Toronto Life – December 2018

photographs: classic and singalong by

jeff higgins;

fleck courtesy of ballet creole;

others courtesy of venues

146 toronto life December 2018

15

Messiah Madness

A guide to this month’s Handel heavy-up

———————

the well-rounded

handel

Dec. 17 to 23,

Roy Thomson Hall

George Frideric Handel’s

famous oratorio made

its stage debut in Dublin

in 1742. Now, it’s one

of the most performed

choral works in the

Western world. The

Toronto Symphony

Orchestra offers a robust,

well-paced take on the

seasonal staple, with the

Toronto Mendelssohn

Choir tackling the

richly contrapuntal

choruses and a quartet

of soloists bringing

many plangent arias and

ensembles to life.

———————

the Soulful handel

Dec. 7 to 9,

Fleck Dance Theatre

Ballet Creole performs

to Grammy-winning

record producer Quincy

Jones’s more modern

version of Handel’s

oratorio. The joyful,

dance-along rendition

incorporates tap,

African-Caribbean,

ballet, jazz and

contemporary styles.

———————

the handel

Singalong

Dec. 22, Roy Thomson Hall

Amateur choristers get

their chance to let loose

at this annual mass

sing-along, backed by the

Tafelmusik orchestra.

It has its share of laughs,

thanks to a stand-in

Herr Handel on the

podium (a.k.a. music

director Ivars Taurins

costumed in a white

powdered wig

and 18th-century

glad rags).

———————

the claSSic handel

Dec. 18 to 21,

Koerner Hall

Canada’s pre-eminent

classical orchestra,

Tafelmusik, performs

a rendition of Handel’s

work that’s as close to the

18th-century original as

you’re likely to get. Under

the spirited direction

of choir founder Ivars

Taurins, four soloists,

a small chamber choir

and the orchestra combine

exuberance with pinpoint

intonation to emphasize

the intimacy of Handel’s

work without sacrificing

any of its power.

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