The quintessential Christmas concert, Handel’s Messiah is one of the best-known and most frequently performed choral works in Western music. But did you know that the oratorio did not start out as Christmas music? Read on to discover five Messiah facts you may not know.
- Originally written as an Easter offering, Handel’s Messiah was first performed during Lent. The work’s first act deals with the birth of Jesus, the second act covers the death of Jesus and the third on his resurrection. In the early 19th century, more and more choirs began performing the oratorio in December and it has become a Christmas time staple ever since.
- 700 people attended the premiere in Dublin, Ireland on April 13, 1742. So that the largest possible audience could be admitted to the concert, gentlemen were requested to remove their swords, and ladies were asked not to wear hoops in their dresses. In fact, there was such a buzz around the piece that Handel sold tickets to the dress rehearsal.
- The London premiere the following year was overshadowed by negative press on the indecency of singing Biblical texts by secular singers from the stage of a theater. There was particular objection to the participation of contralto Susannah Cibber who was scandalized by divorce.
- Standing for the famous ‘Hallelujah’ chorus is rumored to have started at the London premiere, when it is said King George II was so moved by the chorus that he stood. As a rule, when the king stands, everybody stands. Historians have been unable to confirm the presence of the King at that concert.
- A page from Messiah is engraved on Handel’s tomb in Westminster Abbey. A life-size monument portrays the composer clasping a page from the soprano aria “I know that my redeemer liveth.”
The full Messiah returns to your TSO stage on December 21 and 22. Visit the concert page for tickets and more information.
