ABRSM Grade 7 List A: Adagio and Allegro (1st and 2nd movt’s)
Georg Friedrich Händel, was a German-born English composer of the late Baroque era, celebrated for his operas, oratorios, and instrumental compositions. He was born on February 23, 1685, in Halle, Brandenburg (now Germany), and passed away on April 14, 1759, in London, England.
Handel’s music is renowned for its grandeur, dramatic qualities, and depth of expression. Notably, he composed the most famous of all oratorios, Messiah (1741), and is also known for such occasional pieces as Water Music (1717) and Music for the Royal Fireworks (1749).
His early musical education was under the composer Friedrich W. Zachow in Halle. After his father’s death, Handel enrolled as a law student at the University of Halle but quickly gravitated towards a career in music. He served as an organist at the Reformed Cathedral in Halle for a year before moving to Hamburg, where he joined the opera orchestra and presided over the premiere of his first opera, Almira.
Handel traveled in Italy from 1706 to 1710, where he met many of the greatest Italian musicians of the day, including Arcangelo Corelli and Alessandro Scarlatti. His time in Italy was prolific, resulting in two operas, numerous Italian solo cantatas, and some Latin church music.
In 1712, Handel settled in London, where he spent the bulk of his career and became a naturalized British subject in 1727. His influence was such that he started three commercial opera companies to supply the English nobility with Italian opera. After a physical breakdown in 1737, he changed direction creatively, addressing the middle class with English choral works. Following the success of Messiah in 1742, he never composed an Italian opera again.
Handel’s legacy includes more than forty operas and a wealth of other works. His music was admired by Classical-era composers, especially Mozart, Haydn, and Beethoven, and remains a cornerstone of the Western classical music canon.
Handel’s four-movement Gamba Sonata in C major, dating from the early 18th-century, is full of youthful energy and character, with accessible and enjoyable challenges for…
Handel’s four-movement Gamba Sonata in C major, dating from the early 18th-century, is full of youthful energy and character, with accessible and enjoyable challenges for the intermediate double bassist.
The accompaniment is lively and supportive, playable on piano, organ or harpsichord, and this would be an ideal introduction to Baroque music for any aspiring young musician. Each of the four contrasting movements features a range of effective musical and technical challenges although the double bass hardly ventures out of bass clef.
Originally for Viola da Gamba or Viola and Cembalo (Harpsichord), the sonata dates from around 1705, and was first published in 1894 as part of a complete edition of Handel’s music, edited by Friedrich Chrysander (1826-1901).
This edition, edited by David Heyes, includes accompaniments for both solo and orchestral tuning.
