George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)

Donald Macleod explores the life and music of George Frideric Handel through the patrons, employers and institutions that helped shape his career. From the aristocratic circles of Italy and the court of Hanover to royal favour in Britain and the charitable culture of Dublin, Handel proved adept at navigating the worlds on which composers depended. Yet he remained unusually independent, moving between courts, theatres and concert halls while steadily building a career on his own terms. Along the way, patronage could offer opportunity, security and prestige, but it also brought rivalries, competing loyalties and political complications. Through sacred music, opera, anthem and oratorio, this podcast traces how Handel responded to the people and places that supported his work.

Music featured includes extracts from:

Dixit Dominus, HWV 232

Tu fedel? Tu costante?, HWV 171a: Recitative and aria

Rodrigo, HWV 5: Overture; recitative and aria

Il trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno, HWV 46a: Overture

Il trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno, HWV 46a: "Pure del cielo"

La Resurrezione, HWV 47

Eternal Source of Light Divine, HWV 74

Nine German Arias, HWV 202–210: No. 6, "In den angenehmen Büschen"

Rinaldo, HWV 7a: Overture

Silla, HWV 10: Overture