Messiah Handel: Encyclopedia II - Messiah Handel - Composition and premiere

Messiah Handel - Composition and premiere

In the summer of 1741 Handel, at the peak of his musical powers but depressed and in debt, began setting Charles Jennens' Biblical libretto to music at his usual breakneck speed. In just 24 days, Messiah was complete. However it was not first performed until 1742, at a charity concert on Fishamble Street in Dublin's Temple Bar district on April 13 after production difficulties and last-minute rearrangements of the score. Jonathan Swift (author of "Gulliver's Travels" and a local clergyman), had put some pressure on the premiere and had it cancelled entirely for a period until it was retitled "sacred" oratorio and revenue from the show promised to local charities. Like many of Handel's compositions, it borrows liberally from earlier works, both his own and those of others.

It is said that while Handel was writing the Messiah, his valet would often find him weeping silently at his desk, overcome by the beauty and majesty of the music that was flowing from his pen. The secondary source of this story is a pamphlet of the Choral Society at Trinity College Dublin. The original source is not known to this author.

Handel himself conducted Messiah many times, often altering it to suit the needs of the moment. In consequence no single version can be regarded as the "authentic" one, and many more variations and rearrangements were added in subsequent centuries — a notable arrangement was one by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Most modern performances employ orchestra, choir, and four soloists: bass, tenor, contralto or counter-tenor, and soprano.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Composition and premiere", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki