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George Frideric Handel
1685-1759
“If I merely entertain them,
Then I have failed.
I wish to make them better.”
-George Frideric Handel
1
Halle Germany
Photo by: Tamas Szalai
Beginnings:
• Born February 23rd 1685 to George Handel
and Dorothea Taust.
• Said to have concealed a clavichord in his
home for fear of his father finding it.
• The Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels discovered
Handel’s talent and urged his father to seek
musical training for him
• Played at the organ for the Domkirche.
1702 Italy
1702, Italy
Photo by: Kendra Larsen
Italian opera and Baroque:
• At the age of 22 wrote Agrippina his first opera,
performed in Venice.
• became an accomplished violinist and
harpsichordist.
• Invited by the future king of England, King Georg
Ludwig, to visit London.
1712 London
Photo by: Niju Vashikaran
A British Subject:
• Rinaldo, performed During his first visit to London
became a huge success
• Water Music, performed for the king on the river
Thames
• Composed Zadock the Priest for the kings
coronation ceremony, performed now at every
coronation.
• February 1727 Handel Became a naturalized british
citizen
Burial: At his request, Handel was laid to rest within
Westminster Abbey’s famous Poets Corner.
"He is the greatest composer that ever lived. I would
uncover my head and kneel before his tomb."
—Ludwig van Beethoven, quoted in Percy M Young,
Handel (1947)
Handel’s Oratorios
towards the end of his life Handel’s work was comprised
mostly of oratorio’s. (large vocal choirs accompanied by
the orchestra)
solomon
Saul
Oratorio
Messiah
Jeptha
Hallelujah Chorus: one of Handel’s most
recognizable oratorio’s today.
On composing Messiah, Handel is said to have remarked (1741),
"I did think I did see all Heaven before me and the great God Himself."
this piece by Handel is
traditionally performed
during the Christmas
season.
This recording features
Kent Nagano conducting
in Notre Dame
On composing
Messiah, Handel is
said to have
Listening to Handel’s Messiah Chorus
Here is a listening guide for this piece performed in New York City 2004 with Johann Strauss orchestra and the Harlem
gospel choir. Much of the piece is a repetition of the same phrases with different accents introduced throughout. Featured is
the voice of men and women with the accompaniment of the orchestra.
•
:01
introduction by the orchestra which builds straight into the introduction of voice with the first Hallelujah
•
:06
both men and women sing in homophony Hallelujah. The orchestra begins the trend of immediately
highlighting the previous words after hallelujah which is mimicked by the voice and the orchestra through the rest of
the piece.
•
:22
the first recitative sung by women voices is introduced immediately followed by hallelujah.
•
:31
men’s voices now recite the previous recitative again followed by Hallelujah.
•
:42
an exchange starting with the soprano voices begins singing “for the lord god omnipotent reigneth” at which
time the men sing variations on Hallelujah. This transitions back and forth until the next recitative in introduced.
•
1:06 in homophony all “sing the kingdom of this world is become the kingdom of our lord and of his Christ”. This is
followed by again all singing “and he shall reign forever and ever. This In similar fashion to the previous exchange.
•
1:41 a gradual building of “king of king and lord of lords” is begun by the women voices which is held at the end of
each syllable while the men singing hallelujah
•
2:28 men mimic the same pattern the women’s voices had previously but without the gradual build on each
interval.
•
2:42 all sing in unison the each piece of recitative
•
2:57 the final decent is begun
•
3:04 silence
•
3:06 contrasting off the previous silence all voices and orchestra begin the last grandiose Hallelujah ending on the
same note.
References:
Chartwell Books. Great composers. England: Chartwell
Books, 1989. Print.
Hogwood, Christopher. Handel: Water Music and
Music for the Royal Fireworks. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press. 2005. web.
Mainwaring, John. Memoirs of the life of the late
George Frederic Handel.
Fargis, Paul (1998). The New York Public Library Desk
Reference (third ed.). New York: Macmillan
General Reference. pp. 262.