Song of the Week: "I Know that My Redeemer Liveth" (Händel)

The Music

    This famous aria for soprano comes in the third part of Georg Friedrich Händel's famous Messiah oratorio (1741). It expresses hope in the resurrection that awaits those who believe in Christ.

    Being my favorite aria, I naturally chose "I Know that My Redeemer Liveth" for the first song in my new Song of the Week series. The title is fairly self-explanatory - I will be posting a new song (art song or aria) every week on Monday. I will try to keep the comments to a minimum and let the music speak for itself, though readers may be able to tell my favorites in cases of excessive verbiage. Working lately as a piano accompanist, my knowledge of the vocal repertoire has been increasing, but I still have much to learn. That is, in part, the purpose of this "Song of the Week" series - to challenge myself to explore the vocal repertoire more and more. The other purpose is simply to share great vocal music. It's amazing how many gems there are among art songs and arias, ranging from catchy tunes to outstanding masterpieces.

The Performance

[ FYI - As far as the art of singing is concerned, I know nothing. I'm strictly a pianist, being extremely limited in my musical capabilities outside of that specific domain. So throughout this series, I will restrict my comments to describing in the most broad terms possible the musical aspects that I appreciate about each performance. And I will keep the comments short - in the case of this aria, only one sentence. Like most everyone else, I have my preferred singers, but I'm the last person capable of explaining to you the technical particulars why I prefer one singer or one performance to another. ]

    Given the enduring popularity of Händel's Messiah, there are many worthy performances/recordings of this song, but I find Sylvia McNair's rendition particularly beautiful for its unassuming simplicity, matching well the simple confidence expressed by the words.

The Text

Job 19:25; 1 Corinthians 15:20

I know that my redeemer liveth And that he shall stand At the latter day, upon the earth.

And though worms destroy this body Yet in my flesh shall I see God.

For now is Christ risen from the dead The first fruits of them that sleep.

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