Now in stereo!
Handel's Dixit Dominus is a real oddball.
Jerky rhythms, pounding continuo motifs, some super spectacular fugues.
But two parts stand out the most.
There is a moment in the middle of the work (in my rip, it's at the 3:00" mark), in the middle of Dominus a dextris tuis (The Lord at thy right hand), that's ... metamorphic. After a serene fugal choral introduction of Judicabit in nationibus (He shall judge among the nations), suddenly, out of nowhere, the strings break out of a straightjacket of chords into truly ECSTATIC runs and repeated notes.
Handel - Dominus a dextris tuis (Hengelbrock)
The chorus joins in for the implebit ruinas (He shall spread ruin), then recapitulates the Judicabit in nationibus, and then the whole thing erupts in a shouting match: conquassabit capita in terra multorum (He shall break heads in the lands of many - ouch!).
The final Gloria closes the setting, and it's even more amazing.
Handel - Gloria Patri et Filio (Hengelbrock)
Only the continuo instruments open this movement - and in this recording, the theorbos and organ improvise above it, making ALL the difference. A monumental fugue unfolds with the words Gloria Patri et Filio et Spiritui Sancto (Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit): sopranos I first, sopranos II second, then tenors, then the violins enter and break loose again (goosebumps!), then basses join in to complete the first verse with sicut erat in principio et nunc et semper (as it was in the beginning as is now).
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Yeshh. I'm at work and they're not giving me enough to do. :)
BTW, the files are courtesy of a recording from deutsche harmonia mundi by the Balthasar-Neumann Choir & Ensemble, directed by Thomas Hengelbrock. Since they're ~10% of the CD it should be legal ... right?