Few works are as closely associated with Christmas as Handel’s Messiah. Now one of the great fixtures of the festive season around the world, the oratorio traces the life of Jesus Christ, from the Annunciation and the Nativity to the Passion, death and Resurrection, and contains some of the most celebrated choral moments in the history of music. Curiously, Handel did not conceive it as a Christmas work, but rather for performance at Easter; it was mainly from the 20th century onwards that the tradition of performing it at Christmas became firmly established, often also with a participatory dimension.

Such an iconic work calls for first-rate performers with deep expertise in historically informed performance. The RIAS Kammerchor and the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin (AKAMUS), two European ensembles especially renowned in this repertoire, come together under the direction of Justin Doyle. This pairing of specialist choir and orchestra offers the chance to rediscover Messiah through the sound world, style and interpretative approach of Handel’s music.