Cincinnati Opera and 90.9 WGUC Announce Special Encore Presentation Of HALLELUJAH HANDEL

Cincinnati Opera and 90.9 WGUC will present an encore broadcast of "Hallelujah Handel," a four-part radio series hosted by Evans Mirageas, The Harry T. Wilks Artistic Director of Cincinnati Opera. The series explores the life and work of composer George Frideric Handel and will be broadcast over four successive Tuesday evenings beginning November 30, 2021, at 9 p.m. Each hour-long program highlights a different facet of Handel's musical development: his apprentice years in Rome, his long artistic life in London and his association with famous singers, the artistic and personal friendship he had with royalty, and the phenomenon he singlehandedly created-the English oratorio and in particular, Messiah. "Hallelujah Handel" originally aired in 2011, and Cincinnati Opera and 90.9 WGUC celebrate the program's 10th anniversary with this special encore broadcast, just in time for the holiday season.

Mirageas, a former producer for the nationally renowned WFMT radio station in Chicago, brings his many personal connections to this in-depth look at Handel's time in England. Mirageas lived and worked in London for a decade and has collaborated with some of today's finest Handel interpreters, both as a record producer and through engaging their talents for concert and opera productions. Artists who will be featured in the program include soprano Renée Fleming, mezzo-soprano Cecilia Bartoli, and countertenor Andreas Scholl, as well as conductors Nicholas McGegan, Harry Bicket, Laurence Cummings, and Sir Roger Norrington.

Performances are November 30, December 7, December 14, and December 21, 2021; 9 p.m. on 90.9 WGUC (90.9 FM or listen online at wguc.org)

From 1706 until his death in 1759, George Frideric Handel lived and worked in Italy and London. The scope, variety, and sheer amount of great music that flowed from his pen during his lifetime continue to delight us to this day. Whether it is the Water Music he wrote for his king, the brilliant Italian operas he wrote for the superstars of his time, or his matchless and immortal English oratorios (a genre he basically invented), Handel's name and fame made him the first truly internationally successful composer. Over the course of four programs, Evans Mirageas will explore the amazing variety of Handel's musical genius set primarily against the backdrop of London, his hometown for most of his career and, in his time, the music capital of the world.

To post a comment, you must register and login.