Messiah
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Côr
Eifionydd and the Messiah
Côr Eifionydd were very busy during January and February, 2001, preparing and rehearsing towards one of their most ambitious projects to date - recording Handel's Messiah accompanied by a chamber orchestra. The CD is released by Sain Records - the first ever recording of the Messiah in Welsh and the first time that Sain has recorded an orchestra! Three recording sessions were held in St. Mary's Church, Caernarfon. During the first two sessions the choir was recorded under the couragous (!) conducting of Pat Jones and the accompaniment of the North Wales Chamber Orchestra whose leader is Edward Davies. In the last session the soloists were recorded - Siân Eirian (soprano), Helen Medi (alto), Ian Rees (tenor) and Aled Edwards (bass). Emyr Rhys and Annette Bryn Parri were the CD's producers, and they were delighted with the quality of the recordings. MESSIAH – George Friederic HandelHandel composed his oratorio in just three weeks during August and September 1741, and the libretto for the oratorio was by Charles Jennens. The work was first performed in Dublin on April 13th, 1742, where it was a great success, but the first performance in London was not so successful - many people objected that a work dealing with such a sacred matter should be performed in a theatre. The libretto differs from most other oratorios in that it does not follow a person's life or story in narrative form. Rather, Jennens skillfully chose and adapted sections from the bibe and the Book of Common Prayer to create a work which invites teh listener to meditate on Various aspects of Christ, the Messiah. The Messiah celebrates the whole of Christ's work, from the Old Testament prophecies, through his life, his suffering, his death and resurrection, to his final return in glory.
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