Handel: Messiah, HWV 56 Le Concert d'Astrée & Emmanuelle Haïm

• 1Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: Grave - Allegro moderato02:56
• 2Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: Comfort ye my people (Tenor)02:53
• 3Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: Ev'ry valley shall be exalted (Tenor)03:04
• 4Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed (Chorus)02:31
• 5Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: Thus saith the Lord of Hosts (Bass)01:25
• 6Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: But who may abide the day of His coming? (Alto)04:12
• 7Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: And he shall purify (Chorus)02:26
• 8Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: Behold, a virgin shall conceive (Alto)00:25
• 9Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion (Alto, Chorus)04:54
• 10Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: For behold, darkness shall cover the earth (Bass)02:17
• 11Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: The people that walked in darkness (Bass)03:37
• 12Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: For unto us a child is born (Chorus)03:54
• 13Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: Larghetto e mezzo piano02:34
• 14Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: There were shepherds abiding in the field (Soprano)00:10
• 15Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them (Soprano)00:16
• 16Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: And the angel said unto them (Soprano)00:30
• 17Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: And suddenly there was with the angel (Soprano)00:18
• 18Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: Glory to God in the highest (Chorus)01:54
• 19Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion (Soprano)04:05
• 20Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: Then shall the eyes of the blind be open'd (Alto)00:24
• 21Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: He shall feed His flock like a shepherd (Alto, Soprano)05:18
• 22Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 1: His yoke is easy, His burthen is light (Chorus)02:19
• 23Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: Behold the Lamb of God (Chorus)02:32
• 24Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: He was despised (Alto)10:09
• 25Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: Surely He hath borne our griefs (Chorus)01:47
• 26Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: And with His stripes we are healed (Chorus)02:05
• 27Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: All we, like sheep, have gone astray (Chorus)03:24
• 28Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: All they that see Him laugh Him to scorn (Tenor)00:41
• 29Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: He trusted in God (Chorus)02:21
• 30Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: Thy rebuke hath broken His heart (Tenor)01:22
• 31Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: Behold, and see, if there be any sorrow (Tenor)01:29
• 32Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: He was cut off out of the land of the living (Tenor)00:16
• 33Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: But Thou didst not leave His soul in hell (Tenor)02:09
• 34Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: Lift up your heads, O ye gates (Chorus)02:57
• 35Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: Unto which of the angels said He at any time (Tenor)00:15
• 36Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: Let all the angels of God worship Him (Chorus)01:29
• 37Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: Thou art gone up on high (Alto)02:52
• 38Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: The Lord gave the word (Chorus)01:07
• 39Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: How beautiful are the feet (Soprano)02:21
• 40Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: Their sound is gone out into all lands (Chorus)01:24
• 41Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: Why do the nations so furiously rage together (Bass)02:43
• 42Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: Let us break their bonds asunder (Chorus)01:40
• 43Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: He that dwelleth in heaven (Tenor)00:11
• 44Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron (Tenor)01:50
• 45Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 2: Hallelujah! (Chorus)03:39
• 46Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 3: I know that my Redeemer liveth (Soprano)06:00
• 47Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 3: Since by man came death (Chorus)02:00
• 48Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 3: Behold, I tell you a mystery (Bass)00:38
• 49Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 3: The trumpet shall sound (Bass)08:43
• 50Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 3: Then shall be brought to pass the saying (Alto)00:15
• 51Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 3: O death, where is thy sting? (Alto, Tenor)00:55
• 52Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 3: But thanks be to God (Chorus)01:59
• 53Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 3: If God be for us, who can be against us? (Soprano)04:40
• 54Handel: Messiah, HWV 56, Part 3: Worthy is the Lamb that was slain - Amen (Chorus)07:11
• Total Runtime02:15:26

Info for Handel: Messiah, HWV 56

Following several acclaimed albums of Handel’s operatic and choral masterpieces (including a triumphant Giulio Cesare with Natalie Dessay as Cleopatra and the oratorio La Resurrezione with British soprano Kate Royal), French harpsichordist and conductor Emmanuelle Haïm at last brings her fresh, expressive approach to Messiah.

Joining her on a musically and spiritually uplifting journey for this long-awaited recording is Haïm’s own choir and period-instrument orchestra, Le Concert d’Astrée, with four of the UK’s finest Handelian singers. Having begun her career as a brilliant harpsichordist and protegee of Baroque pioneers William Christie and Christophe Rousset, Haïm has a long history with Messiah. She is invited regularly to conduct the work in France (this album was recorded during performances at the Opéra de Lille in December 2013) and the United States – as in 2012 with the New York Philharmonic.

For this complete recording, Haïm opted for an intimate Baroque sound, without reducing the power and impact of this perennial seasonal favourite. “I made the choice of four British singers, with a single countertenor rather than two altos – the configuration used in 1752 at Covent Garden,” she explains.

Lucy Crow, soprano
Andrew Staples, tenor
Tim Mead, countertenor
Christopher Purves, bass
Le Concert d’Astrée
David Bates, chorus master
Emmanuelle Haïm, conductor

Recorded from December 4 - 7, 2013 at Opéra de Lille in France
Engineered and editing by Michel Pierre, Baptiste Chouquet
Produced by Daniel Zalay

Emmanuelle Haïm
After studying piano and harpsichord, Emmanuelle Haïm made the decision to pursue orchestral conducting and founded Le Concert d'Astrée in 2000. During this period, she was in demand at prestigious international venues and conducted a highly acclaimed Rodelinda by Handel with the Glyndebourne Touring Opera in 2001.

Emmanuelle Haïm and Le Concert d’Astrée perform programmes devoted to 17th and 18th century music on top international stages with prestigious soloists including Cecilia Bartoli, Natalie Dessay, Sabine Devieilhe, Philippe Jaroussky, Magdalena Kožená, Laurent Naouri, Patricia Petibon, Sandrine Piau, Rolando Villazón, and Anne Sofie von Otter, to name but a few.

Working with renowned directors such as recently Krzysztof Warlikowski, Mariame Clément, Christof Loy, Robyn Orlin, Jean Bellorini, Barrie Kosky and Guy Cassiers, Emmanuelle Haïm, with Le Concert d’Astrée, has performed in numerous staged opera productions at the Opéra de Lille, at the Opéra de Dijon, in Paris (Palais Garnier, Théâtre du Châtelet, Théâtre des Champs-Elysées), at the Téâtre de Caen, and the Festival International d’Art Lyrique d’Aix-en-Provence: Monteverdi (Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria, 2017), Cavalli et Lully (Xerse, 2016), Rameau (Pygmalion, 2018 et 2019- Les Boréades, 2019), Bach (Magnificat, 2017), Händel (Il Trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno, 2016 et 2017 – Dixit Dominus, 2017 – Alcina, 2018), Mondonville (L’Amour et Psyché, 2018) et Mozart (Mitridate, re di Ponto, 2016 – Così fan tutte, 2017).

Her recordings directing Le Concert d'Astrée on the Erato Warner Classics label have been very warmly received by music critics and listeners alike. The latest CD and DVD releases include Il Trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno by Händel, recorded at the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, Il ritorno d’Ulisse in patria by Monteverdi, and Mitridate, re di Ponto by Mozart (winner of the Grand Prix du DVD awarded by the Académie Charles Cros, and nominated for the International Classic Music Award) recorded at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées in Paris, Italian cantatas devoted to Händel and performed by Sabine Devieilhe and Lea Desandre (Gramophone Gramophone Record of the Month, album Choc Classica, Classic d’Or RTL…). Autumn 2019 welcomes the release of the DVD Rodelinda by Händel recorded at the Lille Opera.

Dubbed the “Ms Dynamite of French Baroque” by the British press, Emmanuelle Haïm is the first woman to lead the Chicago Lyric Opera (Giulio Cesare, 2007). She has been invited to the Glyndebourne Festival Opera on several occasions and has presented a number of works there, including Theodora by Handel (directed by Peter Sellars) and L’incoronazione di Poppea (directed by Robert Carsen). She regularly conducts the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO), the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, the Frankfurt Hessischer Rundfunk Orchestra and the Los Angeles Philharmonic (2011, 2015, and 2017), the Wiener Philharmoniker (2016), the Swedish Radio Orchestra (2018) and the Gewandhaus Leipzig Orchestra (2018). She formed a special relationship with the Berliner Philharmoniker in 2008 and has been a guest conductor in 2008, 2011 and 2014. In 2019, Emmanuelle Haïm made her debut with the New York Philharmonic and The Philadelphia Orchestra and conducted a new production of Hippolyte et Aricie by Rameau at the Zürich Opera House.

During the 2019/20 season she will make her debut with the Royal Concertgebouw, London Symphony and NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestras. Emmanuelle Haïm regularly conducts the Berliner Philharmoniker and Los Angeles Philharmonic and will return to both during this season. With Le Concert d’Astrée, her performances include a new production of Purcell’s The Indian Queen at Lille Opera and a Rameau (Pygmalion) and Mondonville (L’Amour et Psyché ) double bill in Luxembourg and Caen. On tour, Emmanuelle Haïm will also present Campra’s Requiem and motets from Rameau and Mondonville in Lille (Opera), Luxembourg (Philharmonie), Versailles (Chapelle Royale), Dijon (Opera), Cologne (Philharmonie), Essen (Philharmonie) and Berlin (Philharmonie) and a series of concerts at Wigmore Hall in London.

As a committed champion of Baroque music who epitomises French musical expertise, Emmanuelle Haïm has been awarded the distinctions of Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur, Officier des Arts et des Lettres, Officier de l’ordre national du Mérite, and is an Honorary Member of the Royal Academy of Music.

Booklet for Handel: Messiah, HWV 56