Messiah

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Messiah. Oratorio by Handel to lib. selected from scriptures by Charles Jennens. Comp. between 22 Aug. and 14 Sept. 1741, though parts are adaptations from other works by Handel. F.p. Dublin, 13 April 1742; London, 23 March 1743; Boston, Mass., 25 Dec. 1818 (extracts in NY 1770). There is no single definitive version, Handel having altered, rewritten, and added numbers for various perfs. It became the custom in the 19th cent. to perf. Messiah with grossly inflated forces, but in the mid-20th cent. various performing edns. restored the work nearer to its original proportions and reverted to the correct tempo and rhythm for many nos. Mozart composed additional accs. for Messiah for an occasion when no org. was available to provide the figured bass, and these are still frequently used.

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