"Hallelujah" will resonate throughout Orchestra Hall as the Detroit Symphony Orchestra performs "Handel's Magnificent Messiah," the Baroque work that has become synonymous with the holidays and an annual tradition at the DSO. Two afternoon concerts will feature the DSO and the Michigan State University Chorale performing one of the most beloved oratorios of all time.
Leading the troupes is Nicholas Kraemer, a top Baroque conductor and Principal Guest Conductor of the Music of the Baroque in Chicago. Lending their vocals to the performances are renowned soloists: soprano Suzie LeBlanc, countertenor Robin Blaze, tenor Joseph Gaines and bass Matthew Hargreaves. The concerts take place at the Max M. Fisher Music Center at 3 p.m. Saturday, December 8 and Sunday, December 9.
Born in Germany the same year as J.S. Bach (1685), Handel achieved public acclaim for his instrumental music, oratorios and operas. His best-known oratorio work is Messiah, composed in 1741 for the benefit of charities in Dublin. A visit to Ireland in 1740 breathed new life into Handel's sagging career which had been weighed down by a string of opera and oratorio failures. The Messiah was received enthusiastically upon its first performance on April 13, 1742, raising about £400 for the three charities for which the concert was assembled. Its first London performances were troubled by complaints that it was inappropriate to perform a sacred oratorio in a secular concert hall, but the work caught on in the English capital after it was performed as a benefit for London's Foundling Hospital in 1750. It was repeated there at least once a year for the rest of Handel's life.
Making his DSO debut is Nicholas Kraemer who began his career as a harpsichordist. In addition to his duties at the Music of the Baroque, he is Permanent Guest Conductor of the Manchester (England) Camerata. His career started in the 1970s when he began directing from the harpsichord, most notably with English Chamber Orchestra. At that time, he widened his repertoire to include 19th and 20th century music. In 1978, he formed the Raglan Baroque Players of England where he also held the title of Music Director. Kraemer will also make debuts this season with the Chicago and Kristiansand (Norway) symphony orchestras.
Canadian soprano Suzie LeBlanc established her career specializing in music of the Baroque and Classical periods. In addition to numerous North American concert and operatic performances, she also is also the artistic director of the recently founded Montreal Baroque Academy. LeBlanc teaches Baroque singing and performance at the Faculty of Music of the University of Montreal.
English-native Robin Blaze has performed around the world with most of the distinguished conductors in the early music field. He regularly appears with The Academy of Ancient Music, Bach Collegium Japan and The Sixteen. He has made over solo 50 recordings in his career, including the complete Bach series for conductor Masaaki Suzuki for BIS and a series of song recitals with lute player Elizabeth Kenny for Hyperion.
American tenor Joseph Gaines has performed in opera and on the concert stage in the United States and Europe. He is often featured as a soloist with the Washington Bach Consort and several ensembles in his hometown of Houston. Gaines was a member of the 2007 Young American Artists Program of Glimmerglass Opera and won the 2006 McGlone Award as Outstanding Apprentice Artist at Colorado's Central City Opera.
Bass Matthew Hargreaves, a native of England, has won several singing competitions in his career, including the Decca Prize in the 1997 Kathleen Ferrier Award Competition. He has extensive concert and oratorio repertoire and works with all the major British orchestras. He recently performed with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by DSO Music Director Designate Leonard Slatkin.
Led by director Dr. David Rayl, the 55-member Michigan State University Chorale is the institution's premier choral ensemble comprised of top graduate and upper-level undergraduate singers in the College of Music. The ensemble performs a broad spectrum of repertoire and has its own masterworks series with professional orchestras. -- www.detroitsymphony.com
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