{"id":24174,"date":"2014-12-15T10:24:04","date_gmt":"2014-12-15T15:24:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/?p=24174"},"modified":"2014-12-15T11:06:47","modified_gmt":"2014-12-15T16:06:47","slug":"fits-bursts-why-messiah-forever-and-ever","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2014\/12\/15\/fits-bursts-why-messiah-forever-and-ever\/","title":{"rendered":"FITS & BURSTS | Why Messiah – Forever and Ever?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Tafelmusik,
Tafelmusik, Sing-along Messiah. Photo: Garry Beechey<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

At any given time during the holiday season, hundreds of choirs will amass in churches and various concert halls across the world, to perform Handel\u2019s Messiah.\u00a0<\/em>With the exception of Beethoven\u2019s Ode to Joy<\/em>, no other choral work has been so fixed\u00a0into western musical culture. In fact for many, the tradition of going to a performance of the Messiah<\/em>\u00a0is as dear as beautifying the Christmas tree in the family living room.<\/p>\n

But why?<\/p>\n

It\u2019s been 270 years since Handel first composed his two-hour long choral legacy\u2026 How could a piece of music composed so long ago become such an ingrained holiday tradition, especially in Canada – a country thousands of kilometers away from Messiah\u2019s original Irish origins?<\/p>\n

You don\u2019t have to be religious to appreciate it; its message crosses all faiths and spiritual denominations. Even atheists would admit to getting goose bumps during some of its more sundry moments.<\/p>\n

Handel worked on the 260-page score with an extraordinary flurry of creative energy over 24 days, (an astonishing feat\u00a0in itself). He based the text on scripture compiled from the King James Bible, and from the version of the Psalms included with the Book of Common Prayer. The result was an extended reflection on Jesus Christ as Messiah, and it now represents one of the highest achievements in musical history.<\/p>\n

At the time, in 1741, Handel was best known for his operas, but trends are\u00a0fickle, and public tastes turned towards oratorios, which Handel was happy to oblige.<\/p>\n

Handel’s\u00a0oratorio uses a\u00a0blend of varying styles, including English church music, elements from the German Passion-music tradition, and the Italian melodic style. He also wasn\u2019t shy about including techniques from opera,\u00a0such as arranging three of the Messiah<\/em> choruses from Italian love-duets.<\/p>\n

Messiah<\/em> represented a new twist to the otherwise familiar choral music tradition, which England is so well-known for. The piece was also unique in that it gave audiences the chance to hear choral music sung in the King\u2019s English.<\/p>\n

Handel\u2019s Messiah<\/em> was announced with great fanfare around Easter, in Dublin, Ireland. It received rave reviews and its popularity meant many eager listeners were turned away from its debut.<\/p>\n

A year later, Handel took it to London, where it was received with a storm of ire and controversy. This is because it was to be presented in theatres by singers associated with the stage, which prompted accusations of\u00a0blasphemy.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis was the first time the entire story of Christ\u2019s life was depicted in an oratorio, but not as part of a service\u201d explained Messiah expert Ivars Taurins, and founding director of the Tafelmusik Chamber Choir.<\/p>\n

Handel quelled the controversy by using ticket sales to benefit a hospital for orphans he was actively working with. Messiah was also sung in the aid of three Dublin charities the year prior.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen the public\u2019s attention turned to the piece now as a vehicle for charity, the whole mood changed, and from that point on was a hit,\u201d explained Taurins.<\/p>\n

The goodwill resonated with the themes in the oratorio, and through the ages, it gave it a universal quality. No matter what faith people belong to, the solidity of tradition was placed upon the Messiah<\/em>\u2019s shoulders.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe ritual that we look for to mark certain occasions: birthdays, weddings, funerals, and major holidays, whether they are sacred or secular, are rituals that we do to try to create some sort of order of the chaos, and that is a comfort to many people,\u201d says Taurins. \u201cIt’s the same as a family going to see the Nutcracker<\/em> or Charles Dickens\u2019 A Christmas Carol<\/em>, a Christmas movie, or a family get-together – Messiah<\/em> is one of those ingredients.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDespite it being a Christian story, the message of goodwill towards men and peace on earth underlies the whole thing, and we seek that out. And when that message is so beautifully presented in this incredible music, one is uplifted by it,\u201d said Taurins.<\/p>\n

By the time of Handel\u2019s death in 1759, Messiah<\/em> had been performed 56 times, with all but 12 performances in secular venues.<\/p>\n

It made its Canadian premiere in 1789 at St. Paul\u2019s Anglican Church in Halifax, where according to a book by Howard Smither A history of the Oratorio<\/em>, \u201cseveral Gentlemen with Musick Bands of the Regiments\u201d sang the final chorus.<\/p>\n

Since then, the Messiah has been performed innumerable times across the country, with Toronto in particular as a hot bed for Messiah aficionados.<\/p>\n

With at least 5 or 6 different versions of Messiah being performed on any given day during the holidays across the city, one might wonder if the repetition might a bit too much.<\/p>\n

\u201cNot so,\u201d said Taurins. \u201cI don\u2019t think it\u2019s ever a situation of a glut of Messiah\u2019s where people have said enough is enough.\u201d [\u2026] \u201cI think whatever audience goes to these different performances\u2026 whether it be the Toronto Symphony or Tafelmusik\u2026 they will have their loyalties. I think there is enough of a population in the GTA to easily sustain that.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of the most popular Messiahs in Toronto is put on by the Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra and Chamber Choir every year, and Ivars Taurins has been conducting them from the very beginning.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor me, there is always something new discover. There is always the interaction between the new casts of soloists that you\u2019ll have and what they bring to the music and to the text.”<\/p>\n

This year, Tafelmusik\u2019s annual production will include two Canadians: tenor Colin Balzer and baritone Brett Polegato (who also appears on Tafelmusik\u2019s 2012 recording of Handel\u2019s Messiah). There will also be two new singers joining Tafelmusik: soprano Lydia Teuscher from Germany, and James Laing, a countertenor from Britain.<\/p>\n

Tafelmusik presents two different versions of Messiah. The concert music presentations are held at Koerner Hall, and the ever-popular sing-along Messiahs are held at Toronto iconic\u2019s Massey Hall.<\/p>\n

\"Sing-Along
Sing-Along Messiah at Massey Hall Photo: Gary Beechey<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In regards to the sing-along, the whole idea is about audience participation. \u201cImagine that you\u2019re an amateur singer who loves this piece,\u201d said Taurins, \u201cand you never have the opportunity to actually sing it with other people being accompanied by a professional orchestra and supported by a professional choir. You can image how thrilling it is to be part of that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Being a baroque ensemble, Tafelmusik presents the sing-along from an eighteenth-century point of view \u2013 and what better way to do that than by bringing Handel back to conduct it. Taurins dresses up as The Great Bear<\/em> (Handel\u2019s nick-name) and conducts the audience from the stage.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe character of Handel is the conduit for the way Tafelmusik performs this piece, and also to gives a little bit more background to the work\u2026 I found over the years one of the unexpended bonuses with me up there as Handel, is that it\u2019s a great icebreaker for the audience who may have some timidity about singing [\u2026] but it doesn\u2019t mean Mr. Handel won\u2019t yell at the audience if they are dragging or out of tune (laughs).\u201d<\/p>\n

While there seems to be no slowing the Messiah<\/em>, perhaps Taurins is right. This is about ritual, one of the most powerful and deeply ingrained forces in our shared culture.<\/p>\n

Charles Burney, an eighteenth-century musicologist said it best, \u201cthis great work has been heard in all parts of the kingdom with increasing reverence and delight; it has fed the hungry, clothed the naked, fostered the orphan, and enriched succeeding managers of the oratorios, more than any single production in this or any other country.\u201d<\/p>\n

Who can argue with that?<\/p>\n

Michael Vincent<\/a><\/p>\n

+++<\/p>\n

Tafelmusik will be performing Messiah at Koerner Hall December 17th<\/sup> through 21. They will present their popular Sing-along Messiah on December 21, at 2:00 in Massey Hall. Tickets<\/a> are selling fast.<\/p>\n