George Frideric Handel

Baroque

Together with Bach he is considered the greatest composer of the late Baroque.

💡 Did you know? Handel was, with Bach, the towering master of the Baroque: but unlike the home-loving Bach, a well-travelled man of the world.

Halle (Saale)

The same year as Johann Sebastian Bach: yet the two never met.

💡 Did you know? Handel was born in Halle in 1685: just a month before Bach and less than 150 km away; yet the two never met.

London

He took British citizenship in 1727.

💡 Did you know? The English spell his name George Frideric Handel, without the umlaut.

Messiah

Premiered in Dublin in 1742; English audiences traditionally stand for the 'Hallelujah' chorus.

💡 Did you know? Handel composed the entire „Messiah“ in only about three weeks: at the „Hallelujah“ he is said to have cried in tears that he had „seen heaven open“.

Water Music

King George I reportedly loved it so much that the musicians had to play it several times over.

💡 Did you know? The „Water Music“ was played in 1717 on boats accompanying King George I on the Thames: so popular it had to be repeated several times.

Music for the Royal Fireworks

Written for the Peace of Aix-la-Chapelle, which ended the War of the Austrian Succession.

💡 Did you know? So many came to the 1749 rehearsal of the „Music for the Royal Fireworks“ that London Bridge was gridlocked for hours.

Italian opera

More than 40 operas, including 'Rinaldo' and 'Giulio Cesare'. Later he switched to English oratorios.

💡 Did you know? Handel was at first London's most celebrated opera composer: when audiences lost their taste for Italian opera, he switched to the English oratorio.

British

That same year he wrote four anthems for the coronation of George II: 'Zadok the Priest' has been sung at every British coronation since.

💡 Did you know? 'Zadok the Priest' is also the basis of the UEFA Champions League anthem.

Westminster Abbey

Around 3,000 people attended his funeral: an honour otherwise reserved for royalty.

💡 Did you know? Handel, a highly honoured adopted Englishman, was buried in Westminster Abbey: over 3,000 people attended the funeral.

blindness

Both were operated on, unsuccessfully, by the same travelling oculist, John Taylor.

💡 Did you know? Despite his blindness Handel kept performing as an organist: improvising his solos.

lawyer

The boy practised in secret on a clavichord in the attic: at least according to legend.

💡 Did you know? Handel's father was determined to make him a lawyer and at first forbade all music; the son practised secretly at night in the attic.

George Frideric Handel

George Frideric Handel was a German-British Baroque composer, famous for operas, oratorios like „Messiah“ and festive orchestral music.

💡 Did you know? He composed the entire „Messiah“, with the famous „Hallelujah“, in only about three weeks.

Hallelujah Chorus (Messiah)

The jubilant chorus from Handel's oratorio ‘Messiah’ is tied to Christmas and Easter like almost no other piece.

💡 Did you know? Audiences traditionally stand for the ‘Hallelujah’: supposedly because King George II once did.

Water Music

Festive orchestral music Handel wrote in 1717 for a royal boat trip on the Thames.

💡 Did you know? The orchestra played on its own barge floating alongside the king's.