He found solace in the famous 18th century oratorio, which tells the story of Christ’s birth and resurrection. Maybe that’s because the piece was written in similarly tumultuous times. Yes, the Enlightenment was underway, but it was also an age of empire and enslavement. The first words sung in Messiah, spoken by God, are “Comfort ye, my people.” That was the reassurance Charles King needed in 2021. His book is about the creation of Handel’s Messiah and the troubled days for which it was composed.
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Charles King | Professor of International Affairs and Government at Georgetown University. His latest book is called “Every Valley: The Desperate Lives and Troubled Times that Made Handel’s Messiah” [Amazon|Bookshop].
Airdate: Thurs., Dec. 19, 2024 at 9 a.m. and Sat., Dec. 21, 2024 at 11 a.m. Rebroadcast: Thurs., Dec. 24, 2025 at 9 a.m. and Sat., Dec. 26, 2025 at 11 a.m.