Solomon [1749] is among a series of masterful oratorios which Handel composed beginning in 1749. As with other Handel oratorios, although it does not refer to the political happenings, happenings of his day, this work does have a connection to his times in that Handel pays homage to a wise and religious ruler from antiquity – and in so doing, also to the golden era of England and its king, George II. With its splendidly colorful, finely balanced instrumentation, effective choral writing and virt...