BAROQUE 1600 –1750 89
(174 3), and Belshazzar (174 5).
Messiah was so popular that men
were asked to attend performances
without their swords to create more
room for the audience.
Handel often presented these
works himself, renting theatres and
hiring performers, and often netting
a good profit. When a rival company
provided stiff competition, Handel
wrote a number of organ concertos
which he performed as interludes
during the performances. Unusual
as this was, it provided a rare
opportunity to hear his great
keyboard virtuosity in public
and was therefore something
of a marketing masterstroke.
The Handelian oratorio became
so popular that Handel wrote
secular works in the same style.
He designated Semele (1744),
which was based on classical
mythology, as a musical drama
“after the manner of an oratorio”
and even presented it during theLenten period, when its depiction
of adultery caused consternation.
Works such as this were essentially
operas in English and are usually
performed as such today.National yet international
During a period when music was
considered ephemeral and works
were seldom heard in the years
after their first performances,
Handel was considered a major
composer in his lifetime. He was
probably the first composer whose
work did not suffer a fall in popularity
after his death. In England, he
helped to broaden interest in
music beyond the confines of the
aristocracy and created a national
musical identity in an international
style that lasted until Edward
Elgar in the late 19th century. His
anthem Zadok the Priest, composed
for the coronation of George II, is
still used in the crowning of British
monarchs today. ■Some of the dances in Water Music
English hornpipe
Bouncy, moderately paced
dance in duple time (two
beats to the bar).Minuet
French court dance in
triple (waltz) time.Gigue
A lively Baroque
dance (jig) of Italian or
French origin.Sarabande
A slow stately dance
of Spanish origin.Bourrée
A lively French dance
with folk roots.Louis François Roubiliac’s memorial
to Handel stands above his tomb in
Westminster Abbey, UK. Just three
days before his death, Handel said
that he wished to be buried there.Handel knew how to please an audience.
Water Music contains popular dance forms
from different parts of Europe.US_084-089_Handel_Water_Music.indd 89 26/03/18 1:00 PM