Under the masterful baton of John Butt, a cast of stellar soloists and the Hallé Choir combine in this timeless musical representation of the life and death of Christ.
The legend goes that during the London premiere of Handel’s Messiah in 1743, King George II stood up at the opening of the ‘Hallelujah’ chorus, thus obligating the rest of the audience to do the same. Whether he was emotionally moved, needed to stretch his legs (or, in fact, was even in attendance at all), is debated to this day, but the tradition of standing remains. Tonight’s annual performance of the work features a quartet of celebrated international soloists, flanked by the forces of the Hallé Choir.
