Handel: Messiah, A Sacred Oratorio (2002)

On this 2002 recording for ABC Classics, Antony Walker leads the Australian vocal ensemble Cantillation and the Orchestra of the Antipodes in a historically informed reading of Handel's Messiah that is closely based on the 1741 autograph. Considering how many other versions Handel made of this work and how it has been further adapted over the centuries, often for enormous forces with exaggerated effects, it has become necessary for scholars and early music performers to present streamlined versions that eliminate the later ... Read More

On this 2002 recording for ABC Classics, Antony Walker leads the Australian vocal ensemble Cantillation and the Orchestra of the Antipodes in a historically informed reading of Handel's Messiah that is closely based on the 1741 autograph. Considering how many other versions Handel made of this work and how it has been further adapted over the centuries, often for enormous forces with exaggerated effects, it has become necessary for scholars and early music performers to present streamlined versions that eliminate the later accretions to better reflect the composer's earliest intentions. This may not be an original Messiah -- which performance truly is? -- but considering that Handel's autograph seems designed to allow for any number of contingencies of performance, it comes close to being authentic in having only five vocal soloists, a small choir, trumpets, timpani, strings, and continuo. This lean ensemble follows Walker's generally spry tempos with ease and delivers the most overwrought counterpoint... Read Less