Conductor: Richard Laing
Soprano: Katie Tretheway
Mezzo-Soprano: Cathy Bell
Tenor: Julian Forbes
Bass: James Oldfield
Bach Camerata
At the start of Advent, as we journey towards Christmas, the birthday of Jesus Christ, a performance of Handel’s Messiah is a timely reminder of the life of The Saviour; from Old Testament Prophesy through birth, miracles, death, resurrection and future return.
The Leicester Bach choir were joined by the Bach Camerata and four vocal soloists in a performance which had a tight but lively feel to it right from the opening bars of the Overture.
Tenor soloist, Julian Forbes gave a clear and subtle performance beginning with the aria “Comfort Ye My People”. The same could be said of the other soloists’ performances, never overdone, but always clear and utterly musical.
Bass soloist James Oldfield grew up in Leicester and sang with the Leicester Cathedral Choir, so it was good to have him back in Leicester for this performance. His rich tones particularly conveyed well the dark mood of “The People That Walked in Darkness”.
I thought the chorus sounded perhaps at their very finest in “For Unto Us a Child is Born”; really tight singing in a performance which really conveyed the joy of the birth of the Saviour of the world. Similarly “His Yoke is Easy” was vivacious and full of joy, with the sound of the chorus really filling the building with authority.
Soprano Katie Trethewey’s performance in the movements immediately preceding the Chorus’ “Glory to God” seemed almost effortless, the notes beautifully floating above the sound of the orchestra…
Moving into the Part II of the work, I was particularly captivated by mezzo-soprano Cathy Bell as her performance conveyed the sorrow and hurt of “He Was Despised”, perfectly, both in tone of voice and facial expression.
Having commented earlier on the quality of the chorus, it is worth noting that as the concert progressed they seemed to excel themselves, “All We Like Sheep” and “He Trusted in God” seeming to have incredible energy.
One of the highlights of Part II was the aria “Why do the Nations” in which James Oldfield captured the frustration and anger in an emphatic rendition.
Probably the best known chorus of Messiah and possibly the most popularly acclaimed piece written by Handel, the “Hallelujah” simply rang with joy and effervesced in a rendition which surely equalled many of the finest performances.
Part III was notable for the wonderfully bright trumpet solo in “The Trumpet Shall Sound”, which contrasted beautifully with the bass solo. Also for the only duet in the work, mezzo–soprano and tenor balancing each other well in “O Death, Where is Thy Sting?”.
Messiah concludes with the Chorus “Worthy is the Lamb; Amen”; and a more fitting performance I cannot imagine. The movement began with an engaging wall of sound, heralding bright, lively singing, the like of which had very much characterised this performance.
Conductor Richard Laing had worked hard to get the emphasis that he wanted from the ensemble and chorus, both responded to produce a performance full of light and shade and with a wonderful lyrical feel to it – the music really came off the page to produce an engaging performance.
The Camerata received no write up in the programme, so I suspect were an ad-hoc group of talented musicians; all the more praise-worthy as they seemed not to put a foot wrong, providing a cohesive, solid, sensitive accompaniment which perfectly balanced soloists and chorus alike!
I found the performance nicely “choreographed”, with standing/sitting of the choir and entry/exit of soloists nicely timed to cause as little distraction from the performance as possible.
The combination of the Leicester Bach Choir and Richard Laing once again proved themselves to be a formidable force in the musical life of Leicester, bringing together their own excellent performance with that of a superb sounding ensemble and professional soloists to produce a performance of a high standard which had a real shine to it.
Peter Collett