George Frederic Handel was born in the same year as Johann Sebastian Bach in the same general part of Germany (and had his eyes ruined by the same doctor), and wrote music that is just as awesome.
- Handel's name is synonymous with the oratorio, the concert performance sibling of the opera, the text for which can be either religious or secular.
- The Messiah
is rightly regarded as not just Handel's greatest oratorio, but as the greatest oratorio ever composed, and is all the more ingenious for primarily using Old Testament verses to imply a narrative arc of Christ's conception, birth, life, death, resurrection, and ascension, followed by the spreading of the gospel.note In many Anglophone countries, it is near ubiquitous at Christmas as even the most modest choral society mounts a performance, sometimes with audience participation. All two and a half beautiful hours boast some of Handel's best music - the stark opening Sinfony, the buoyant "O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion", the celebratory "For unto us a child is born", the gentle Pifa, the chaotic "All we like sheep have gone astray" with its abrupt shift to minor key gloom for the coda, the heartfelt "I know that my Redeemer liveth", and the triumphant "Worthy is the Lamb" and final "Amen". But for pure, unadulterated awesome, there is one movement that rises far above the others: the "Hallelujah" chorus that closes Part II, an exaltation so grand that audiences traditionally stand for it.note "Hallelujah! Hallelujah! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth. Hallelujah!"- For added awesome, try it in flash mob form!
- For additional awesomeness, add the world's largest functioning organ and an undercover cast of opera singers.
- For added awesome, try it in flash mob form
- Israel in Egypt, particularly the second half in which the Israelites celebrate their deliverance from slavery in Egypt.
- "Arrival of the Queen of Sheba" from the oratorio Solomon is fantastic.
- "See, the Conqu'ring Hero Comes" from Judas Maccabeus is incredible.
- The Messiah
- The Water Music is one of the most memorable compositions Handel wrote in his capacity as composer by royal appointment to Elector George of Hannover after he was crowned King George I of Great Britain and Ireland in 1714; it was originally composed for a boating party on the River Thames in 1717. By far the most famous movement is the merry "Alla hornpipe" from the suite for trumpets in D major (a seldom-performed version also appears in the suite for horns in F major), but there are plenty of other highlights, from dignified minuets in all three suites, to the graceful Air from the F major suite, to the lyrical Country Dance in the G major suite. King George liked the piece so much, he asked for it to be repeated in its entirety at least three times on its first performance.
- When George I died, his son and successor brought out some of the best in Handel.
- Zadok the Priest doubles as Awesome Music of Crowning - it was written for the coronation of King George II of Great Britain and Ireland and Prince-Elector of Hannover in 1727, and has been played at every coronation of a British monarch since.note Particularly spellbinding moments include the extended orchestral opening built almost entirely of repeated ascending arpeggios over block chords that practically explodes with jubilation as the choir bellows the opening words, "Zadok! The priest! And Nathan! The prophet! Annointed! Solomon! King!" and the prominent use of melisma in both the choir and the orchestra in the "Amen, alleluia" sections of the concluding "God save the King!" segment; the two appearances of the bass voice melisma are the longest and most awesome of the bunch.
- Te Deum for the Victory of Dettingen, written to commemorate King George II's victory over the French in 1743note , is an underrated piece of brilliance.
- And when the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle was signed in 1748, ending the War of Austrian Succession in which George II had fought the French at Dettingen, the treaty was celebrated with a fireworks display, accompanied by the Music for the Royal Fireworks, which ranks just behind the Water Music among Handel's orchestral works. Featuring an enlarged orchestra with horns, trumpets, and drums, it is every bit as stirring and jubilant as the occasion demanded.
- Zadok the Priest
