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Micheal F. Anders, Ph.D.,
who is celebrating his 25th
year at UF, will conduct
the performance.
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In celebration of The University of Findlay’s 125th anniversary, The University of Findlay Concert-Chorale and Findlay-Area Community Chorus will present a complete performance of George Frideric Handel’s “Messiah” at 2 p.m. Sunday, April 15, in Heminger Auditorium, located in Findlay High School, 1200 Broad Ave.
Admission is free, but tickets are required. Tickets are available at the UF Box Office at 419-434-5335, and tickets will be available at the door.
Approximately 100 singers will perform with a 50-piece orchestra and eight professional soloists, all conducted by Micheal F. Anders, Ph.D., professor of music and director of choral activities at UF. In 2007, Anders celebrates his 25th anniversary at the University.
Soloists include:
This performance is the Midwest premiere of Sir Eugene Goossen’s 1959
arrangement of “Messiah” that is scored for a full “modern orchestra”
with strings, woodwinds, brass, harp and percussion. UF is only the
second organization in the U.S. to perform Goossen’s arrangement.
On April 13, 1742, “Messiah” was premiered in Dublin, Ireland. Since then, there has never been a year in which “Messiah” has not been performed somewhere.
Community “Messiah” performances in Findlay date back to around 1930 and were regular features of the Christmas season from the early 1940s until 1967. These performances centered around the Christmas sections of the score and were not complete performances. The first complete performance of “Messiah” in Findlay took place in May 1996 and was given by the UF Concert-Chorale at First Presbyterian Church.
Although today “Messiah” is often associated with Christmas, Handel originally intended it to be performed in the spring, around Easter. Also, in its original form, “Messiah” was performed by a very small orchestra with a male chorus. It was not until the Victorian Era of the 1800s that large-scale performances, such as this one, became popular.
