Making Messiah: How Handel Got His Mojo Back and Created a Masterpiece
Stephen J. Dubner · Zack Lapinski
Mar 2026 · Simon and Schuster · Narrated by Stephen J. Dubner
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2 hr 48 min
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About this audiobook
From Freakonomics Radio host Stephen Dubner comes an immersive, insightful audio documentary tracing the creation and enduring legacy of George Frideric Handel's Messiah, which has been called the greatest piece of participatory music ever created.
In 2020, Stephen Dubner fell madly in love with a piece of music. During the COVID-19 pandemic, struggling with the uncertainty and isolation of the moment, he attended a Christmas concert and really heard Handel's Messiah for the very first time.
Making Messiah takes listeners on an epic journey through the life of composer George Frideric Handel and the creation of his iconic oratorio. Dubner travels to Fishamble Street in Dublin, where the very first performance of Messiah took place in 1742; to London, where Handel composed operas commissioned by the royal family; and to many modern institutions that commemorate and celebrate Handel’s work. Interviewing authors, scholars, and musicians, he explores Handel's influences and finds out how Messiah grapples with the ideas of its era while continuing to have a deep impact on modern culture. Why does an 18th-century Christian oratorio lend such comfort to our own turbulent times? Ultimately, Dubner argues, Messiah is about hope — the piece is a doorway to a world of possibility, and we can't help but make it our own.
Please note: Making Messiah was first released as a podcast series on Freakonomics Radio.
In 2020, Stephen Dubner fell madly in love with a piece of music. During the COVID-19 pandemic, struggling with the uncertainty and isolation of the moment, he attended a Christmas concert and really heard Handel's Messiah for the very first time.
Making Messiah takes listeners on an epic journey through the life of composer George Frideric Handel and the creation of his iconic oratorio. Dubner travels to Fishamble Street in Dublin, where the very first performance of Messiah took place in 1742; to London, where Handel composed operas commissioned by the royal family; and to many modern institutions that commemorate and celebrate Handel’s work. Interviewing authors, scholars, and musicians, he explores Handel's influences and finds out how Messiah grapples with the ideas of its era while continuing to have a deep impact on modern culture. Why does an 18th-century Christian oratorio lend such comfort to our own turbulent times? Ultimately, Dubner argues, Messiah is about hope — the piece is a doorway to a world of possibility, and we can't help but make it our own.
Please note: Making Messiah was first released as a podcast series on Freakonomics Radio.
From Freakonomics Radio host Stephen Dubner comes an immersive, insightful audio documentary tracing the creation and enduring legacy of George Frideric Handel's Messiah, which has been called the greatest piece of participatory music ever created.
In 2020, Stephen Dubner fell madly in love with...
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About the author
Stephen Dubner is the host of Freakonomics Radio and co-author of the Freakonomics books, which have won many awards and sold millions of copies around the world.
The eighth and last child of an upstate New York newspaperman, Stephen has been writing since he was a child. (His first published work appeared in Highlights magazine.) As an undergraduate at Appalachian State University, he started a rock band that was signed to Arista Records, which landed him in New York City. He ultimately quit playing music to earn an M.F.A. in writing at Columbia University, where he also taught in the English Department. He was an editor and writer at New York magazine and The New York Times before quitting to write books. He is happy he did so. In addition to the Freakonomics series, he is the author of Turbulent Souls (Choosing My Religion), Confessions of a Hero-Worshiper, and the children’s book The Boy With Two Belly Buttons. He lives in New York City.
After narrowly avoiding a career in finance, Zack Lapinski joined Freakonomics Radio, where he is now a senior producer. His economics degree from New York University has been put to surprisingly good use. He can be found in Los Feliz, Los Angeles, where he has a decidedly uneconomical number of books.
The eighth and last child of an upstate New York newspaperman, Stephen has been writing since he was a child. (His first published work appeared in Highlights magazine.) As an undergraduate at Appalachian State University, he started a rock band that was signed to Arista Records, which landed him in New York City. He ultimately quit playing music to earn an M.F.A. in writing at Columbia University, where he also taught in the English Department. He was an editor and writer at New York magazine and The New York Times before quitting to write books. He is happy he did so. In addition to the Freakonomics series, he is the author of Turbulent Souls (Choosing My Religion), Confessions of a Hero-Worshiper, and the children’s book The Boy With Two Belly Buttons. He lives in New York City.
After narrowly avoiding a career in finance, Zack Lapinski joined Freakonomics Radio, where he is now a senior producer. His economics degree from New York University has been put to surprisingly good use. He can be found in Los Feliz, Los Angeles, where he has a decidedly uneconomical number of books.
Stephen Dubner is the host of Freakonomics Radio and co-author of the Freakonomics books, which have won many awards and sold millions of copies around the world.
The eighth and last child of an upstate New York newspaperman, Stephen has been writing since he was a child. (His first published ...
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