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Handel’s operas, which are famous today, have endured many years of being almost completely unknown since the composer created them in his lifetime. Handel is the composer of forty Italian operas. Known as the “beloved Englishman,” he was given credit for his work among the Italian people, who regarded it as highly as their own. Among his own people, however, he was most popular for his Messiah, and acclaim for this work did not even begin until his death. So why are his operas so famous today? What is Handel’s history as an opera composer and why were his works unknown for so long?
Handel was born in Germany in 1685. His first teacher was the famous organist Fredrich Zachau, who taught him to play the organ at the Cathedral of Halle, where Handel was made assistant organist. In the early 1700’s, Handel moved to Hamburg where he played the violin and occasionally the piano in the opera orchestra. It was here that he had his first operatic experience. Two of Handel own operas were born out of this profession: Almira and Nero. Handel’s opera training was furthered by a trip to Italy in 1706. Here, he was commissioned to write works for Italian city patrons. Among the works he created in this period are Agrippina and The Resurrection. These operas are notable for their mastery of the Italian bel canto style mingled with Handel’s previous oratorio experience. Handel’s trip to Italy is tinged with interesting tales. Known for his skills at the organ and harpsichord, he was pitted in a contest again the Italian harpsichordist Domenico Scarlatti during his trip. While there was a tie for the harpsichord winner, Handel was declared the victor in a later organ-playing contest between the two.
In 1710, Handel returned to his homeland of Germany, but he returned to London soon after, he was appointed musical writer to King George the first of England, who was very fond of his and his work. It is an interesting fact that King George the first was actually his former employer, the Prince of Hanover. Handel had been avoiding the Prince for some time due to the stale nature of the Hanover court, but he and the King were close friends and he returned to the London court willingly. .In 1728, under the King’s tutelage, Handel became an English citizen. During this time, a distinct change can be seen in Handel’s operatic writing style. His operas begin to incorporate less of the Italian style and more of the English choral sound, later found in the Messiah as well. He was appointed director of the Royal Academy of Music in London in 1719, and he established himself as one of the most important opera composers of his day. His works were so famous that they were presented in a famous parody, John Gay’s the “Beggar’s Opera,” which replaced the wholesome characters in Handel’s works with more comic characters. Handel died in 1759, and despite the popularity of his works he was nearly bankrupt. He never imagined the intense fame that would come from his operas and oratorios.
While he was renowned for his operas, Handel was most famous for his oratorios, which are typically religious, opera-like productions without a stage and set. As in his Messiah, chorus and orchestration contain unusual detail in his work. Handel’s operas deviated from religious themes, but typically used the Italian tradition of heroic historical characters. A few of his operas dip into the realm of fantasy, known as “antiheroic works.”
Today, Handel’s works are performed regularly. Revivals of Handel’s operas began long after his death, in Germany in the early 1900’s. However, when Handel’s operas were re-presented to the public, they were altered greatly form their original form. In a tradition known as “pasticcio,” German composers and conductors cut and spliced Handel’s works in order to perform them more easily. They also transposed castrato roles for basses and tenors. In modern times, castrato roles in Handel’s operas are sung by females. The role of Julius Ceasar has been sung by a woman at least four times at the Metropolitan Opera in New York. Countertenors also spend most of their lives performing Handel roles. An ironic twist of Handel’s operas today is that many of the roles that Handel wrote for mezzo sopranos are now being sung by countertenors, while castrato roles are taken by famous sopranos.
For the Handel opera beginner, I would recommend a viewing of Julius Ceasar, one of the composer’s most famous works. For further viewing, I would suggest Tamerlano, Agrippina, Rinaldo and Alcina. No major opera company today has not had at least one Handel opera in its repertoire. It is a triumph of the composer that he went from a state of such little renown to a staple of the modern operatic diet.
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