Georg Friedrich Händel (1685 - 1759) was a German,
later British, baroque composer who spent the bulk of
his career in London, becoming well known for his
operas, oratorios, anthems, and organ concertos. Handel
received important training in Halle and worked as a
composer in Hamburg and Italy before settling in London
in 1712; he became a naturalised British subject in
1727. He was strongly influenced both by the great
composers of the Italian Baroque and by the
middle-German polyphonic choral ...(+)
Georg Friedrich Händel (1685 - 1759) was a German,
later British, baroque composer who spent the bulk of
his career in London, becoming well known for his
operas, oratorios, anthems, and organ concertos. Handel
received important training in Halle and worked as a
composer in Hamburg and Italy before settling in London
in 1712; he became a naturalised British subject in
1727. He was strongly influenced both by the great
composers of the Italian Baroque and by the
middle-German polyphonic choral tradition.
Zadok the Priest (HWV 258) is a British anthem which
was composed by George Frideric Handel for the
coronation of King George II in 1727. Alongside The
King Shall Rejoice, My Heart is Inditing and Let thy
Hand be Strengthened, Zadok the Priest is one of
Handel's Coronation Anthems. One of Handel's best-known
works, Zadok the Priest has been sung during the
anointing of the sovereign at the coronation of every
British monarch since its composition and has become
recognised as a British patriotic anthem.
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 in
1685. The text is a translation of the traditional
antiphon, Unxerunt Salomonem, itself derived from the
biblical account of the anointing of Solomon. These
words have been used in every English, and later
British, coronation since that of King Edgar at Bath
Abbey in 973. An earlier setting had been written by
Henry Lawes for the coronation of King Charles II
Source: Wikipedia
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zadok_the_Priest).
Although originally created for Baroque Orchestra, I
created this Arrangement of "Zadok the Priest" (HWV
258) for Winds (Flute, Oboe, English Horn, French Horn
& Bassoon) & Strings (2 Violins, Viola & Cello).
