Handel's Messiah

Every Friday we listen. This term's composer is Handel, and our soundtrack is the Messiah — one selection a week, ears first.

Portrait of George Frideric Handel seated with the score of Messiah, painted by Thomas Hudson in 1756 — *George Frideric Handel* by Thomas Hudson, 1756 — painted in the composer's old age, with the score of *Messiah* on the table beside him. National Portrait Gallery, London (NPG 3970). Public domain.

A term with Handel

Composer study, CM style, is mostly attentive listening — no lecture, just ten minutes on Friday mornings with one selection, then Pan tells back what she heard. Alongside each piece we read a chapter of a Handel storybook, The Boy Who Made Heaven Sing, so the man behind the music becomes a person she knows.

Week	Selection	What we listen for
1	Sinfony (Overture) 1:32	Meeting Handel; just listening, then narrating
2	Ev'ry Valley Shall Be Exalted 7:09	Word painting — the melody climbs on "exalted"
3	For Unto Us a Child Is Born 26:20	Voices toss the melody; raise a hand at each entry
4	Pifa (Pastoral Symphony) 30:05	Listen-and-draw — a picture narration
5	Glory to God 32:35	Far-away trumpets; a near/far listening game
6	All We Like Sheep 1:22:56	Melodies wander like sheep — so we wander too
7	The Trumpet Shall Sound 2:10:29	Trumpet versus bass voice; marching royally
8	Hallelujah Chorus 1:54:51	The whole family stands, like King George II

We keep it unhurried. If a piece needs two weeks instead of one, it gets two weeks — the goal was never to finish the Messiah, but to know it.

Listen along

This is the recording we use — the whole Messiah, sung live at the Sydney Opera House by a 600-voice choir. We never watch it all in one sitting; we find the week's selection, listen to that, and stop while everyone still loves it.

Handel's Messiah, live from the Sydney Opera House — Sydney Philharmonia Choirs, via ABC Classic on YouTube (2 hours 33 minutes).

Free: The Boy Who Made Heaven Sing

A living story of George Frideric Handel in eight little chapters — one to read aloud each week, paired with that week's music. Read the chapter, let your child tell it back, then listen together. Eleven pages, illustrated, with a note for Mama at the end. You’ll also get the weekly letter, and you can unsubscribe anytime.

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