R. R. Branstrom | Daily Press Esky Baroque Choir and Orchestra practices for their upcoming concert, which will be held Sunday, Nov. 24 at 4 p.m. at St. Joseph and St. Patrick Church at 709 1st Ave. S. in Escanaba. They will play and sing “Messiah,” composed by Handel in 1741.

ESCANABA — Esky Baroque, the group that performs classical music from centuries past, is putting on a concert this Sunday, Nov. 24. From 4 p.m., the sounds of “Messiah,” an oratorio composed by George Frideric Handel in 1741, will fill St. Joseph and St. Patrick Church, the striking Romanesque Revival church on 7th Avenue South decorated with marble interior, rose windows, stained glass, and stone columns.

Esky Baroque’s other performances have been heavily instrumental. On Sunday, the program will unveil a larger cast — a 13-piece orchestra and 20-person choir — and announce a name for the new choir.

“This is an incredible choir,” said Musical Director Rachel Capon, explaining that the singers have been practicing with Choir Director John Ignatowski all summer. “What’s really exceptional about this is it’s the size of the original performance,” Capon said. “It’s very hard to sing, and it needs a lot of stamina.”

While Esky Baroque will not recreate Handel’s entire oratorio, they will play 40 of the 53 movements in a concert that is expected to last a little over two hours. The musicians believe the last time “Messiah” was performed to this extent in Escanaba was in the 1980s.

Though Esky Baroque is fairly new — their first concert was only a year and a half ago — they’ve struck quite a chord with the public. Last year’s fall concert reduced the First Presbyterian Church to standing room only; a massive crowd turned up to the lawn of the Escanaba Yacht Club this summer to hear the group play Handel’s “Water Music”; for Sunday’s upcoming performance, over 400 people have expressed interest on Facebook.

Donations will be collected at the event to benefit three charities: Samaritan’s Purse and the food pantries of St. Vincent de Paul and the Salvation Army.