The Handel and Haydn Society opens the 2025–26 season with a captivating rendition of Handel’s Saul
H+H has not staged this oratorio since 2016
PHOTO PROVIDED BY ROBERT TORRES
★★★★★
Handel’s Saul, HMV 53
Handel & Haydn Society
Conducted by Jonathan Cohen
Boston Symphony Hall
Oct. 5, 2025
The Handel and Haydn Society (H+H) opened its new season with Handel’s Saul, a monumental three-hour oratorio tracing the fall of Israel’s first king and the rise of David. Beginning with David’s epic battle with Goliath, the work follows the events leading to the battle of Mount Gilboa and the kingship of David.
For a modern audience, the plot of the oratorio might look rushed, even unrealistic. [1] However, in the mid-18th century, the audience would be expected to know the whole story, so this quick turn of events was natural by those standards. Therefore, it’s more appropriate to view this oratorio as a musical drama based on a well-known tale.
Interestingly, H+H broke from the norm in historically informed performance, changing the strings’ positions to a more modern arrangement with violin I, violin II, viola, and cello/bass arranged clockwise from left to right. One possible explanation is that Cohen chose to interpret the oratorio as a semi-opera with 20C-style seating. [2]
The oratorio began with a beautiful overture in Italian style, consisting of three parts played with great precision; the organ solo in the third part was particularly impressive. The singers were then introduced, and it became quite clear that Cohen’s intentions were to treat the performance as a semi-staged opera. Considering the strong, almost textbook elements of “Greek tragedy,” [3] Saul has all the elements to be a great source of opera.
Act I revolves around the triumph of David and King Saul’s resulting jealousy. Every soloist delivered the music and the libretto beautifully, treating it as a musical theatre piece. Praise should be given to Sarah Brady, who wonderfully demonstrated passionate disgust towards David in her aria “What abject thoughts a prince can have” as Merab. Equal acclaim is warranted for Neal Davies as Saul. He brought to life the two accompagnatos “To him ten thousands, and to me but thousands” and “What do I hear? Am I then sunk so low,” along with the aria “A serpent, in my bosom warm’d.” In all three, Davies expressed intense rage and suspicion, which only made the audience more engrossed in the plot.
Act II continues the stage-setting of Act I, outlining Saul and David’s uneasy reconciliation despite Saul’s continued suspicion and treachery. The chorus reached a climax on the heavily fugal first chorus “Envy, eldest born of hell” and the final choruses “Oh, fatal consequence of Rage” and “From crime to crime he blindly goes,” which were perfect renditions of a sneering and whispering crowd.
Despite the last-minute substitution, Amanda Forsythe showed great grace and exuded a strong voice as the protagonist Michal throughout the performance. Her voice was particularly prominent in the aria “No, no, let the guilty tremble,” the sound of her declaration reaching the very ends of the hall. Playing Jonathan, Linard Vrielink complemented Forsythe’s performance, with his arias “But sooner Jordan’s stream” and “Sin not, O King” portraying opposite characters with incredible matching expressions. Vrielink and Davies’ interaction during “Where is the son of Jesse” also deserves a special mention, duly evoking shock and horror even to those who knew the plot.
Act III is the shortest act, showing Saul’s conjuring of Samuel and eventual death in a battle against the Philistines, as well as David’s mourning and rise to kingship. Samuel’s curse of Saul was incredibly haunting, with Saul left without a response. [4] This act includes the oratorio’s most famous movement, “Dead March.” However, the most impressive musical number was Christopher Lorey’s performance of “Impious wretch, of race accurst!” as David.
The final piece, “Gird on thy sword, thou man of might,” was also excellently sung by the H+H Youth Choruses Chamber Choir and H+H City Sing. Inherent to the play itself, the mourning scene is quite long and not very enjoyable. While crucial to the plot, David’s sorrows take up half the act, which ultimately felt redundant.
The imbalance between the five soloists was a small blemish in an otherwise near-perfect performance. In some ways, this is understandable, as the five characters play very different roles. However, Lorey’s countertenor voice projected slightly less compared to the remaining four. Keeping in mind how difficult it is for a countertenor to project as much as other vocal ranges, a big round of applause is still well deserved.
Overall, Handel and Haydn delivered an almost flawless performance of this difficult oratorio that calls for a vast range of emotions. A special honorable mention should be given to the five members of the H+H chorus who readily took on minor solo roles. Also, the H+H Youth Choruses Chamber Choir and H+H City Sing should be congratulated for their brilliant contributions as the extended chorus prominent in Act III. Bravi tutti!
MIT students can purchase the H+H Masterpass for a discounted rate of $10, which allows students to attend every H+H concert this season through Arts at MIT.
Footnotes:
[1] For example, the friendship of Jonathan and David seemed to form quite abruptly. However, the whole course of events took years; for most of this time, David was on the run from Saul.
[2] This shift is called the Stokowski shift.
[3] The performance is similar to an archetypical Greek tragedy only in the sense that its plot fits the structure. This story, of course, long predates any Greek tragedy.
[4] God has left Saul by this point, which was mentioned in the libretto. Note that the conjuring of spirits via a magician is considered a great sin by itself.