Messiah (HWV 56) is an English oratorio composed by Georg Friedrich Händel, and is one of the most popular works in the Western choral literature. The libretto by Charles Jennens is drawn entirely from the King James and Great Bibles, and interprets the Christian doctrine of the Messiah. Messiah, often incorrectly called The Messiah, is one of Handel’s most famous works.
Composed in London during the summer of 1741 and premiered in Dublin, Ireland on 13 April 1742, it was repeatedly revised by Handel, reaching its most familiar version in the performance to benefit the Foundling Hospital in 1754. In 1789 Mozart orchestrated a German version of the work, and his added woodwind parts, and the edition by Ebenezer Prout, were commonly heard until the mid-20th century and the rise of historically informed performance.
The Messiah sing-alongs now common at Christmas often consist of only the first of the oratorio’s three parts, with the Hallelujah Chorus (originally concluding the second part) replacing His Yoke is Easy in the first part.
Overview
Messiah presents an interpretation of the Christian view of the Messiah, or “the anointed one” as Jesus the Christ. Divided into three parts, the libretto covers the prophecies concerning the Christ, the birth, miracles, crucifixion, resurrection and ascension of Jesus, and finally the End Times with the Christ’s final victory over death and sin.
