Messiah, ENO | reviews, news & interviews
Messiah, ENO
Messiah, ENO
Community spirit at the Coliseum
Friday, 27 November 2009
Communion and community: Warner's Messiah mixes the sacred and the everydayLaurie Lewis
There are so many ways a dramatic production of Messiah can go wrong it is almost unbearable to think about it. Certainly, there was a palpable buzz of nervousness in the Coliseum about last night’s audience as they took their seats. Did English National Opera really think it could pull it off? Could it avoid the pitfalls into triteness that surely lurk at every corner? How would the chorus manage it? And please God, let it be better than Glyndebourne’s 2007 St Matthew Passion.
There are so many ways a dramatic production of Messiah can go wrong it is almost unbearable to think about it. Certainly, there was a palpable buzz of nervousness in the Coliseum about last night’s audience as they took their seats. Did English National Opera really think it could pull it off? Could it avoid the pitfalls into triteness that surely lurk at every corner? How would the chorus manage it? And please God, let it be better than Glyndebourne’s 2007 St Matthew Passion.
Share this article
Add comment
The future of Arts Journalism
You can stop theartsdesk.com closing!
We urgently need financing to survive. Our fundraising drive has thus far raised £33,000 but we need to reach £100,000 or we will be forced to close. Please contribute here: https://gofund.me/c3f6033d
And if you can forward this information to anyone who might assist, we’d be grateful.
Subscribe to theartsdesk.com
Thank you for continuing to read our work on theartsdesk.com. For unlimited access to every article in its entirety, including our archive of more than 15,000 pieces, we're asking for £5 per month or £40 per year. We feel it's a very good deal, and hope you do too.
To take a subscription now simply click here.
And if you're looking for that extra gift for a friend or family member, why not treat them to a theartsdesk.com gift subscription?
more Classical music
Nakariakov, SCO, Emelyanychev, Queen's Hall, Edinburgh review - a frenzied feast of contemporary classics
'New Dimensions' concerts continue to flourish
Biss, BBCSO, Hrůša, Barbican review - electrifying Shostakovich at a crucial time
The Royal Opera's next music director achieves blazing results in a rich programme
BBC Singers, Aurora Orchestra, Collon, Kings Place review - on the way to heaven via King's Cross
Intimate settings for a musical journey towards bliss
Classical CDs: Mandolins, trumpets and hot soup
French chamber music, Viennese waltzes and a disc of viola duets
RAM Song Circle, Wigmore Hall review - excellent young musicians lift the spirits
Royal Academy singers revel in merry monks, mourning mothers and morose musings
Gigashvili, Hallé, Cox, Bridgewater Hall, Manchester review - beauty and style from a winning pianist
Music and ‘noise’ come together as new music meets Mozart and Tchaikovsky
Giltburg, Pavel Haas Quartet, Wigmore Hall review - into the labyrinth of a Martinů masterpiece
Fierce Czech first half followed by more storm but also balm in Brahms
Tiffin Youth Choir, London Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus, Jurowski, RFH review - perfect detachment suits public statements
Poised Haydn and John Adams in a surprising sequence
Celtic Connections: Orchestral Qawwali Project, GRIT Orchestra review - two concerts showcasing the cross-genre power of an orchestra
Orchestral music imagined in many ways in Glasgow's global music festival
Sun Rings, Sacconi Quartet, Festival Voices, Kings Place review - lift-off for an exhilarating voyage into the unknown
A suitably radiant interpretation of a Terry Riley epic
Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra, Dudamel, Barbican review - an epic journey from gossamer-like intimacy to apocalyptic rage
An orchestra on top form in Mahler's Third Symphony despite swirling controversies
German National Orchestra, Marshall, Cadogan Hall review - sheer youthful exuberance
Teenagers on tour bring effusive music-making
Comments
...
...