Reviews: Handel's Messiah
Sydney Arts Guide
Sydney Chamber Choir and the Muffat Collective: Handel’s Messiah @ City Recital Hall
Paul Nolan | 18 March 2020
Sydney Chamber Choir drew upon its solid tradition of delivering polyphonic music from the Baroque and much earlier to present such moments with fluid, virtuosic ease. There was a wonderful swoop to such choruses and we once more enjoyed the signature smooth delivery of counterpoint from this choir’s selected voices. This concert was one of the last in Sydney prior to closures of venues and cancellations for health reasons. We were fortunate to have heard it and to be so thoroughly inspired by it.
Sydney Morning Herald
Sydney Chamber Choir: Handel’s Messiah
Peter McCallum | 16 March 2020
Sydney Chamber Choir’s performance of Handel’s Messiah under Artistic Director Sam Allchurch in the City Recital Hall used an elite choir of just 24 singers and and instrumental ensemble, The Muffat Collective, to match – a far cry from the enormous lumbering choirs that became popular soon after Handel’s death. It was particularly welcome to hear the choruses so well balanced and articulated naturally without spikiness, distortion or mannerism.
classikON
Sydney Chamber Choir’s Messiah
Pepe Newton | 20 March 2020
The Recital Hall is renowned for its clean acoustic but it was even more enhanced by conductor Sam Allchurch who managed the blend between the orchestra and voices beautifully throughout the concert. The text was so clear at all times that I didn’t need to open my program once…soloists Amy Moore, Stephanie Dillon, Andrew Goodwin and Andrew O’Connor were almost faultless, and for the most part sang off book with great emotion and narrative style. Matthew Greco, concert master, led a superb ensemble well…masterfully. He added his own ornamentation as lead violinist and was a joy to watch as he physically embodied the shape of the phrasing he wanted. In fact, what made this performance so special was the vigour and enthusiasm with which all of the performers approached the music.
