In the autumn of 1823, when Beethoven was worked hard on the composition of the Ninth Symphony, he was visited by an Englishman, Edward Schultz. The conversation turned to composers that Beethoven admired. Expecting Beethoven to give priority to composers from his immediate tradition, such as Haydn and Mozart, Schultz was both surprised and delighted with the unequivocal response: ‘Handel is the greatest, the ablest composer that ever lived’. When Schultz tried to bring Mozart’s name into the conversation Beethoven’s response was an impatient one: ‘In a monarchy we know who is the first’.
This is one of many complimentary remarks that Beethoven made about Handel, reflecting a view that he had held for much of his life. But it was not an unusual one in the Vienna of the time. Handel’s music enjoyed a presence in the musical life of the city that was equal to that of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven, even though the composer had died half a century earlier and had never even visited the city.
bkmk for study.
For anyone who might have missed my other post, here’s a Christmas flash mob singing the Hallelujah Chorus in a mall food court. Good stuff.
USNA Handel’s Messiah, “Hallelujah Chorus” My granddaughter is a member of the USNA Glee club which performs this masterpiece