Handel - Solomon / Watkinson, Argenta, Hendricks, Rolfe Johnson, EBS, Monteverdi Choir, Gardiner

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com essential recording
Acts I and III of this oratorio are sumptuous pageants: Solomon on the throne with his adoring Queen; Solomon receives the Queen of Sheba. In between, Act II's depiction of Solomon's judgment (over the baby) is one of the finest dramatic scenes Handel wrote in any context. The First Harlot's fear, desperation, and gratitude, the Second Harlot's grief-crazed jealousy, Solomon's serene wisdom--all are smashingly portrayed by Handel and by Rodgers, Jones and Watkinson. Argenta's Queen is a girlish delight; the regal Hendricks as Sheba sounds quite comfortable among these Baroque specialists; Rolfe Johnson and Varcoe have two splendid arias each. The choir and orchestra--whether in the amorous "Nightingale" chorus, the sequence of pictorial numbers in Act III, or the stunning double choruses throughout--are magnificent. --Matthew Westphal

Handel - Solomon / Watkinson, Argenta, Hendricks, Rolfe Johnson, EBS, Monteverdi Choir, Gardiner, Music, George Frideric Handel, English Baroque Soloists, Monteverdi Choir, John Eliot Gardiner, Nancy Argenta, Barbara Hendricks, Anthony Rolfe Johnson, Della Jones, Joan Rodgers, Choral, Classical, Classical Composers, Classical Music, Opera / Operetta / Oratorio, Oratorio
Handel - Solomon / Watkinson, Argenta, Hendricks, Rolfe Johnson, EBS, Monteverdi Choir, Gardiner
Average customer rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • May be almost as good as 'Messiah'. Buy It.
  • Solomon has a great English King
  • Terrific
  • Flawed Brilliance
  • Great CD - choruses a little difficult to understand
 Handel - Solomon / Watkinson, Argenta, Hendricks, Rolfe Johnson, EBS, Monteverdi Choir, Gardiner
George Frideric Handel , English Baroque Soloists , Monteverdi Choir , John Eliot Gardiner , Nancy Argenta , Barbara Hendricks , Anthony Rolfe Johnson , Della Jones , and Joan Rodgers
Manufacturer: Philips
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B0000040WT
Release Date: 1990-10-25

Tracks:

  1. Solomon: Overture
  2. Solomon: Act 1 : Scene 1 : 'Your Harps And Cymbals Sound' (Chorus)
  3. Solomon: Act 1 : Scene 1 : 'Praise Ye The Lord' (A Levite)
  4. Solomon: Act 1 : Scene 1 : 'With Pious Heart' (Chorus)
  5. Solomon: Act 1 : Scene 1 : 'Almighty Power' (Solomon)
  6. Solomon: Act 1 : Scene 1 : 'Imperial Solomon' - 'Sacred Rapture' (Zadok)
  7. Solomon: Act 1 : Scene 1 : 'Throughout The Land' (Chorus)
  8. Solomon: Act 1 : Scene 1 : 'Blessed Be The Lord' - 'What Though I Trace' (Solomon)
  9. Solomon: Act 1 : Scene 2: 'And See My Queen' (Solomon)
  10. Solomon: Act 1 : Scene 2 : 'Bless'd The Day' (Queen)
  11. Solomon: Act 1 : Scene 2 : 'Thou Fair Inhabitant' (Solomon) - 'Welcome As The Dawn Of Day' (Solomon, Queen)
  12. Solomon: Act 1 : Scene 2 : 'My Blooming Fair' - 'Haste, Haste' (Solomon)
  13. Solomon: Act 1 : Scene 2 : 'When Thou Art Absent' - 'With Thee Th'unshelter'd Moor I'd Tread' (Queen)
  14. Solomon: Act 1 : Scene 2 : 'May No Rash Intruder' (Chorus)
  15. Solomon: Act 2 : Scene 1 : 'From The Censer' (Chorus)
  16. Solomon: Act 2 : Scene 1 : 'Prais'd Be The Lord' - 'When The Sun' (Solomon)
  17. Solomon: Act 2 : Scene 1 : 'Great Prince' - 'Thrice Bless'd' (Levite)

Tracks:

  1. Solomon: Act 2 : Scene 2 : 'My Sovereign Liege' (Attendant, Solomon)
  2. Solomon: Act 2 : Scene 3 : 'Thou Son Of David' (1st Harlot) - 'Words Are Weak' (1st & 2nd Harlots, Solomon)
  3. Solomon: Act 2 : Scene 3 : 'What Says The Other' (Solomon, 2nd Harlot) - 'Thy Sentence, Great King' (2nd Harlot)
  4. Solomon: Act 2 : Scene 3 : 'Withhold, Withhold The Executing Hand' - 'Can I See My Infant Gor'd' (1st Harlot)
  5. Solomon: Act 2 : Scene 3 : 'Israel, Attend' (Solomon)
  6. Solomon: Act 2 : Scene 3 : 'Thrice Bless'd Be The King' (1st Harlot, Solomon)
  7. Solomon: Act 2 : Scene 3 : 'From The East Unto The West' (Chorus)
  8. Solomon: Act 2 : Scene 3 : 'No More Shall Armed Bands' - 'Beneath The Vine' (1st Harlot)
  9. Solomon: Act 2 : Scene 3 : 'Swell, Swell The Full Chorus' (Chorus)
  10. Solomon: Act 3 : The Arrival Of The Queen Of Sheba
  11. Solomon: Act 3 : 'From Arabia's Spicy Shores' (Queen Of Sheba, Solomon)
  12. Solomon: Act 3 : 'Sweep, Sweep The String' - 'Music, Spread Thy Voice' (Solomon, Chorus)
  13. Solomon: Act 3 : 'Now A Diff'rent Measure' - 'Shake The Dome' (Solomon, Chorus)
  14. Solomon: Act 3 : 'Then At Once From Rage' (Solomon) - 'Draw The Tear From Hopeless Love' (Chorus)
  15. Solomon: Act 3 : 'Next The Tortur'd Soul' - 'Thus Rolling Surges Rise' (Solomon, Chorus)
  16. Solomon: Act 3 : 'Thy Harmony's Divine' (Queen Of Sheba)
  17. Solomon: Act 3 : 'Thrice Happy King' - ' Golden Columns' (Zadok)
  18. Solomon: Act 3 : 'May Peace In Salem Ever Dwell' - 'Will The Sun Forget To Streak' (Queen Of Sheba)
  19. Solomon: Act 3 : 'Adieu, Fair Queen' (Solomon) - 'Ev'ry Joy That Wisdom Knows' (Queen Of Sheba, Solomon)
  20. Solomon: Act 3 : 'Praise The Lord' (Chorus)

Amazon.com essential recording

Acts I and III of this oratorio are sumptuous pageants: Solomon on the throne with his adoring Queen; Solomon receives the Queen of Sheba. In between, Act II's depiction of Solomon's judgment (over the baby) is one of the finest dramatic scenes Handel wrote in any context. The First Harlot's fear, desperation, and gratitude, the Second Harlot's grief-crazed jealousy, Solomon's serene wisdom--all are smashingly portrayed by Handel and by Rodgers, Jones and Watkinson. Argenta's Queen is a girlish delight; the regal Hendricks as Sheba sounds quite comfortable among these Baroque specialists; Rolfe Johnson and Varcoe have two splendid arias each. The choir and orchestra--whether in the amorous "Nightingale" chorus, the sequence of pictorial numbers in Act III, or the stunning double choruses throughout--are magnificent. --Matthew Westphal

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars May be almost as good as 'Messiah'. Buy It........2006-12-08

'Solomon' by George Friedric Handel is another English Language oratoria, which, to my amateur ears, has none of the dull recitives of some of his other works, such as 'Joseph and his Brethren'. And, it's choral work, especially in the opening act is simply gorgeous.

I do not have the very best ear for recording quality or the quality of performances, but the numerous plaques on the cover of the CD testify to numerous awards, and the superior quality of this performance and its recording even reach my uneducated ears intact.

If you just wish to have a few of Handel's better Oratorios, this one should definitely be on your short list.

5 out of 5 stars Solomon has a great English King.......2004-04-17

This Biblical oratorio by Haendel is a masterpiece. Haendel's Biblical oratorios are an essential moment in the development of Western music. It deals with a sacred subject but the objective is no longer to educate the people in their religious belief, like Bach's Passions, but to entertain the court and the cultured audience of the Restauration's third king. This particular oratorio is a way to thank George II for the hospitality he granted Haendel with in England. Three acts, three moments of Solomon's greatness. First the building of the Temple and the establishment of the kingdom. It is centered on one feeling : Solomon's love for his Queen and the merging of their love with nature. God has become an abstract being that can be experienced in human feelings like love and in nature. God is everywhere. « All is pious, all is great ». This first act only lightly alludes to the three people Solomon had to put to death to establish his power : Adonijah, Joab, and Shimei. Second the famous court decision by Solomon about the baby and the two women who claim him as their son. In semitic terms this case is impossible because there are no witnesses. Solomon then has to use a subterfuge to trap the two women in their feelings and reveal the one who is the real mother : one is satisfied with the death of the child because she is vengeful for having been reported as a child thief ; one prefers dropping her claim and save the life of the child, her child. It is the motherly attitude that convinces Solomon that this latter one is the real mother. Solomon is a king of justice. Third the visit of the Queen of Sheba, marvelously sung by Barbara Hendricks. Solomon welcomes her, as he should and must, but he falls in love with her and has to step over this obstacle and give the upper hand to virtue, which is not that easy to do nor to have the Queen of Sheba accept. But after the tempest everything goes back to normal. And this virtuous victory is another sign of Solomon's greatness. The music is light, dramatic, intense at times, always magical. It is a musical pageant. But the most surprising element is the fact that Solomon is sung by a mezzo-soprano, a woman, and it is quite audible. What is the point of this shift ? Was the choice between a castrato and a mezzo-soprano, or soprano ? Maybe. But if this Solomon is supposed to represent George II, the English monarch, and the English monarchy, this alliance between a female unicorn and a male lion, this woman in military outfit, we do need to have a voice that sounds feminine even if it sings the part of a man. The mezzo-soprano is slightly lower than the two queens who are sopranos, hence more masculine than them, and yet the high-pitched voice gives this king a youthful resonance that a tenor might not have had (it would have been more adult) nor a lower voice (it would have sounded plain old). Here Solomon is nearly a teenager, definitely a young man. And Haendel uses this element marvellously in many places : the various duets with his Queen or the Queen of Sheba, but also the duet with the false mother, a mezzo-soprano too. By making Solomon sound younger and more feminine, Haendel gives him a deeper and wider greatness : he will be a good king for a long time. And this is addressed to George II. What a compliment.

Dr Jacques COULARDEAU

5 out of 5 stars Terrific.......2003-03-25

This critically acclaimed Solomon is one of the few complete Solomons around. It won a whole bunch of awards when it was released. It's too many to enumerate here. Having listened to it, I can say that it is a exhilirating performance. The Monteverdi Choir sings with astonishing virtuosity. There is plenty of gusto and precision of attack is the name of the game. The solo parts are excellently cast. This is a set that I recommend to all. Anyway, there aren't that many Solomons available. You either buy this or the other. Otherwise, don't listen but you'll miss out on a lot. Contrary to what a lot of people think, Handel wrote more music than just the famous Messiah.

5 out of 5 stars Flawed Brilliance.......2001-04-15

Second only to Wagner among major composers in intertwining the sublime with the ridiculous, Handel displays this eccentricity to its fullest in Solomon. Excepting Act II, the plot wavers between non-existence and outright silliness. As for the lyrics, we have choruses built around phrases such as "Happy, happy Solomon" and "From the east unto the west, who so wise as Solomon?" Any college freshman unable to write better than this should be considering trade school. But, perhaps Handel's sense of humor should not be overlooked. In a work overflowing with majestic ceremonial music, the famous score for the arrival of the Queen of Sheba sounds more like the arrival of a cartoon menagerie.

Yet, despite all this and, despite the presence of far too many arias so perfunctory as to seem composed by a second rate imitator of Handel rather than by the master himself, this work illustrates a time honored principle: outstanding art is always greater than the sum of its parts. Stirring choruses (inane lyrical content not withstanding), some of the most inspired orchestral work to be heard in any Handel oratorio and even a handful of memorable arias combine to place Solomon in the upper echelon of the composer's vast output. No lover of baroque music in general or especially Handel oratorios in particular should fail to experience it.

The performances on this recording are every bit as good as one would expect from the personnel involved. Barbara Hendricks as the Queen of Sheba and Joan Rodgers as the 1st Harlot are, to my ears at least, especially wonderful.

4 out of 5 stars Great CD - choruses a little difficult to understand.......2000-10-07

This is a wonderful sounding set. The material is among Handel's finest and the solo performances (Carolyn Watkinson as Solomon is dynamite!) are wonderful - clear, articulate, and not overwrought. The chorus performs well - but their diction becomes an acoustic mush as some of their hard consonants get lost in the cathedral or hall where this was recorded. But worth the price to hear Anthony Rolfe-Johnson. One Gardiner's best efforts.

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