We’re well into January and it’s only now that we’re recovering from our incredibly successful Christmas season. You’ve heard about Brian Stokes Mitchell and the NJSO; you’ve heard about our special Christmas performances of Haydn and Resphigi; and now it’s time to review our 2011 Messiah performances.
And what performances they were.
This was my first year singing Handel’s Messiah, my first Christmas with Masterwork, and my first time singing in Carnegie Hall. I keep telling everyone it was the best Christmas I’ve ever had, and for good reason.
We did two Messiahs this season – one at Drew University and one at Carnegie. The Drew University Dorothy Young Auditorium is small, very intimate and incredibly cold. Yes that’s right – for some reason, the hall could not get the temperature right. Sitting on stage I could see most people in the audience dressed like they were watching the Ice Capades rather than the Masterwork Chorus:
Now personally, I was fine. It must have been the ridiculous amounts of adrenaline coursing through my veins that was keeping me warm, but the poor altos on either side of me were shivering. The musicians were cold, too, and our first trumpet player felt the bite especially. Not the ideal environment for making music. Still a very special evening though.
However – Mr Carnegie QUITE made up for this on the 23rd. The gods (and goddesses) blessed us with a near-perfect mix of good weather, no transit strikes and a great date which made for a great concert day. December 23rd happened to fall on a Friday, which seemed to be ideal for audiences who were in town (the biggest town, NYC) for the holidays and wanted something special before Christmas weekend. We almost sold out the house (2800 seats!). A full house gives great energy, and when we took our places on stage the good vibes hit us in waves.
It was a truly special feeling, walking onto that stage:
And what an auditorium:
And what an audience. They were attentive, enthusiastic, and almost no one left after the “Hallelujah Chorus”! (For the uninitiated, it’s a common practice for people to leave after the second part out of three which ends with Handel’s most famous piece, because Messiah is all of three hours long).
The orchestra absolutely rocked the house. We are so lucky to be able to sing with such world class (literally) musicians. Andrew couldn’t stop singing the praises of our incredibly talented concertmistress Nancy Wilson. As one chorus member said, the principal cellist Allen Whear truly looked enraptured by the soloists – as if it were the first time he were hearing the music. I personally noticed Mark Zaki, violinist, playing with such generosity and patience. It seems an odd thing to say of a musician – patience – but his face really communicated a sense of calm paired with experience that I’ve never seen before. What a pleasure to see two women playing the double bass, something I’ve never seen before. Deb Spohnheimer and Motomi Igarishi really thrilled me with their bow work.
Finally, and certainly not the least of them, is Terry Szor. His “The Trumpet Shall Sound” sent chills up, down and through me – and I wasn’t the only one. A lot of chorus members told me over and over, “If you think he was good tonight, you should have HEARD him in *insert year of choice here*.” They speak of him like a god: his playing is truly incendiary. No words can really describe what he did that night. Thank you Terry.
During the “Hallelujah Chorus”, the audience typically stands. This was the moment that brought me to tears, because I couldn’t help but focus on one elderly woman all the way to my right. She has been paying rapt attention throughout the performance. When we began the HC she couldn’t stand – but she looked absolutely thrilled. When we were finished, she applauded – and it took great effort for her to do so. She was determined, though, to show her appreciation. But I wished at that moment she could feel my appreciation for her very obvious pleasure with what we were doing on stage. This is why we do what we do.








