Handel Messiah

There’s a reason why Tafelmusik returns to Handel’s Messiah each year to celebrate the festive season! Written in just 24 days, this uplifting oratorio surges with emotion, drama, and poignancy. With its message of charity, peace, and goodwill, Messiah reminds us of our common humanity, transcending cultural, geographic, and religious boundaries.

Presented at Koerner Hall in the style and spirit of the composer’s own productions, Tafelmusik’s performances are directed annually by Ivars Taurins, Canada’s “Prince of Messiah” (Toronto Star).

“In the famously wonderful Koerner acoustics, the Tafelmusik forces sounded fabulous, with a sound that’s smooth as silk that rivals the great church acoustics. Ivars Taurins’ conducting is highly nuanced and well judged. Watching his conducting is positively mesmerizing” (Ludwig van Toronto).

Adding sheen to our annual Messiah ritual is a brilliant cast of soloists, including soprano Myriam Leblanc, “perhaps the most beautiful voice to come out of Quebec in the past 10 years” (Samedi et rien d’autre); mezzo-soprano Cecilia Duarte, whose “voice soars and glides with a crystalline beauty” (Opera Wire); tenor Jacob Perry, who “delivers the kind of deeply felt solo that gives audiences goosebumps” (Stir.ca); and bass-baritone Jesse Blumberg, whose “well-rounded low notes … range, authority, and sheer beauty … were nonpareil” (Classical Voice North Carolina).