Baroque Masters: Purcell & Handel with Juilliard415 - Richard Egarr & John Scott, conductors

Thursday, January 30, 2014
Charles, King and Martyr

Charles, King and Martyr

O Lord we offer unto thee all praise and thanks for the glory of Thy grace that shined forth in Thine anointed servant Charles; and we beseech Thee to give us all grace that by a careful studious imitation of this Thy blessed Saint and Martyr, that we may be made worthy to receive benefit by his prayers, which he, in communion with the Church Catholic, offers up unto Thee for that part of it here Militant, through thy Son, our Blessed Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

7:30 p.m. - 9:15 p.m.

Prime ($75) and Preferred ($55) seats are assigned in the center and on the front sides. Standard( $40) & student/senior tickets ($30) are open seating (first come first served) at the back, and sides. Tickets are no longer available online, but will be available at the door for cash or check made out to Saint Thomas Church. Doors open at 6:30 pm

H. Purcell
Hail! Bright Cecilia, Z. 328

G. F. Handel
Coronation Anthems: Zadok the Priest, HWV 258 & The King Shall Rejoice, HWV 260
Water Music

Noted early music specialist, Richard Egarr, Music Director of the Academy of Ancient Music, Cambridge, England, joins us as guest conductor in this collaboration with Juilliard’s period instrument ensemble.

The program’s first half features Henry Purcell’s Hail! Bright Cecilia. Also known as Ode to St. Cecilia, Hail! Bright Cecilia is a work that not only influenced Handel, but also marks the beginning of the secular choral tradition in England. Composed in 1692 in honor of the feast day of St. Cecilia, patron saint of musicians, it sets a poem by the Reverend Nicholas Brady in praise of Cecilia, music, and the instruments of music. The last of the work’s thirteen movements triumphantly asserts that music is essential to heaven and eternal happiness.

The second half of the program presents two of Handel’s four Coronation Anthems and excerpts from Handel’s Water Music. The first anthem, Zadok the Priest, derives its text from the biblical account of the anointing of Solomon by Zadok and Nathan, 1 Kings (1:38-40). This text has been used in every English coronation since that of King Edgar at Bath Abbey in 973, and Handel’s setting has been used at every coronation since its composition in 1727.Composed in the same year, The King Shall Rejoice takes its text from Psalm 21 (verses 1-3, 5).The final exuberant movement is played at the precise moment the king is crowned, ending in a closing ‚ÄúAlleluia!‚Äú

post_id: 82605
program_type:
program_order:
admin_tags: programmatically-updated, slug-updated, t4m-updated, uid-updated

Event Personnel for post_id: 82605
run_updates:
0 personnel row(s)