SF Symphony Decks the Hall with a Stirring Messiah
/By Truman C. Wang
12/10/2024
Handel's timeless oratorio came to radiant life on 12/6 Friday evening at the Davies Symphony Hall, where the San Francisco Symphony and Symphony Chorus delivered a revelatory performance of the beloved masterpiece. The hall was decked out with festive wreaths, garlands, giant lit trees and nutcrackers, as well as a hot chocolate cart. Outside, brass players from the Symphony treated passers-by to Christmas carols.
The performance was on a consistently high level. The 3-hour oratorio was pruned down to just over 2 hours with copious cuts in Parts II and III. The Symphony Chorus sang magnificently, shifting seamlessly between animated expressions and tender reflections. It was too bad that some audience members decided to walk out on the "Hallelujah" chorus, presumably on religious grounds, thereby depriving themselves a great spiritual experience. (Many non-religious people such as myself go to churches for the art, music, architecture and spiritual comfort.)
The “hallelujah'“ chorus
The vocal soloists were memorable, bringing distinctive character to their respective parts. Soprano Amanda Forsythe pleased the ear with her crystalline tone and agile coloratura, particularly in "Rejoice Greatly" where her voice soared joyfully. Tenor Aaron Sheehan's lyrical delivery illuminated the more contemplative moments, while baritone Douglas Williams provided robust dramatic weight, especially in "The Trumpet Shall Sound."
More controversial was using a countertenor instead of a traditional contralto. John Holiday was an expressive singer, lending a beautiful tone and a wide emotional range to “O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion” and “He was despised”. The light tone color and the vocal weight, however, were completely wrong for the music. It was Handel’s practice and preference to use a woman when a castrato was not available, and vice versa, as in 1750 when he replaced the contralto part with a castrato. (Mozart changed it to a baritone in his 1789 version.)
The orchestra, conducted by Stephen Stubbs, was uniformly excellent, featuring strong solo turns from the violin and powerful trumpet. Despite the cuts and countertenor, the performance of Messiah continued a long holiday tradition with a modern, unmistakably San Franciscan, twist.
Truman C. Wang is Editor-in-Chief of Classical Voice, whose articles have appeared in the Pasadena Star-News, San Gabriel Valley Tribune, other Southern California publications, as well as the Hawaiian Chinese Daily. He studied Integrative Biology and Music at U.C. Berkeley.