EVERY VALLEY The Desperate Lives and Troubled Times that Made Handel's Messiah

Golden Voice Juliet Stevenson's wise, somewhat bemused voice has introduced dozens of British classics to a generation of listeners. Her approach is familiar, subdued, precise. She skillfully builds and shapes this unexpectedly compelling history of the world's most performed piece of music. How Handel's MESSIAH came to be is a story with many twists, but it provides a focus for the broader story of an era, a society, and a string of history-altering events. This is one of the year's most satisfying popular histories, and one that will appeal to a broad range of listeners. Stevenson's voice isn't melodic, and it's toughened with age. But few narrators are as attuned to the rhythms and nuances of a narrative, or closer to its heart. D.A.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine [Published: DECEMBER 2024]