Handel Aria

It has been a great joy for me to bring together musician friends of The Elsewhere Ensemble from across the world in this video. It wasn’t an easy experience to record and film ourselves and to try and imagine that we were making music together…. As I worked on putting it together, the music took on new meaning in the context of this crisis. This aria from Handel’s Messiah affirms again and again “I know” … “I know that my Redeemer liveth.” One of the hardest things about this crisis is coming to terms with how much we don’t know – the future is so uncertain. But whatever our religious beliefs may or may not be, I think most of us can relate to the experience of (at times) knowing something…. knowing something deep inside that lifts us up and takes us through the uncertainty and the fear. What are the things that have become clearer to you during this time of confinement that help you to say “I know…” with more certainty? When I asked that question to each of the musicians in this video, every one of them answered that they know now more than ever the importance and need for human connection and creating live music with a live audience. But until that is possible, I invite you to take a few minutes to share with us, from different parts of the world, the quiet, consoling power of Handel’s music. Handel’s grave in Westminster Abbey has a statue of Handel on it and he is holding the music to this aria. This video is dedicated to three magnificent women who have recently left this world, and to anyone else who has lost someone dear during this time.