Messiah Interviews 2024

We asked WRM’s Guest Conductor and resident of Dwight, ON, Phil Morehead, some questions about G.F. Handel’s Messiah - 

 

WRM: What is your favourite Aria from Handel’s oratorio. Messiah?
 

PM: “I Know that My Redeemer Liveth”, one of our selected pieces from later in the Oratorio.

 

WRM: What do you enjoy about conducting Messiah?
 

PM: It's basically an opera - It's wonderfully dramatic music. 

The first time I really heard it … the old British way was very stodgy. [Conductor] Colin Davis did it while I was in Boston, and I went to see it. He found the Drama, and the excitement in it. It's like doing an opera, and you should treat it that way - as a story and a drama, not a stodgy oratorio.

 

WRM: Why do people play Handel’s Messiah every year?

PM: It's really equivalent to the Nutcracker - It's become a tradition for Christmas in spite of the fact that its most famous pieces are part of the Easter section. It can speak to everyone.

We spoke to our collaborator, Choirmaster and Huntsville Community Choir Music Director Louis Tusz, and asked him some questions about Handel’s “Messiah”

​

WRM: What is your favourite movement of Messiah? 

LT: My favourite movement of “Messiah” is “O Thou That Tellest Good Tidings”.  The 6/8 metre moves the music along like a folk dance, and the harmony has an ascending motion that feels so “uplifting”.

 

WRM:  What has been your favourite part about conducting and rehearsing the choir for “Messiah? 
 

LT: I’ve really enjoyed the process of getting to know the singers from Parry Sound, and I think all of us have solidly engaged in this big collaborative effort.  And it’s not just about two towns getting together, because singers are also coming from the Sundridge and Burk’s Falls area, and from Bracebridge and Baysville.  While our focus is on the music, we have had a lot of laughs along the way too.

 

WRM: Why do you think “Messiah” is such a yearly tradition?

LT: Handel’s Messiah is one of those rare masterworks that bridges the gap between serious art music and popular music; the Hallelujah Chorus is universally known and you often hear references to it in popular culture.  These days, when the air is filled with popular Christmas classics and also with newer “seasonal” songs of varying levels of quality, I think people begin to crave music like Messiah. a Timeless beauty might be a cliche, but I think it’s appropriate — in a way, “Messiah” connects us to an expression of Christmas hope and joy that has lasted for nearly three hundred years.  The participatory quality of a community performance such as ours makes it even more real for performers and audience alike.

​

We spoke with Tenor vocalist Fabian Arcineagas about performing “Messiah”, and the differences between performing it here in Parry Sound in contrast to his childhood home, Colombia.

 

WRM: What is your favourite Aria?

 

FA: I love all the altos in the world, but when I was a young student, I started as a Baritone, and all of the "But whom may abide" section can be done by the Bass. It was very low for me, but I loved it. For example, the version with Samuel Raimi. I love to hear it performed by a bass more than an Alto! I hope my alto friends don't get mad at me.

 

WRM:Your favourite Aria to sing as a tenor?

 

FA: "Thou shalt break them" (with a rod of Iron, no 43)

 

WRM: What do you love about performing the Messiah?

​

FA: what makes it special? I grew up in Colombia, and there's no tradition of Singing the Messiah. I did it once, in the choir, and it was so beautiful, but it felt like, because it's such a huge work, and all the music is quite difficult. I was amazed when I came to Canada that every choir in every church, it seems, sings the Messiah! I don't have to be so grandiose, or so perfect.

 

It's so good, and it's so special, and there's such a tradition here, I grew to love it in another perspective. I used to feel that it had to be so polished and perfect, but it's not about that - it's about bringing everyone together to bring it alive, and doing their best to make music. Coming together to do it is the beautiful part.

 

WRM: Why Every Year?

 

FA: For the same reason we celebrate Christmas every year! It's a ceremony, tradition to be together, to make something special together. Every year we cook a turkey, every year, we give gifts, and this is a gift we give to ourselves and our community. And it's different every time. It's meaningful.

We asked our Soprano soloist and daughter of Port Carling, ON, Amy Dodington, some questions about G.F. Handel’s Messiah - 

​

Photo credit: Andrea Adler Milavsky

 

WRM:  What is your favourite movement of "Messiah"?

 

AD: "Why do the nations so furiously rage together" is my favourite aria. It has such boiling energy to it. I remember waking up when my Dad would sing it at Cellar Singers concerts when I was a child, sleeping on my Mom. Apparently it was also the wonderful soprano Lois Marshall's favourite vocal warm-up! But I also really love the Pifa (pastoral symphony), because if it is done well it evokes a still, quiet night sky that reminds me of Muskoka/ Parry Sound.

 

WRM:  What do you love about performing "Messiah"?

 

AD: What I love about performing Messiah, is how easily the music draws me to a higher plane. I just have to open a channel and the sound flows through me!

 

WRM: Why do you think Messiah is such a yearly tradition?

 

AD: I think Messiah is such a yearly tradition because no matter how many times you hear it, it always stays interesting. There's a lovely balance of emotions to it, and the music is both energizing and achingly beautiful. And for those of us who are familiar with it, it signals Christmas, but in a much less annoying way than the canned holiday music at the malls.

We asked our hometown favourite mezzo, Celine Cascanette,  some questions about G.F. Handel’s Messiah -

​

WRM: What is your favourite Aria from Messiah?

 

CC: It just has to be "I Know That My Redeemer Liveth." Lucky sopranos!!!!

 

WRM: What is Your favourite Aria to sing as a mezzo?

 

CC: I have worked the most on "But Who May Abide/Refiners Fire" and I find it so exciting and rewarding, so I'd probably say that one. However, "Oh Thou That Tellest" is one I can enjoy a little more as it's a little less of a workout ;) They are both so fun, I cannot choose!

 

WRM: What do you love about performing Messiah?

 

CC: I really love Messiah because the libretto is made up of selections directly and entirely from scripture. As a Christian these texts are extremely important to me in daily life and getting to sing them brings a whole other level of joy!

 

WRM: Why do you think people perform Messiah Every Year?

 

CC: I think about this a lot. I believe the answer of why people return to Messiah each year is different for everyone. Some, like myself, do believe the story and there is a beauty in hearing it sung and presented in such a captivating, musical way. For others it's tradition - They grew up with it and cannot imagine the holiday season without it, like they cannot imagine not having a Christmas tree in their home. Undoubtedly, all can recognize that the work is just excellent! Handel and [librettist] Jennens have put together an exciting and dramatic narrative that is captivating to believers and non-believers alike. 

 

On a technical level it has the perfect amount of challenge for the choir, orchestra, and soloists that it keeps the audience and performers engaged. At the end of the day, it’s the greatness of the work that draws people back.

We spoke to Whispering River Chorus member Vi Detlor and asked some questions about performing Handel’s “Messiah”

​

WRM: What is your favourite piece in "Messiah"?
 

V: My favourite piece in “Messiah” honestly changes the more I listen to it, however it has to be a fight between “O Death, Where’s Thy Sting”, & “O Thou That Tellest Good Tidings To Zion”, both beautiful pieces by the alto soloist and of course the tenor. I love the solo into the beautiful chorus in Zion, while in Where’s Thy Sting has such a great story if you really listen.

 

WRM: What is your favourite piece in "Messiah" to sing? 
 

V: I think I would be such a simpleton if I say the Hallelujah chorus, however I just ... love the absolute rush of singing the long notes that go super high, that is my most favourite aspect of that piece and truly makes it magical for me.

 

WRM: What do you enjoy about singing in a choir like this?
 

V: I’ve been singing since I was a small child, it was something that always connected me to my sister. We would always sing together, and I think what drew me to singing in choirs — aside from Brenda pulling me in after hearing me sing — was an itching urge to hear that connection, the harmony of so many voices together just aside from my own. It’s a sound that will send shivers down your spine, it’s just beautiful, and I am so grateful I am finally able to fulfil a dream of mine, to be a part of something like this.
 

WRM: Why do you think people perform "Messiah" every year? 
 

V: Tradition, it’s a Christmas tradition, people keep coming back because it’s just a part of the routine - like always setting up your Christmas tree every year, no matter how many years you’ve been doing it? You just do it again because it’s tradition, it will put the magic back into the season, connecting people and families, sharing emotions big and small, gaining and giving people senses of peace while hearing to beautiful music, and I believe it’s the same for the people who perform the Messiah every year, especially for me, this is my third year, and I just keep coming back because it brings me joy.