“The Glory of Handel”
“The Glory of Handel”
After attending the classical music concert of Festival City Symphony named ‘Not an Irish Concert’ on 17 March 2013, I realised that classical music is not only worth listening to but worth appreciating with all heart. So, I decided to attend another concert based on same theme. The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra organised another wonderful music concert titled ‘The Glory of Handel’ on March 29, 2013 in Wisconsin in the Milwaukee School of Engineering University ( www.mso.org ). It was yet another great musical experience. Here’s a short summary of how the concert seemed to me:
We reached the venue an hour before the scheduled timing of concert at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts held in Marcus Center Uihlein Hall Milwaukee. And we could take part in the Behind the Notes in Anello Atrium. We were told about some basics of the musical concert in advance by MSO musicians and experts (Website for Marcus Center for Performing Arts).
The concert began at 8pm. The musical performances were very beautiful to hear. For the first time, I got an opportunity to experience Baroque by the renowned British conductor Nicolas McGegan, along with expert musicians like the Russian-American soprano Yulia Van Doren and Canadian countertenor Daniel Taylor playing harmonious music from Handel. I personally
loved the duets sung by the eminent musical geniuses. The very well-composed music and powerful vocalists like Swingle Singers created magic together. There were performances on Corelli Concerto grosso and various compositions from Handel like “Scherzano sul tuo volto” from Rinaldo, “Ti pentirai, crudel” from Tolomeo, “Domero la tua fierezza” from Giulio Cesare and “Io t’abbraccio” from Rodelinda (http://www.marcuscenter.org ). The Stabat Mater of legendary Italian composer Giovanni Battista Pergolesiwas so very well presented that the audience was thrilled. Though each performance was applauded but “Scherzano sul tuo volto” and The Stabat Mater was the best among these. The very interesting musical variations, fine use of musical instruments and an overall feel-good factor of these performances made several from the audience give a standing ovation to the artists. If I need to mention the piece I liked the least, it would be “Ti pentirai, crudel” from Tolomeo. It was very impressive but I could not appreciate it more than the other compositions which had much more appealing and soothing use of musical instruments.
I personally admired the performance of Nicholas McGegan the most. No one in the audience could help being his fan. Such a great flautist and conductor, his musical skills impressed everyone. A master of many skills, McGegan stole the show for me. Similarly Daniel Taylor was also grand as a countertenor.
In conclusion, I admit that although the performances were very nice but still, my experience on 17th March 2013 was still better than this. But it’s not that the “Glory of Handel” was great. There were more performances to watch and hence, it added to the audience’s experience with classical music. I again realised that classical music is worth respecting and learning. Youngsters should stop calling it old and boring. It’s our heritage.
References
Marcus Center for Performing Arts. Retrieved from Web On 5 March 2013. http://www.marcuscenter.org/events/view.php?event=3844
The Glory of Handel. Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra. Retrieved from Web On 5 March 2013.
http://www.mso.org/tickets/detail?perfid=15566
