Cody Quattlebaum to premiere new edition of Handel's Brockes Passion

Cody Quattlebaum

Bass-barihunk Cody Quattlebaum will perform the role of Christus with The Academy of Ancient Music in a performance recording of Handel’s Brockes Passion. The project is the culmination of several years of scholarly research, setting Handel’s Passion as the composer intended, featuring previously unheard music and instrumentation. 

The restored version reinstates the first 63 ‘missing’ bars, brings in additional instruments, and showcases choruses and other numbers omitted from some editions.

Led by Richard Egarr, The Academy of Ancient Music will premiere the new edition at the Barbican Centre in London on Good Friday, April 19th, which is the 300th anniversary of the work’s premiere. The rest of the cast includes Robert Murray as the Evangelist), Elizabeth Watts as the Daughter of Zion, Ruby Hughes as the Believing Soul, Tim Mead as Judas and Gwilym Bowen as Peter.

Cody Quattlebaum sings "Deh vieni alla finestra":

The text of Brockes Passion is based on text by the German poet Barthold Heinrich Brockes, which has been set to music by numerous composers, including Georg Philipp Telemann. It is not known exactly why or when Handel set the text of the Brockes Passion, but the work was performed in Hamburg in 1719.

The performance will be recorded for release on AAM Records later in the year.

This season at the Dutch National Opera, Quattlebaum will perform Bruno Zirato in Hamel's Caruso a Cuba and Zuniga in Bizet's Carmen.