Handel: Brockes-Passion

On Good Friday, Academy of Ancient Music rediscovers Handel's Brockes-Passion – the story of the Crucifixion, retold in music that blazes with emotion.

'My father, see how I suffer! My heart is breaking…' A time of turmoil; a man of peace betrayed; a very human drama of profound suffering and still more powerful hope. For centuries, composers have been setting the story of Christ's trial and crucifixion to choral music and performing it on Good Friday.

But it was Academy of Ancient Music, in 2019, that brought Handel's neglected Brockes-Passion back into the spotlight – revealing it as one of the most dramatic and intensely human of Passion settings. This Easter, it rises again: as bold and as visceral as it sounded when it was first heard in Hamburg, on Good Friday 1719. This is music that speaks directly to heart and soul, performed by artists who love it.

Performers:
Elizabeth Watts soprano
Claire Lees soprano
Jake Ingbar countertenor
Christopher Willoughby tenor
Stuart Jackson tenor
Edward Grint bass
Academy of Ancient Music
Laurence Cummings harpsichord, director

Sung in German with English titles.