Handel also developed the
oratorio. An oratorio sets to music
a sacred or biblical story. Like
opera, it is split into arias, choruses
and musical interludes, but there
is more emphasis on the chorus. Oratorios
are usually performed in a concert
hall with no scenery or costumes. Handel's most famous
oratorio was The Messiah,
first performed in Dublin, Ireland
in 1741. At the first performance
in England in the presence of George
I, the King was so moved at the opening bars of the great Hallelujah
Chorus
that he spontaneously stood up and the audience
followed his lead. He started a tradition, and
for centuries afterwards, audiences would stand
up at the first bars of the chorus.
Oratorio, rather than opera, was to become the English vocal form. In the 19th century a network of large choirs were established, many, like the
Huddersfield Choral Society, are still in existence. These choirs commissioned music from the greatest composers of the day, including Mendelssohn
and Elgar, and established an important musical tradition in England. They helped produce experienced singers when permanent opera companies were
eventually set up in England in the 20th century.
Introduction
