Handel Messiah, Part II

Umberto Clerici Conductor
Emma Pearson Soprano
Deborah Humble Alto
Lila Crichton Tenor
Samson Setu Bass
The Tudor Consort Choir

Handel’s Messiah is a Christmas-time mainstay of the orchestral and choral repertoire, dating back all the way to its premiere in Dublin in 1742. By this time, Handel had already made his name with his immensely popular operas and oratorios, which he often based on Biblical figures. Messiah, which centres on the life of Christ, is another of these oratorios, but Handel’s popularity was such that the entire box office takings from Messiah’s premiere were donated to charity, without Handel needing to take a cut. From this time on, Messiah has become one of the most-performed and best-loved works in the English-speaking world.