George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (1685 – 1759 )
was a German-British Baroque composer well known for
his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and
organ concertos. Handel received his training in Halle
and worked as a composer in Hamburg and Italy before
settling in London in 1712, where he spent the bulk of
his career and became a naturalised British subject in
1727. He was strongly influenced both by the
middle-German polyphonic choral tradition and by
composers of the Italian B...(+)
George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (1685 – 1759 )
was a German-British Baroque composer well known for
his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and
organ concertos. Handel received his training in Halle
and worked as a composer in Hamburg and Italy before
settling in London in 1712, where he spent the bulk of
his career and became a naturalised British subject in
1727. He was strongly influenced both by the
middle-German polyphonic choral tradition and by
composers of the Italian Baroque. In turn, Handel's
music forms one of the peaks of the "high baroque"
style, bringing Italian opera to its highest
development, creating the genres of English oratorio
and organ concerto, and introducing a new style into
English church music. He is consistently recognized as
one of the greatest composers of his age.
Although part of the traditional content of British
coronations, the texts for all four anthems were picked
by Handel—a personal selection from the most
accessible account of an earlier coronation, that of
James II of England in 1685. One of George I of Great
Britain's last acts before his death in 1727 was to
sign an "Act of naturalisation of George Frideric
Händel and others". Handel's first commission as a
newly naturalised British subject was to write the
music for the coronation of George II of Great Britain
and Queen Caroline which took place on 11 October the
same year. Within the coronation ceremonies Let thy
hand be strengthened was played first, then Zadok, then
The King shall rejoice, and finally My heart is
inditing at the coronation of the Queen. (In modern
coronations the order is Zadok, Let thy hand be
strengthened, The King shall rejoice and My heart is
inditing, with the order of Let thy hand be
strengthened and The King shall rejoice sometimes
reversed.)
Right from their composition the four anthems have been
popular and regularly played in concerts and festivals
even during Handel's own lifetime. He re-used
substantial extracts from them in many of his oratorios
without many changes (other than to the text), notably
Esther and Deborah. Two of the anthems were played at
the 1742 inauguration of the Holywell Music Room in
Oxford, a hall dedicated to chamber music. Their
success perhaps contributed to the popular image of
Handel as a composer whose music required a huge number
of singers and musicians (the more the better)—in
other words, the character criticised by Berlioz as "a
barrel of pork and beer". In practice, Handel often
adapted his music to the occasion and to the skill of
those for whom he was writing, and no occasion could be
grander than a coronation. The ceremonial style of the
anthems differs from his music for the theatre just as
his Music for the Royal Fireworks (the latter designed
for open-air performance) differs from his instrumental
concertos. The anthems show a completely extrovert
tone, managing massed forces and important contrasts
rather than delicate colours—with the wide spatial
reverberation in Westminster Abbey, he did not waste
time and effort trying to show small points of
detail.
The means he had at his disposal were the most
important of the era—the choir of the Chapel Royal
was augmented by 47 singers, with an orchestra which
reached perhaps 160 people. The chorus was divided into
6 or 7 groups (with the tenors kept together) and a
large string section, made up of three groups of
violins (rather than the two which were usual).
"Zadok the Priest" (HWV 258) is thought to have been
composed between 9 September and 11 October 1727.
"Let Thy Hand Be Strengthened" (HWV 259) is thought to
have been composed between 9 September 1727 and 11
October 1727.
"The King Shall Rejoice" (HWV 260) is thought to have
been composed between 9 September 1727 and 11 October
1727.
"My Heart is Inditing" (HWV 261) is thought to have
been composed between 9 September 1727 and 11 October
1727.
Source: Wikipedia
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coronation_anthem).
Although originally composed for Mixed Chorus and
Baroque Orchestra, I created this Arrangement of
Handel's "Coronation Anthems" (HWVs 258-261) for Winds
(Flute, Oboe, Bb Clarinet, French Horn & Bassoon) &
Strings (2 Violins, Viola & Cello).
PARTITION