TWICKENHAM5 CHORAL SOCIETY ISRAEL IN EGYPT Soprano: Mary Bevan Alto: Roderick Morris Tenor: Nathan Vale Brandenburg Baroque Sinfonia conducted by Christopher Herrick All Saints Church, Kingston Saturday 4 July 2015 Would you like to see your company here? . Take advantage of our competitive rates . Advertise with the TCS . Put your products and services before a large and discerning audience Email [email protected] for more details. A Catholic school warmly welcoming girls of all faiths, age 3 – 18 Visits to Prep and Senior Departments on alternate Wednesdays. Please call us on 020 3261 0139 Email: [email protected] www.stcatherineschool.co.uk THE FRAMING COMPANY Bespoke Picture Framing 6 FIFE ROAD KINGSTON KT1 1SZ 020 8549 9424 www.the-framing-company.com FUTURE CONCERTS AND EVENTS Thursday 10 September 2015, St Martin-in-the-Fields, 7pm MOZART: Requiem Brandenburg Sinfonia Sunday 11 October 2015, Landmark Arts Centre, Teddington, 7.30pm A concert as part of the Richmond Festival of Music and Drama, celebrating the borough hosting several matches of the Rugby World Cup 2015 VIVALDI: Gloria MOZART: Requiem Emily Vine, Freya Jacklin, Daniel Joy, Peter Lidbetter Brandenburg Sinfonia Saturday 12 December 2015, All Saints Church, Kingston, 7.30pm ROSSINI: Petite Messe Solennelle MENDELSSOHN: Hymn of Praise (arr Iain Farrington) Sarah Fox, Patricia Orr, Peter Auty, Jamie Hall Iain Farrington, piano and Freddie Brown, organ Saturday 9 April 2016, All Saints Church, Kingston, 7.30pm PIZZETTI: Missa di Requiem DURUFLÉ: Requiem Saturday 9 July 2016, St John’s Smith Square, 7.30pm ELGAR: Dream of Gerontius Miranda Westcott, Peter Auty, David Soar Brandenburg Sinfonia TCS is affiliated to Making Music, which represents and supports amateur performing and promoting societies throughout the UK Twickenham Choral Society is a registered charity, number 284847 The use of photographic video or audio recording equipment during the performance is not permitted without the prior approval of the Twickenham Choral Society. However photos taken before or after the performance are welcome, particularly if emailed afterwards to [email protected] ISRAEL IN EGYPT HWV 54 (1739) a sacred oratorio by George Frideric Handel words attributed to Charles Jennens Soprano: Mary Bevan Alto: Roderick Morris Tenor: Nathan Vale Brandenburg Baroque Soloists conducted by Christopher Herrick Israel in Egypt, George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) By the time Handel settled permanently in London in While most of Handel’s oratorios are loosely based 1712, he was well established as a composer of vocal on Old Testament stories, Israel in Egypt and Messiah music, in particular Italian opera. It was a reputation are the only two that are drawn directly from biblical on which he built, securing his fame and primacy as a text with no paraphrases. Charles Jennens, Handel’s composer over the next two decades in a series of regular collaborator, is generally thought to have more than 20 operas. However, by about 1730, the compiled this libretto. It is taken from the Book of fickle fashion-conscious English public was beginning Exodus and a few passages from Psalms 105 and 106, to tire of opera in Italian; there was new competition telling the story of the Israelites’ slavery in Egypt, of with not enough audience to support two opera Moses as their liberator, the plagues upon the companies, while a ban on opera performances Egyptians, the crossing of the Red Sea, and finally during Lent put Handel under further financial rejoicing. The chorus does not just comment on the pressure. narrative but actively participates in telling the story - it is the only oratorio in which the chorus itself is the But Handel was astute and found a new audience protagonist. by developing another form of dramatic musical entertainment equally suited to his talents: the The oratorio is also unusual in the amount of musical English Oratorio. Starting with Esther in 1732, he is borrowing. Handel, like most composers of the day, credited with creating and establishing the form, was no stranger to recomposing music from earlier portraying the drama of great biblical stories to compositions, whether his own – he reuses his Londoners in a language they could understand. magnificent Funeral Anthem, written the previous Furthermore, oratorios could be produced at less autumn upon the death of Queen Caroline – or expense (no sets or costumes were required), and another composer’s, here including Stradella, Kerl enjoyed by those who had never felt comfortable and Handl. Copyright protection was virtually with the aristocratic entertainment of opera. unknown. However, Handel always indelibly stamped his own personality on the revisions such that they Handel found a second career as an oratorio were unlikely to have been recognized in Handel’s composer, presenting more than 20 to London own day. It’s hard to believe, for example, that the audiences, including Israel in Egypt which was chorus ‘He Gave Them Hailstones’ could have been composed immediately after Saul in October 1738. composed to any other text, yet the source material It was premiered at the King’s Theatre, Haymarket, is a sinfonia and bass aria from Stradella’s Serenata. on April 4, 1739. Handel first presented Israel in Egypt with “several The first performance was not well received; unlike concertos for the organ”, probably taken from Opus other oratorios, Israel in Egypt contains many more 4 published in 1738. These were to provide added choral movements than solo which London value to the oratorio performance as well as give audiences expected. Handel made changes for Handel the opportunity to exhibit his skill as one of subsequent performances, but its popularity had to the great organist-improvisers of the day. He was wait until after Handel’s death and the briefly cathedral organist in Halle before settling in Commemoration of Handel festival that took place at London. Israel in Egypt has no overture, so this Westminster Abbey during 1784 (mistakenly thought evening’s performance will be prefaced by the gently to be the centennial year of the composer’s birth). lyrical Larghetto in F (Opus 4 number 5), which has an Haydn was in the audience and is said to have burst easy elegance, setting the scene for the opening into tears at the conclusion and remarked of Handel, recitative and chorus. “He is the Master of us all!” Indeed, one need only Although English was not Handel’s native language, listen to the fanciful word-painting in Haydn’s the composer’s ability to match the natural accents Creation to hear how deeply he had absorbed ideas of the text with musical rhythms was frequently from Handel’s music. With the flourishing of choral praised by his contemporaries while the plagues of societies and amateur music festivals in the 19th the story seem to have inspired Handel to create century, Israel in Egypt attained the level of some of his most colourful musical word painting. popularity it retains today. The listener can hear the hopping of frogs, the buzzing of flies, the pounding of fiery hail and much more. Handel’s music also expresses more general feelings Scored for soloists, two choruses, and an orchestra as, for example, the descending line in the orchestra consisting of oboes, bassoons, trumpets, trombones, that begins the chorus ‘He sent a thick darkness’ timpani, strings, and organ continuo, Israel in Egypt is contrasting with the lilting melody and a monumental work – among the most significant accompaniment for the pastoral setting of ‘But as for choral tours de force in music. Through Handel’s skill his people’. As Mozart said, “Handel understands of storytelling in music, this oratorio speaks to effect better than any of us.” The choral audiences today as powerfully as it did in Handel’s exclamations of the finale, arguably some of Handel’s own time while the infectious, galloping rhythm of finest music, initiated by a fanfare-like solo soprano ‘the horse and his rider’ will most probably linger in motif, recount the safe passage of the Israelites the listener’s ear well after the oratorio has ended, through the Red Sea, bringing the piece to a recalling the joy evoked by Handel’s final triumphant resplendently grand close – ‘triumph gloriously’ anthem. indeed. Programme note by Adrian Mumford SINFONIA: Larghetto from Handel’s Organ Concerto op. 4, No. 5 in F major PART ONE : EXODUS 1. Recitative (Tenor soloist) He gave their cattle over to the pestilence; Now there arose a new king over Egypt, which blotches and blains broke forth on man and beast. knew not Joseph; (Exodus 11: 9, 10) and he set over Israel taskmasters to afflict them with burdens; 6. Double Chorus and they made them serve with rigour. He spake the word, and there came all manner of (Exodus 1: 8, 11, 13) flies and lice in all their quarters. 2. Double Chorus He spake; and the locusts came without number, And the children of Israel sighed by reason of the and devoured the fruits of the ground. bondage, and their cry came up unto God. (Psalm 105: 31, 34, 35) They oppressed them with burdens, and made 7. Double Chorus them serve with rigour; and their cry came up unto God. He gave them hailstones for rain; fire mingled with the hail ran along upon the ground. (Exodus 2: 23; Exodus. 1: 11,13) (Psalm 105: 32; Exodus 9: 23, 24) 3. Recitative (Tenor soloist) 8. Chorus Then sent He Moses, His servant, and Aaron whom He had chosen; He sent a thick darkness over all the land, these shewed His signs among them, and wonders even darkness which might be felt. in the land of Ham. (Exodus 10: 21) He turned their waters into blood.