William Berger joins Philharmonia Baroque for Judas Maccabaeus

William Berger

The Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra will perform Handel’s Judas Maccabaeus, a loose telling of the story of Hanukkah. Despite telling the story of the Maccabees, it has never quite evolved into a Jewish alternative to the composer's far more popular Messiah.

The oratorio was written five years after Messiah in 1746 and was premiered at the Covent Garden Theatre in London the following year.

Philharmonia Baroque's performance will feature barihunk William Berger as Simon, who sings the aria “Arm, arm, ye brave!” He'll be joined by the sensational tenor Nicholas Phan, soprano Robin Johannsen, mezzo-soprano Sara Couden and baroque specialist Nicholas McGegan conducting. 

Gerald Finley sings “Arm, arm, ye brave!”:

Handel's oratorio had a far more secular inspiration than the biblical text might suggest, as it was composed in commemoration of the British defeat of Charles Stuart’s Jacobite forces at the battle of Culloden in April 1746.

The events depicted in the oratorio are from the period 170–160 BC when Judea was ruled by the Seleucid Empire which undertook to destroy the Jewish religion. Being ordered to worship Zeus, many Jews obeyed under the threat of persecution; however, some did not. One who defied was the elderly priest Mattathias who killed a fellow Jew who was about to offer a pagan sacrifice. After tearing down a pagan altar, Mattathias retreated to the hills and gathered others who were willing to fight for their faith.

The oratorio will be performed on December 5 in San Francisco, December 6 in Palo Alot and on December 7 and 8 in Berkeley. Tickets are available online.

Philip Cutlip to perform Handel rarity Joseph and his Brethren

Philip Cutlip

Barihunk Philip Cutlip will join the Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra for Handel's rarely performed oratorio Joseph and his Brethren. He will be joined by tenor Nicholas Phan, mezzo-sopranos Abigail Levis and Diana Moore, and sopranos Sherezade Panthaki and Gabrielle Haigh.

The Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra has performed just about everything Handel ever wrote,  except the composer’s 1743 oratorio Joseph and His Brethren. This Baroque rarity recounts Joseph’s reconciliation with his Jewish family in Egypt. The oratorio gave Handel the opportunity to depict the grandeur of the Pharaoh’s court and the faith of Joseph’s estranged brothers in a plot of intrigue and mistaken identity.

Sandrine Piau sings "Prophetic Raptures" from  Joseph and his Brethren:

Performances are on December 14th in San Francisco, December 15th in Palo Alto, and December 16th and 17th in Berkeley. Tickets are available online. 

Cutlip will also be performing the much more familiar Messiah with the Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra from December 8-10 in San Francisco, Berkeley and Rohnert Park. Tickets are available online.

Our 2018 Barihunks Calendar, which includes 20 of opera's sexiest men is now available for purchase HERE. In response to reader demand, we've also added a Barihunks Photo Book this year, which includes additional photos that don't appear in the calendar. You can purchase that HERE. The New Year is approaching faster than you think! 

Doug Williams in US premiere of Scarlatti serenata

Doug Williams

Bass-barihunk Doug Williams will join baroque specialist Nicholas McGegan and the Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra this week for the American premiere of Alessandro Scarlatti's The Glory of Spring . The serenata has not been heard in the western hemisphere for nearly 300 years, which the composer wrote to celebrate the birth of the heir to the Holy Roman Emperor.

The prince was John Leopold, son of Charles VI and his father’s only male heir. Since Charles had recently acquired the kingdom of Naples in a treaty, the Neapolitans commissioned Scarlatti, their court composer, to write a grand serenata to celebrate the prince’s birth and gain favor with their new sovereign. Scarlatti wrote the piece within a few weeks and it was performed to adoring audiences in Naples immediately following the birth. Unfortunately, just months after the The Glory of Spring premiered, the celebrated infant died and the incredible work was forgotten.

Performances run from October 4-10 in Berkeley, San Francisco and Palo Alto. He'll be joined by tenor Nicholas Phan, soprano Suzana Ograjenšek, mezzo Diana Moore, countertenor Clint van der Lindeand the Philharmonia Chorale.

Tickets are available online. You can listen to Doug Williams HERE.

Williams will remain on the West Coast, where he will join Stephen Stubbs and the Pacific Masterworks for Monteverdi's 1610 Vespers in British Columbia.  Performances are from October 23-25 and tickets are available online.

Interview with Philippe Sly and upcoming Messiah

 

Philippe Sly

Philippe Sly will be performing Handel’s Messiah with the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa under maestro Matthew Halls on December 17th and 18th at 7 PM. He'll be joined by soprano Sherezade Panthaki,  mezzo-soprano Meg Bragle and tenor Nicholas Phan. Tickets are available online. 

 

The Ottawa citizen ran an interview with this fast-rising star, which included the following question about being a barihunk:

You have been dubbed a “barihunk”. Embarrased? Embracing it?

People can say what they want (but) I have to admit, the blog has generated a lot of interest. Though there is the funny title, the blog does a good job of keeping tabs on current baritones and promoting new ones. Almost all of my baritone friends have appeared on the site.

We've had the pleasure of hearing Sly as a recitalist and on stage and the hype around him is justified. He is smart, gifted and commands the stage. To check out information about future performaces in Philadelphia, Quebec and elsewhere, check out his website.  

You can read the entire interview in the Ottawa Citizen online. 

We also want to add a comment about what Sly says about the site. We recently floated the idea to a few opera insiders and some of our favorite singers about shutting down the site on January 1, 2014. The unanimous response was that the site (even with its funny name) is still the prime source of information about baritones in the world of opera. Our goal continues to be twofold 1) to promote and assist the best baritone talent in the world, and 2) ensure that opera remains vibrant and interesting enough to compete with the wealth of entertainment options available to the public. 

We appreciate your readership. 

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