Messiah from the Three Choirs Festival, 2013
Handel: Messiah
Rosemary Joshua (soprano)
Catherine Carby (mezzo-soprano)
Nicholas Mulroy (tenor)
Matthew Brook (bass)
Cathedral Choirs of Gloucester, Hereford and Worcester
The Dunedin Consort
John Butt (conductor).
recorded and broadcast on R.3 on the evening of Friday 13th September, 2013
Why discuss this old 3 Choirs War-horse?
Well, Messiah, once the back-bone and "must-do" piece of the Festival has fallen into desuetude, the victim of HIPP surgery that has delivered it into the hands of small choirs and places where they sing. This performance was carefully crafted by the conductor and musicologist John Butt. It was founded on an early edition ( Dublin - with star arias for the contralto, Catherine Carby, in all three parts), given an expert period band, the Dunedin Quartet and decked out by the 3 contributing Cathedral Choirs as opposed to the traditional wraparound Festival Chorus.
Did it work for us, the listeners at home?
I have to admit to being a casual listener, hearing the parts I & II of the oratorio whilst cooking a Duck Dinner.
I gave the performance three out of four.
I loved John Butt's interpretation : upbeat tempi; clean, clear textures; lively rhythms. Well-informed and thoroughly informing.
I enjoyed the work of all the soloists: confident, clear diction, good lines,and sensitive ornamentation
I felt that the Dunedin Consort was excellent; it wasn't an orchestra brought in "to do a job on one rehearsal" but a group that knew the score,and then characterised & projected it with love and attention to detail.
But, the 4th partner, the 3 cathedral choirs I found lacking. Lacking in cohesion, with poor knowledge of performing practice, an in inability to maintain sprung rhythms in a mushy acoustic and generally just "doing a job" on a score they knew "backwards". If you didn't hear the performance listen to "His Yoke is Easy" just before the intelligent interval talk. Intonation was awful, unanimity was parlous and Handel's strong rhythms were diluted. Things were not that bad for many of the choruses but when the going got difficult, the choirs didn't rise to the challenge.
Was the "problem" of scheduling Messiah within the constraints of the Three Choirs Festival solved?
For me, it wasn't. But, I may be over-critical. Has hearing so many fully professional choir performances undermined by ability to appreciate anything less? Am I intolerant of the "smudging" caused by very resonant cathedral acoustics?
I'd be interested in the views of other boarders.
Rosemary Joshua (soprano)
Catherine Carby (mezzo-soprano)
Nicholas Mulroy (tenor)
Matthew Brook (bass)
Cathedral Choirs of Gloucester, Hereford and Worcester
The Dunedin Consort
John Butt (conductor).
recorded and broadcast on R.3 on the evening of Friday 13th September, 2013
Why discuss this old 3 Choirs War-horse?
Well, Messiah, once the back-bone and "must-do" piece of the Festival has fallen into desuetude, the victim of HIPP surgery that has delivered it into the hands of small choirs and places where they sing. This performance was carefully crafted by the conductor and musicologist John Butt. It was founded on an early edition ( Dublin - with star arias for the contralto, Catherine Carby, in all three parts), given an expert period band, the Dunedin Quartet and decked out by the 3 contributing Cathedral Choirs as opposed to the traditional wraparound Festival Chorus.
Did it work for us, the listeners at home?
I have to admit to being a casual listener, hearing the parts I & II of the oratorio whilst cooking a Duck Dinner.
I gave the performance three out of four.
I loved John Butt's interpretation : upbeat tempi; clean, clear textures; lively rhythms. Well-informed and thoroughly informing.
I enjoyed the work of all the soloists: confident, clear diction, good lines,and sensitive ornamentation
I felt that the Dunedin Consort was excellent; it wasn't an orchestra brought in "to do a job on one rehearsal" but a group that knew the score,and then characterised & projected it with love and attention to detail.
But, the 4th partner, the 3 cathedral choirs I found lacking. Lacking in cohesion, with poor knowledge of performing practice, an in inability to maintain sprung rhythms in a mushy acoustic and generally just "doing a job" on a score they knew "backwards". If you didn't hear the performance listen to "His Yoke is Easy" just before the intelligent interval talk. Intonation was awful, unanimity was parlous and Handel's strong rhythms were diluted. Things were not that bad for many of the choruses but when the going got difficult, the choirs didn't rise to the challenge.
Was the "problem" of scheduling Messiah within the constraints of the Three Choirs Festival solved?
For me, it wasn't. But, I may be over-critical. Has hearing so many fully professional choir performances undermined by ability to appreciate anything less? Am I intolerant of the "smudging" caused by very resonant cathedral acoustics?
I'd be interested in the views of other boarders.
) - balance with the rather larger forces of the combined cathedral choirs?
? I'd better not edit my term or your comment will be wrecked!
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