Tafelmusik's MESSIAH! To Return This Holiday Season

Nothing says Christmas like Tafelmusik's Messiah! Performances of Handel's baroque masterpiece take place on December 14, 15 & 16, 7:30 pm at Koerner Hall, TELUS Centre.

Tafelmusik's Messiah has been a cherished Toronto holiday tradition since 1981, conducted by Canada's “Prince of Messiah” (Toronto Star), Ivars Taurins. Another reason to shout “Hallelujah”? After a three-year hiatus, Tafelmusik's popular Sing-Along Messiah—directed by none other than G.F. Handel himself—returns on December 17, 2 pm at Koerner Hall. Tickets for all performances are available at the Koerner Hall box office, rcmusic.com/tickets.

Handel's Messiah surges with emotion, drama, and poignancy. Performed in the style and spirit of the composer's own productions, Tafelmusik's Messiah “radiates brilliance and energy, along with an emotional depth that fully enhances the work's expression” (AllMusic).

An international cast of guest soloists making their Tafelmusik debuts includes Rachel Redmond, soprano, Scottish-born to an Irish mother and Tanzanian father; Cameron Shahbazi, Persian-Canadian countertenor; James Reese, American tenor based in Philadelphia; and Enrico Lagasca, Filipino-American bass-baritone.

“Handel's Messiah offers solace, an oasis away from the stress of our daily lives,” says Taurins. “Messiah's core messages of good will, hope, and humanity resound as eloquently today as they did at its premiere in 1742.”

Sing-Along Messiah December 17 at 2 pm

For the first time since 2019, Handel's stirring choruses get the surround-sound treatment with Sing-Along Messiah . More than 1000 audience members will fill Koerner Hall and raise their voices in this much-loved audience-participation phenomenon led by George Frideric Handel himself—aka Ivars Taurins, in character and meticulously dressed in full baroque attire and powdered wig. 

A live-performance film of Sing-Along Messiah was released commercially on the Tafelmusik Media label in 2012 and has been broadcast on the Bravo!, CTV, and WNED television networks.

Tafelmusik's Messiah has been heard around the world thanks to a live recording of the complete oratorio released on the Tafelmusik Media label in 2012, followed by a Best of Messiah album in 2014.

Handel Messiah
Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra and Chamber Choir with Rachel Redmond, soprano; Cameron Shahbazi, countertenor; James Reese, tenor; Enrico Lagasca, bass-baritone.
Directed by Ivars Taurins
December 14, 15, and 16, 2023 at 7:30pm                          
Koerner Hall, TELUS Centre for Performance and Learning, 273 Bloor Street W.
Tickets start at $50 and are available at rcmusic.com/tickets

Sing-Along Messiah
Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra and Chamber Choir with Rachel Redmond, soprano; Cameron Shahbazi, countertenor; James Reese, tenor; Enrico Lagasca, bass-baritone.
Directed by G.F. Handel
December 17 at 2pm
Koerner Hall, TELUS Centre for Performance and Learning, 273 Bloor Street W.
Tickets are $59, General Admission. Seating is by vocal section
Tickets are available at rcmusic.com/tickets

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