15th October 2026
Sandy Burnett
Handel’s Messiah plays a central part in every Christmas celebration. The work has been a runaway success ever since its packed-out premiere in Dublin in 1742.
Sandy examines Handel’s revolutionary impact on Georgian music making, reflects on his brilliant librettist Charles Jennens, muses on performances over the years and celebrates Messiah’s many unforgettable moments, not least the Hallelujah Chorus – just how did it become so famous?
Sandy Burnett is one of the UK’s most versatile music commentators, enjoying a career that combines broadcasting, performing and lecturing. After studying at St Catharine’s College, Cambridge and working as music director for the RSC, National Theatre and in London’s West End, Sandy Burnett spent a decade as one of the core team of presenters on BBC Radio 3. Combining engaging scholarship with hands-on expertise, he devises and leads cultural holidays all over the world, is the author of the Idler Guide to Classical Music, is a highly sought after double bassist on the London jazz scene and was appointed the Academy of Ancient Music’s Hogwood Fellow for the 2018-19 season.
Sandy Burnett is one of the UK’s most authoritative broadcasters in the field of classical music. His broadcasts, interviews and lectures are all underpinned by the hands-on experience of being a practising musician.Since 2017, Sandy has been an accredited Arts Society lecturer, his talks aimed at unlocking the worlds of classical music and jazz to general arts-loving audiences. His busy diary of speaking engagements takes him right across the world. After spending a season as the Academy of Ancient Music's Hogwood Fellow, in the spring of 2020 he set up an online Listening Club to explore great works of classical music; conceived as a lockdown project, it has built up an enthusiastic and loyal following. He leads cultural tours to music festivals everywhere from New Orleans to Leipzig, and Bath to Budapest. Having learned his trade from Martin Randall Travel, whose clients gave him a 100% approval rating, he currently works in close partnership with ACE Cultural Tours.
