Messiah with a twist

Clint van der Linde to sing alto part in Handel's masterpiece

Next Thursday (December 1) at St Nicolas Church Newbury, internationally-renowned countertenor Clint van der Linde and a host of other star soloists will be performing Handel's Messiah with local professional orchestra Southern Sinfonia and Bach Choir Voices (London) - but with a twist.

The Messiah is a venerated Christmas institution for orchestras and choral societies alike, with most people able to hum along to at least a few of the most well-known sections. However, under the musical direction of David Hill, Southern Sinfonia will be performing Handel's masterpiece slightly differently - the alto part will be performed by a man, Clint van der Linde.

‘When people first hear a countertenor [the highest male adult singing voice], the main reason for the oddity is a man singing classical music or opera in a not too dissimilar way to a woman. But actually men singing in that part of the voice is more common than you might think' Clint says. ‘Think of the Beegees, or the Beach Boys, or countless other pop and rock artists, who all incorporate what we call the ‘falsetto' into their performance'.

Clint began his career at the Drakensberg Boys' Choir in South Africa, where he earned his reputation as the famous ‘boy soprano'. When his voice broke at the age of 16 he thought he might never be able to sing professionally again, until the Kings Singers came to South Africa. ‘It was David Hurley, the countertenor, whose performance moved me. I thought I can do that, as I still had a three octave range in my high voice. There was hope' recalls Clint. He then took part in one of Ralph Allwood's renowned Eton Choral Courses. As a result of his success in this, he was offered the Queen Mother Scholarship for a four year B-Mus. Degree at the Royal College of Music, from where he launched his now internationally-successful career.

‘All counter-tenor roles can be performed by women, of course. So it is a challenge to show that you have the volume and stamina to compete with female singers' says van der Linde. ‘The main argument in favour of using a counter-tenor is that many think it is more stylistically correct, as it is very similar to the voice of the castrati, for whom many of the pieces we still perform today were written and so it makes more sense for a man to sing a man's role.'

Clint has had a number of career highlights to include touring Bach's B Minor Mass with Bach Collegium Japan and Masaaki Suzuki, where he had his Carnegie Hall debut, touring Handel's Orlando with Philharmonia Baroque under Nic Mcgegan where he performed at Ravinia, the Lincoln Centre and Tanglewood, and recording the B Minor Mass with The Rodolfus Choir and Southern Sinfonia on the Signum Classics label - the CD of which will be available to buy at the concert.

Clint and Southern Sinfonia will be joined by Grace Davidson (soprano), Nathan Vale (tenor) and the winner of the Hampshire Singing Competition, Jimmy Holliday (bass), as well as Bach Choir Voices.

Visit www.southernsinfonia.co.uk