George Frideric Handel, though German by birth, became a prominent composer of Italian opera in England and later created the English oratorio.
Composition History
Handel's Gloria, a setting for soprano, violins, and continuo, was rediscovered in 2001 and has since been accepted into his Latin church music.
Recording & Production
This recording uses a pitch of a' = 415 Hz and Neidhardt temperament from 1729, reflecting historical performance practices.
Composer Biography
Handel's early interest in music was discouraged by his father, a well-to-do barber-surgeon, but he pursued music fully after his father's death.
Composition History
Barthold Heinrich Brockes's Passion text, 'Der für die Sünden der Welt gemarterte und sterbende Jesus', was set by several composers, including Handel, Keiser, Mattheson, and Telemann.
Compositional Technique
All but one of Handel's Nine German Arias are in da capo form, featuring a middle section in a contrasting key that often conveys the poem's moral lesson.
Composition History
The Nine German Arias set poems by Barthold Heinrich Brockes, a German lawyer and poet whom Handel likely met in Halle.
