A little over two years ago, the Handel Festival Halle featured an Italian version of Messiah – Il Messia – which I found weird, but beautiful, given that, while stunningly performed, it was heavily abridged from the original, and the language changes made for some strange effects. For example, “He was despised” became “Tormento atroce”. This oddity was the work of an expatriate Englishman in Florence, the third Earl Cowper, who lived there from 1759 until his death 30 years later. In 1768 he produced an Italian version of the English ode Alexander’s Feast – Il convito d’Alessandro.
Handel’s work concerns a dinner party for Alexander the Great featuring a musical offering by the bard Timotheus which raises the eponymous host to great emotional outbursts. Said bard however is historically finally gazumped by the arrival of Cecilia, Christian and patron saint of music. The libretto was the work of Irish writer Newburgh Hamilton after poet John Dryden. Cowper’s adaptation hews much closer to the original than his Il Messia, maintaining the same musical items and orchestration, and pretty much the same libretto in Italian translation. While not quite as unsettling as Il Messia, there is no doubt the Italian language lends a different sensibility. The major structural difference was in allowing the major pause to fall before “The prince unable to conceal his pain [Il prence acceso]” rather than after the repeat of “The many rend the skies [Il ciel risuona allor]”, which was omitted, as were the now infrequently included concerti which accompanied the original London performances.
This premiere modern revival was performed by the historically informed Händelfestspielorchester Halle – recognised this year for their ongoing contribution by the annual Halle Handel Festival Prize – under the direction of Baroque maestro Attilio Cremonesi. They played spendidly throughout, beginning with a rich and stately Maestoso leading into a crisp Allegro, filling the Dom with glorious sound while providing excellent and unobtrusive support for the singers. The brass deserve special mention, with unusually accurate natural horns in “Bachus ever fair and young [Bacco bello in fresca età]”, similarly the trumpets, especially the solo in “Revenge Timotheus cries [Vendetta, vendetta, esclama Timoteo]”.
The choruses were sung by the MDR Rundfunkchor with equal discipline and precision. While sounding appropriately hushed introducing “The list’ning crowd [L’immensa folla]”, they were capable of ringing out in rousing triumph in “Il ciel risuona allor” (and it was a pity to lose the repeat).
The soloists comprised an attractive trio of promising young singers. Soprano Silvia Porcellini belied her diminutive stature with a sweet and penetrating voice, displaying nice coloratura flexibility, if her intonation slipped a little at first. She deployed a light vibrato for decorative purposes, and negotiated well the transition from “Softly sweet” to “War, he sung”, coming back after the brief pause for “The prince, unable to conceal his pain” with nice feeling and some well placed high notes. The tenor part was taken by Luigi Morassi with firm rather baritonal tone and good flexibility, if he didn’t quite have the measure of the dynamics required. Guido Dazzini delivered the two bass arias with vocal panache and resonant tone.
