Editing Messiah (Handel) (section)

===London, 1743–59===
The warm reception accorded to ''Messiah'' in Dublin was not repeated in London. Indeed, even the announcement of the performance as a "new Sacred Oratorio" drew an anonymous commentator to ask if "the ''Playhouse'' is a fit ''Temple'' to perform it".<ref>Glover, p. 318</ref> Handel introduced the work at [[Royal Opera House#First theatre|the Covent Garden theatre]] on 23 March 1743. Avoglio and Cibber were again the chief soloists; they were joined by the [[tenor]] [[John Beard (tenor)|John Beard]], a veteran of Handel's operas, the [[bass (voice type)|bass]] Thomas Rheinhold and two other sopranos, Kitty Clive and Miss Edwards.<ref>Shaw, pp. 31–34</ref> The first performance was overshadowed by views expressed in the press that the work's subject matter was too exalted to be performed in a theatre, particularly by secular singer-actresses such as Cibber and Clive. In an attempt to deflect such sensibilities, in London Handel had avoided the name ''Messiah'' and presented the work as the "New Sacred Oratorio".<ref name= B24>Burrows (1991), pp. 24–27</ref> As was his custom, Handel rearranged the music to suit his singers. He wrote a new setting of "And lo, the angel of the Lord" for Clive, never used subsequently. He added a tenor song for Beard: "Their sound is gone out", which had appeared in Jennens's original libretto but had not been in the Dublin performances.<ref name=B30>Burrows (1991), pp. 30–31</ref>

[[File:Microcosm of London Plate 037 - Foundling Hospital.jpg|thumb|left|The chapel of London's [[Foundling Hospital]], the venue for regular charity performances of ''Messiah'' from 1750]]
The custom of standing for the ''Hallelujah'' chorus originates from a popular belief that, at the London premiere, King George II did so, which would have obliged all to stand. There is no convincing evidence that the king was present, or that he attended any subsequent performance of ''Messiah''; the first reference to the practice of standing appears in a letter dated 1756, three years prior to Handel's death.<ref>Luckett, p. 175</ref><ref>Burrows (1991), pp. 28–29</ref>

London's initially cool reception of ''Messiah'' led Handel to reduce the season's planned six performances to three, and not to present the work at all in 1744—to the considerable annoyance of Jennens, whose relations with the composer temporarily soured.<ref name= B24/> At Jennens's request, Handel made several changes in the music for the 1745 revival: "Their sound is gone out" became a choral piece, the soprano song "Rejoice greatly" was recomposed in shortened form, and the transpositions for Cibber's voice were restored to their original soprano range.<ref name= B41>Burrows (1991), pp. 41–44</ref> Jennens wrote to Holdsworth on 30 August 1745: "[Handel] has made a fine Entertainment of it, though not near so good as he might & ought to have done. I have with great difficulty made him correct some of the grosser faults in the composition…"  Handel directed two performances at Covent Garden in 1745, on 9 and 11 April,<ref>Luckett, p. 153</ref> and then set the work aside for four years.<ref>Burrows (1991), pp. 34–35</ref>

[[File:Arms of the Foundling Hospital with an admission ticket (BM 1858,0417.578).jpg|thumb|Uncompleted admission ticket for the May 1750 performance, including the arms of the venue, the [[Foundling Hospital]]]]
The 1749 revival at Covent Garden, under the proper title of ''Messiah'', saw the appearance of two female soloists who were henceforth closely associated with Handel's music: [[Giulia Frasi]] and [[Caterina Galli]]. In the following year these were joined by the [[countertenor|male alto]] [[Gaetano Guadagni]], for whom Handel composed new versions of "But who may abide" and "Thou art gone up on high". The year 1750 also saw the institution of the annual charity performances of ''Messiah'' at London's [[Foundling Hospital]], which continued until Handel's death and beyond.<ref>Shaw, pp. 42–47</ref> The 1754 performance at the hospital is the first for which full details of the orchestral and vocal forces survive. The orchestra included fifteen violins, five violas, three [[cello]]s, two [[double bass]]es, four [[bassoon]]s, four oboes, two trumpets, two horns and drums. In the chorus of nineteen were six [[treble voice|trebles]] from the Chapel Royal; the remainder, all men, were altos, tenors and basses. Frasi, Galli and Beard led the five soloists, who were required to assist the chorus.<ref>Shaw, pp. 49–50</ref>{{refn|[[Anthony Hicks]] gives a slightly different instrumentation: fourteen violins and six violas.<ref>Hicks, p. 14</ref>|group= n}} For this performance the transposed Guadagni arias were restored to the soprano voice.<ref>Hogwood, pp. 18, 24</ref> By 1754 Handel was severely afflicted by the onset of blindness, and in 1755 he turned over the direction of the ''Messiah'' hospital performance to his pupil, J. C. Smith.<ref name= Shaw51>Shaw, pp. 51–52</ref> He apparently resumed his duties in 1757 and may have continued thereafter.<ref>Luckett, p. 176</ref> The final performance of the work at which Handel was present was at Covent Garden on 6 April 1759, eight days before his death.<ref name= Shaw51/>