Messiah: The Little Known Story of Handel's Beloved Christmas Oratorio

Messiah is no scholarly version of how Handel's oratorio came to be. Slover writes in such an intimate style that one feels as if one is actually in the concert hall, anticipating the first London performance of the famous composer's mysteriously titled work, ""A New Sacred Oratorio".

Slover presents us at the outset with a number of mysteries. Why the "veiled" title? Why does the librettist, Charles Jennens, look displeased as he waits for the concert to start? Why does the tenor soloist look ill, and the contralto "stricken"? And will the king attend the performance, after snubbing Handel's music for the last four years?

After drawing so vivid a picture for the reader, Slover deftly backtracks to lay the groundwork for revealing the answers to each of these questions. The story that follows is as riveting as it is entertaining. And, in the end, touching, as well. For Handel's Messiah is not only a great work of art (okay, that may be a bit of an…