Händel's Messiah
Gulbenkian Orchestra and Choir
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Date
- 20:00 / Cancelled 20:00 / Sold out Thursday, 20:00
- 19:00 / Cancelled 19:00 / Sold out Friday, 19:00
- 19:00 / Cancelled 19:00 / Sold out Saturday, 19:00
Location
Grand Auditorium Calouste Gulbenkian FoundationPricing
25% – Under 30
10% – Over 65
Cartão Gulbenkian:
50% – Under 30
20% – Over 65
10% – 30 to 65
- Conductor
- Soprano
- Mezzo-Soprano
- Tenor
- Baritone
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Gulbenkian Choir
Coro Gulbenkian was founded in 1964 by the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation as a full symphonic body of around 100 singers. The choir joins the Orquestra Gulbenkian and other orchestras to perform Classical, Romantic and Contemporary choral-symphonic repertoire, but can also perform a cappella. It has performed – and often premiered – many 20th century works by Portuguese and international composers.
Coro Gulbenkian has been invited to collaborate with major international orchestras, under the direction of conductors such as Claudio Abbado, Colin Davis, John Nelson, Emmanuel Krivine, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Frans Brüggen, Franz Welser-Möst, Gerd Albrecht, Michael Gielen, Michael Tilson Thomas, Rafael Frübeck de Burgos, René Jacobs and Leonard Slatkin, among others.
Besides its regular season of concerts in Lisbon and frequent national tours, Coro Gulbenkian has repeatedly toured Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, India, Iraq, Israel, Italy, Japan, Macao, Malta, Monaco, Netherlands, Spain, the United Kingdom, the United States of America and Uruguay.
Coro Gulbenkian has recorded extensively for Philips, Deutsche Grammophon, Erato, Cascavelle, Musifrance, as well as FNAC-Music, performing a wide range of repertoire, from Early-Renaissance polyphony to Xenakis. Several of these albums received international awards.
Michel Corboz was the Principal Conductor between 1969 and 2019. Jorge Matta and Inês Tavares Lopes are currently the Associate and Assistant conductors, respectively.
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Gulbenkian Orchestra
In 1962, the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation decided to establish a permanent orchestral ensemble. Originally with only twelve musicians (strings and continuo) it was named “Orquestra de Câmara Gulbenkian”. This collective was successively enlarged and today the “Orquestra Gulbenkian” (the name it has adopted since 1971) has a permanent body of sixty instrumentalists, a number that can be expanded depending on the repertoire.
This structure allows the Gulbenkian Orchestra to interpret works from the Baroque and Classical periods, a significant part of 19th century orchestral literature and much of the music of the 20th century, including works belonging to the current repertoire of the traditional symphonic orchestras. In each season, the orchestra performs on a regular series of concerts at the Gulbenkian Grand Auditorium in Lisbon, where it has had the opportunity of working together with some of leading names of the world of music (conductors and soloists). It has also performed on numerous locations all over Portugal, in an effort to decentralize music and culture.
The orchestra has been constantly expanding its activities in the international level, performing in Europe, Asia Africa, and the Americas. In the recording field, Orquestra Gulbenkian is associated to labels as Philips, Deutsche Grammophon, Hyperion, Teldec, Erato, Adès, Nimbus, Lyrinx, Naïve and Pentatone, among others, and this activity was recognized with several international prizes.
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Martina Batič
Principal Conductor
Martina Batič is one of the leading choir directors of her generation. As the winner of the renowned Eric Ericson Competition 2006, she is celebrated for her particular versatility in conducting a broad choral repertoire from chamber music to symphony.
Martina Batič has been Principal Conductor of the Chœur de Radio France from 2018-2022. Before that, she held the position of Artistic Director of the Slovenian Philharmonic Choir. From 2004-2009, Martina Batič was Artistic Director of the Choir of the Slovenian National Opera in Ljubljana. In season 2023/24 she is taking the Chief Conductor position of Danish National Vocal Ensemble in Copenhagen.
The Slovenian is a sought-after guest conductor and has been on podium of the RIAS Chamber Choir, Rundfunkchor Berlin, Chor des Bayerischen Rundfunks, MDR Rundfunkchor, SWR Vokalensemble, Chorwerk Ruhr, as well as the Eric Ericson Chamber Choir, Swedish Radio Choir, Danish National Vocal Ensemble, The Norwegian Soloists' Choir, Suomen Laulu Choir & Finnish Baroque Orchestra, Nederlands Kamerkoor, Netherlands Radio Choir, Flemish Radio Choir, Gulbenkian Choir and others.Future highlights include her return visits to Nederlands Kamerkoor, Netherlands Radio Choir, Gulbenkian Orchestra & Choir and engagements with Flemish Radio Choir, SWR Vokalensemble, Coro Casa da Musica Porto, Rundfunkchor Berlin, Zürcher Sing-Akademie, Helsinki Chamber Choir, Bachchor Salzburg among others.
Martina Batič has conducted A cappella concerts at festivals such as Baltic Sea Stockholm, Ultima Oslo, Choregies d’Orange, Montpellier, Saint-Denis and Présences Paris. In 2018 she conducted the Swedish Radio Choir & Eric Ericson Chamber Choir in a gala concert on the occasion of Eric Ericson's 100th birthday.
Martina Batič obtained her Bachelor of Music from the Music Academy of the University of Ljubljana in 2002. She continued her studies at the University of Music and Theater in Munich in the class of Prof. Michael Gläser, where she completed her master's degree in choral conducting with distinction in 2004. She attended master classes across Europe and worked with renowned choral conductors such as Eric Ericson.
In 2019 Martina Batič received the Slovenian national prize “Prešeren Fund Awards” for her artistic achievements in the field of choral conducting. -
Julia Doyle
Soprano
Originally from Lancaster, Julia studied Social and Political Sciences at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge before embarking on a singing career, and has since performed all over the world and become established as a specialist soprano in Baroque repertoire.
She has performed Bach St John Passion at the Concertgebouw Amsterdam (Sir John Eliot Gardiner), and in Toronto (Tafelmusik), St Matthew Passion at Alice Tully Hall in New York (Philippe Herreweghe), Christmas Oratorio in Sydney and Melbourne with the Australian Chamber Orchestra (Richard Tognetti), BWV 202 with Music of the Baroque in Chicago (Nicholas Kraemer), BWV 199 with Bach Vereniging (Alfredo Bernadini), Mozart Exsultate Jubilate at the Cité de la Musique in Paris (Arsys Bourgogne), Mass in C Minor in Budapest (Györgi Vashegyi), Handel Occasional Oratorio (HWV 62) at the Halle Handel Festival (English Concert), La Resurezzione at the Wigmore Hall (London Handel Orchestra), Messiah at the Royal Albert Hall with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (Richard Cooke) and at the Palace of Versailles with The King’s Consort (Robert King), Apollo e Dafne with Concerto Copenhagen (Alfredo Bernadini), Haydn Nelson Mass in the Canary Islands with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment (Eamonn Dougan), Haydn Paukenmesse and Beethoven Symphony No.9 with J.S. Bach Stiftung (Rudolf Lutz), and Haydn Creation in St Paul’s Cathedral with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment.
Julia has a wide discography including recordings of Handel Messiah with the Bayerischen Rundfunks B’rock Orchestra (Peter Dijkstra), Britten Sinfonia and Polyphony (Stephen Layton) Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin & RIAS Kammerchor (Justin Doyle), Israel in Egypt with Arsys Bourgogne (Pierre Cao), L’Allegro with Kölner Kammerchor (Peter Neumann), Mendelssohn Israel in Ägypten with The King’s Consort (Robert King), Bach Magnificat with Dunedin Consort (John Butt) and also with The Bethlehem Bach Choir (Greg Funfgeld), Bach Cantatas and the Mass in B Minor with J.S. Bach Stiftung (Rudolf Lutz), Lutheran Masses with The Sixteen (Harry Christophers), & St John Passion with English Baroque Soloists (Sir John Eliot Gardiner) & the JS Bach Stiftung (Rudolf Lutz), Astro Nuevo: En Torno a Rabassa with Orquesta Barocca de Sevilla (Enrico Onofri) and Lutoslawski Dwadziesci Koled with BBC Symphony Orchestra (David Zinman) and many more.
Recent and future highlights include Handel German Arias in the Mozartfest in Würzburg, Messiah in Lisbon with the Choir and Orchestra of the Gulbenkian (Martina Batic), in Copenhagen with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and Mogens Dahl Chamber Choir (Mogens Dahl), and all over Europe with RIAS Kammerchor and Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin (Justin Doyle), Ariosti La profezia d’Eliseo nell’assedio di Samaria at the Wigmore Hall with La Serenissima (Adrian Chandler), Bach arias in Germany and Switzerland with Kammerorchester Basel & Vilde Frang (Baptiste Lopez) & Freiburger Barockorchester, Bach and Handel at the Wigmore Hall with Arcangelo (Jonathan Cohen) and Fauré Requiem (Andrew Manze) and Christmas Oratorio (Václav Luks) with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra.
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Marie-George Monet
Mezzo-Soprano
After she completed a Bachelor in Musicology at the University François Rabelais in Tours (France), Marie George Monet was admitted to the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London in David Pollard’s singing class. Her interest for chamber music led her to sing on regular basis with chamber ensembles such as Accentus, Musicatreize, Les Jeunes Solistes, De Caelis. As a soloist, she regularly performs in baroque oratorio repertoire. Lately she regularly collaborates with Les Traversées Baroques conducted by Etienne Meyer at the Opera de Dijon.
She also sings under the baton of conductors such as Christian Curnyn, Sylvain Cambreling, Christian Zacharias, Laurence Equilbey, Andrés Orozco-Estrada, Barbara Hannigan…
Her repertoire includes stage performances such as Messaggiera in Monteverdi’s Orfeo, Arnalta in Monterverdi’s The Coronation of Poppea, Third Lady in Mozart’s The Magic Flute, The Witch in Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel, The Divine Justice in Falvetti’s Il Diluvio Universale.Her interest in contemporary music led her to perform world premieres as alto solo in Yvonne, Princesse de Bourgogne by Philippe Boesmans (Opéra de Paris and Vienna), The Fairy in Slutchaï by Oscar Strasnoy (Opéra de Bordeaux), Atuat in Babel after the war by Xavier Dayer (Vevey’s Theater), The Lawyer in La Digitale by Juan-Pablo Carreño (Teatro Colon de Bogota).
She recorded several songs cycles by Frédéric Pattar, Félix Ibbarrondo and François-Bernard Mâche.She sings in many festivals such as Présences (Paris), Aix en Provence, La Chaise Dieu, Agape (Switzerland), Cuenca (Spain), Varazdin (Croatia), Tenso (Oslo), Mid Europe Early Music Festival (Poland), French May (Hong Kong), Salzburg Festspiele (Austria)…
Her recent performances include her in Grisey Chants de l’amour (Bibliothèque Nationale de France), Mozart Requiem (tour with Orchestre Les Siècles), Stravinsky Les Noces (Lionel Sow, Radio France).
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Thomas Hobbs
Tenor
The English tenor Thomas Hobbs is one of the most interesting and significant Bach tenors and is in high demand with many leading baroque and early music ensembles.
Highlights of Hobbs’ 2025/26 season include Handel’s Messiah with The Victoria Symphony, Coro e Orquestra Gulbenkian and Pomeranian Philharmonic, Evangelist in Bach’s St. John Passion with Il Pomo d’Oro and Coro e Orquestra Gulbenkian and Handel’s Judas Maccabeus with Vocalensemble Rastatt and Les Favorites. He will also perform at Wigmore Hall during the John Dowland 400th anniversary celebrations in March 2026. This season, Hobbs will also his long standing relationships with Gli Angeli Genève, Le Banquet Celeste, Alia Mens and Les Arts Florissants performing works including Bach’s St. Matthew Passion and selected cantatas.
Recent highlights have included Bach’s St Matthew Passion for RIAS Kammerchor and the South Netherlands Philharmonic, a programme of selected Bach cantatas on tour with the Constellation Orchestra, Bach’s B Minor Mass at Oregon Bach Festival, and concerts with ensembles including Le Banquet Celeste, Gli Angeli Genève, Les Arts Florissants and Alia Mens. Further highlights include two tours across Europe with the Netherlands Bach Society in Bach’s Magnificat and as the Evangelist in the St Matthew Passion, a European tour of the Messiah with the RIAS Kammerchor, Evangelist in the St Matthew Passion with the Bach Collegium Japan, the Dutch Bach Society and on tour with the Netherlands Bach Society, the 25th birthday concert with the Dunedin Consort, Vivaldi’s Vespers with Musikpodium Stuttgart and Kammerchor Stuttgart, Bach’s Christmas Oratorio with Concerto Copenhagen, Handel’s Messiah with Wrocław Baroque Orchestra, Early Music Vancouver, Sinfonietta Riga, Tafelmusik Toronto, RIAS Kammerchor, Academy of Ancient Music at the Barbican and Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, Bach’s B Minor Mass on a European tour and at the Salzburg Festival with Collegium Vocale Gent and Herreweghe, Haydn’s Creation with Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla and the CBSO, Schumann’s Requiem with Richard Egarr and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Bach cantatas with Les Violons du Roy, the Danish National Symphony Orchestra, and he travelled to Australia to sing Bach’s Christmas Oratorio with the Choir of London and Australian Chamber Orchestra.
Hobbs performed Bach, Britten and Haydn with the Israel Camerata, sang Handel’s Alexander’s Feast with Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra, as well as Bach programmes with La Chapelle Harmonique, Dunedin Consort at Wigmore Hall, and with the Milan Symphony Orchestra. On the opera stage, Hobbs performed a critically acclaimed Telemachus in Monteverdi’s The Return of Ulysses in a new production for English National Opera conducted by Jonathan Cohen, Apollo and Shepherd in Monteverdi’s Orfeo in semi- staged performances with Richard Egarr and the Academy of Ancient Music and the title role in Britten’s Albert Herring and Ferrando in Mozart’s Così fan tutte.
Hobbs’ ever-expanding discography includes Bach’s Trinitas with Le Banquet Céleste, Mass in B Minor with both Colegium Vocale Ghent and the Dunedin Consort, a selection of motets, the Leipzig Cantatas and Christmas Oratorio with Colegium Vocale Ghent, Christmas Oratorio with Dunedin Consort, and Weimar Cantatas with Alia Mens. He has recorded Handel’s Acis et Galatea and Esther with the Dunedin Consort and Beethoven’s Mass in C with Stuttgart Kammerchor. His recordings of Handel’s Chandos Anthems with Stephen Layton and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and Mozart’s Requiem with John Butt and the Dunedin Consort have been universally praised, with the latter receiving the 2014 Gramophone Award for best Choral recording.
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Mark Diamond
Baritone
American lyric baritone Mark Diamond is delighted to make his Portuguese debut with Orchestra and Coro Gulbenkian. This season, his dynamic artistry will be featured with Dallas Winds, Mercury Chamber Orchestra, Austin Opera, and other distinguished ensembles.
A versatile performer, Mr. Diamond brings a compelling presence to a wide spectrum of operatic roles, concert works, and recital repertoire. His career highlights include leading roles with Houston Grand Opera, Seattle Opera, Opéra de Limoges, Théâtre de Caen, Opéra de Reims, and appearances with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Glimmerglass Festival, and Seoul Philharmonic, among others.
Mr. Diamond was honored with the Houston Grand Opera Concert of Arias award and subsequently joined the prestigious HGO Studio. His journey as an artist led him to discover a deep passion for teaching, culminating in advanced degrees from Rice University and the University of Houston.
Today, Dr. Diamond proudly contributes to the rich vocal tradition of Texas as a member of the voice faculty at Baylor University, while continuing to perform on some of the world’s most celebrated stages.
Georg Friedrich Händel
Considered one of the top conductors of the choral repertoire, Martina Batič has achieved enormous notoriety for her versatility. She possesses a vast repertoire and, when she took over as Chief Conductor of the Gulbenkian Choir, in an interview with the Público newspaper, she identified this same quality in the Gulbenkian Choir, an “amazing choir for being able to do many different things”. In the run-up to Christmas, Händel’s Messiah is one of the must-see pieces, a majestic creation and one of the most popular works for choir, orchestra, and soloists.
Sponsor Gulbenkian Music
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