Elizabeth Watts, Mark Le Brocq, James Oldfield, Huddersfield Choral Society, Northern Sinfonia, Jane Glover - Handel: Messiah (2011)

As an authentic period performance of George Frederick Handel's Messiah, this live 2010 recording by the Huddersfield Choral Society and the Northern Sinfonia remains true to both Baroque practices and the chorus' own tradition. The hymn "Christians, Awake!" has been sung regularly since 1849 at Huddersfield performances of the oratorio, so it opens this Signum Classics recording with a clear sense of the society's pride in its past, though it may have a slightly disconcerting effect for unsuspecting listeners. But rest assured, this really is a performance of Messiah, and the interpretation under early music expert Jane Glover is consistent with the norms of scholarly research. Her brisk tempos, lean instrumentation, free embellishments, and flexibility in expression sort well with most historically informed performances. The singing by soprano Elizabeth Watts, alto Catherine Wyn-Rogers, tenor Mark Le Brocq, and bass James Oldfield is well-controlled and not overly dramatic, but appropriate to the uplifting mood of the work, and the chorus is agile and light, particularly in its many passages of running sixteenth notes. This performance deserves consideration as a worthy contender among many other authentic versions, and despite the modest fame of the groups involved, this polished album warrants wide distribution and favorable responses.