Jeannette Sorrell - Handel: Messiah, HWV 56 (1996)

A native of San Francisco, American conductor and harpsichordist Jeannette Sorrell began studying piano at age nine, and she also took up the violin. By 16, she had formed her own ensemble, and began studying composition and conducting. She attended Oberlin Conservatory on a scholarship, and studied harpsichord with Lisa Crawford and conducting with Robert Spano. Following graduation, she studied with Gustav Leonhardt in Amsterdam. With funding from the Cleveland Foundation, she founded the Baroque period instruments ensemble Apollo's Fire in 1992 and became its music director. With her group, Sorrell has toured Europe and North America, and expanded the group's repertoire to include British and American folk music. Sorrell has also performed with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Utah Symphony Orchestra, the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, the Seattle Symphony Orchestra, the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra, and the Handel and Haydn Society of Boston, among others. She has recorded for Avie, Koch, Eclectra, and Onda. -- Blair Sanderson