The Composer London Had Discarded

In the spring of 1741, George Frideric Handel was a ruined man. At fifty-six, partially paralyzed from a stroke, buried in debt, and mocked by London critics who declared his music passé, he had every reason to believe his life's work was over. His operas played to empty houses. Creditors circled. One newspaper quipped that Handel was "done." Then his friend Charles Jennens delivered a libretto — a collection of scripture passages woven together, telling the story of the Messiah.…