Apollo's Fire & Jeannette Sorrell - Handel: Messiah

Apollo's Fire and their founder/director Jeannette Sorrell present a unique dramatic approach to Handel's Messiah: 2 CDs plus a DVD exploring the work as theatrical entertainment.Jeannette Sorrell and Apollo's Fire celebrate the holiday season with a unique release of Handel's Messiah: a 3-disc set including 2 CDs and a DVD, presenting a dramatic approach which explores the work as the theatrical entertainment which Handel intended � an oratorio being a dramatic work, and Handel's bold declaration that Messiah was A Sacred Oratorio. While the theatrical/spiritual duality caused criticism in Handel's lifetime, Sorrell believes it is one of the key reasons the work continues to speak so directly to modern audiences. The DVD includes footage from rehearsals, concerts and recording sessions, interviews with soloists, principal players and Sorrell. Personnel: Apollo's Fire, Jeannette Sorrell (conductor)Critical acclaim for Apollo's Fire and Jeannette Sorrell: The Messiah we've been waiting for - Pittsburgh Post GazetteThe ensemble exudes stylish energy � a blend of scholarship and visceral intensity. - Gramophone Sorrell and her fine young choir lavish attention on every phrase and inflection. The exhilaration and sense of discovery is utterly infectious. - International Record Review