Om udførelsen af allegrodelen i ouverturen til Handels ‘Messias’

Abstract

Concerning the performance of the Allegro in Händel’s ouverture to the Messiah

This article discusses tempo and character in the Allegro of Händel's overture to the Messiah. Although many modem interpretations have tended to identify this music as being in the style of an amusing concerto grosso movement, the present author proposes a slower, more serious performance of the movement. An analysis of the work's structure and a comparison of this piece with other movements by Händel (HWV 322 and 324) and a Bach organ fugue (BWV 537) are used to substantiate this theory.