In 1741, in just 24 days, the German-born, British-naturalized composer George Frideric Handel wrote an oratorio rich in tuneful arias and choruses of robust grandeur. Coolly received in London at first, after Handel's death Messiah enjoyed an extraordinary surge in popularity: it was performed at festivals across England; other composers rushed to rearrange it; it would be commercially recorded on more than 100 occasions. Jonathan Keates tells the story of the composition and musical afterlife of Handel's masterpiece: he considers the first performances and its place in Handel's output; he looks at the oratorio itself and its relationship with spirituality in the age of the Enlightenment; and he examines why Messiah became such an essential element in the national culture of Britain. Illustrated with beautiful images, including the original score of the work, Messiah is a richly informative and affectionate celebration of a high-point of Britain's Georgian golden age.

The story of the composition, first performances and cultural afterlife of one of the best-loved and most widely performed works in the entire history of music.

About the Author
Jonathan Keates is a distinguished and prize-winning biographer, novelist and travel writer, and author of lives of the composers Handel (1985) and Purcell (1995). He is chairman of the Venice in Peril fund.

Reviews
Admirably concise and evocative * The Times *
This delightful book [...] contains a lot to muse over... the author clearly knows what he is talking about, and illuminates what we thought we knew' * Book of the Week, Guardian *
However you like to hear your Messiah, you should enjoy it all the more for reading Keates's lucid guide... his analysis is taut and his narrative skilfully concise' * The Times *



Book Information
ISBN 9781784974008
Author Jonathan Keates
Format Hardback
Page Count 224
Imprint Head of Zeus
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing PLC