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Few works in the choral repertoire occupy the cultural, musical and emotional space claimed by Handel’s Messiah. Since its first performances in the 18th century, the work has transcended its origins to become a touchstone of communal music-making: at once devotional and dramatic, intimate and monumental. For singers, audiences and institutions alike, Messiah is not simply a masterpiece to be revisited, but a living tradition – one that binds generations through shared sound, memory and meaning. In Scotland, and particularly through the history of the RSNO Chorus, Messiah holds a uniquely foundational place, shaping both the identity of the ensemble and the wider choral life of the nation.

Handel composed Messiah in the late summer of 1741, working with extraordinary speed and focus, setting Charles Jennens’ carefully curated libretto of biblical texts in little more than three weeks. Conceived not as an opera or an oratorio for the stage but as a work for reflection and moral uplift, Messiah nevertheless carried a dramatic power that was immediately apparent to its earliest audiences. Its premiere in Dublin in 1742 was met with a depth of response that surprised even Handel himself: such was the demand that ladies were politely requested to attend ‘without hoops’ in their dresses and gentlemen to leave their swords at home, in order to make ‘room for more company’. Listeners were moved not only by the grandeur of its choruses but by the directness and humanity of its solos and arias, and early accounts speak of packed halls, heightened emotion and a sense that this was music capable of speaking simultaneously to individual faith and shared public experience – a quality that would ensure Messiah’s enduring presence far beyond its first performances.

As Messiah travelled beyond its earliest performances, it began a new life within the rapidly expanding culture of choral societies that emerged across Britain and Europe in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Central to this transition was Mozart’s 1789 re-orchestration of the work, Der Messias (K.572), created for private Viennese performances under the patronage of Baron Gottfried van Swieten. By enriching Handel’s Baroque score with Classical-era wind writing and fuller harmonies, Mozart adapted Messiah to contemporary tastes and to the smaller, more flexible forces available to choral societies. It was this version – faithful to Handel’s musical vision yet newly coloured for a different age – that helped secure Messiah’s place at the heart of communal music-making, enabling the work to flourish well beyond the scale and circumstances of its original performances.

Messiah thus became both a proving ground and a unifying force: a work through which communities defined their musical ambition and collective identity. In Scotland, this relationship took on particular significance. The founding in 1843 of the Glasgow Choral Union, today’s RSNO Chorus, was driven by a determination to give Scotland its first complete performance of Handel’s Messiah, placing the work not merely at the heart of the choral repertoire, but at the very origin of one of the country’s most enduring musical institutions.

Taken from the RSNO Archives: Handel’s Messiah on 1 January 1926.

The 1843 performance of Messiah was not simply a notable event in Scotland’s musical calendar; it was an act of cultural ambition. At a time when complete performances of large-scale choral works were still far from routine, the formation of a chorus specifically to realise Handel’s oratorio in full spoke to a growing confidence in Scotland’s choral life. That founding impulse — collective, civic and aspirational — would become a defining characteristic of the RSNO Chorus. From its earliest days, Messiah functioned as both cornerstone and catalyst: a work through which singers tested their discipline, audiences encountered the power of large-scale choral expression, and a permanent ensemble found its purpose.

As the Chorus matured, so too did approaches to performing Messiah. The 19th century favoured expansive forces, rich sonorities and an almost monumental treatment of Handel’s score, reflecting broader Romantic ideals and the tastes of the time. The 20th century brought reassessment and renewal, with shifts towards greater textual clarity, stylistic awareness and, eventually, historically informed performance practice. Across these changes, the RSNO Chorus has navigated the balance between tradition and reinvention, engaging with evolving interpretations while maintaining the communal weight and expressive depth that have always made Messiah such a central experience for singers and audiences alike.

Threaded through this evolving history are the memories of countless performances, each leaving its own imprint on the Chorus’s collective identity. For generations of singers, Messiah has marked milestones: first performances, farewells, anniversaries and moments of artistic renewal. Conductors and soloists have brought fresh perspectives, audiences have returned year after year, and the familiar choruses have acquired layers of meaning through repetition and shared experience. In this way, Messiah is not simply a recurring item in the repertoire, but a living archive – one that connects the RSNO Chorus of today directly to its origins in 1843, and to nearly two centuries of choral music-making in Scotland.

Photo taken by Dena MacLeod in 2018 featuring Conductor Nicholas Kraemer.

My own relationship with Messiah began as a teenager, singing in my first performance with the then Bearsden Burgh Choir (now Bearsden Choir) under the direction of James Hunter, Bearsden’s long-serving choral director from 1971 to 2009. Even then, I experienced the work as a thrilling journey – a feeling that has mirrored my own choral life across six decades of singing. What has always fascinated me is Messiah’s capacity for renewal: how a work so deeply familiar can be re-illuminated by each conductor, each ensemble, each moment in time. In recent years, the RSNO and Chorus has had the privilege of working with outstanding musical figures such as Nicholas Kraemer, Edward Gardner, Nicholas McGegan, Jeanette Sorrell, each bringing distinctive insight and vitality to Handel’s score. This year, it is the turn of Laurence Cummings OBE to take the podium. As Music Director of the Academy of Ancient Music and Musical Director of the London Handel Festival, Laurence Cummings is uniquely placed to guide the Chorus on another fresh journey into the heart of this extraordinary work. It is this sense of continuity and rediscovery — shared across generations of singers — that ultimately explains Messiah’s enduring place not only in the choral repertoire, but in our musical lives.