The text of Handel's oratorio Messiah was put together by his friend Charles Jennens, using passages from The Bible and the Book of Common Prayer, telling the story of the Messiah in three parts: The Advent of Christ, the Passion of Christ and The Resurrection.
Handel's Messiah Photo: Handel's Messiah
Part One begins with the Old Testament prophecies of the coming of the Messiah and the Virgin birth, then follows the New Testament narration of the appearance of the angels to the shepherds, through to the new-found peace which Christ has brought to the world and ending on the light and joy-filled chorus, 'His yoke is easy, and his burden is light'.
Part Two begins with an awestruck chorus singing 'Behold the Lamb of God', and deals with the progression from Christ’s Passion through his crucifixion, resurrection and ascension, to that exultant 'Hallelujah' extolling the triumph of God’s kingdom.
There’s a brief pause before Part Three, dealing with the prophesied second coming, the Day of Judgement, and victory of death over sin. And here again we get some of Handel’s most glorious tunes– the opening soprano solo, 'I know that my Redeemer liveth', the bass aria 'The Trumpet Shall Sound,' and the duet between tenor and alto, 'O Death where is thy sting' – and the final great sequence of choruses which culminates in the picture of the Lamb of God sitting on the throne for all eternity.
Madeleine Pierard (soprano), Kristin Darragh (mezzo), James Egglestone (tenor), Martin Snell (bass), The Tudor Consort, New Zealand Symphony Orchestra conducted by Nicholas McGegan
1784 edition of Messiah published in by London’s Harrison and Co and found in Tauranga, NZ Photo: Courtesy of Western Bay Museum
Recorded 8 December 2018, Michael Fowler Centre, Wellington by RNZ Concert.
Producer: David McCaw
Engineer: Darryl Stack
