Hanna Herfurtner - Handel: Messiah (2017)

The Messiah"" by George Frederic Handel counts among the most popular and formative oratorios. Starting in 1750, it has for decades been annually performed as conclusion to the oratorio season in London, oftentimes under the baton of Handel himself. The ""Messiah"" is, essentially, nothing other than a biography of Jesus told in metaphors and described with the immense dramatic power, passion and religious emphasis of Handel. The concert given on Easter, 2016 in Kosterneuburg Abey, Lower Austria, by the Bach Consort Vienna, conducted by Ruben Dubrovsky, with the great Salzburg Bach Choir and the extraordinary soloists Hanna Herfurtner, Gaia Petrone, Michael Schade and Christian Immler marked a re-encounter with Handel's masterpiece and can now be relived with this live recording. The Bach Consort Vienna was in founded in 1999 under the baton of Ruben Dubrovsky and they soon grew into one of the most important Baroque Ensembles in Austria. Next to several performances at the Vienna Musikverein, the ensemble is ever-present on different European concert stages. Internaionally renowned artists, such as Bernarda Fink and Christophe Coin, are closely connected to the Bach Consort Vienna. The ensemble has always remained faithful to its original conceptual idea of chamber music.

Tracks:

CD1
01. Symphony (2:42)
02. PART ONE Accompagnato: Comfort ye my people (Tenor) (2:52)
03. Aria: Ev'ry valley shall be exalted (Tenor) (3:17)
04. Chorus: And the glory of the lord shall be revealed (2:36)
05. Accompagnato: Thus saith the lord of hosts (Bass) (1:19)
06. Aria: But who may abide the day of his coming (Alto) (3:55)
07. Chorus: And he shall purify (2:28)
08. Recitative: Behold, a virgin shall conceive (Alto) (0:24)
09. Aria: O thou that tellest good tidings to zion (Alto, Chorus) (5:22)
10. Accompagnato: For behold, darkness shall cover the earth (Bass) (2:07)
11. Aria: The people that walked in darkness (Bass) (3:39)
12. Chorus: For unto us a child is born (3:57)
13. Pifa (Pastoral symphony) (2:27)
14. Recitative: There were shepards (Soprano) (0:12)
15. Accompagnato: And lo, the angel of the lord (Soprano) (0:16)
16. Recitative: And the angel said unto them (Soprano) (0:33)
17. Accompagnato: And suddenly there was with the angel (Soprano) (0:16)
18. Chorus: Glory to god in the highest (1:46)
19. Aria: Rejoice greatly, o daughter of zion (Soprano) (4:12)
20. Recitative: Then shall the eyes of the blind be open'd (Soprano) (0:27)
21. Duet: He shall feed his flock like a shepherd (Soprano, Alto) (4:42)
22. Chorus: His yoke is easy, his burthen is light (2:19)
23. PART TWO Chorus: Behold, the lamb of god (2:40)
24. Aria: He was despised (Alto) (7:01)
25. Chorus: Surely, he hath borne our griefs (1:35)
26. Chorus: And with his stripes we are healed (1:35)
27. Chorus: All we like sheep have gone astray (3:43)

CD2
01. Accompagnato: All they that see him (Tenor) (0:39)
02. Chorus: He trusted in god (2:15)
03. Accompagnato: Thy rebuke hath broken his heart (Tenor) (1:58)
04. Arioso: Behold, and see if there be any sorrow (Tenor) (1:10)
05. Accompagnato: He was cut off out of the land of the living (Tenor) (0:17)
06. Aria: But thou didst not leave his soul in hell (Tenor) (2:28)
07. Chorus: Lift up your heads, o ye gates (2:54)
08. Aria: How beautiful are the feet (Soprano) (2:09)
09. Arioso: Their sound is gone out into all lands (Tenor, Chorus) (1:27)
10. Aria: Why do the nations so furiously rage together (Bass) (2:50)
11. Chorus: Let us break their bonds asunder (1:47)
12. Aria: He that dwelleth in heaven (Tenor) (0:13)
13. Aria: Thou shalt break them (Tenor) (2:08)
14. Chorus: Hallelujah (3:34)
15. PART THREE Aria: I know that my redeemer liveth (Soprano) (5:44)
16. Chorus: Since by man came death (2:00)
17. Accompagnato: Behold, I tell you a mystery (Bass) (0:36)
18. Air: The trumpet shall sound (Bass) (8:54)
19. Chorus: Worthy is the lamb that was slain — Amen (6:56)