"Messiah" recommendations?


Merry Christmas everyone. I heard a wonderful performance of Handel's Messiah this weekend and realized I don't own the work. Any recommendations for great performance/recording? Thanks...
77jovian

Showing 1 response by mahler123

It depends upon whether you prefer the old school, large choral and orchestra forces that became popularized in England during Victorian times, or the Historically Informed Instrument approach which deliberately tries to prune the monumentality.  Both have their adherents.

  Of choices previously mentioned here, the Ormandy would be more the old school approach, and the Butt is the HIPP approach.  There are many others.  Sir Malcolm Sargent was a particularly good conductor of the traditional approach, and regarding the HIPP, I frankly haven’t heard the Butt, but I have other recordings by him and I don’t doubt that it is recommendable..  My HIPP version is lead by Christopher Hogwood.

  I recommend streaming one version of each approach and see what you like