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George Frideric Handel

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

George Frideric Handel, christened Georg Friedrich Händel, was a German-British Baroque composer known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi and organ concertos. He was born in 1685 in Halle, the same year as Johann Sebastian Bach and Domenico Scarlatti, and died on 14 April 1759. His father was a prominent barber-surgeon at court. Handel spent his early years in Hamburg and Italy and settled in London in 1712, where he became a British subject in 1727.

Music and breakthrough

He was strongly influenced by the central German choral polyphonic tradition and by the Italian Baroque. In London he set up three commercial opera companies to supply the English nobility with Italian opera. In 1737 he suffered a physical breakdown, changed course and, with choral works in English, turned to the middle classes. After his success with Messiah in 1742 he never wrote another Italian opera. Water Music and Music for the Royal Fireworks remain popular. Zadok the Priest, one of his four coronation anthems, has been heard at every British coronation since 1727.

Influence

Handel brought Italian opera to its highest development and created the English oratorio and the organ concerto. He died a respected and wealthy man and was given a state funeral in Westminster Abbey. Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven admired his music, and since the middle of the twentieth century interest has grown. The musicologist Winton Dean called him a great composer and a dramatic genius of the first order.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Zadok the Priest and notice the role of the choir and the orchestra. This piece has been heard at every British coronation since 1727.

Discography

Studio albums

Categories: Artists