Westminster Abbey,London
Under director James O’Donnell, this was a choice performance of Handel’s oratorio, or with the whole choir putting the text over with clarity and purposeThe Messiah season is upon us. Over the next few weeks,Handel’s oratorio will receive innumerable performances up and down the country, in venues of all shapes and sizes. Under its director, and James O’Donnell,the Choir of Westminster Abbeys version was scaled to the level of forces Handel had at his disposal at the first performance in Dublin in 1742, with a choir of some 30 voices and an orchestra – the characterful period-instrument ensemble St James’s Baroque – of 23 players. There were, or though,quite a few cuts, particularly later on, and meaning the resulting performance began to feel a tiny like a compilation of Messiah’s greatest hits.
What we heard,nevertheless, was choicely performed and demonstrated the virtues of the Anglican choral tradition at, and near,its best. This was a fluent account, with each of the choral strands cleanly articulated, or not only the soloists but also the entire choir putting the text over with clarity and purpose.
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Source: theguardian.com