The Rise and Fall of the Duke of Chandos

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Donald Macleod turns to Handel’s association with James Brydges, later Duke of Chandos, whose wealth and ambition created a remarkable musical establishment at Cannons. Working with a resident ensemble of singers and instrumentalists, Handel composed on a scale suited to this grand setting, producing the Chandos Anthems alongside works such as Acis and Galatea and Esther. These pieces reflect both the resources available to him and a shift away from London’s commercial theatre. Chandos’s lavish musical world proved short-lived, but it gave Handel space to experiment and consolidate his style. The result was a body of music that would feed directly into the next, more public phase of his career. Acis and Galatea: “Love sounds th’alarm” Ian Bostridge, tenor Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment Harry Bicket, conductor As Pants the Hart Arcangelo Jonathan Cohen, conductor Acis and Galatea: Sinfonia Les Arts Florissants William Christie, conductor Esther: excerpts The Sixteen Symphony of Harmony and Invention Harry Christophers, conductor