Handel’s Messiah – by way of Mozart

Hearing Handel’s Messiah performed by choir, orchestra, and four vocal soloists is always a profound experience. It is Handel’s most famous work, filled with exquisite arias and magnificent choruses – including the celebrated Hallelujah chorus. In this performance, we hear the version created nearly 50 years after the original. By then, the Baroque era had given way to Classicism, and Mozart expanded the orchestration while making several minor adjustments in line with his own instincts and the musical ideals of his time.

Mozart first heard Messiah in London in the 1760s, and when he revisited the work in 1789 he added trombones, horns, flutes and clarinets – in addition to Handel’s oboes, bassoon and trumpets. The result is colourful, surprising and splendid. Today Handel’s original version is most often performed, which makes it a truly special occasion when we can hear Mozart’s adaptation of Handel’s iconic masterpiece.

The new orchestration, together with the translation from English into German, contributed significantly to the spread of Messiah throughout Europe. In this performance we hear Messiah in Mozart’s orchestration but with the English text. Messiah was originally intended for Easter and premiered at a charity concert in Dublin on 13 April 1742. It was an enormous success, and Handel continued to perform the work annually in support of London’s children’s hospital until his death in 1759.