Messiah Part I

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Messiah
(Part I)
by George Frideric Handel
Handel's Messiah.jpg
Year1741 (1741)
Period Baroque
Genre Oratorio
Text Charles Jennens, a compilation from the King James Bible and the Book of Common Prayer
Composed22 August 1741 (1741-08-22) 14 September 1741 (1741-09-14): London
Movements21 in five scenes
Vocal SATB choir and solo
Instrumental

Messiah (HWV 56), the English-language oratorio composed by George Frideric Handel in 1741, is structured in three parts. The wordbook (also called libretto or text) was supplied by Charles Jennens. This article covers Part I and describes the relation of the musical setting to the text. Part I begins with the prophecy of the Messiah and his virgin birth by several prophets, namely Isaiah. His birth is still rendered in words by Isaiah, followed by the annunciation to the shepherds as the only scene from a Gospel in the oratorio, and reflections on the Messiah's deeds. Part II covers the Passion, death, resurrection, ascension, and the later spreading of the Gospel. Part III concentrates on Paul's teaching of the resurrection of the dead and Christ's glorification in heaven.

Contents

The popular Part I of Messiah is sometimes called the "Christmas" portion [1] as it is frequently performed during Advent in concert, sing-along, or as a Scratch Messiah. When performed in this way, it usually concludes with "Hallelujah" (chorus) from Part II as the finale.

Messiah, the oratorio

The libretto by Jennens is drawn from the Bible: mostly from the Old Testament of the King James Bible, but with several psalms taken from the Book of Common Prayer. [2] [3] Regarding the text, Jennens commented: "...the Subject excells every other Subject. The Subject is Messiah ...". [4]

Messiah differs from Handel's other oratorios in that it does not contain an encompassing narrative, instead offering contemplation on different aspects of the Christian Messiah:

Messiah is not a typical Handel oratorio; there are no named characters, as are usually found in Handel’s setting of the Old Testament stories, possibly to avoid charges of blasphemy. It is a meditation rather than a drama of personalities, lyrical in method; the narration of the story is carried on by implication, and there is no dialogue.

Christopher Hogwood [2]

Structure and concept

The oratorio's structure follows the liturgical year: Part I corresponding with Advent, Christmas, and the life of Jesus; Part II with Lent, Easter, the Ascension, and Pentecost; and Part III with the end of the church year—dealing with the end of time. The birth and death of Jesus are told in the words of the prophet Isaiah (the most prominent source for the libretto). The only true scene of the oratorio is the annunciation to the shepherds which is taken from the Gospel of Luke. [5] [6] The imagery of shepherd and lamb features prominently in many movements, for example: in the aria "He shall feed His flock like a shepherd" (the only extended piece to talk about the Messiah on earth), in the opening of Part II ("Behold the Lamb of God"), in the chorus "All we like sheep", and in the closing chorus of the work ("Worthy is the Lamb").

Music

By the time Handel composed Messiah in London he was already a successful and experienced composer of Italian operas, and had created sacred works based on English texts, such as the 1713 Utrecht Te Deum and Jubilate , and numerous oratorios on English libretti. For Messiah, Handel used the same musical technique as for those works, namely a structure based on chorus and solo singing.

Only two movements in Messiah are purely instrumental: the overture (written as "Sinfony" in Handel's autograph) and the Pifa (a pastorale introducing the shepherds in Bethlehem); and only a few movements are a duet or a combination of solo and chorus. The solos are typically a combination of recitative and aria. The arias are called Airs or Songs, and some of them are in da capo form, but rarely in a strict sense (repeating the first section after a sometimes contrasting middle section). Handel found various ways to use the format freely to convey the meaning of the text. Occasionally verses from different biblical sources are combined into one movement, however more often a coherent text section is set in consecutive movements, for example the first "scene" of the work, the annunciation of Salvation, is set as a sequence of three movements: recitative, aria and chorus.

The movements marked "Recitative" are "secco", accompanied by only the continuo, whereas the recitatives marked "Accompagnato" are accompanied by additional string instruments. Handel used four voice parts, soprano, alto, tenor and bass in the solo and choral movements. The orchestra scoring is simple: oboes, strings and basso continuo of harpsichord, violoncello, violone and bassoon. Two trumpets and timpani highlight selected movements, for example in Part I the song of the angels Glory to God in the highest. Handel uses both polyphonic and homophonic settings to illustrate the text best. Even polyphonic movements typically end on a dramatic long musical rest, followed by a broad homophonic conclusion. Handel often stresses a word by extended coloraturas, especially in several movements which are a parody of music composed earlier on Italian texts. He uses a cantus firmus on long repeated notes especially to illustrate God's speech and majesty, for example "for the mouth of the Lord has spoken it" in movement 4. [7]

General notes

The following table is organized by movement numbers. There are two major systems of numbering the movements of Messiah: the historic Novello edition of 1959 (which is based on earlier editions and contains 53 movements), and the Bärenreiter edition of 1965 in the Hallische Händel-Ausgabe. Not counting some short recitatives as separate movements, there are therefore 47 movements. In the table below, the Novello number (Nov) is given first and is the index for the notes to individual movements in the "movements" section, then the Bärenreiter number (Bär).

To emphasise the movements in which the oboes and the rarely used trumpets play, the summary below does not mention the regular basso continuo and the strings in movements. Details on the development of keys, different tempo markings and times within a movement are given in notes on the individual movements. Typically a "scene" of recitative(s) and aria(s) is concluded with a choral movement.

Part I summary

NovBärTitle / First lineFormVoiceTempo markingScoringTimeKey
1 1 Sinfony French overture InstrumentalGrave
Allegro moderato
Oboe Commontime.svg E minor
2 2Comfort ye,comfort ye my people saith your GodAccompagnatoTenorLarghetto e piano Commontime.svg E major
3 3Ev’ry valley shall be exaltedAriaTenorAndante Commontime.svg E major
4 4And the glory ... of the Lord shall be revealedChorusAllegroOboe3
4
A major
5 5Thus saith the Lord of Hosts
Behold, I will send my messenger
AccompagnatoBass Commontime.svg D minor
6 6But who may abide the day of his coming
For he is like a refiner's fire
AriaSoprano, Alto, or BassLarghetto
Prestissimo
3
8

Commontime.svg
D minor (alto and bass) / A minor (soprano)
7 7And He shall purify the sons of LeviChorusAllegroOboe Commontime.svg G minor
8 8Behold, a virgin shall conceiveRecitativeAlto Commontime.svg D major
9 8O thou that tellest good tidings
Arise, shine
AriaAlto,
Chorus
AndanteOboe
(chorus)
6
8
D major
10 9For behold, darkness shall cover the earthAccompagnatoBassAndante larghetto Commontime.svg B minor
11 10The people that walked in darknessAriaBassLarghetto Commontime.svg B minor
12 11For unto us a Child is bornChorusAndante allegroOboe Commontime.svg G major
13 12PifaPastoraleInstrumentalLarghetto e mezzo piano12
8
C major
14 There were shepherds abiding in the fieldsRecitativeSoprano Commontime.svg C major
15 13And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon themAccompagnatoSopranoAndante Commontime.svg F major
And the angel said unto themRecitativeSoprano Commontime.svg A major
16 14And suddenly there was with angelAccompagnatoSopranoAllegro Commontime.svg D major
17 15Glory to God in the highestChorusAllegroOboe,
Trumpet
Commontime.svg D major
18 16Rejoice greatly O daughters of ZionAriaSoprano or TenorAllegro Commontime.svg or 12
8
B-flat major
19 Then shall the eyes of the blind shall be open'dRecitativeAlto or Soprano Commontime.svg D major (alto) / G major (soprano)
20 17He shall feed His flock like a shepherd
Come unto Him
Aria or DuetAlto or Soprano (Aria)
Alto & Soprano (Duet)
Larghetto e piano12
8
F major (alto) / B-flat major (soprano)
21 18His yoke is easy, his burden is lightChorusAllegroOboe Commontime.svg B-flat major

Part I movements

1

Sinfony

The Sinfony, set for oboes and strings, is in two parts in the style of a French overture (a slow first part and a fugue). The fugue subject is presented by the unaccompanied violins, which is a feature that returns in the final Amen of the oratorio. The key of E minor has been interpreted as creating "a mood without hope". [2]

Scene 1

Scene 1 deals with general prophecies of salvation. In three movements, five consecutive verses from the Book of Isaiah are treated—foretelling the return to Jerusalem (Isaiah40:1–5) following the Babylonian captivity.

2

3

Ev'ry valley shall be exalted

The Air for tenor expands the words "Ev'ry valley shall be exalted", which are frequently heard during Advent (preparing a way for the Lord). The voice illustrates the exaltation by long coloraturas, whereas "plain" is depicted with a long note. More word painting occurs in a low note for "low" and a complicated figure for "crooked". [8]

Handel's Messiah Every Valley.png

4

Scene 2

Scene 2 speaks in three movements of the apparition of God. An accompagnato is based on the words of the prophet Haggai, dealing with the splendor of the temple, and of Malachi who foretold the coming messenger. Malachi's words are continued in an aria and a chorus.

5

6

7

Scene 3

After the rather general introduction, Scene 3 addresses Isaiah's specific prophecy about the virgin birth of a Messiah by expanding more verses from different chapters of the prophet.

8

9

10

11

12

Scene 4

Scene 4 is the only real scene of the oratorio: the annunciation to the shepherds, and is taken from the Gospel of Luke, Luke2:14. This is an episode in the Nativity of Jesus described in the Bible in Luke 2, in which angels tell a group of shepherds about the birth of Jesus. It is a common subject of Christian art and of Christmas carols.

13

Pifa

The shepherds are introduced by an instrumental Pastorale, the Pifa, which takes its name from the shepherd-bagpipers, or pifferai, who played in the streets of Rome at Christmas time. [6] [9] The music in C major and swinging 12
8
time gently rises and falls like a cradle song (i.e. lullaby).

14

There were shepherds abiding in the field

In a short recitative, the soprano tells "There were shepherds abiding in the field". Handel saved the soprano solo voice until this point in the narration.

15

16

17

Scene 5

Scene 5 summarizes the deeds of the Messiah on earth and the response of man. The text is compiled from Zechariah (who saw God's providential dealings), Isaiah's oracle of salvation for Israel, and his vision of the Shepherd (seen fulfilled by the Evangelist Matthew).

18

19

Then shall the eyes of the blind be open'd

In prophetic words of Isaiah, the alto (originally soprano) recitative relates the Saviour's actions: "Then shall the eyes of the blind be open'd ... and the tongue of the dumb shall sing" (Isaiah35:5–6).

20

21

See also

References

  1. Eckelmeyer, Judith. "On hearing the "Christmas" portion of Handel's Messiah (page 2)". Music Academy Online. Retrieved 30 July 2011.
  2. 1 2 3 Block, Daniel I. (2001). "Handel's Messiah: Biblical and Theological Perspectives" (PDF). Didaskalia . 12 (2). Retrieved 19 July 2011.
  3. Powell, David R. (2009). "The Bible and Handel's Messiah: Some Sources on Their Relation and Use". journal.atla.com. Theological Librarianship, An Online Journal of the American Theological Library Association. Archived from the original on 5 March 2012. Retrieved 25 December 2011. The major source for the text was the Authorised (King James) Version of the Bible of 1611, although Jennens also used, for the Psalms, the translation from the 1662 Book of Common Prayer." footnote "While the prayer book generally used the Authorised Version for readings, it used the Psalms translations from Myles Coverdale's Great Bible of 1539.
  4. 1 2 Heighes, Simon (1997). "George Frideric Handel (1685–1759) / Messiah. Simon Heighes, for The Sixteen recording, Ach Herr, mich armen Sünder". hyperion-records.co.uk. Retrieved 11 July 2011.
  5. Gascoigne, David (24 November 2007). "Text of pre-concert talk on Handel's Messiah". The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Retrieved 19 July 2011.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Luckett, Richard (1992). Handel's Messiah: A Celebration. London: Victor Gollancz. ISBN   978-0-575-05286-4.
  7. 1 2 Burrows, Donald (1991). Handel: Messiah. Cambridge (UK): Cambridge University Press. ISBN   978-0-521-37620-4.
  8. Bisson, Noël; Kidger, David. "Messiah: Listening Guide for Part I". First Nights (Literature & Arts B-51, Fall 2006, Harvard University). The President and Fellows of Harvard College. Retrieved 7 September 2021.
  9. 1 2 Keates, Jonathan (2007). "Handel Messiah" (PDF). Barbican Centre. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 October 2012. Retrieved 27 July 2011.
  10. 1 2 3 "G. F. Handel's Compositions HWV 101–200". GFHandel.org. Archived from the original on 27 October 2012. Retrieved 13 December 2012.
  11. 1 2 3 Shaw, Watkins (1963). The story of Handel's "Messiah". London: Novello. OCLC   1357436.