Handel - Coronation Anthems; Blow & Croft
£17.05
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Label: Harmonia Mundi
Cat No: HMM902708
Format: CD
Number of Discs: 1
Genre: Vocal/Choral
Release Date: 28th April 2023
Contents
Works
Chaconne in G majorThe Lord is a Sun and a Shield
Coronation Anthems nos 1-4, HWV258-261
Occasional Oratorio, HWV62
» March
» Overture
Artists
RIAS Kammerchor BerlinAkademie fur Alte Musik Berlin
Conductor
Justin DoyleWorks
Chaconne in G majorThe Lord is a Sun and a Shield
Coronation Anthems nos 1-4, HWV258-261
Occasional Oratorio, HWV62
» March
» Overture
Artists
RIAS Kammerchor BerlinAkademie fur Alte Musik Berlin
Conductor
Justin DoyleAbout
In 1727, having just become a naturalised British subject, Handel was commissioned to write a set of anthems for the coronation of George II.
Since he could hardly have expected ever to see a more majestic occasion, the composer took full advantage of it to put on a musical firework display of unprecedented splendour.
The RIAS Kammerchor and the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin give thrilling accounts of these flamboyant works - some of which are still used today at each new coronation.
Since he could hardly have expected ever to see a more majestic occasion, the composer took full advantage of it to put on a musical firework display of unprecedented splendour.
The RIAS Kammerchor and the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin give thrilling accounts of these flamboyant works - some of which are still used today at each new coronation.
Sound/Video
Paused
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1Handel: An Occasional Oratorio, HWV 62: Overture
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2Handel: An Occasional Oratorio, HWV 62: Allegro
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3Handel: An Occasional Oratorio, HWV 62: Adagio
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4Handel: An Occasional Oratorio, HWV 62: March
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5Croft: The Lord is a sun and shield: 1.The Lord is a sun and shield
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6Croft: The Lord is a sun and shield: 2. Now I know that the Lord saveth his anointed
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7Croft: The Lord is a sun and shield: 3. For the king trusteth in the Lord
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8Croft: The Lord is a sun and shield: 4. His salvation is nigh them that fear him
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9Croft: The Lord is a sun and shield: 5. Blessed be the Lord God of Israel
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10Blow: Chaconne in G major
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11Handel: Zadok the Priest, HWV 258
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12Handel: Let thy hand be strengthened, HWV 259: 1. Let thy hand
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13Handel: Let thy hand be strengthened, HWV 259: 2. Let justice and judgment
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14Handel: Let thy hand be strengthened, HWV 259: 3. Alleluia
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15Handel: The King shall rejoice, HWV 260: 1. The King shall rejoice
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16Handel: The King shall rejoice, HWV 260: 2. Exceeding glad shall he be
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17Handel: The King shall rejoice, HWV 260: 3. Glory and great worship
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18Handel: The King shall rejoice, HWV 260: 4. Alleluia
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19Handel: My heart is inditing, HWV 261: 1. My heart is inditing
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20Handel: My heart is inditing, HWV 261: 2. Kings’ daughters
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21Handel: My heart is inditing, HWV 261: 3. Upon thy right hand
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22Handel: My heart is inditing, HWV 261: 4. Kings shall be thy nursing fathers
Europadisc Review
We have noted before that continental ensembles bring an extra flair to Baroque music more associated with England. And, with the coronation of Charles III just a week away, several companies have been pulling out all the stops to mark the event. They include the Harmonia Mundi and Chateau de Versailles labels, who have simultaneously brought out a pair of hour-long discs recorded towards the end of 2022, and centred on some of the greatest music to have been written for the centuries-old British ceremony: Handel’s four Coronation Anthems, originally composed in 1727 for the coronation of George II.
On Harmonia Mundi, Berlin’s RIAS Kammerchor under Justin Doyle teams up again with their frequent partners, the city’s Akademie für Alte Musik. They preface Handel’s quartet of works with William Croft’s anthem The Lord is a sun and shield, written in 1714 for the coronation of George II’s father (and predecessor as sovereign) George I. While not as opulent as Handel’s works of 23 years later, this anthem is a welcome addition to the catalogue, combining extravagance (trumpets in the outer movements) with textural contrast and musical introspection. It’s followed by the Chaconne in G major for strings and continuo (originally a keyboard work in F major) by Croft’s teacher – and himself a prominent leader figure in both the Chapel Royal and Westminster Abbey – John Blow.
To open, the Akademie für Alte Musik play the four-section Overture from Handel’s Occasional Oratorio, written not for a coronation but as a patriotic morale-booster at a time when the English fightback against the Jacobite Rising of 1745–46 was beginning to turn the tide. It serves as a reminder that, for all its largely symbolic import, the monarchy reflects the anxieties and issues of its own times. The Overture encompasses moments of reflectiveness (a lovely oboe solo in the Adagio) as well as triumphalism, ending with a rousing Handelian March.
The performances of the four Coronation Anthems are similarly both joyous and poised, with a 44-strong choir making plenty of the big moments (the thrilling choral entry in Zadok the Priest) but also sensitive to the more tender moments, for instance in My Heart is Inditing, sung at the anointing and coronation of the King’s consort. Under Justin Doyle’s judiciously-paced direction, these are stylish and engaging performances, and were they to appear as a normal release at any time, they would surely win wide admiration.
Turning to the disc (mischievously entitled ‘The Crown’) from the Choir and Orchestra of Versailles’s Opéra Royal under Gaétan Jarry, however, is to enter a different world. Recorded in the splendid acoustics of the palace’s Chapelle Royal, this boasts a similar sized choir (with the addition of two extra basses), but an orchestra almost twice the size (with double wind and brass, and two sets of timpani). They not only make a glorious sound (the opening of My Heart is Inditing is positively explosive), but bring an added sense of occasion by the inclusion of an opening processional fanfare and further fanfares dotted throughout the programme.
Here, the ‘extras’ are two anthems composed by Henry Purcell for the coronation of James II in April 1685: I was Glad and My Heart is Inditing, the former a processional that must count among Purcell’s finest deployments of a large chorus. The multi-section My Heart is Inditing makes for fascinating comparison with Handel’s setting (with its more truncated text): the sections for solo voices bring welcome contrast, while the sections for full choir have an expansiveness that reflects the French taste prevalent at the Stuart court.
Handel’s Coronation Anthems themselves are wonderfully uplifting in these Versailles performances, with an extra urgency and extravagance compared with their Berlin colleagues. Not everyone will necessarily approve of the ornamentation on the word ‘ever’ in the phrase ‘May the King live for ever’ in Zadok, but there’s no doubting the sense of involvement of all the performers, and the spring in the step of The King Shall Rejoice is positively infectious.
The final shouted acclamations (in honour of Charles III) may feel a tad de trop for non-monarchists, but the inclusion of the chorus ‘Praise the Lord’ from Handel’s oratorio Solomon makes an imposing postscript to the main programme, tying in with the biblical references in Zadok the Priest, and all reinforcing the legitimacy of the Hanoverian dynasty at a time when it was still under threat from Jacobites north of the border.
The final clincher for the CVS release is that – in addition to the visceral performances and expansive acoustics – it comes with a booklet lavishly illustrated in colour with artworks associated with the coronations of both James II and George II. Indeed, the whole programme has the feeling of an occasion: if (instead of a commemorative mug or tea towel) you want something that captures the magnificence of a Baroque coronation ceremony with real sweep and majesty, this will be the disc for you.
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