“The finest Composition of Musick that ever was heard” – this was only one of the enthusiastic press reviews written after the world premiere of Handel’s Messiah. Handel’s oratorios were, overall, already very popular during his lifetime and were frequently performed. Since 2009, Carus has been issuing a CD series with Handel’s oratorios as well as select vocal works, operas and instrumental compositions. Now a box containing 13 CDs and comprising several large-scale oratorios has been compiled: it includes, in addition to “The Messiah,” “Alexander’s Feast,” “Israel in Egypt,” “Brockes-Passion,” “Solomon” as well as the relatively unknown gem “L'Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato.” The artists on this CD collection include the Kölner Kammerchor under Peter Neumann, Kammerchor Stuttgart under Frieder Bernius, Vocalensemble Rastatt under Holger Speck and Winchester Cathedral Choir under Nicolas McGegan.