Haydn, J.: Jahreszeiten (Die)

Featuring

Sir Roger Norrington
Christiane Oelze
Scot Weir
Peter Lika
Chamber Orchestra of Europe
RIAS Kammerchor

Joseph Haydn

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Interpretation

Sir Roger Norrington's historically informed performance style, which he established with the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra and Camerata Salzburg, emphasizes pure tone without continuous vibrato, appropriate numbers of players, and historical seating plans.

Performer Biography

Sir Roger Norrington, the conductor, founded the London Classical Players in 1978 to research original instrument performance practices from 1750 to 1900.

Critical Reception

Despite being a work of Haydn's old age, a contemporary composer and choir director, Carl Friedrich Zelter, praised "The Seasons" as a work of youthful energy and old mastery.

Compositional Technique

In "The Seasons," Haydn combined the theatrical gestures of Handel's oratorios with elements of his own symphonic style.

Composer Biography

Joseph Haydn, born in a peasant's cottage in Rohrau, Austria, was not a child prodigy like Mozart, but sang in a church choir at six and the Vienna St. Stephen's Cathedral choir at eight.

Composer's Artistic Vision

For the almost seventy-year-old Haydn, "The Creation" and "The Seasons" fulfilled a lifelong dream of writing music for all people, not just the aristocracy.

Composition History

Haydn's oratorios, "The Creation" (1798) and "The Seasons" (1801), were inspired by Handel's oratorios, which he heard during his successful visits to London.