A nice idea, to schedule two concerts involving Handel’s 1739 oratorio Israel in Egypt on the one day. Along with Messiah, this is one of his few works to maintain popularity through the nearly 300 years since its composition. Unfortunately the quality of the two concerts was uneven, to put it mildly.
In the first concert (in the Ulrichskirche), “Israel in Egypt: die Originale” we were offered two works presumed to have inspired Handel in his composition – or, which he ripped off! – a Magnificat by Dionigi Erba, about whom little is known (he died in 1730) and Alessandro Stradella’s 17th-century serenata Qual prodigio é ch’io miri, followed by his own preceding anthem The ways of Zion do mourn, the funeral music for Queen Caroline (1737). A somewhat modified version of the last originally formed Part 1 of a tripartite Israel in Egypt, but after a less than rapturous reception on its premiere, it was ditched in favour of a two part version through the subsequent 18th and 19th centuries. Only since the latter part of the 20th have we become accustomed to the full three part version.
There is certainly no denying the similarities between parts of the Erba and Stradella works and Handel’s oratorio. This concert, however, was more than a mere musicological exercise, but an excellent performance in its own right. Particularly impressive was the choir, the Stadtsingechor zu Halle, whose origins appear to go back to the 12th century(!), or at least to the 16th under this name. It is a boys’ choir, ages c.11 to 19, under the direction of Clemens Flämig, who also conducted. Their discipline, vocally and physically, was impressive, as also was their English diction; almost every word was comprehensible.
The accompanying ensemble, Capella Jenensis, was equally excellent and the overall performance was very well paced. There was notably nice work from the oboes (Eduard Wesly, Noelia Meliàn), bassoon (Nora Hansen) and theorbo (Petra Burmann) but the whole group was first class.
The soloists also shone. Soprano Vanessa Waldhart was barely recognisable from the blonde bewigged Poppea she is currently singing in the festival’s Agrippina. Singing with clean straight tone, with vibrato for colouring, she also displayed smooth legato, especially in the Stradella solo. She blended well with the other soprano, Johanna Ihrig, who has a rather fuller voice. Ihrig also appeared to advantage in the Anthem for Queen Caroline. David Erler provided the alto voice, with nice tone and relaxed production. Tenor Sören Richter had less to do, but blended well with the others. Lisandro Abadie brought the right sort of resonant authoritative sound to the bass parts.
The evening performance of the full three part version of Israel in Egypt was disappointing. While the venue, the Marktkirche, is known for its underwhelming acoustics, this does not entirely account for the very muddy sound almost throughout. The concert featured Le Concert Spirituel under the direction of Hervé Niquet. The main problems were the lack of clarity of the choir and the almost unvarying tempi throughout. In Part 2, the celebrated onomatopoeic effects of “Their land brought forth frogs” and “there came all manner of flies”, was hard to discern. Where was the hopping? Where was the buzzing? Quite lost in the rush. At least the storm made itself somewhat heard with hailstones for rain, thanks to the brass and timpani.
I heard the MDR-Rundfunkchor earlier in the festival in the excellent Il convito d’Alessandro, where their diction was impeccable. In that instance, the language was Italian, but they have sung performances in English with greater clarity than here. Only occasionally did the full weight of the text make itself heard, as for instance in “Their bodies are buried in peace”.
The soloists provided some respite from the overall sludge. Marie-Andrée Bouchard-Lesieur sang with bronze-toned conviction, well matched with tenor Guy Cutting in “Thou in thy mercy”, and he had good line and attack in “The enemy said”. Splendid bass Andreas Wolf was perhaps a bit wasted in his small part, but combined well with Matthieu Walendzik in “The Lord is a man of war”. The two sopranos, Magali Simard-Galdès and Laurence Pouderoux, blended well in “The Lord is my strength”, and their unison rendition introducing the final piece, “Sing ye to the Lord”, was a lovely highlight.
