Sunday, December 22, 2013

MESSIAH 
George Frederick Handel
Collegium 1704
conducted by
Vaclav Luks


Overture 0.00
Comfort ye, My people 2:56
Ev'ry Valley shall be exalted
5:44
And the glory of the Lord
8:45
But who may abide
12:19
For unto us a Child is born
29:28
Glory to God
36:57
Hallelujah
1:35:55
I know that my Redeemer liveth
1:39:45
The Trumpet shall sound
1:47:47
Worthy is the Lamb
2:03:20
Amen
2:06:38

6 comments:

  1. Messiah is my favorite choral piece -- probably because it's the first such work that I knew of and performed in. Messiah was my introduction to choral music, and I drank it in like you wouldn't believe.

    The recent choral concert that I attended offered several selections from Messiah, and I loved hearing my old favorites again, particularly because they were performed flawlessly and enthusiastically by a premiere choir.

    But here's something that amazed me at the concert....The audience didn't know that they should stand for "The Hallelujah Chorus"! The conductor had to turn to the audience and give specific motions to stand. Of course, I had come to my feet upon hearing the first notes from the orchestra; the people sitting next to me looked at me as if I had three heads.

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  2. This is far and away the finest Messiah I have ever heard -- and I have heard MANY in the past sixty-odd years. The soloists are marvelous -- the tenor, the alto, and the soprano unsurpassable, the bass is merely a high quality professional. I think it's because he's really more of a baritone than a bass -- his low notes are a little weak, and his voice lacks the lister the others have in superabundance.

    The CHORUS and the ORCHESTRA, however, are beyond excellent, they are SUPERB. Of course, the conductor has LOT to do with all of that. He's truly great.

    What I think is the defining feature of this performance is that it manages to be elegant, vivacious, virile and heartfelt at once -- a most rare combination in my (considerable) experience.

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  3. Wish I could find time to stop and hear this. If FT likes it, I know it must be terrific. Maybe later after things start to settle down.

    Helen Highwater

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  4. Not taking advantage of the opportunity to listen to this superlative performance is tantamount to seeing multitudes ignore and trample underfoot a handful of gold coins tossed onto the pavement, because they rarely-if-ever bother to look beyond the tips of their noses or make any effort to be aware of what opportunities do in fact lie before them.

    Such is the nature of excessive PREOCCUPATION with SELF -- something of which most of us are guilty too much of the time.

    How fortunate I was that I was both pushed and dragged to confront available marvels before I was old enough to appreciate them! I owe my parents and one or two relatives and friends a debt I could never hope to repay.

    May the New Year bring greater ENLIGHTENMENT to us all!

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  5. WHOOPS! I just realized that might sound as though I were scolding Helen, who at least had the goodness to notice that we posted something of great value.

    It will be here, as long as the blogosphere -- as we know it -- lasts, Helen. The beauty of our superabundance of recorded data!

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  6. @Always on Watch
    Standing for the Hallelujah Chorus is a tradition of the British empire (along with the U.S.) following the example of King George who apparently was stunned by the raw power of the music rather than any pious motive.

    Through Continental Europe it is not customary to stand for the chorus.

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