Blogocentric Formulations

Messiah

Messiah
by George Frideric Handel

On the First Day of Christmas, I had to go with something from Messiah, one of George Frideric Handel's most influential works. I've been thinking about it a lot since the Freakonomics Podcast recently did a multi-part series on the famous oratorio, including its popularity at the time and since. Today it's one of the best-known and most frequently performed choral works in all of Western music (at least, so sayeth Wikipedia).

Most people, even if they're not a fan of classical music, will almost instantly recognize the "Hallelujah Chorus" part of the oratorio; in addition to being one of the most popular choral works to perform in concert, it's also featured in a large number of films and television programs. Everything from Arrested Development and The Wonder Years to Dumb & Dumber and Face/Off. The latter is particularly memorable for its opening scene of an absolutely unhinged Nicolas Cage   (back when that was a surprise) playing a terrorist who disguises himself as a priest and, uh, finds a way to entertain himself after doing terrorist-y type things.

The whole oratorio is amazing to listen to; it's a remarkable composition.