Orfeo Orchestra & Purcell Choir

Messiah by Georg Friedrich Händel (1685–1759) is still his most popular work, and at the same time one of the most performed oratorios in the world. The composition was first heard in Dublin on 13 April 1742, and its triumphant progress continued the following year with concerts in London. This performance brings the Dublin and early London (that is, c. 1742-43) version of this masterpiece to stage in its entirety. For Händel, it was critically important for every text to be heard in concerts he directed because he only worked with literal passages taken exclusively from the Bible. The aim of the two ensembles in emphasizing this is that the work was originally written for a modest formation. In fact, in Dublin Händel had no access to woodwind instruments at all. Thus in terms of the performance setup, this concert is designed to mainly evoke the circumstances surrounding the 1742 Dublin premiere – trusting that this will give the public the chance to discover new colours and beauties in this often played and rightly praised work. World-famous conductor Marcus Creed, now resident in Germany, stands at the head of Purcell Choir and Orfeo Orchestra.