The Light of the World (Sullivan)

Historian Michael Ainger suggests that the idea for the libretto of The Light of the World came to Sullivan when he viewed a chapel near Norwich, England, in September 1872.

[1] Sullivan's introduction to the work says that, unlike Handel's Messiah, which focuses on Christ's "spiritual idea", or J. S. Bach's Passion music, which focuses on Christ's suffering, the purpose of The Light of the World is to "set forth the human aspect of the life of our Lord on earth, exemplifying it by some of the actual incidents in his career, which bear specially upon His attributes of Preacher, Healer and Prophet."

[3] During the rehearsal period, Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh (a son of Queen Victoria), announced his engagement to the Grand Duchess Marie Alexandrovna of Russia, daughter of Tsar Alexander II.

Considering the difficulties of precedent with which Mr. Sullivan had to deal, in Handel's Messiah and Bach's Passion music, not to mention Mendelssohn's unfinished Christus, he may be said to have entered the lists against an array of giants.

"Only rarely in the course of this ponderous two and three-quarter hour progress does the vital composer of The Tempest and the Irish Symphony surface", wrote Christopher Webber in 2000.

[13] Another reviewer found a middle ground: "The main weakness of The Light of the World [is] the lifeless music given to the baritone (Jesus) part.

In awarding the recording 5 stars out of five, Robert Hugill praised the vocal writing, use of text, "daring" first-person approach, "striking and often colourful orchestrations" and the dramatic characterization of the chorus.

[2] Andrew Achenbach, in Gramophone, agreed: The Light of the World … emerges after many decades of unjust neglect as a splendidly distinctive, unstuffy achievement, brimful of captivating melodic charm, communicative flair and technical confidence, always displaying an enviably sure dramatic instinct.

… Especially imaginative is Sullivan’s deployment of an inner-orchestra to accompany the words of Jesus, the mellow timbre of violas, cellos, cor anglais, bass clarinet and contrabassoon registering to frequently ear-pricking effect.

Wonderfully affecting, too, is the purely orchestral introduction to the memorable "Weep ye not for the dead", and the sublime unaccompanied vocal quartet "Yea, though I walk through the valley".