Such were the words of one whom most people today would consider the greatest composer who ever graced the earth.

What elicited such a statement from Beethoven?

Come hear Maestro Neuen’s presentation of Messiah and find out for yourself.

What exactly is Messiah?

Handel was born and trained in Germany, achieved mastery and success in every musical genre while in Italy, and then settled for nearly fifty years in England, during which time he assimilated all those nation's musical styles and specialized in operas and oratorios. These oratorios were almost always dramatic narratives, functioning like English operas composed for concert performances in theatres such as Covent Garden. Most are based on Biblical or religious stories, but some, such as Semele and Hercules, are purely secular. Even Messiah, which does not tell a story in conventional terms and is therefore unlike almost all other baroque oratorios, amply demonstrates Handel’s abilities as an operatic composer. Messiah was not originally envisaged as a Christmas offering, but was intended as a timely thought-provoker for Lent and Easter

Messiah was composed in twenty four days in August and September 1741 using a libretto by Charles Jennens

The establishment of Messiah as a venerated English institution for Christmas has a long and complicated history. A few excerpts are familiar to almost everybody. Unlike any other work by its composer, Messiah remains Handel's best known composition. This was not a status that it enjoyed until late in his life, and for good reasons. Few people know exactly what Messiah is. Even the name of the work brings on confusion. Messiah is variously known as Messiah, The Messiah and for it’s London premiere was referred to as A Sacred Oratorio as Handel was afraid that the concert would be banned using the title Messiah. He had good reason to believe that. The first performance of Messiah was at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Dublin, Ireland on April 13th, 1742. The performance was originally cancelled by the dean, Johnathan Swift. This was same Johathan Swift of Gulliver’s Travels fame. Only after many concessions by Handel did Johathan Swift allow the concert to be presented.

As did P. T. Barnum many years in the future, Handel, always the showman, changed the presentations to suit the demographics of his audiences and to fit the availability of soloists and orchestras. Consequently during Handel’s lifetime there were multiple scorings of the original composition. Naturally over the course of several hundred years, other markings and nuances crept into the score.

Maestro Neuen, one of the today’s leading scholars of Messiah, uses work done by Alfred Mann from the period 1961 through 1985. Professor Neuen feels that the work done by Alfred Mann represents the closest score possible to the original composition of 1741.

The Oratorio is presented in the classical three parts. The Birth, the Death and the Resurrection.

Part I -- The Birth
i -- The prophecy of Salvation
ii -- The prophecy of the coming of the Messiah
iii -- Portends to the world at large
iv -- Prophecy of the Virgin Birth
v -- The appearance of the Angel to the shepherds
vi -- Christ's miracles

Part II -- The Passion
i -- The sacrifice, the scourging and agony on the cross
ii -- His death, His passing through Hell, and His resurrection
iii -- His Ascension
iv -- God discloses His identity in Heaven
v -- The beginning of evangelism
vi -- The world and its rulers reject the Gospel
vii -- God's triumph

Part III -- The Aftermath
i -- The promise of redemption from Adam's fall
ii -- Judgment Day
iii -- The victory over death and sin
iv -- The glorification of Christ

Sources:

Patrick Findlay
David Vicker
Donald Neuen