The words of "Messiah" were written by a librettist Charles Jennens. He chose several passages from the Bible and made a libretto, which he sent to Handel in 1741 (although people today often call the work "The Messiah”, both Handel and Jennens call it "Messiah" without the word “the”). Handel immediately realized that a great work of music could be made from Jennens’ libretto. He thought that Jennens was a very clever person, and in his letters to him he calls the work “Your Oratorio "Messiah"”. Handel sat down in the front room of his house in Brook Street, London, and wrote the whole oratorio in twenty four days. It is a long work, lasting over four hours, and when one thinks that Handel had to write out all the parts for the choir and orchestra, he must have worked unbelievably hard. When he had finished the work, he put it in a drawer for seven weeks. Perhaps he thought it would never be played in London, because at that time the London audiences did not seem to like him.
Just at that time he got an invitation to go to Dublin. He was asked to give a concert to get money for charity. The main charity for which money was being raised was the debtor’s prison. In those days people who ran into debt (meaning that they owed lots of people money but had no money to pay them) were sent to prison. There they were fed by charity (people who fed them out of kindness). If no one fed them they just starved to death. Handel had nearly been sent to a debtor’s prison himself a few years earlier.
He went to Dublin as soon as he could, and he was there by November. On 23 December he performed his oratorio "L’Allegro". Unlike the London audiences, people in Dublin loved it. This was followed by "Alexander’s Feast", "Imeneo" and, in April, "Messiah". He was a very great success in Dublin, and he stayed there until August, when he returned to London.
"Messiah" tells the story of Christ. It is divided into three parts. Part One tells of the coming and the birth of Christ. Part Two is about his death on the cross, and his Ascension into Heaven, and Part III concentrates on Paul's teaching of the resurrection of the dead and Christ's glorification in heaven. Handel usually performed his oratorios in theatres, not in churches, and his audience went as a change from going to the opera. They did not go for religious worship.
Handel’s oratorios are normally dramatic, with the four solo singers (soprano, alto, tenor and bass) each taking the part of a character from the Bible. "Messiah" is different. The soloists sing about the story of Christ. The great choruses, where the choir sings, praise the Lord in the wonderful music. Some of the music is homophonic (e.g. the "Hallelujah" chorus), some of the choruses are dramatic dialogues (e.g. "Lift up your heads"), or they are a fugue ("He trusted in God" and "Amen"), or they describe things dramatically ("All we like sheep").
The most well known of all the movements in "Messiah" is the one popularly known as the "Hallelujah Chorus," because of the frequently sung exclamation “Hallelujah”. It occurs at the end of the Part Two of the oratorio.'
It has become a tradition for the audience to stand up for the "Hallelujah Chorus," although it is unknown when this practice began.
There is a well-known but apocryphal story of King George II
attending a royal performance of "Messiah" and supposedly rising to his feet during the "Hallelujah Chorus"."" Whenever the king stood up, everyone in his presence had to stand, hence the whole audience rose to their feet as well. However, this story does not appear to be based on any historical source.
John Murray (general)
"Major General" John Joseph Murray DSO & Bar, MC (born 26 April 1892 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, died 8 September 1951 in Sydney, New South Wales) was an Australian Army Officer and businessman with a special role in both world wars. During World War I, he was "mentioned in despatches" and got got medals while fighting on the Western Front in France. In World War II and he was made commander of the 20th Brigade that helped beat Erwin Rommell's "Afrika Korps" in "Libya".
Murray was born on born 26 April 1892 in Sydney, New South Wales. His father was working man from Ireland. His father was also called John Murray and his mother was called Margaret.
When he left the local Catholic school John Murray started training as a salesman for Sydney firm Anthony Hordern & Sons in 1910. He then joined the Australian Citizens Military Forces where he served two years before joining the 33rd Regiment in 1913.
John Murray was already in the Australian Army when World War I started on 28 July 1914. He was quickly (fast) made a Second Lieutenant on 6 March 1915. When he started being Second Lieutenant, Murray was moved to the Australian Imperial Force, and went by ship to Egypt. After being posted to the 1st Battalion at first, in March, 1916 he was moved to the 53rd Battalion, which was part of the 5th Division, when the Australian Imperial Force was helped by new soldiers from Australia. The 5th Division was soon moved from Egypt to France where they were put into the hard fighting of the Western Front.
By 19 July 1916 Murray's 53rd Battalion were in the first fighting by the Australian Imperial Force on the Western Front. It was the Battle of Fromelles. 5,533 Australian soldiers were killed, wounded or taken prisoner, because the fighting plan went wrong. The Australian War Memorial sayss the fighting was "the worst 24 hours in Australia's entire history"
John Murray became a Major in June 1917 and was soon known for his very good leadership and very brave "night raiding" (crossing at night into enemy trenches). In September 1918 during the very hard fighting of the Second Battle of the Somme, Murray's good leadership was mentioned again, and after fights near Peronne, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order.
Murray was still fighting on the Western Front when peace started 11 November 1918. Having been awarded the Military Cross and Distinguished Service Order, and also having twice being told of in dispatches he went back home to Australia in May, 1919.
By 25 August 1919 the all of the men in the Australian Imperial Force had been sent home. Murray was happy to go back to his job at Anthony Hordern & Sons in Sydney, but he did not want to stop being a soldier, and he joined the Australian Citizens Military Forces.
On 4 January 1923 John Murray married Mary Madeline Cannon at St. Mary's Cathedral, Sydney, and soon after became the manager of the delivery department at Anthony Hordern & Sons.
By 1925 Murray became a of Lieutenant-Colonel. From 1934 to 1938 Murray was the Commanding Officer of the Australian Army Service Corps, 1st Division.
With war coming again, John Murray was given the command of the 9th Infantry brigade, and they got ready to move for war in February, 1940. He was chosen for the Second Australian Imperial Force in April 1940 and was given command of the 20th Brigade which went by ship to the Middle East in October 1940 to begin training in Palestine.
Murrays brigade was made a part of the 9th Division. Even though the troops were not ready to fight, the 9th Division was sent to Libya to help the 6th Division win Tobruk.
On 4 April 1941, the "Afrika Korps" starting fighting Murray's 20th Brigade. The Australians slowed down Rommell's forces, but there were so many Germans they could not be forced back. Murray and his troops moved into Tobruk itself. For his leadership, John Murray was granted a "bar" to his Distinguished Service Order (the bar is given instead of a second medal).
Murray's knowledge of Trench warfare and night-raiding was very helpful to the defenders during the Siege of Tobruk. In November 1941, Murray was mentioned in dispatches for the third time in his career for his excellent resistance to Rommell.