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Artist: Polyphony, Britten Sinfonia, Stephen Layton
Title: Handel: Messiah
Year Of Release: 2009
Label: Hyperion
Genre: Classical
Quality: FLAC (image+.cue,log,scans)
Total Time: 02:13:29
Total Size: 701 Mb
Tracklist:01. Part 1 No 01: Symphony
02. No 02. Recitative: Comfort ye, my people (tenor)
03. No 03. Aria: Every valley shall be exalted (tenor)
04. No 04. Chorus: And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed
05. No 05. Recitative: Thus saith the Lord of hosts (bass)
06. No 06. Aria: But who may abide the day of his coming? (alto)
07. No 07. Chorus: And he shall purify the sons of Levi
08. No 08. Recitative: Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son (alto)
09. No 09. Aria with chorus: O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion (alto)
10. No 10. Recitative: For behold, darkness shall cover the earth (bass)
11. No 11. Aria: The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light (bass)
12. No 12. Chorus: For unto us a child is born
13. No 13: Pifa 'Pastoral Symphony'
14. No 14. Recitative: There were shepherds, abiding in the field (soprano)
15. No 15. Recitative: And the angel said unto them, fear not (soprano)
16. No 16. Recitative: And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude (soprano)
17. No 17. Chorus: Glory to God in the highest
18. No 18. Aria: Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion (soprano)
19. No 19. Recitative: Then shall the eyes of the blind be opened (alto)
20. No 20. Aria: He shall feed his flock like a shepherd (alto/soprano)
21. No 21. Chorus: His yoke is easy and his burthen is light
22. Part 2 No 01. Chorus: Behold the Lamb of God
23. No 02. Aria: He was despised and rejected of men (alto)
01. No 03. Chorus: Surely he hath borne our griefs
02. No 04. Chorus: And with his stripes we are healed
03. No 05. Chorus: All we like sheep have gone astray
04. No 06. Recitative: All they that see him laugh him to scorn (tenor)
05. No 07. Chorus: He trusted in God that he would deliver him
06. No 08. Recitative: Thy rebuke hath broken his heart (tenor)
07. No 09. Aria: Behold and see if there be any sorrow like unto his sorrow (tenor)
08. No 10. Recitative: He was cut off out of the land of the living (tenor)
09. No 11. Aria: But thou didst not leave his soul in hell (soprano/tenor)
10. No 12. Chorus: Lift up your heads, O ye gates
11. No 13. Recitative: Unto which of the angels said he at any time? (tenor)
12. No 14. Chorus: Let all the angels of God worship him
13. No 15. Aria: Thou art gone up on high (alto)
14. No 16. Chorus: The Lord gave the word
15. No 17. Aria: How beautiful are the feet of them that preach (soprano)
16. No 18. Chorus: Their sound is gone out into all lands
17. No 19. Aria: Why do the nations so furiously rage together? (bass)
18. No 20. Chorus: Let us break their bonds asunder
19. No 21. Recitative: He that dwelleth in heaven shall laugh them to scorn (tenor)
20. No 22. Aria: Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron (tenor)
21. No 23. Chorus: Hallelujah, for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth
22. Part 3 No 01. Aria: I know that my Redeemer liveth (soprano)
22. No 01. Aria: I know that my Redeemer liveth (soprano)
23. No 02. Chorus: Since by man came death
24. No 03. Recitative: Behold, I tell you a mystery (bass)
25. No 04. Aria: The trumpet shall sound (bass)
26. No 05. Recitative: Then shall be brought to pass (alto)
27. No 06. Aria: O Death, where is thy sting? (alto/tenor)
28. No 07. Chorus: But thanks be to God who giveth us the victory
29. No 08. Aria: If God be for us, who can be against us? (soprano)
30. No 09. Chorus: Worthy is the Lamb that was slain
31. No 10. Chorus: Amen
Performers:Soprano Vocals - Julia Doyle
Countertenor Vocals - Iestyn Davies
Tenor Vocals - Allan Clayton
Bass Vocals - Andrew Foster-Williams
Choir - Polyphony
Orchestra - Britten Sinfonia
Conductor, Liner Notes - Stephen Layton
There are so many excellent recordings of Messiah that the addition of another only further complicates the decision for the listener, but having such an abundance of riches should be no cause for complaint. Hyperion's recording with Stephen Layton leading the choir Polyphony and the Britten Sinfonia is not among the flashiest or most star-studded, but it is immensely musically satisfying. Layton takes something of a middle ground in terms of performance practice; the Britten Sinfonia uses modern instruments, but its players are attuned to the subtleties of Baroque performance, as are the members of Polyphony, a chamber choir with about 30 singers. The small size of the ensembles is an antidote to the bloated numbers that have characterized many performances of the piece, and most importantly, makes possible the agility required to cleanly execute Handel's virtuoso choral writing when the appropriately lively temps are taken. The choir's clarity and precision in movements like "His yoke is easy," whose text demands the kind of dance-like springiness that Layton provides, is one of the strongest arguments for this version. Layton's soloists are likewise superb; they each bring impeccable, effortless-sounding technique and youthful, unmannered freshness to their parts. Julia Doyle's clarion soprano is crystal clear and bright. Iestyn Davies may not have the sumptuousness of some countertenors, but the naturalness of his sound and the purity and evenness of his timbre throughout his range make his a tremendously appealing performance. Allan Clayton's tenor is light but full, focused, and heroic, with none of the preciousness that can characterize English oratorio tenors. Bass Andrew Foster-Williams doesn't have the ideal weight for some of the low-lying solos, but his tone is warm and lovely. Layton's version is also noteworthy for its narrative urgency; it feels like he is telling a story rather than simply stringing together a series of arias, recitatives, and choruses. With clean, present sound, Hyperion's Messiah would make a fine first recording and also has much to offer connoisseurs of the work.
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