Troubles ahead for mr Handel! It seemed that Handel was holding back on announcing his plans to present his big, new oratorio Messiah while in Dublin. This is no doubt because he wanted to make sure that he had the right musicians and singers for the premiere. He could now be sure of the musicians. Matthew Dubourg had gathered the best musicians in the city for Handel. Handel also had the soloists under control. But the choir singers? This turned out to be far more complicated than Handel had probably imagined. And it had nothing to do with the fact that the choir singers, as we have heard in previous episodes, would often get into drunken fights. Enter the great Mr Jonathan Swift.
Music: Dunedin Consort ‘Handel’s Original Dublin Version 1742’