It may not have started as a Christmastime tradition, but a performance of Handel’s “Messiah” has become a mainstay of the holiday season in communities across the nation.
“I’ve heard a lot of people say ‘it’s not Christmas if I don’t hear “Messiah” at least once,’” said Bing Vick, artistic director and conductor of the Greenville Chorale.
“The tradition is important to a lot of people.”
The 140-voice Greenville Chorale performs “Messiah” at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 14 in McAlister Auditorium on the Furman University campus.
Vick will conduct the chorale and a chamber orchestra in Part I of Handel’s oratorio which centers on the birth of Christ and prophecies of the Old Testament.
The performance also includes other numbers from the choral work, including the “Hallelujah” chorus, perhaps the most famous single choral piece in the classical repertoire.
The concert represents the 10th time the chorale has performed the work since 1988, bringing it back every few years by popular demand since that time.
‘Dramatic musical expression’
“As many times as I’ve conducted it, every time we work on it I find something new and exciting,” Vick said.
“The work has lasted since 1742 for some very good reasons,” he added. “It’s a dramatic musical expression of the Christian faith with some incredible solo arias.”
Vick pointed out that Handel wrote “Messiah” in 1742 for performance in spring during Lent. It took more than 75 years for the work to make its way to the United States, with the Boston-based Handel and Haydn Society giving the premier in 1818. The work has been associated with Christmas since that time.
Apart from the chorale, Vick has conducted “Messiah” more than a dozen other times with Furman University choruses and with church groups.
Vick is completing his final full season as the chorale’s conductor. His final concert will take place in September 2025, marking his 45th year leading the ensemble. A search for Vick’s successor is nearing its conclusion.
Want to go?
What: Greenville Chorale performs Handel’s “Messiah”
When: Dec. 14, 7:30 p.m.
Where: McAlister Auditorium at Furman University
Tickets: $50 adults; $20 students; $10 children under 12
Info: greenvillechorale.org
