On 1/15/07, David W. Fenton <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
As I believe Johannes or Kim said (in reference to the Haydn oratorios), these kinds of gargantuan performances in the 18th century were very often benefit concerts.
Johannes brought this up, but you're right-- the Haydn concerts were benefits; and most of the musicians donated their services. There were no huge concerts of the Messiah during Handel's lifetime either. That happened later in the 1780s; and Haydn's exposure to these huge performances of Handel had a factor in his composing The Creation and The Seasons. So again, for the average Joe Q. Public peasant in Austria (or Germany, or Italy, or France, et al) in 1700s, the chances he could swing on up to the ole concert hall to catch up on the latest tunes were pretty nil. (Yah, I know about church services). Kim Patrick Clow _______________________________________________ Finale mailing list [email protected] http://lists.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale
