On a cold Melbourne winter Saturday afternoon, when all the news seems grim, and even your footy tips aren’t delivering, what better antidote than to hear a performance of Haydn’s The Creation. For singers, instrumentalists and audience it is the most joyous of music.
While in London in 1791, Haydn was given a text for an oratorio, based on Genesis, the Psalms and Milton’s Paradise Lost. There is some speculation regarding its authorship, but Haydn asked Baron Gottfried von Swieten for a German translation, and composed the work Die Schöpfung in German. After initial performances in Vienna in 1798/9, in 1800 it received the London premiere translated back into English by Swieten.
The oratorio structure of recitatives, arias and choruses bringing texts (often biblical) to life had been firmly established in Handel’s great works. These had received renewed interest during Haydn’s time in London, where he is recorded as having attended a performance of Israel in Egypt in 1791 with a choir and orchestra of Mahlerian proportions.
In St Paul’s Cathedral on this very chilly Melbourne afternoon, a capacity audience gathered to hear the first of two performances of The Creation from the Royal Melbourne Philharmonic Society employing a chorus of over 120 voices (Melbourne University Choral Society and the Royal Philharmonic Choir), along with an orchestra of 50 musicians, and soloists.
Rarely for the Classical Period, where music was usually “absolute”, this work draws on the many opportunities for word-painting, a characteristic of the Baroque period.
With its dissonances and apparent lack of structure, Haydn’s opening Chaos would have sounded chaotic to the classical ear, and historical accounts of early performances of the work attest to quite some consternation from audience members. Conductor Andrew Wailes shaped the strings underpinning the chromatic opening with excellent articulation and dynamic variation, allowing the woodwind colours to burst forth often in exquisite solo passages. Haydn’s portrayal of the first sunrise is perhaps one of the most evocative 40 seconds of music in the work, although there are many, many instances of word painting in the orchestral timbres. In this performance under Andrew Wailes’ leadership, all orchestral sections contributed admirably to Haydn’s huge tonal palette.
The three solo archangels recount the Creation story from Genesis. Raphael (bass) generally sings of the earth and the waters. Uriel (tenor) is often introducing the extra-terrestrial, while Gabriel (soprano) comments on the fields, flowers, fruits and trees.
Christopher Richardson as the archangel Raphael was a secure and musical presence in recitatives and arias, conveying the texts convincingly, although his voice was perhaps less suited to the lowest registers. He excelled in Part III where he assumed the role of Adam.
Tenor Kyle Stegall stepped in to sing the role of Uriel at the dress rehearsal when the advertised tenor had to withdraw due to illness. He proved to be a commanding narrator in recitatives, and his arias were delivered with great style.
As Gabriel, soprano Rachelle Durkin sang with flair and elegance, addressing the large audience in a very engaging manner. Her beautifully shaped phrasing, intelligent use of appropriate ornamentation and commanding coloratura made for very satisfying listening.
It was unfortunate that the three soloists were spread so far apart for the beautiful trios, although they managed somehow. There is not much available space for such large forces in St Paul’s, and with the choir at the rear, and then the orchestra, the soloists were spread across the front, either side of the conductor.
The large chorus expressed “’despairing, cursing rage” early in the work, they let their ‘”oyful song resound”, and together with the trio of archangels, the heavens really told the “glory of God”, and “the wonder of his work”. Balance between the choir and orchestra was managed well, particularly in the many fugal sections. The trio clearly enjoyed their interaction with the large chorus.
Part II describes the creation of the animals, and of man and woman. We can hear an array of beasts, birds and insects: the roaring lion, flexible tiger, nimble stag, neighing steed, bleating sheep, swarming insects, and sinuous worm. The soloists made a great team of storytellers, using their voices and body language, and interacting with the chorus to convey the sense of the wonders of the emerging creatures to the audience. Kyle Stegall’s performance of Uriel’s “In Native Worth” was as fine as you could hope to hear as he described the first man and his partner.
In Part III, the soprano and baritone are introduced by Uriel in their new roles: as Adam and Eve. Chaos has well and truly disappeared and the orchestral introduction Morning is classical – balanced, beautiful, ordered – and was delivered with particularly beautifully tuned winds to portray “heaven’s angelic choir”.
Adam and Eve’s duet “By thee with bliss, O bounteous Lord” would not seem out of place in a Mozart opera. Durkin and Richardson combined to wonderful dramatic effect, and the chorus joined them, at first gently, but gradually swelling. Even in this vast performance space, with the soloists separated from the choir by the orchestra, there was a strong cohesion, all the more effective when Adam and Eve turned to face and listen to the excellent chorus.
By the time the chorus and soloists came to celebrate the fulfilment of the creation with enduring praise, Syrah Torii joined the other soloists to complete the Amen as a quartet, which together with rousing chorus and orchestra brought this most enjoyable performance to a conclusion.
I hope that the soloists, orchestra and chorus, and the audience enjoyed the evening performance as much as the capacity afternoon crowd did!
Photo credit: Rod Scanlon
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Margaret Arnold reviewed Haydn’s “The Creation”, presented by the Royal Melbourne Philharmonic at St Paul’s Cathedral, Melbourne, at 2pm on June 14, 2025.
