| Series |
The Master musicians
Master musicians series. ^A260201
|
| Contents |
Germany, 1685-1706 -- Italy and Hanover, 1706-10 -- Music for Germany and Italy, 1706-10 -- London: The first decade, 1711-19 -- The music, 1711-19 -- The 'academy' years, 1720-32 -- The music of the 'academy' years -- The transitional decade I: competition, 1732-7 -- The transitional decade II: confusion, 1737-41 -- The music, 1732-41 -- The oratorio composer I: Dublin and London, 1741-5 -- The oratorio composer II: towards victory, 1745-9 -- The music of the 1740s -- The final decade I: The last major works, 1749-51 -- The final decade II: A career completed. |
| Abstract |
George Frideric Handel was a defining figure of the late Baroque era, shaping its music for the theatre in much the same way J.S. Bach dominated the writing of music for use in church. Perhaps best known for bringing the oratorio form to an English-speaking audience with masterworks such as Messiah, Handel also had a distinguished career as a composer of Italian operas, and furthermore found time to influence the development of orchestral music by writing such works as the Water Music and Music for the Royal Fireworks. The author's new biography relates Handel's life and his music, devoting particular attention to two crucial junctures in Handel's development: his transition from a church-trained musician in Germany to a successful opera composer in London, and the gradual transformation of his theatre career from opera to oratorio, some thirty years later. In the oratorio form, as the author demonstrates, Handel was able to combine the techniques of large-scale construction and of aria writing that he had developed in his operas with an experience of choral music that went back to his earliest training as a church organist. The result was music that succeeds to this day in capturing the imagination of a vast audience. The last half-century has seen Handel take a major place in modern musical scholarship. This book takes into account not only recent knowledge of historical sources and significant studies of Handel's major works, but also research on Handel's "borrowing" practices, his habit of using the existing musical ideas of other composers as well as his own. Yet Handel remains unsurpassed as one of the greatest compositional architects in the history of Western music, with a sure instinct for both balance and originality in the final result. In this insightful study, the author brings to life not only the glory of Handel's artistry, but also his sometimes elusive personality, and the flavor of the times and places in which he lived. |
| Bibliography note | Includes list of composer's works (pages 409-441), bibliographical references (pages 463-470), and index. |
| LCCN | 93015279 |
| ISBN | 0028703278 : |
