Title: Handel: A Musical Life of Devotion
1A great gift to music entered into the world on
in Halle, Germany. A life of great musical
interest one filled with an unbelievable talent
that would become a beacon to many throughout the
European continent and span centuries past its
lifetime. It is a life that would become centered
around a great mystery of how the musical talent
would blossom into a recognized and celebrated
gift a life that would alter the musical
landscape and the spiritual worship realm in a
short days, and a life that would become so
influential that it would dictate musical
compositions for many years after wards. This was
only fueled by the internal conflicts among
performers, patrons, and rival composers. This
was a time when Handel's short fuse and hot
temper did not help, as Handel himself was part
of many of the quarrels that took place, though
he was clever enough to lighten the situation and
make the tensions eventually come to an end
through humor and quick wit. This did not help
the academy in the long run as it eventually was
forced to close its doors, but at the same time
it only freed Handel to focus on his career, and
eventually give him the time to prepare for the
needed shift in musical direction as the opera
itself had reached a point to where it was no
longer a viable musical performance option in
England.
2- A musical life that in the beginning would find
itself struggling to exist a life that will be
forever known in George Frideric Handel. It is
through Handel that we credit many great musical
accomplishments accomplishments in the mixture
of homophonic and polyphonic textures, through
the creation of his own unique works through the
process of combining German, Italian, French, and
English musical traditions into his highly
successful English Oratorios. And most
importantly through the lasting effects of
Handel's single greatest gift to the world, and
the world of music The Messiah. But how does the
work of this single musician leave such a strong
impression on the music that we have today? What
could possibly make the music of Handel something
that would be hailed as electric, memorable,
unique, and even cutting edge? And most
importantly how could one person alter the
musical idiom through a single twenty-four day
creation of a setting of Christ's life? Through
these questions I will explore Handel's impact on
music in a way that shed's light onto the
significance of Handel as a musician, a teacher,
and inventor and as a religious preserver. It is
with Handel that we credit a great deal of
musical advancement.
3- Adversity in Handel's life was something that he
encountered early on in life. At an early age
Handel found himself faced with a father that did
not support a career in music, in fact his father
was a person that greatly hated music noting
that it was a pastime that served the sole
purpose of casting a light on the weakness of
character found within a person. It was his
father that wished he would strive to obtain a
career as a lawyer, a position that would come
with a great deal of security in position and
financial stability. This was something that
Handel himself would have to come to terms with,
because he himself was born with "signs of a
fierce ambition, born of an awareness of his
superiority as a musician, and with a
determination to maintain his independence." This
determination to advance his musical skill became
a task that took a great deal of hard work and
convincing though it was Handel's mother that
provided access to a clavichord hidden in the
family's attic.
4- The hours spent hiding from his father in the
Organifi Green Juice Review attic, covering the
strings of the clavichord with cloth to dampen
the sound, allowed young George the time to
practice his musical development and eventually
the knowledge of how to play both the clavichord
and the organ. This early study is most likely
what saved the musical career for Handel, because
it was during the time stuck in the attic that a
young Duke passing by heard young George playing
in the attic and was so moved by what he heard,
that he stopped to listen. After hearing young
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play the organ, the Duke pleaded with George's
father to allow him to travel to Berlin and begin
to take music lessons. The young Handel began
taking lessons at the age of eight, and was
easily able to conquer learning the violin,
composition and theory techniques, harpsichord,
and reinforce the organ playing skills.