Handel - Alexander Balus / Denley, George, C. Daniels, Dawson, McFadden, The King's Consort
Of the four militaristic oratorios Handel wrote in the 1740s,Joshua, theOccasional Oratorio,Judas Maccabeus, andAlexander Balus, this last, based on an episode from the apocryphal book of the Maccabees, is the only really uninspired one of the lot. The best numbers are recycled from Handel's marvelousLa Resurrezioneof more than 30 years before--this is no problem in itself, but the rest of the music sounds all the duller in comparison. Still Hyperion, Robert King, and the King's Consort deserve praise for seeing to it that all of Handel's oratorios get high-quality performances on disc. Handel completists will want this, especially for Lynne Dawson's delicious performance as the Egyptian queen.--Matthew Westphal