Handel: A Musical Life of Devotion

1
A 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.

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• 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
  http//wholetoneshealingmusicreview.com/ George
  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.