In contrast to his contemporary Bach, Händel was a true citizen of the world, a man of the people. After spending his youth in Halle and Hamburg, he departed for worldly Italy to make a name for himself with some thrilling opera productions. He then settled permanently in England and the rest is history.
The young man was barely 22 years old when he wrote the Italian oratorio "La Resurrezione". It was first performed at Easter, 8 April 1708 in Rome under the direction of none other than Arcangelo Corelli. And although it is not as well known as that other oratorio of his, of which you can nowadays attend almost every week a production, it certainly deserves its place in the concert halls.
Julien Chauvin, French violinist and music director and founder of "Le Concert de la Loge Olympique", also realizes this, an ensemble specialized in performances with authentic instruments. They gave a brilliant performance of "La Resurrezione" last Saturday in the Bijloke. The two-part masterwork describes the events between - and during - Good Friday and Easter Sunday, with the plot narrated in the recitatives, while the character explorations take place in the arias, duets and concluding chorales.
This large-scale work sometimes demands the utmost from the instrumentalists in the fast passages and that begins with the opening overture. The vocal parts are also very virtuosic, fortunately always subservient to the music. You can feel that this was written by a young man who was full of ambition and could channel his energy and already mature creative ability fully into this perfectly crafted two-part work. Händel not only wrote magnificent music for this work, but created five convincing characters, each with their own thoughts and narrative line regarding the resurrection. There is Mary Magdalene (soprano Hasnaa Bennani), Mary of Clopas (mezzo-soprano Eléonore Pancrazi), John the evangelist (tenor Emiliano Gonzalez-Toro), an Angel (soprano Lila Dufy) and Lucifer (baritone Robert Gleadow). Each a top singer, though it must be said that R. Gleadow brought a very charismatic performance, for a moment it seemed we were attending an opera, the role of Lucifer lends itself perfectly to that incidentally. Also very impressive was the turning of his pages, which at times surpassed the coughing of some people in the hall. Furthermore, Atsushi Sakaï made an enormous impression with his energetic and passionate playing on the viola da gamba. But credit where credit is due, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, what a performance by Le Concert de la Loge. One can only wonder whether the small orchestra projected enough volume in the back rows of the nearly sold-out concert hall?
The oratorio could not please everyone either, because halfway through the second part I was forced to give my neighbor a little pinch to wake him up after having to listen to snoring for about ten minutes. Otherwise there was a deserved standing ovation, which almost everyone in the audience found appropriate. The curiosity about those other oratorios and early works by Händel is all the more piqued by performances of this caliber.
Were you unable to attend and yet want to get an impression of this work? Then by all means listen to the video below with the catchy aria "Ecco il sol ch'esce dal Mare", sung by tenor Emiliano Gonzalez-Toro.
(Festival de Saint-Denis 2024)