Among the joys of the holiday season are the numerous performances of George Frederic Handel's Messiah. New York City groups performing it are the Masterwork Chorus and Orchestra, Musica Sacra, and the Oratorio Society of New York. Connecticut organizations performing it include the Norwalk Symphony and Mendelssohn Choir of Connecticut and New Haven's Christ Church Choir and Vespera Chamber Orchestra.
To acquaint yourself with this magnificent work, check out a version of it by the Oregon Bach Festival Choir, the English Concert Choir or the Atlanta Symphony and Chamber Chorus. If you prefer an abbreviated listening experience, the library has the arias and choruses available by the Chicago Symphony and Chorus or the London Symphony and Chorus.
This engaging, popular masterpiece has inspired many to join in and sing along. The National Choral Council, which is holding its 39th annual sing-in at Avery Fisher Hall, encourages both novices and experts to participate. Alice Lipson of the Staples High School Music Department, is one of the conductors for the event. If you need a copy of the vocal or full score, feel free to borrow it from the library.
If you can't get to a concert hall, you may want to watch it on DVD or videorecording. The extraordinary story of the creation and historical development of the Messiah is elucidated and discussed by Peter Jacobi in The Messiah Book: The Life & Times of G. F. Handel's Greatest Hit. Richard Luckett provides a scholarly insight of this work in Handel's Messiah: A Celebration.
