What Makes the “Hallelujah” Chorus Great?
I was the kind of child who read the encyclopedia. Oh, I don't mean that I read it cover to cover. But I would look up one thing, read the article, be distracted by the “See also x---x”, look up x---x, read that article, and so on.
I do the same thing now with the internet, clicking on the hyperlinks and reading article after article. I'm sure I'm not alone in doing this.
I also do it when I read books. One book leads to another. So when I was reading through Celebrate Theory / History 9, preparing to teach the course, and I came across the suggestion to read the description of the “Hallelujah” chorus (from Messiah) in What Makes It Great? short masterpieces, great composers by Robert Kapilow (published in 2011), I immediately checked the Toronto Public Library website and put a copy of the book on hold.
A few years ago I attended one of Rob Kapilow's “What Makes It Great?” concerts with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. I wouldn't normally attend such a concert – I prefer concerts without commentary – but this was the only performance of the Mozart Clarinet Concerto being presented by the TSO, and I really wanted to hear Principal Clarinetist Joaquin Valdepeñas play this concerto. (It was totally worth it! He played so beautifully.) I must admit that it was interesting to hear Mr. Kapilow dissect the concerto phrase by phrase, demonstrating (with the help of Mr. Valdepeñas and the orchestra) how masterfully Mozart constructed this work.
The book gives us more of the same thing, with some background information on the composers and the compositions as well. Three of the compositions discussed in the book are required works for the RCM's History 9; several of the vocal and piano works discussed are pieces that you might prepare for an RCM voice or piano examination.* If you're studying any of these works, it might be worth checking out this book. Here is a list of the compositions discussed:
A. Vivaldi: “Spring”, movement 1, from The Four Seasons (RCM History 9)
J.S. Bach: Invention No. 1 in C Major, BWV 772 (RCM Piano 7, list A)
G.F. Handel: “Hallelujah Chorus” from Messiah (RCM History 9)
F.J. Haydn: String Quartet in G Major, op. 76, no. 1, movement 3
W.A. Mozart: “Dove sono” from The Marriage of Figaro (RCM Voice ARCT list D, soprano)
L. van Beethoven: Piano Sonata in C Major (Waldstein), op. 53, movement 1 (RCM Piano ARCT list B)
Photo by Andrea Zanenga on Unsplash
F. Schubert: Erlkönig, D 328 (RCM History 9 + Voice ARCT list B)
F. Chopin: Mazurka in A Minor, op. 17, no. 4
R. Schumann: “Träumerei” from Kinderszenen, op. 15
F. Liszt: Transcendental Étude in A Minor (RCM Piano ARCT list F)
Felix Mendelssohn: Scherzo from the String Octet in E flat Major, op. 20
R. Wagner: Prelude to Tristan and Isolde
G. Verdi: “De' miei bollenti spiriti” from La traviata (RCM Voice ARCT list D, tenor)
G. Puccini: “Un bel di” from Madama Butterfly
J. Brahms: Intermezzo in A Major, op. 118, no. 2 (RCM Piano ARCT list C)
A. Dvořák: Slavonic Dance, op. 46, no. 8
P.I. Tchaikovsky: “Trepak” from The Nutcracker Suite
C. Debussy: “Des pas sur la neige” from Préludes, Book I (RCM Piano 10 list D)
What makes the “Hallelujah” chorus from Messiah great? You can read Mr. Kapilow's book for more details, but it boils down to a number of things: unforgettable melodic motives (I get persistent ear-worms just thinking about the piece), clever manipulation of these motives, changes in texture (homophony, unison singing and playing, polyphony), word painting (low, soft notes for “the kingdom of this world”, high, loud notes for “the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ”), orchestration (that thrilling trumpet part!), the soaring soprano part (“KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS”), the two beats of complete silence before the final “Hallelujah!” (Radio DJs: if you're playing a recording of this chorus, and you're unfamiliar with the piece, beware. Wait until the chorus is truly over before you speak. Yes, this really happened: my friend Jim once heard a radio announcer blunder into this precious silence.)
As for my habit of one book leading to another: in What Makes It Great? Rob Kapilow refers to a number of other books. One in particular caught my eye: more about that in a future blog!
*Piano Syllabus, 2015 Edition; Voice Syllabus, 2019 Edition