ORCHESTRA - BANDHaendel, Georg Friedrich
"But Thanks be to God" for Winds & Strings
Haendel, Georg Friedrich - "But Thanks be to God" for Winds & Strings
HWV 56 Nos. 50 & 51
Winds & String Orchestra
ViewPDF : "But Thanks be to God" (HWV 56 Nos. 50-51) for Winds & Strings (21 pages - 379.28 Ko)1,071x
ViewPDF : Bassoon (76.76 Ko)
ViewPDF : Cello (88.21 Ko)
ViewPDF : Viola (84.66 Ko)
ViewPDF : Violin 1 (85.95 Ko)
ViewPDF : Violin 2 (86.03 Ko)
ViewPDF : Bb Clarinet (76.75 Ko)
ViewPDF : Flute (79.11 Ko)
ViewPDF : French Horn (81.57 Ko)
ViewPDF : Oboe (81.81 Ko)
ViewPDF : Full Score (206.92 Ko)
MP3 : principal audio (206.92 Ko)241x 1,994x
But Thanks be to God for Winds & Strings
MP3 (3.27 Mo) : (by Magatagan, Mike)33x 67x
MP3
Vidéo :
Composer :
Georg Friedrich Haendel
Haendel, Georg Friedrich (1685 - 1759)
Instrumentation :

Winds & String Orchestra

  49 other versions
Style :

Baroque

Arranger :
MAGATAGAN, MICHAEL (1960 - )
Publisher :MAGATAGAN, MICHAEL
Date :1741
Copyright :Public Domain
Added by magataganm, 01 Feb 2015

Handel's reputation in England, where he had lived since 1712, had been established through his compositions of Italian opera. He turned to English oratorio in the 1730s in response to changes in public taste; Messiah was his sixth work in this genre. Although its structure resembles that of opera, it is not in dramatic form; there are no impersonations of characters and no direct speech. Instead, Jennens's text is an extended reflection on Jesus Christ as Messiah. The text begins in Part I with prophecies by Isaiah and others, and moves to the annunciation to the shepherds, the only "scene" taken from the Gospels. In Part II, Handel concentrates on the Passion and ends with the "Hallelujah" chorus. In Part III he covers the resurrection of the dead and Christ's glorification in heaven.

Handel wrote Messiah for modest vocal and instrumental forces, with optional settings for many of the individual numbers. In the years after his death, the work was adapted for performance on a much larger scale, with giant orchestras and choirs. In other efforts to update it, its orchestration was revised and amplified by (among others) Mozart. In the late 20th and early 21st centuries the trend has been towards reproducing a greater fidelity to Handel's original intentions, although "big Messiah" productions continue to be mounted. A near-complete version was issued on 78 rpm discs in 1928; since then the work has been recorded many times.

From the gentle falling melody assigned to the opening words ("Comfort ye") to the sheer ebullience of the "Hallelujah" chorus and the ornate celebratory counterpoint that supports the closing "Amen", hardly a line of text goes by that Handel does not amplify".

"O death, where is thy sting?" is sung as a duet in E flat major of alto and tenor on a walking bass of the continuo, without strings.
The movement is based on the duet for soprano and alto "Se tu non lasci amore" (HWV 193, 1722). Such a movement would remind the London listeners of love duets concluding operas, such as the final scene of "Giulio Cesare." The chorus answers in the same key and tempo "But thanks be to God".

Although originally written for Vocal soloists (2 sopranos, alto, tenor, bass), Chorus, Orchestra and Harpsichord, I created this arrangement for Winds (Flute, Oboe, Bb Clarinet, French Horn & Bassoon) & Strings (2 Violins, Viola & Cello).
Sheet central :Messiah (191 sheet music)
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