Handel: Messiah (Concert Review - The Philadelphia Inquirer, 2005)

Strong 'Messiah' conductor carries the night

The season for Messiah envy – the ever-green variety – is upon us.

Those who don't tire of this most original of G.F. Handel's oratorios look longingly at other cities, where more thought and care appear to be put into the piece's annual, holiday-time performances. The Philadelphia Orchestra's lineup contained only a single "name" - countertenor Michael Chance - while the New York Philharmonic's Dec. 14-17 performances are led by choral music recording czar Richard Hickox with appetizing soloists Christine Brandes and Sara Mingardo and the Westminster Choir.

Still, the most fussy Handelians probably didn't feel at all deprived while exiting Sunday's Philadelphia Orchestra Messiah at the Kimmel Center (repeated tonight). The key feature was British conductor Stephen Layton in his Philadelphia Orchestra debut. Though the soloist lineup was seriously uneven, Layton is a conductor who carries the weak links, even if rehearsal circumstances don't allow him to give the conceptually coherent interpretation of which he's capable.

Although some passages fell back on received wisdom bordering on routine, many choruses were phrased with great distinction, often with a rhythmic regimentation used in ways that didn't constrict the music's meaning and revealed layers of architecture left hazy in most other performances. Applied to "Behold the Lamb of God," that approach was almost shocking for the lack of a flowing, lyrical line that's so suited to the music's tragic air.

However, Layton's deliberate rhythmic regularity suggested the weighted-down gait of Christ carrying the cross. Who, really, can argue with that? Cunningly, Layton also elided several of the choruses and arias to build increasing tension released by the famous "Hallelujah" chorus. The effect was particularly ecstatic.

Few conductors have drawn such variety of expression from the Philadelphia Singers Chorale, which tends to deliver a less-than-differentiated wall of rich sound that's not appropriate for Handel.

Among soloists, tenor Robert Breault had a communicative manner, but a weak lower range. Christopher Schaldenbrand's baritone seems to have outgrown Handel. Though Chance is past his vocal peak (which is documented in Bach recordings with John Eliot Gardiner from the 1980s), his voice remains a good vehicle for more important virtues, such as an understanding of the music that can only be cultivated over many years. That was particularly evident amid the storytelling undercurrent he brought to the text repetitions of "He was despised," a key aria.

The discovery was Mary Wilson, a fine lyric soprano with focused, lustrous tone and sterling enunciation. Oddly, vocal ornamentation (which is in vogue) was at a minimum. But with so many strengths, plus the Philadelphia Orchestra playing with control and commitment, I didn't miss them.

David Patrick Stearns