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Musique Royale announces a winter tour of Handel’s Messiah performed by emerging artists at historic venues in Yarmouth, Lunenburg and New Glasgow from December 21-23. For music lovers around the world, Handel’s Messiah brings families together to begin their Christmas celebrations. Annually, it’s the single most performed piece of classical music worldwide (The Guardian). Handel’s masterpiece in its original version was astonishingly written in three to four weeks.

While now it is performed with giant orchestras and choirs, Handel originally wrote Messiah for modest vocal and instrumental forces. British conductor Harry Castle is working with artistic director Janelle Lucyk, as they bring together young historical performance specialists from Canada and beyond to create this pocket-sized “Messiah-on-the-go” which is aligned towards the original format. Musique Royale is delighted to work with community partners for each performance.

The tour will begin on Wednesday December 21 with a concert at Beacon United Church in Yarmouth, in partnership with the Hear! Here! Society. It will continue on the next evening, Thursday December 22 at 7 pm, at historic St John’s Anglican Church in Lunenburg, the second oldest protestant church in Canada, located in the heart of Old Town Lunenburg, which is a UNESCO world heritage site. The final concert is Friday December 23, at First Presbyterian Church in New Glasgow, a stately sacred space and home to Pictou County’s oldest congregation, dating back to 1786.

Every concert includes a sing-a-long Hallelujah chorus, where our audience is invited to join us, and there is a rehearsal preceding each performance at 6:30 pm to go over the music with director Harry Castle. Scores are provided at the door.

With the Hallelujah chorus as its centerpiece, Messiah can charm any listener, and drawing together some of Canada’s brightest emerging stars, Handel’s powerful music will light up these spaces in December. Musique Royale is grateful to the Federal Department of Canadian Heritage and their Re-Engaging Audiences Fund for the generous support of this tour.