Throughout much of the first half of the previous century, entertainer Harry Lauder was, in the words of Winston Churchill, ‘Scotland’s greatest ever ambassador!’ In the following years, Scotland’s next ‘greatest ever ambassador’ (if not Sean Connery!) must have been Kenneth McKellar, who was born in 1927, the son of a grocer, in the Scottish town of Paisley.
From 1959–60, he recorded a series of Handel arias for Decca, with the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, conducted by Sir Adrian Boult. Some were issued on an EP and later the entire collection was issued on an LP. In 1961, he went into the recording studios, again with Boult, for more Handel, this time with the LSO and Chorus, to sing the tenor part in ‘Messiah‘ alongside Joan Sutherland, Grace Bumbry and David Ward.
Collected here are all the arias from the first record, supplemented with additional arias from ‘Messiah’. ‘Thy rebuke … Behold and see’ was recorded during the ‘Messiah’ sessions as an alternative take to the soprano version (Joan Sutherland eventually sang it in the complete recording) and never issued on LP (it first appeared as an appendix to the Decca Eloquence reissue of this complete Boult ‘Messiah’).
McKellar died, shortly after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, in 2010, while visiting his daughter Jane in the United States. He is buried in Paisley. It is gratifying that his artistry is being rediscovered by a new generation of listeners.
GEORG FRIEDRICH HANDEL
Serse: Frondi tenere … Ombra mai fu*
Acis and Galatea: Love in her eyes sits playing*
Tolomeo, Rè d’Egitto: Silent worship (Did you not hear my lady)*
Jephtha: Deeper and deeper still … Waft her, angels*
Semele: Where’er you walk*
Judas Maccabaeus
Thanks to my brethren … How vain is man*
My Arms! Against this Gorgias … Sound an alarm*
Messiah
Comfort ye … Ev’ry valley*
All they that see him … He trusted in God**
Thy rebuke hath broken his heart … Behold and see**
He was cut off … But thou didst not leave**
Unto which of the angels … Let all the angels of God**
He that dwelleth in heaven … Thou shalt break them**
Then shall be brought to pass … O Death, where is thy sting? … But thanks be to God**
Kenneth McKellar, tenor
London Symphony Chorus; London Symphony Orchestra**
Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden*
Adrian Boult
Fast Shipping and Professional Packing
Due to our longstanding partnership with UPS FedEx DHL and other leading international carriers, we are able to provide a range of shipping options. Our warehouse staff are highly trained to pack your goods exactly according to the specifications that we supply. Your goods will undergo a thorough examination and will be safely packaged prior to being sent out. Everyday we deliver hundreds of packages to our customers from all over the world. This is an indication of our dedication to being the largest online retailer worldwide. Warehouses and distribution centers can be located in Europe as well as the USA.
Orders with more than 1 item are assigned processing periods for each item.
Before shipment, all ordered products will be thoroughly inspected. Today, most orders will be shipped within 48 hours. The estimated delivery time is between 3-7 days.
Returns
The stock is constantly changing. It's not entirely managed by us since we are involved with multiple parties such as the factory and our storage. The actual stock can fluctuate at any time. Please understand it may happen that your order will be out of stock when the order is placed.
Our policy is valid for 30 days. If you haven't received your product within 30 days, we're not able to issue either a return or exchange.
You are able to return a product if it is unused and in the same condition when you received it. It must also still remain in the original packaging.
Related products
