, he smiles. The famous choruses, such as "For unto us a Child is born" and "All we like sheep" are beautifully handled, and the sound of the modern instruments was just fine. Indeed, Mark Bennett's soaring clarino trumpet with its rock-steady intonation and glowing, pure tone is something that the original instruments simply couldn't manage. OK, it's not authentic, but who cares? It's glorious music making and if the instrument had been available to Handel, he would have grabbed it.

Moreover, Nev's version has all the things I like, such as counter-tenor singing "For he is like a refiner's fire" and 3/4 time in "Rejoice greatly".

In short, excellent. I must go and listen to Pinnock right through again...

The accompanying documentary on "Messiah" by Handel authority Prof. J. Robbins Landon and Nev is interesting. Nice to see Nev handling the original handwritten score in the British Library with something approaching religious awe.

 

I've now had a good listen to the CD version of the abovementioned Marriner set and was disappointed, mainly by the poor recording quality. There's a high noise floor that reminds me of old-fashioned turntable rumble! This is noticeable in the quieter moments and in any silences. For example, Anne Sophie von Otter sings an absolutely gorgeous "He was despisèd", and when she stops expressively, you hear

He was despis-ed (rumblerumblerumblerumble)
Rejected (rumblerumblerumblerumble)
A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief (rumblerumblerumblerumble).

Spoils the whole thing.

Why should this be so? Is this a way of cutting down on audience noise (live performance, remember)? Perhaps the second (and more expensive) recording is better in this respect? I won't be finding out. Pity about it, there are so many good things about this set.

 

Ok, i listened finally to the Richter version of the Messiah which i bought ages ago.

Unfortunately, i had to pick up a book after half an hour, and listened to the last 2 hours with one ear. Probably a mistake, but i found it really a bit dull.

Sorry. I won't try and qualify my statement, as i wouldn't know where to start, it just wasn't very enjoyable. Some parts were ok, but even the choruses i found a bit lacklustre . TBH, looking back through the comments, i think the best way to describe it, is as not being really 'profound' (as RDS first mentioned, before his 'conversion'). I was just expecting something a bit more moving or inspiring i suppose.

Its probably wasted on me anyway. I'm hardly a hardcore classico.

:SLEEP: :SLEEP:

sorry Tones