Haydn: Die Schöpfung (The Creation) with Simon Rattle

Featuring

Benjamin Bruns
Christian Gerhaher
Lucy Crowe
Sir Simon Rattle
Chor des Bayerischen Rundfunks
Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks

Joseph Haydn

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Compositional Technique

Haydn extensively used 'tone painting' in 'The Creation', especially in nature descriptions, which was later frowned upon by 19th-century theorists of absolute music.

Compositional Technique

Haydn's 'The Creation' combines contrapuntal elements, Italian vocal melodies, and Viennese Classical homophonic instrumental writing.

Composer Biography

At 63, Joseph Haydn was one of the most famous and sought-after composers of his time when he returned to Vienna in 1795.

Composition History

Haydn was inspired to compose a large-scale oratorio after hearing several Handel oratorios in London during his first visit in 1791.

Composition History

Baron van Swieten, a passionate music patron, translated the English libretto for Haydn's 'The Creation' into German and helped finance the project.

Composer's Artistic Vision

Haydn's 'The Creation' departed from traditional Baroque oratorio by focusing on contemplative praise of the world rather than dramatic action.

Critical Reception

The success of 'The Creation' was so immense that the publisher Breitkopf & Härtel noted in 1801: 'Never has a musical work of art caused such a sensation, and found as broad a public, as J. Haydn's Creation'.