Charles Jennens, author of the libretto, described it thus: “His Messiah has disappointed me, being set in great hast, tho’ he [Handel] said he would be a year about it, & make it the best of all his compositions.” Time came to show that in spite of Jennens’ grumbles, the composer kept his word. After all, the world’s most famous oratorio hasn’t left concert stages in 280 years!

Worldwide acclaim, the rousing chorus of Hallelujah and the story of Christ the Saviour from the Annunciation, through his life and death on the cross to the Resurrection and the promise of redemption... The tradition of performing the oratorio at Christmas is likely to originate from early 19th-century America. The custom is now maintained by ensembles all over the globe. We will hear George Frideric Handel’s Messiah, composed in 1741 in the interpretation of the ensembles of the Kraków Philharmonic.

George Frideric Handel Messiah HWV 56

Karolina Pawula-Szponder – soprano
Yana Hurtova – alto
Bartłomiej Chorąży – tenor
Paweł Szarpak – bass
Kraków Philharmonic Orchestra and Choir
Piotr Piwko – choirmaster
Alessandro Cadario – conductor