Listening to Handel’s Messiah

In the Bing search window this morning I typed, "Messiah YouTube" and then had to choose one. I chose the complete work, not just the Christmas portion. From my living room window overlooking the fresh snow, I can listen for 2 1/2 hours, London Philharmonic. This is Advent, the beginning of the church year, and although Handel wrote it for Easter, it has become a custom for Advent and Christmas. Fr. Sebastian White, editor of Magnificat writes in the December issue, "The Son given unto us at Christmas is the Man of Sorrows who will suffer and die for us on Good Friday. He is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords who rises victorious at Easter, unleashing our pent-up alleluias."

When Messiah debuted in Dublin in 1742, such a huge crowd was expected that ladies were told to wear dresses without hoops and men were asked to leave their swords at home. I wonder how they got the word out with no internet, twitter or Facebook?

In my younger years when I sang in a choir, I was a first soprano; now I'm a tenor and only have about 5 raspy notes, and they don't seem to be in a row. But I hope someday to join the heavenly choir of angels and saints who day and night sing, "Worthy is the lamb that was slain. . . "

Handel’s Messiah

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fdlyoEpCV9k

• 9:26- And The Glory of the Lord !
•  20:07- O Thou That Tellest Good tidings to Zion !
• 32:00- For Unto us A Child is Born !
• 38:07- Glory To God !
•  1:40:30- Handel's Hallelujah !
• 2:08:45- Worthy is the lamb !

As for sitting or standing  for the Hallelujah Chorus

An often repeated legend about Messiah tells the story of King George II who was so moved by the “Hallelujah” chorus during the London premiere of Messiah that he rose to his feet and then everyone in attendance followed suit as not to be sitting when the king stood.

Thus we believe the regularly debated tradition of standing during the “Hallelujah” chorus came to be — also giving birth to countless passive-aggressive battles of concert decorum between the sitters and standers.

However, according to various experts, there is no truth to this story. In fact there is no evidence King George II was even in attendance, and it is unlikely the newspaper writers that were in the audience would have overlooked mentioning a royal presence. The first reference to this story was a letter written 37 years after the fact.

https://www.bsomusic.org/stories/5-things-you-might-not-know-about-handels-messiah.aspx

I, however, am cycling on my stationary bike in my office. Sitting.

Handeling my new van

This morning after exercise class I stopped at the Lane Rd. branch of the Library to pick up a book I reserved (my last request for purchase of a title on the Constitution was denied but that's another blog). While I was there I flipped through the classic CDs in hopes there might still be a Messiah in the box. With hundreds in our congregation using the same material for Advent, I didn't think I find one (probably the largest Lutheran church in Ohio and the library hadn't purchased a new title on Lutherans in the U.S. in 40 years before I asked for one). But--there it was--Robert Shaw and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.

So on the drive home I popped it into the disc player in my new van, and now can't learn the trick to remove it. But the first 3 or 4 minutes are great. I also learned today what happens if you push the "panic" button on the key.

Some sing in the shower

Our church, UALC, is using an Advent daily meditation based on Handel's Messiah, written by John Gugel. You can purchase a CD to go with it, or use your own. I have miscellaneous selections from the Messiah, so have been looking up the different selections on YouTube. An amazing variety. One of the most gutsy is this one (Every valley shall be exalted), by a man recovering from a bad cold who appears to be singing in the lavatory off the kitchen. But I also found some really upbeat and jazzy versions by a contemporary (well, 1989) Christian group First Call, as well as a variety of churches which had performed this classic favorite of the season. They are not as polished as the pros, but their devotion and energy is worth watching.