THE HANGOVER REPORT – Trinity Church’s briskly conducted, newly truncated MESSIAH continues to be the gold standard

Melissa Attebury conducts Handel’s “Messiah” at Trinity Church (photo by Adrian Dimanlig).

Just like performative versions of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, the New York holiday season also typically has a handful of different versions of Handel’s Messiah on offer for music fans to choose from. Typically my Messiah of choice belongs to Trinity Church’s historic rendition (featuring a libretto by Charles Jennens) — of which, this December, I caught the third and final performance — which distinguishes itself by having members of the choir step forward to also take on the solo roles, resulting in a powerfully communal and inherently humanistic musical experience.

This year, however, there were a few relatively big changes made to the work’s presentation by conductor Melissa Attebury, who was appointed Trinity Church’s music director in December 2023 (last year, the great Jane Glover was already scheduled to lead Trinity’s performances of Messiah). In her first outing leading this beloved holiday tradition, Attebury has made the bold decision to only perform Part I, in addition to the famous “Hallelujah Chorus” from Part II (in a fascinating curatorial move, Parts II and III are now slated to be performed around Easter time, which some would argue is more thematically appropriate programming). Additionally, for the first time in several decades, the choir was off-book, which allowed for new blocking and gave the concert a felt distinctly theatrical feel.

Musically, the Trinity Church’s early instrument orchestra and choir continued to be the gold standard. In another decisive move, Attebury opted to emphasize and embrace a brisk cadence. Although some of the work’s more contemplative segments seemed a bit rushed in the conductor’s breathlessly paced reading and a part of me missed the complete, emotionally expansive experience afforded by a “complete” performance of the piece, the sped up tempos brought out an appealing dance-like quality in Handel’s score that gave it a newfound accessibility, especially for those encountering the work (e.g, families) for the first time.

RECOMMENDED

HANDEL’S MESSIAH
Classical Music
Trinity Church
1 hour, 20 minutes (without an intermission)
Closed

Categories: Music, Other Music

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