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Making of Handel's Messiah, The

Paperback / softback

Main Details

Title Making of Handel's Messiah, The
Authors and Contributors      By (author) Andrew Gant
Physical Properties
Format:Paperback / softback
Pages:144
Dimensions(mm): Height 210,Width 170
Category/GenreBaroque music (c 1600 to c 1750)
Choral music
Bands, groups and musicians
ISBN/Barcode 9781851245062
ClassificationsDewey:782.23
Audience
General
Illustrations 54 Illustrations, color

Publishing Details

Publisher Bodleian Library
Imprint Bodleian Library
Publication Date 31 July 2020
Publication Country United Kingdom

Description

The first performance of Handel's Messiah in Dublin in 1742 is now legendary. Gentlemen were asked to leave their swords at home and ladies to come without hoops in their skirts in order to fit more people into the audience. Why then, did this now famous and much-loved oratorio receive a somewhat cool reception in London less than a year later? Placing Handel's best-known work in the context of its times, this vivid account charts the composer's working relationship with his librettist, the gifted but demanding Charles Jennens, and looks at Handel's varied and evolving company of singers together with his royal patronage. Through examination of the composition manuscript and Handel's own conducting score, held in the Bodleian, it explores the complex issues around the performance of sacred texts in a non-sacred context, particularly Handel's collaboration with the men and boys of the Chapel Royal. The later reception and performance history of what is one of the most successful pieces of choral music of all time is also reviewed, including the festival performance attended by Haydn, the massed-choir tradition of the Victorian period and today's 'come-and-sing' events.

Author Biography

Andrew Gant is an author, composer, former Organist of Her Majesty's Chapels Royal, and Stipendiary Lecturer in Music at St Peter's College, Oxford.