George Frideric Handel

Alexander's Feast

Miriam Kutrowatz — soprano
Daniel Johannsen — tenor
Damien Gastl — bass
Arnold Schoenberg Chor
Zefiro Baroque Orchestra
Alfredo Bernardini — conductor

Arcana A582 (Outhere Music)

Review by Lukáš M. Vytlačil

The oratorio Alexander's Feast is undoubtedly one of the iconic works of George Frideric Handel (1685‒1759), although it has not received as much attention as some other compositions. It occupies a prominent place at the time [in the early period] when Handel began to devote himself more to oratorio work. He first tried the success of this genre in front of an English audience in 1735, when he performed it on Good Friday at London's Covent Garden Theatre. The combination of biblical drama, old odes and operatic style met with considerable audience interest and showed Handel the way for his further work. To ensure further success, he reached for a proven source text for the Lenten season of 1736. This was the work of the popular poet John Dryden (1631‒1700), an ode in honour of Saint Cecilia, Alexander’s Feast, or The Power of Musick, which was adapted for music by Newburgh Hamilton (1691‒1761).

Dryden’s work was published in London in 1697. In it, the poet combines a presentation of the power of musical art with an example from the past, when Alexander the Great organized a magnificent celebration of his victory over the Persian Empire in the conquered Persepolis. Handel began work on setting Dryden’s verses to music at the beginning of 1736 and created an oratorio in the classical form of music numbers, in which a three-part overture is followed by 33 solo arias, choruses and recitatives. The oratorio premiered on 19^th February of that year at the Covent Garden Theatre, shortly before the composer’s 51^st birthday, and was an extraordinary success. According to the contemporary press, no London theatre had ever been so full for a similar event as this one. The response was also reflected in the interest in the printed score, of which more than a hundred copies were ordered after the premiere. Handel himself also returned to the popular oratorio and performed it in 25 performances between 1736 and 1755. He dramaturgically added other works to it, most often instrumental concertos.

In 2025, a live recording of the Baroque orchestra Zefiro conducted by Alfredo Bernardini was released on the Arcana label (Outhere Music, catalog number A 582), recorded in concert at the Styriarte Festival on June 21^st, 2024. If the first notes already promise an exceptionally high-quality listening experience, then each subsequent individual part confirms this impression. The orchestra is primarily responsible for this, and excellent soloists and choir allow all the finesse and refinement of Handel's music to be heard. The orchestra and Bernardini's orchestra play absolute technical certainty and bravura, along with excellent interplay, intonation, color and plasticity. He has managed to achieve an exceptionally colorful sound here, thanks to which the listener is repeatedly surprised by the richness of affetti and instrumental colors. This also supports the fluidity of the overall perception of the extensive work. The rich, full-bodied sound is due to Bernardini deploying a larger cast of string instruments, with six players (three stands) to each violin part. At least briefly, it is necessary to draw attention to the excellent wind instrument solos, which Handel uses extremely effectively and, thanks to the refined instrumentation, is able to offer a truly rich palette of sound shades.

Bernardini was equally lucky in choosing the soloists. Soprano Miriam Kutrowatz is technically impressive, especially convincing in Handel's demanding coloratura arias and always attentive to Hamilton’s libretto. Bravura technique with great musicianship is characteristic of bassist Damien Gastl. His performance is so lively and suggestive that it emotionally transports the listener to a theatrical environment. The trio of soloists is then complemented by tenor Daniel Johannsen, whose performance is also impressive especially in very demanding coloratura arias. The Arnold Schoenberg Chor also presents a truly excellent performance here. This feels like a genuine ensemble performance, inseparably completing a monumental and lively whole.

Bernardini's Alexander's Feast is therefore definitely a valuable enrichment of the extensive Handel discography, which will interest lovers of both the works of George Frideric Handel and the oratorio works of the Baroque period.

The Czech original of the text was published on polyharmonie.cz.

Links

• Disc on the website of the British retailer Presto Music.
• Alexandrova slavnost. Recenze Lukáše M. Vytlačila.
  (The Czech original of the present review.)
• Lukáš M. Vytlačil on Wikipedia.