Georg Friedrich Händel: Coronation Anthem No.1 'Zadok The Priest' SSAATBB: SATB:

These four splendid anthems were composed for the coronation of George II in October 1727 and have since retained a position at the heart of the English choral tradition. The popular anthem Zadok the Priest has been performed at all subsequent coronations and Handel's other contributions to the royal occasion - Let thy hand be strengthened  The King shall rejoice and My heart is inditing - have the same majestic grandeur with affecting contrasts between different sections of the sacred texts. The editor Clifford Bartlett has corrected various inconsistencies in Handel's score and completedetails of sources and editorial method additional performance notes and a critical commentary are included.

Coronation Anthem for Mixed Choir and Orchestra-Zadok The Priest HWV 258 (BA10258) and The King shall rejoice HWV 259 (BA10259) are the best-known of the four coronation anthems that Handel wrote for the crowning of George II in London (1727). HWV 258 accompanied the king’s anointment HWV 260 his actual coronation.Thanks to their festive and majestic structure befitting the occasion as well as their spacious scoring for large choir and orchestra it comes as no surprise that motifs from Zadok The Priest have found their way into the official hymn of the UEFA Champions League.The present editions by the authoritative Handel scholar Stephan Blaut are thefirst to offer these two anthems based on the Urtext from the Halle Handel Edition.Bilingual Forewords (Ger/Eng).Idiomatic Piano reductions.Based on the Halle Handel Edition.Full score parts and vocal score available for sale.

Coronation Anthem for Mixed Choir and Orchestra-Zadok The Priest HWV 258 (BA10258) and The King Shall Rejoice HWV 260 (BA10259) are the best-known of the four coronation anthems that Handel wrote for the crowning of George II in London (1727). HWV 258 accompanied the king’s anointment HWV 260 his actual coronation. Thanks to their festive and majestic structure befitting the occasion as well as their spacious scoring for Large Choir and Orchestra it comes as no surprise that motifs from Zadok the priest have found their way into the official hymn of the UEFA Champions League. The present editions by the authoritative Handel scholar Stephan Blaut are the first to offerthese two anthems based on the Urtext from the Halle Handel Edition. Bilingual Forewords (Ger/Eng) Idiomatic Piano reductions Based on the Halle Handel Edition Full score parts and vocal score available for sale

Coronation Anthem for Mixed Choir and Orchestra-Zadok The Priest HWV 258 (BA10258) and The King shall rejoice HWV 259 (BA10259) are the best-known of the four coronation anthems that Handel wrote for the crowning of George II in London (1727). HWV 258 accompanied the king’s anointment HWV 260 his actual coronation.Thanks to their festive and majestic structure befitting the occasion as well as their spacious scoring for large choir and orchestra it comes as no surprise that motifs from Zadok The Priest have found their way into the official hymn of the UEFA Champions League.The present editions by the authoritative Handel scholar Stephan Blaut are thefirst to offer these two anthems based on the Urtext from the Halle Handel Edition.Bilingual Forewords (Ger/Eng).Idiomatic Piano reductions.Based on the Halle Handel Edition.Full score parts and vocal score available for sale.

In his libretto for “Riccardo Primo” Paolo Rolli drew on Antonio Lotti’s opera “Isacio tiranno” which had been performed in Venice in 1710. Handel needed a text with two great women’s roles for the two best female singers of the day were members of his troupe – Francesca Cuzzoni and Faustina Bordoni. He had already written the operas “Alessandro” and “Admeto” for them. He began composing “Riccardo Primo” in spring 1727 completing the first version on 16 May. However following the death of King George I on 11 June 1727 the theatres remained closed.For Handel who had become a British citizen in February 1727 the accession of George II to the throne offered new possibilities and he embarked on a revision of the opera. With this he was able to offer a new opera for the coronation festivities the hero of which was one of King George’s charismatic forebears. From May onwards Handel thoroughly revised the present score wrote some parts anew and expanded it with particularly splendid music. Handel and Rolli also improved the plot and introduced patriotic elements to honour the British monarchy. The historic background is the third crusade against Saladin the Sultan of Egypt and Syria who had recaptured Jerusalem in 1187. Although King Richard I captured Cyprus and together with French crusaders stormed the fortress of Akko in the Holy Land the crusade ended with a ceasefire and Jerusalem remained in Saladin’s hands. Richard was given the title ‘Coeur-de-lion’ by the English for his great military ability and bravery although the Sicilians had first given him this name because of his relentless cruelty in clashes around Messina . The vocal score is based on the Halle Handel Edition volume published in 2005 edited by Terence Best and contains the second version of the opera which was premiered in November 1727. Performance material available for hire. Based on the Urtext of the Halle Handel Edition. Original Italian text with German singing translation. Straightforward and easy-to-play Piano reduction.