HANDEL'S MESSIAH: A Touchstone of Taste

In considerable documentary detail, this is a biography of Handel's masterpiece, from the time of its composition, first presentation, down through the centuries as it met mixed reactions. How Handel, an opportunist, having lost favor in a world of fickle fashion, turned from opera to the concert cratonic, not as a saint in the service of God, but in an attempt to regain popularity. The librettos and librettists employed; his hasty, headlong methods of composition; and finally the writing of The Messiah which- if not sacred- was eminently human music ""suffused with the vigor of an impulsive nature"". The first public indifference, the later swing to idolatry particularly after Handel's death during the commemorative performances; the opinions The Messiah inspired throughout the years; its various presentations on the continent, in the United States.