Handel and Haydn Society / Harry Christophers HAYDN London Symphony No. 100 - Nelson Mass

 

LONDON SYMPHONY No. 100 - NELSON MASS

 

The Sixteen / Harry Christophers HANDEL Choruses

CHORUSES

 

The Sixteen / Harry Christophers HANDEL Acis and Galatea

Famed for its interpretations of some of Handel’s most loved works, The Sixteen marks the start of its 40th anniversary season by releasing its first new Handel recording in five years.

Handel’s pastoral opera is a tale of love, tragedy and liberation. The libretto by John Gay, based on Ovid’s Metamorphoses (book XIII), tells of the eternal love between the mortal shepherd Acis and goddess Galatea and how it is doomed by the jealous cyclops Polyphemus.

Handel’s music beautifully demonstrates the pain and love in such beautiful, dramatic choruses as ‘Wretched lovers!’ and the grief felt by Galatea in ‘Must I my Acis still bemoan’.

Staying true to the premiere in 1718, just five singers and nine instrumentalists feature on this intimate recording.

'Christophers uses stylish Handelians and "consort" singers who blend to perfection in this intimate "chamber" performance. The big success here is Stuart Young's rotund-sounding, menacing Polyphemus, but Grace Davidson's virginal Galatea gives immense pleasure.' The Sunday Times

Elin Manahan Thomas ETERNAL LIGHT

The Welsh soprano won a choral scholarship to Clare College, Cambridge where she read Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic. Thomas joined the Monteverdi Choir in 2000 and has sung with The Sixteen, Polyphony, Cambridge Singers and the Gabrieli Consort. Increasingly she is in great demand as an international soloist. Thomas has specialised in performing early music especially with the choral group The Sixteen. Her release titled Eternal Light on Universal covers music from the Renaissance and the Baroque period. The release titled Byd Y Soprano - Soprano World comprises mainly music from the Romantic period with some Classical and a Baroque piece. Late-Romantic music is not repertoire that one usually associates with Thomas in solo performance. It is not surprising that this highly talented singer will want to show her versatility by singing a wide range of repertoire. This stance will naturally invite comparisons with the finest singers in world. I cannot think of a finer exponent of early music around today than Thomas. Her soprano voice has an exceptional purity, with a silky smooth tone and light creamy fluidity. The voice isn’t heavy but neither is it over-bright and piercing. When listening to The Sixteen I was easily able to distinguish her voice owing to its clarity and carry yet I wouldn’t describe it as being over-distinctive. On the disc Eternal Light Thomas’s performance was a revelation, revealing a glorious voice of elevated quality which wonderfully suited to Renaissance and Baroque music. I believe it to be superior to Emma Kirkby in her prime. Of the sixteen well chosen tracks not one disappoints. In addition there are two ‘killer’ tracks that are so exceptional, containing a special element of spirituality that one rarely encounters. Those ‘killer’ tracks are Eternal Source of Light Divine and When I am laid in earth (Dido's Lament) from Purcell’s opera Dido and Aeneas. Eternal Light is worth obtaining for those two tracks alone. I have played selections from this release at several Recorded Music Societies and Thomas’s performances have drawn considerable attention.(Michael Cookson)