On Mon, 3 Dec 2001 leskayc@a... wrote:
>
> However, in rehearsal last week I (goofing off while the tenors took a
> chewing) was reading the preface of the Watkins Shaw edition and noticed on
> one page where it says "words selected from Holy Scripture by Charles
> Jennens." Now I know Handel did not write this in English, but are the
> scripture passages that we sing the same ones that Handel used? Or am I
> totally confused and did he only write this music and someone else put the
> words to it?
>
Charles Jennens was Handel's friend, and it was he who persuaded Handel to
write an oratorio setting a compilation of scripture texts collected and
arranged by Jennens himself. In characteristic fashion, Handel - once he
agreed to take on the project - composed the entire work in 24 hours,
distributed across the 3 weeks from 22 August to 14 September 1741.
So the Jennens libretto was always the original one.
Karen Mercedes
http://www.radix.net/~dalila/index.html
***************************************
Verdi and Wagner delighted the crowds
With their highly original sound.
The pianos they played are still working,
But they're both six feet underground.
- Michael Palin
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