1. Georg Friedrich Händel (George Frideric Handel) Created by Tyler Brady MUSC 1010

2. George Frideric Handel 1685-1759

3. Introduction George Frideric Handel was born on February 23 rd, 1685. He died on April 14, 1759 in London, England Handel was one of the composers in the Baroque Era. His most famous piece is the “Messiah.”

4. Family Handel was named after his father, George Handel. His father was a barber-surgeon. His mother was George Handel’s second wife, named Dorothea Taust. She was the daughter of the pastor of Giebichenstein. His father was 63 when Handel was born.

5. Growing up Handel was interested in music from a young age. His father, however, wanted him to study law and didn’t let him have an instrument. He somehow got a small clavichord and played secretly in the attic. His mother was in favor of his pursuit of music.

6. Another Seed Planted Before Handel was ten years old, he went to the Duke’s Court in Weissenfels. There he played the organ. The Duke was very impressed with Handel and convinced Handel’s father to let him study music, as long as he also studied law. He met a famous organist there named Friedrich Willhelm Zachow. Zachow became his personal teacher.

7. Early Experiences By the time he was ten years old, he could compose for the organ, oboe and violin! In the next several years after that, he composed some church music, but unfortunately, it wasn’t given much attention and isn’t around any more. Handel went to Halle University. While attending there, he got the position of organist at the Calvinist Cathedral, which lasted 1 year.

8. Halle University This was a school that Handel attended.

9. On to Hamburg When Handel was 18 years old he moved to Hamburg, Germany and played harpsichord for the Hamburg Opera’s Goosemarket Theater. This was the only Opera besides the royal courts in Germany at the time. He made extra money during this time by teaching private violin lessons.

10. Hamburg, Germany This is modern day Hamburg, one of the places that Handel lived.

11. First Opera Handel wrote his first opera in 1704. It was called Almira. This opera was very successful. Handel was able to find several opportunities to perform in operas because he was so talented at playing the organ.

12. A Change of Scenery In 1706, Handel decided to move to Italy. He learned a lot about putting music and words together. There, he wrote two more big operas: Rodrigo and Agrippina He met most of the famous Italian musicians while there.

13. Another Move Handel decided to try his hand at music in London next, and so he moved there. He met with the manager of the King’s Theatre there and was given permission to write and opera for the theater. It only took him two weeks to write one; he called it Rinaldo. This opera gave him great success. He got a lot of recognition from it.

14. Royalty For the next few years, Handel wrote and performed for English Royalty. To name a couple, he performed for Queen Anne and King George I.

15. Handel’s Water Music By request of King George I, Handel composed a special arrangement that is known as Handel’s Water Music. It was performed on the River Thames in 1717 as part of a big boat party for the King. It consisted of 3 specially written pieces. There were 50 instruments playing. The King liked it so much, he had it played three times.

16. The River Thames This is a picture of the River Thames, where Handel’s Water Music was performed.

17. The Royal Fireworks Another work that Handel composed for royalty is called Royal Fireworks. It is made up of five movements. It was composed for a festival that celebrated the end of the War of the Austrian Succession. There was a fireworks display after the performance.

18. The Royal Academy of Music He founded the Royal Academy of Music in 1720. This was a place where Italian Opera was performed. He wrote, produced and directed operas there. Unfortunately, eventually the Royal Academy failed and Handel moved to a different kind of music.

19. Oratorios After leaving the opera, Handel took a liking to composing Oratorios. One reason for that was that they were much cheaper; there was no expensive costumes and no fancy singers to pay. His most famous oratorio is Messiah, which is still very popular today.

20. The End Handel was an incredible composer. It is said, “He wrote more than pretty well any other composer in history.” 1 “Beethoven, we know, regarded Handel as the greatest composer. He said, “He is the master of us all.”” 1 George Frideric Handel died April 14, 1759, and was buried at Westminster Abbey. 1 BYUtv, "Handel's Messiah"

21. Westminster Abbey This is the gravestone/statue of Handel at Westminster Abbey

22. References Cited: Photo 1: BBC News 2015 http://www.bbc.co.uk/arts/yourpaintings/paintings/george-frideric-handel- 16851759-148450 "George Handel." Bio. A&E Television Networks, 2015. Web. 8 Feb. 2015. ”George Frideric Handel (Profile)” Aaron Green, 2015. Web. 8 Feb. 2015. “Handel's Water Music & Music For The Royal Fireworks @ BBC Proms 2012.” Youtube, 2015. Web. 8 Feb. 2015.

23. References Cited: “Music for the Royal Fireworks | work by Handel.” Encyclopedia Britannica, 2015. Web. 8 Feb. 2015. (BOOK) “The New Grove Handel.” Dean, Winton, and Anthony Hicks, 1982 Print. 8 Feb. 2015. Photo 2: "Halle University." Old Book Illustrations. Web. 8 Feb. 2015. http://www.oldbookillustrations.com/pages/halle-university.php?lng=en

24. References Cited: Photo 3: "Handel's Flood Of Melodies: 'Water Music'" Handel's Flood Of Melodies: 'Water Music' Web. 8 Feb. 2015. http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/npr/103025861/handel-s-flood-of- melodies-water-music Photo 4: "George Frederic Handel." Westminster Abbey ». Web. 8 Feb. 2015. http://www.westminster-abbey.org/our-history/people/george-frederic-handel "Handel's Messiah." BYUtv. N.p., n.d. Web. 8Feb. 2015.http://www.byutv.org/watch/c981eb70-3199-4d1f-8a65- 8fa6b70d6946/handels-messiah-handels-messiah