In he took a post as violinist in the Hamburg opera orchestra, he fought a duel the following year with the composer Mattheson over the accompaniment to one of Mattheson's operas. In Handel returned to Germany to become court composer in Hannover. English audiences took to his opera Rinaldo, and several years later Handel moved to England permanently.
He impressed King George early on with the Water Music of , written as entertainment for a royal boat outing. Through the s Handel composed Italian operatic masterpieces for London stages: Ottone, Serse Xerxes , and other works often based on classical stories. In the s and s Handel turned to the oratorio which displayed to maximum effect Handel's melodic gift and the sense of timing he brought to big choral numbers. In Handel suffered a stroke, which caused both temporary paralysis in his right arm and some loss of his mental faculties.
Blind in old age, Handel continued to compose. He died in London on April 14, Beethoven thought Handel the greatest of all his predecessors; he once said, "I would bare my head and kneel at his grave". Did you know? Handel's father did not approve of his son's love of music. His mother had to smuggle a small keyboard into the attic of their house.
The young boy would play the instrument up there, in secret on his own, when his father was not around. Handel travelled to Dresden to attend the newly built opera. He saw Teofane by Antonio Lotti, and engaged the cast for the Royal Academy of Music, founded by a group of aristocrats to assure themselves a constant supply of baroque opera or opera seria. Handel may have invited John Smith, his fellow student in Halle, and his son Johann Christoph Schmidt, to become his secretary and amanuensis.
By he had moved into a Georgian house at 25 Brook Street, which he rented for the rest of his life. This house, where he rehearsed, copied music and sold tickets, is now the Handel House Museum. During twelve months between and , Handel wrote three outstanding and successful operas, Giulio Cesare , Tamerlano and Rodelinda.
After composing Silete venti , he concentrated on opera and stopped writing cantatas. Scipio , from which the regimental slow march of the British Grenadier Guards is derived, was performed as a stopgap, waiting for the arrival of Faustina Bordoni. One of these, Zadok the Priest , has been played at every British coronation ceremony since. Handel travelled to Italy to engage seven new singers. He composed seven more operas, but the public came to hear the singers rather than the music.
After two commercially successful English oratorios Esther and Deborah , he was able to invest again in the South Sea Company. Handel reworked his Acis and Galatea which then became his most successful work ever. Handel failed to compete with theOpera of the Nobility, who engaged musicians such as Johann Adolph Hasse, Nicolo Porpora and the famous castrato Farinelli.
The strong support by Frederick, Prince of Wales caused conflicts in the royal family. The board of chief investors expected Handel to retire when his contract ended, but Handel immediately looked for another theatre. Rich was renowned for his spectacular productions. In he introduced organ concertos between the acts.
For the first time Handel allowed Gioacchino Conti, who had no time to learn his part, to substitute arias. Financially, Ariodante was a failure, although he introduced ballet suites at the end of each act. In April , at age 52, Handel apparently suffered a stroke which disabled the use of four fingers on his right hand, preventing him from performing. In summer the disorder seemed at times to affect his understanding.
Nobody expected that Handel would ever be able to perform again. But whether the affliction was rheumatism, a stroke or a nervous breakdown, he recovered remarkably quickly.
To aid his recovery, Handel had travelled to Aachen, a spa in Germany. During six weeks he took long hot baths, and ended up playing the organ for a surprised audience. Deidamia , his last opera, was performed three times in Handel gave up the opera business, while he enjoyed more success with his English oratorios.
The circumstances of Esther and its first performance, possibly in , are obscure. Another 12 years had passed when an act of piracy caused him to take up Esther once again. Three earlier performances aroused such interest that they naturally prompted the idea of introducing it to a larger public. In these three oratorios Handel laid foundation for the traditional use of the chorus which marks his later oratorios. Handel became sure of himself, broader in his presentation, and more diverse in his composition.
It is evident how much he learned from Arcangelo Corelli about writing for instruments, and from Alessandro Scarlatti about writing for the solo voice; but there is no single composer who taught him how to write for chorus. Handel tended more and more to replace Italian soloists by English ones. The most significant reason for this change was the dwindling financial returns from his operas.
Thus a tradition was created for oratorios which was to govern their future performance. The performances were given without costumes and action; the singers appeared in their own clothes. The piece was a great success and it encouraged Handel to make the transition from writing Italian operas to English choral works. Saul and Israel in Egypt both from head the list of great, mature oratorios, in which the da capo aria became the exception and not the rule.
Israel in Egypt consists of little else but choruses, borrowing from the Funeral Anthem for Queen Caroline. In his next works Handel changed his course. In these works he laid greater stress on the effects of orchestra and soloists; the chorus retired into the background. During the summer of , The 3rd Duke of Devonshire invited Handel to Dublin, capital of the Kingdom of Ireland, to give concerts for the benefit of local hospitals.
Handel secured a balance between soloists and chorus which he never surpassed. In Handel wrote his oratorio Alexander Balus. All dark amidst the blaze of noon. Oh glorious light! By , Handel had entirely lost sight in his left eye. He forged on, however, composing the oratorio Jephtha , which also contained a reference to obscured vision. In Handel lost sight in his other eye and was rendered completely blind. He kept on performing and composing, relying on his sharp memory to compensate when necessary, and remained actively involved in productions of his work until his dying day.
The Baroque composer and organist was 74 years old. Handel was known for being a generous man, even in death. Having never married or fathered children, his will divided his assets among his servants and several charities, including the Foundling Hospital. He even donated the money to pay for his own funeral so that none of his loved ones would bear the financial burden.
Handel was buried in Westminster Abbey a week after he died. Following his death, biographical documents began to circulate, and George Handel soon took on legendary status posthumously.
During his lifetime, Handel composed nearly 30 oratorios and close to 50 operas. He was also a prolific writer of orchestral pieces and concerti grossi. He is said to have made significant contributions to all of the musical genres of his generation.
His most renowned work is the oratorio Messiah , written in and first performed in Dublin in We strive for accuracy and fairness. If you see something that doesn't look right, contact us!
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