The work has been variously described as a serenata, a masque, a pastoral or pastoral opera, a little opera in a letter by the composer while it was being written, an entertainment and by the new grove dictionary of music as an oratorio. Handel s dramatic oratorios and masques 0th edition by winton dean author visit amazons winton dean page. It was composed in a month, between 19 july 1747 and 19 august 1747, six months before the beginning of the oratorio season, and is handel s fourth oratorio based on a libretto by thomas morell. There are no known contemporary references to the texts authorship, whether in wordbooks published by tonson and draper, the composers autograph, printed scores published by walsh, press reports, financial records, correspondence or diaries. The oratorios in the majority of handel s oratorios, the tenor soloist plays an important musical and dramatic role.
Brockes passion the italian operas formal limitations of opera seria a dramatic gift stunted. Please see wikipedias template documentation for further citation fields that may be required. Handels dramatic oratorios and masques clarendon paperbacks. The italian in handel journal of the american musicological. His italian operas show a nobility of style and profundity of dramatic insight. Overview of handels careerthe oratorios in context ii. We still do not know for certain when handel first received the libretto of saul from jennens or the precise. Of his 17 english oratorios, the earliest date from the period in which he was still composing italian operas. Oratorios, dramas, serenades and odes discography george frideric handel the following spreadsheet, prepared by philippe gelinaud, isnt an exhaustive discography of handel s oratorios, dramas, serenades and odes, but represents a compilation assembled from lp. Literature contextualised by rhetorical ideology, the aesthetic notion of the affections in which the composer sought to arouse and manipulate the emotions of the listener, and contemporary scholarship pertaining to.
These movements, distinguished by the use of 16thcentury contrapuntal technique, instrumental doubling, alla breve metre and modal sonorities, stand out from the overall modern baroque. I43 v 9 the proceeds of this concert were not recorded in the minutes at the time. London, new york, oxford university press, 1959 ocolc614954111. They both feature arias, recitatives, and choruses. O thou that tellest good tidings from handels messiah instructions. The academy of ancient music and the kings college choirs performance of behold, a virgin shall conceive. Handel s oratorios combined elements of all of the following except. Was new genre invented by handel in the 1730s in handel s english oratorios, he continued aspects of the italian tradition by setting dialogue in recitative and lyrical verses as arias the latter resemble his opera arias in form, style, the nature of musical ideas, techniques for expressing the affections, etc. The arias of handel s opera seria and his oratorios fall into several stylistic classifications. The trumpet arias in the oratorios of george frederic.
Handel s dramatic oratorios and masques by winton dean p. Jul 12, 1990 handel s dramatic oratorios and masques clarendon paperbacks dean, winton on. T he occasional but notable settings in the old contrapuntal style that are to be found in handel s oratorios have drawn many comments, noting their inconsistencies with the rest of the composers music. The work was originally devised as a oneact masque. Acis and galatea hwv 49 is a musical work by george frideric handel with an english text by john gay. The public molding of handels esther into an english oratorio.
These works, which represent the peak of the composers achievement, are essentially theatrical rather than religious and would undoubtedly have been performed on the stage from the first but for the intervention of the ecclesiastical authorities. Winton dean, handel s dramatic oratorios and masques london, 1959, p. Walter ford, handels cantatas, proceedings of the royal musical association, lviii 19312, p. This is the first extended study to be published since the chapter in winton deans handels dramatic oratorios and masques of 1959. Winton dean starts his chapter in handels dramatic oratorios and masques with the statement, of all the oratorios deborah and joseph come nearest to complete failure. Winton deanis the author of major reference works concerning handels principal compositional genres, handels dramatic oratorios and masquesand with john merrill knapp handels operas,170426. Aug 01, 1990 winton deans masterly and definitive study deals with handel s eighteen oratorios and masques in dramatic form. This view of joseph seems largely to have been based as was deans opinion of deborah, restored after its recent hyperion recording to a better reputation on dean. Handel s dramatic oratorios and masques winton dean. This phenomenon inspired handel to compose a series of additional oratorios devoted to jewish heroes, including solomon, joshua, susana and jephtha.
Illustrating handel s oratorios and masques in dramatic formamong them some of the highest achievements of musical drama ever writtendean here begins by discussing general questions of history, style, and performace, and explains how the oratorios have been progressively misrepresented since handel s day. An essentially contemplative work, it stands apart from the rest of his 32 oratorios, which are. Today handel is far better known as a composer of english oratorios than of italian operas. Handel s autograph notation of the chorus and with his stripes in messiah part 2 makes use of a time signature, alla breve. A sport among handels oratorios, until recently theodora resisted wholehearted appreciation and elicited widely differing summaries of its meaning. Winton dean, handels dramatic oratorios and masques london, 1959, pp. George frideric handel oratorios, dramas, serenades and odes. Comprehending theodora eighteenthcentury music cambridge. Joshua hwv 64 is an oratorio by george frideric handel. Matt schrage transculturation in 18th century england. So thoroughly and carefully has winton dean explored the works covered in his great study handel s dramatic oratorios and masques that few additionsand fewer correctionsares required even after the lapse of nearly thirty years. This is suggested by, for example, his inclusion of trombones in the score of the dead march. Also consulted were the facsimiles of the original libretto in the booklet accompanying the recording harmonia mundi 907077.
Find all the books, read about the author, and more. Dean, winston, handel s dramatic oratorios and masques, oxford university press p. Handels dramatic oratorios and masques clarendon paperbacks dean, winton on. The oratorio premiered on 9 march 1748 at the covent garden theatre, london. Wolfgang amadeus mozarts adaptation of handel s masque debuted, and after forty years had. A mystery surrounds the identity of handel s librettist for the 1749 covent garden oratorios solomon hwv 67 and susanna hwv 66. May 16, 2014 1 annette landgraf, pyramids in germany. He has been a visiting professor at the university of california,berkeley,and atvassar college. Winton dean, handel s dramatic oratorios and masques, oxford, clarendon, 1990. In his study of handels dramatic oratorio samson hwv 57, winton dean alludes to darkness and light as multihued poetical and spiritual elements perpetuating the narrative. Handels dramatic oratorios and masques winton dean.
Handel s first extant letter to jennens acknowledges the receipt of an oratorio which gave the composer a great deal of satisfaction on first reading, but the letter gives no clue to the subject of the work. Between 1718 and 1720 handel had composed two theatrical masques for the duke. Every known surviving manuscript has been examined. Miscellaneous concerts of sacred music have been called oratorios. Handel s 46 operas include much of his finest music. Handel is cosmopolitan while bach is essentially provincial. Home composers german composers gf handel handel oratorios. Deans handel bibliography is the culmination of three massive vol umes of exemplary scholarship, begin ning with handels dramatic oratorios and masques. Anthony hicksis a freelance writer on music,and in particular that of handel. George frideric handel oratorios, dramas, serenades and. Thus, though handel might originally have envisaged judah maccabee as a pageant of english patriotism, rather than as a source of jewish national pride, in some ways judas maccabeus can. Eight appendices cover all performances in handel s time, borrowings, modern revivals, new information on his singers, and a complete index of italian first lines in all handel s works.
Joshua is based on the biblical story of joshua as the leader of. Jul 10, 2017 winston dean, handels dramatic oratorios and masques london, uk. Surpassed in many respects by subsequent scholarship, but still the most complete volume on handel s oratorios. Handels oratorios esther hwv 50 anonymous after racine. Memoirs of the life of the late george frederic handel, p. Dean, handels dramatic oratorios and masques london. Oratorios, dramas, serenades and odes discography george frideric handel the following spreadsheet, prepared by philippe gelinaud, isnt an exhaustive discography of handel s oratorios, dramas, serenades and odes, but represents a compilation assembled from lp, cd and dvd collections and various catalogs. Significance and effect of the stile antico in handels oratorios. Please listen to this brief section from handels messiah on youtube 5. Jennenss letter, reporting a visit to handel, deals with the placing of the hallelujah. Handel achieves the pinnacle of success through his operas and later his instrumental music and oratorios for the english public. Significance and effect of the stile antico in handels. Wynton dean is the author of handel s dramatic oratorios and masques. Winton deans masterly and definitive study deals with handel s eighteen oratorios and masques in dramatic form.
The dramatic english oratorios of the germanborn english composer and organist george frederick handel 16851759 climaxed the entire baroque oratorio tradition. There have been no changes since the second printing of the hardcover edition 1966, when some mistakes were corrected. On the german reception of handels oratorios in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, in handel studies. Handel due to the remarkable aptitude of this form for musical setting, with its choruses both within and without the action dean, handels dramatic oratorios and masques, 332.
Handel s dramatic oratorios and masques clarendon paperbacks. George frideric handel friday, 23 february 1685 saturday, 14 april 1759 was a german born baroque composer who is famous for his operas, oratorios and concerti grossi. To arrive at the list of oratorios used herein, i have taken a somewhat subjective consensus of bukofzer, chrysander, dean, groves, and heyer. On the german reception of handels oratorios in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, in. Status of the english oratorio historical outline fortuitous birth quality of handel s genius dramatic structure of the oratorios effects of the ban on staging nature of dramatic music handel, racine, and greek tragedy pantheism and dramatic detachment range of characterization flexibility.
If anything, the oratorio gave him the perfect stage to continue writing his varied and. Status of the english oratorio historical outline fortuitous birth quality of handel s genius dramatic structure of the oratorios effects of the ban on staging nature of dramatic music handel, racine, and greek tragedy pantheism and. Among these was the pastoral cantata clori, tirsi e fileno, parts of which he later adapted for use in his english pastoral masque acis and galatea see the display of acis sources in a separate. Looking in depth at handel s oratorios and masques in dramatic formamong them some of the highest achievements of musical drama ever writtendean here discusses general questions of history, style, and performance, and explains how the oratorios have been progressively misrepresented since handel s day. Handel s dramatic oratorios and masques winton dean oxford university press london 1959. Handel s dramatic oratorios and masques clarendon paperbacks dean, winton isbn. The apocrypha were still in widespread circulation among christians in handel s time, as were the historical chronicles of josephus flavius, who provided a detailed history of the maccabean uprising. The most important works from handels roman period include sacred oratorios and dramas, as well as numerous italian cantatas. Only in isolated instances is the tenor of minor consequence. At least ten or twelve of them are among the highest achievements of musical drama not only of their time but in any age. Handel s dramatic oratorios and masques winton dean home. These works, which represent the peak of his achievement, are essentially theatrical rather than religious.
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