The Heritage Chorale is proud to open its 76th season with a performance of Parts I and II of George Frideric Handel’s great oratorio, Messiah. Virtuoso arias and magnificent choral movements are some of the elements which make Handel’s Messiah one of the most powerfully moving works of the oratorio genre.
Our concert on November 18 will feature many of the most beloved choruses in Handel’s Messiah, such as “For Unto Us a Child is Born,” “Glory to God in the Highest,” “All We Like Sheep Have Gone Astray,” “Lift Up Your Heads, O Ye Gates,” and “Hallelujah!” A quartet of accomplished soloists will be heard in some of Handel’s most well-known arias, including “Every Valley Shall Be Exalted” and “Rejoice Greatly, O Daughter of Zion.”
The Heritage Chorale will be joined by a professional chamber orchestra in this concert. Handel’s orchestration for Messiah is truly masterful; predominantly scored for string orchestra, Handel uses oboes and bassoon to add richness and color to the orchestral sound for the choral movements. Trumpets are used to great effect in “Glory to God,” where they play “softly, and from afar [offstage]” as well as in the magnificent “Hallelujah” chorus, where they are joined by thunderous timpani in a rousing, sonorous climax.