Closing concert: G.F. Handel: Jephtha
Sunday March 17, 18:00
(Doors open at 17:00)
Oslo Cathedral
Adult: 600 NOK
Senior/student: 500 NOK
Child: 100 NOK
Duration: 2 hours and 15 minutes
Les Talens Lyriques
Chœur de Chambre de Namur
Deborah Cachet, soprano
Sophie Harmsen, mezzo-soprano
Tim Mead, counter-tenor
Jeremy Ovenden, tenor
Edwin Crossley-Mercer, bass
Christophe Rousset, conductor
The French ensemble Les Talens Lyriques, Chœur de Chambre de Namur, and a handful of outstanding soloists close the festival with G.F. Handel’s great oratorio Jephtha from 1751, under the direction of Christophe Rousset. G.F. Handel’s oratorio is a dramatic tale of passion, salvation, sacrifice, renouncement, faith, and doubt. The Israelites are oppressed by the neighbouring people, the Ammonites, and appoint Jephtha as their commander in the war against their enemy. Jephtha makes a promise to God to sacrifice the first living being he meets on his return, if he is victorious. The Israelites win, but Jephtha’s happiness is short-lived when he meets his only child – his daughter Iphis – on his return. She then becomes the sacrifice that Jephtha has promised God, and despite doubts and regret, he decides to keep his promise. The story is about the consequences of a promise that cannot be broken, and about the faith of a person that is so strong that he is willing to commit inconceivable acts. Handel’s musical-dramatic work sheds light on both the individual’s and the collective’s relationship to God, but is especially focused on the individual. The plot of the oratorio is a revised, expanded, and modernised dramatization of the story about Jephtha: While the original story ends in a tragic human sacrifice, the oratorio gives Jephtha a more humane ending. The work is a testament to the aging Handel’s artistic brilliance, but also bears heartbreaking evidence of his failing health. In the score, Handel wrote: ‘Unable to go on owning to weakening of the sight of my left eye.’ Jephtha was finally completed after several breaks, and was the last significant work that Handel managed to complete before his death in 1759.
Christophe Rousset is an internationally renowned harpsichordist and conductor, and is the founder, artistic director, and conductor of Les Talens Lyriques. He studied harpsichord at Schola Cantorum in Paris and at Koninklijk Conservatorium in Haag. Rousset is known for his work with music from the Baroque and Classical periods, and has with Les Talens Lyriques received great acclaim for his interpretations of musical history’s masterpieces. He also has a passion for finding unknown works from the European art music heritage, and together with the ensemble he performs works that are otherwise given little attention today, with an unsurpassed mastery of the style.
Les Talens Lyriques was founded in 1991 by artistic director and conductor Christophe Rousset. The ensemble’s repertoire stretches from early Baroque to Romantic music, and their programmes combine well-known classical works and unknown gems from European musical history. Les Talens Lyriques has performed at festivals and concert halls such as Opéra de Paris, De Nederlandse Opera, and Théâtre des Champs-Élysées. The ensemble has released over 70 albums, among them Gounod’s Faust (2019), which received several awards: Gramophone Choice, Presto Musical Editor’s Choice, Diapason d’or, and Choc Classica 2019.
Belgian Chœur de Chambre de Namur was founded in 1987, and has since the beginning been dedicated to preserving the musical heritage of their region through concerts and recordings of composers such as Lassus, Rogier, Hayne, Du Mont, Fiocco, Gossec, and Grétry. Their repertoire is wide and spans the Middle Ages to our time. The choir is often invited to perform at the most prestigious festivals in Europe, and regularly sings under the direction of conductors such as Ottavio Dantone, Peter Phillips, Christophe Rousset, Jean-Christophe Spinosi, Jérémie Rhorer, and Richard Egarr. In 2010, the young Argentinian conductor Leonardo García Alarcón was entrusted with the artistic direction of the choir.
Deborah Cachet (Iphis) is a sought-after Belgian soprano. She studied at Luca School of Arts with Gerda Lombaerts and Dina Grossberger, and at Conservatorium van Amsterdam with Sasja Hunnego. Cachet often works with leading ensembles such as Les Talens Lyriques, Les Arts Florissants, and Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin. She regularly performs at prestigious concert halls such as Theater an der Wien, Musikverein, and Bozar, and international festivals such as French May (Hong Kong) and Utrecht Early Music Festival. In addition to her many collaborations and performances, Cachet has also excelled in important opera roles, and her discography is impressive. She has received several awards for her work.
Sophie Harmsen (Storgé) travelled extensively at an early age, her parents being German diplomats, and continues this in her professional career as an internationally successful and acclaimed mezzo-soprano. Harmsen studied at the University of Cape Town with Edith Wiens, and has later been mentored by Tobias Truniger. She has performed at some of the world’s greatest concert halls and opera houses, including Tatro Colón in Buenos Aires, Teatro Real in Madrid, Wigmore Hall in London, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Konzerthaus Wien, and Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, and has collaborated with leading symphony orchestras and Baroque ensembles, such as the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra (Daniel Harding), Orchestre National de Paris (Václav Luks), and Freiburger Barockorchester (Jérémie Rhorer). Her CD recordings have received several awards, and she has performed in a number of opera roles and at international festivals.
Tim Mead (Hamor) is considered one of the best counter-tenors of his generation. He has a wide repertoire and is especially acclaimed for his interpretations of Handel’s counter-tenor roles. Mead has performed at the greatest opera houses and concert halls in Europe, such as Opéra National de Paris, Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, and Bayerische Staatsoper. He is also a sought-after concert singer, and has sung with the leading orchestras and conductors of the world today, such as the New York Philharmonic, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, and Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra. Mead has contributed to a number of recordings, and in 2023 he released his first solo album, Sacroprofano, to great acclaim.
The English tenor Jeremy Ovenden (Jephtha) is considered one of the most sought-after Mozart tenors of his generation. He has regularly performed at international opera houses and concert halls. His opera career includes the title roles in Mozart’s Idomeneo and La Clemenza di Tito at prestigious concert halls such as Teatro Real in Madrid, Théâtre du Capitole in Toulouse, and Theater an der Wien. Ovenden is also a successful concert singer, and has worked with conductors such as Daniel Barenboim, Nicholas Harnoncourt, Philippe Herreweghe, and sir Simon Rattle. He has also been a part of projects such as the performance of Handel’s Messiah at Vienna Musikverein and Bach’s St. Matthew Passion with the Rotterdam Philharmonic. He has given guest performances together with Freiburger Barockorchester under René Jacobs, and with Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin. In addition to his stage career and concert performances, Jeremy Ovenden’s discography is extensive and includes works by Bach, Handel, Haydn, and Mozart, including early operatic works by the latter.
Bass-baritone Edwin Crossley-Mercer (Zebul) has made a name for himself on the international stage as an outstanding talent among a growing generation of French singers. After studying in Versailles and Berlin, he made his debut in Mozart’s Don Giovanni in Berlin in 2006, and has since sung roles such as Guglielmo in Così fan tutte at Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, Harlekin in Ariadne auf Naxos at Opéra Bastille, and Albert in La juive in Amsterdam. Crossley-Mercer has an affection for oratorios and recital, and has performed in renowned concert halls such as Carnegie Hall and Musée d’Orsay, and under the direction of several leading conductors with orchestras such as Berliner Philharmoniker, Wiener Symphoniker, Los Angeles Philharmonic, and London Symphony Orchestra. In addition to his singing career, Crossley-Mercer also works as a composer and conductor, among other things at the Theater in der Josefstadt in Vienna.
Photo: Les Talens Lyriques: Eric Larrayadieu, Chœur de Chambre Namur: Gabriel Balaguera, Deborah Cachet: Shalan Alhamwy, Tim Mead: Andy Staples, Sophie Harmsen: Tatjana Dachsel, Jeremy Ovenden: Luca Sage
