Handel: Gloria / Dixit Dominus

Featuring

Laurence Cummings
Dame Emma Kirkby
Anders Öhrwall
Hillevi Martinpelto
Anne Sofie von Otter
Royal Academy of Music Baroque Orchestra

Drottningholm Baroque Ensemble
Adolf Fredriks Bachkör
George Frideric Handel

Did you know?

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Composer's Artistic Vision

The newly discovered Gloria is considered an important addition to Handel's output, clearly written as a vehicle for a flashy coloratura soprano.

Performer Biography

Emma Kirkby, the soprano soloist on this recording, has been praised for her "clear, agile voice" and "brilliant musicianship," with over 100 recordings to her name.

Compositional Technique

Handel's Dixit Dominus, composed when he was 22, is described as far from the "balanced" Handel familiar from Messiah, instead presenting "shock after shock" with drastic effects.

Recording & Production

This album features two recordings made 15 years apart: the Gloria was recorded in 2001 in London, and the Dixit Dominus in 1986 in Stockholm.

Compositional Technique

The Gloria is believed to have been composed in Italy around 1707, when Handel was 22 years old, due to its brilliant and sophisticated style.

Critical Reception

The discovery of Handel's Gloria in 2001 at the Royal Academy of Music attracted "feverish media attention," with journalists recognizing the rarity of finding a major unknown work by a great composer.

Composition History

Handel's Gloria in excelsis Deo, featured on this album, was unknown to scholars and musicians for nearly 300 years, having somehow escaped his personal collection.