Handel
Full Name: George Frideric Handel
Nickname/Alias: born Georg Friedrich Haendel
Achievements: Oratorios.
Born: February 23, 1685; Halle, Saxony, Germany.
Died: April 14, 1759; London, England (Aged 84)
Field & Discipline: Music; Composer
Language: German; English
Education: Musical instruction from Friedrich Zachow; University of Halle (1702-03)
Major Work:
The oratorio “Messiah” (1741)
Life & Times:
In early 1701 Handel visited Hildesheim to meet the famous composer [a pal of] Telemann* , with whom he struck up a lifelong friendship. In 1702, he enrolled as a law student at the University of Halle.
In the same year he became organist of the Reformed (Calvinist) Cathedral in Halle, but served for only one year before going north to Hamburg to join the violin section of the opera orchestra under the composer, Reinhard Keiser.
In late 1703 Handel visited Lubeck to attend the evening concerts and meet the famous organist and composer [influenced by] Buxtehude*. In Hamburg, he also took over some of the duties of harpsichordist and wrote his first opera, “Almira.” This had been started by Keiser but taken over by Handel, when the former composer lost interest. It was performed at the Hamburg Opera House early in 1705.
The next year Handel went to Italy.
He spent the next four years travelling between Florence, Rome, and Venice, meeting many of the greatest Italian musicians of the day, including [met] Corelli*, [met] Vivaldi* and [met] Scarlatti*.
He worked in turn for the Duke of Tuscany, Cardinal Ottoboni and Prince Ruspoli, among others and composed many works in Italy. These works included two operas, over fifty Italian solo cantatas, mostly for Prince Ruspoli, “Il trionfo del tempo e del disinganno” (1707) and the serenata “Aci, Galatea e Polifemo” (1708). His opera, “Agrippina,” enjoyed sensational success at its premiere in Venice in 1709.
Throughout his career, Handel would return to the music he wrote during this time, adapting it to new uses and sometimes simply inserting it into a new work. Handel's years in Italy greatly influenced the development of his musical style.
His fame had spread throughout Italy, both as a composer and as a keyboard virtuoso and his mastery of the Italian opera style now made him an international figure. In 1710, he left Italy for Hanover, where he negotiated a position as Kapellmeister to the court of the Elector, George Louis. The contract began with an extended leave of absence so that he could accept an invitation to visit England.
Having arrived in London in the Autumn of 1710, his opera “Rinaldo” (1711), composed for performance at the Queen's Theater in Haymarket, was so successful that he began to think of moving to England.
He returned to the continent in June 1711, having established contacts in the English theatres and at court and, after taking up his post in Hanover, spent the next year composing orchestral and chamber music for the Elector of Hanover.
In the meantime, he studied English in preparation for another visit in the autumn of 1712. On his return to England, Queen Anne granted him an annual income, and he responded with a series of occasional ceremonial pieces for the court. These pieces included the “Utrecht Te Deum” and “Jubilate” (1713) in celebration of the Peace of Utrecht and the “Ode for Queen Anne's Birthday” (1713).
His operas, including “Il Pastor Fido” (1712), and “Teseo” (1713), had mixed receptions, but “Rinaldo” was revived repeatedly and the British public was intrigued with the novelty of opera sung in Italian.
In August 1714, Queen Anne died and the English throne was claimed by the Elector of Hanover, by whom Handel was theoretically still employed. To deflect the annoyance of the new King George I at his earlier his absence from Hanover, Handel composed “The Water Music” (1717) as a peace offering. Before long, the King had increased Handel's pension.
From 1717 to 1720 he was also composer to the Duke of Chandos, the chief fruits of this appointment being the 11 “Chandos Anthems” and the English masque “Acis and Galatea.” In 1719, he became musical director of the Royal Academy of Music, created by the king to produce an annual season of Italian opera in London at the King's Theatre, Haymarket.
For the next twenty- three years, Handel immersed himself in producing opera, and in 1726 became a British subject and composer to the Chapel Royal, producing the Coronation Anthems for George II the following year.
He remained at the Academy until its closure in 1728,composing fourteen operas, including “Radamisto” (1720), “Floridante” (1721), “Ottone” (1723), “Giulio Cesare” (1724), “Rodelinda” (1725), “Admeto” (1727), and “Tolomeo” (1728).
At this time, [work related to] Gay* rocked the foundations of Italian opera in England with his satirical “Beggar's Opera” and, in early 1729, Handel visited Italy to hear operas by composers such as Pergolesi.
Back in London he went into partnership with the Swiss musical manager John Jacob Heidigger and set up an Italian opera company (at the King's Theatre) for which he wrote “Lotario” (1729), “Partenope” (1730), and “Orlando” (1733).
In 1734, he moved to the new Covent Garden Theatre, but realized that the popularity of Italian opera was waning thanks to competition not only from rival composers, in particular from Nicola Porpora but also from rival opera houses in London.
He then began to develop dramatic oratorios. In 1732, the revival of Handel's masques “Acis and Galatea” and “Haman and Mordecai” led to the establishment of English oratorio. Handel used this form in “Deborah” and “Athalia” and conducted several oratorio performances in London in 1735, playing his own organ concertos as entr'actes.
Finally, in 1737, his company went bankrupt and Handel himself suffered what appears to have been a mild stroke. After a course of treatment at Aix-la-Chapelle in France, he was restored to health and went on to compose “The Ways of Zion do Mourn,” the funeral anthem for Queen Caroline.
He also produced “Saul” and “Israel in Egypt,” both of which were performed in 1739, the “Twelve Grand Concertos,” Opus 6 and helped establish the Fund for the Support of Decayed Musicians, now the Royal Society of Musicians.
In 1741, at the highest point in his career, Handel composed “Messiah,” a sensational success, making the oratorio the most popular form of musical entertainment and prompting the composition of “Samson.” Over the next four years Handel produced “Joseph and His Brethren” and “Belshazzar” (1745), “Semele” and “Dettingen Te Deum” (1743) and “Hercules” (1745).
Handel was involved in a serious coaching accident in 1750, when travelling through Holland to Germany and from that point on, he began experiencing eye trouble. The following year he underwent surgery by the English quack optician, John Taylor, who had unsuccessfully operated on [same eye surgeon as] J. S. Bach* the year before. By 1753, Handel was completely blind.
He had already suffered two strokes and, from 1753 onwards, what little new music he produced was dictated to his copyist, John Christopher Smith. But he managed to finish, the last of his oratorios, “Jephtha,” performed at the Covent Garden Theatre and he continued his interest in music through to the end.
After his death on April 14th 1759, there was a large state funeral, after which, he was buried in Poets' Corner, Westminster Abbey. Handel's Italian operas fell into obscurity, except for selections such as the aria from Serse, "Ombra mai fu". The oratorios continued to be performed but not long after Handel's death they were thought to need some modernisation, and Mozart orchestrated German versions of Messiah and other works. Throughout the 19th century and first half of the 20th century, particularly in the Anglophone countries, his reputation rested primarily on his English oratorios, which were customarily performed by choruses of amateur singers on solemn occasions. The centenary of his death, in 1859, was celebrated by a performance of Messiah at The Crystal Palace, involving 2,765 singers and 460 instrumentalists, who played for an audience of about 10,000 people.
Extra Connections:
His music was admired by Classical-era composers, especially Mozart, Haydn and Beethoven.
Handel wrote the music for [wrote music for] Smollett's* tragic opera “Alceste” (1750) at Covent Garden, but it was a failure. Handel's sister wrote a biography of [sister wrote biography of] Blaise Pascal*.
First published by [first published by] Arnold*
[a fan was] Frederick Prince of Wales* was a great fan
His music was directed by [music directed by] CPE Bach*
He knew [knew] Kent*, and [knew] Sloane*
A rival was [a rival was] Gluck*
[music sung by] Jenny Lind* had great success with his music
Music played a lot by [a fan was] Linley*
He collaborated with [collaborated with] Rich*
[music played by] Rossini* played his music for the King
He inspired French composer [inspired] Saint Saens*
Assessment: Handel was responsible for making the oratorio the most popular contemporary music form in England. His music has become a national treasure.
Oneliner: George Frederick Handel, great 18th century composer
Bibliography:
- Landon, H.C. Robbins, Handel and his World, London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1984.
Father: Georg Handel
Mother: Dorothea Taust
Siblings: Dorothea Sophia; Johanna Christiana
Spouse: None
Children: None