The Life and Work of Joseph Hayden - Essay Example

?The life and work of Joseph Hayden Joseph Hayden is one of the towering figures in the ical period of Western Music and is credited with such innovations as the creation of the Symphony, the String Quartet, the piano trio and the sonata form – all which still find application by musicians today. Hayden lived in Vienna – by itself the heart of western music, the period being sometimes called the Viennese period of classical composition – with such illustrious contemporaries as Mozart, Sallieri and Beethovan. His work came during the silence that follows the end of the Baroque period and Hayden is generally credited for being one of the creators of the Classical period. Hayden was by all accounts a healthy, fun loving person equally loved by friends and admirers, and his works are known for their humor with several false endings and the occasionally chord that stands out above the rest. He died a celebrity, though born in humble settings. Music came his name, fame and considerable wealth. The performance of the Creation, organized in his honor the year before he died was attended by the who’s who of European music as well several members of the aristocracy. This paper is an exposition of his life and work and is the author’s tribute to one of the greatest composers of the western world. The classical period of western music is widely considered to be between 1750 and 1830; and followed by the Baroque period that began circa 1600. The classical period is thus named due to the general adulation for classical antiquity, particularly Ancient Greece, that permeated all creative fields such as Art, Architecture and the sciences. There was a general appreciation for grandeur and the preference for simplicity and homophony over the polyphony of the Baroque period. While Bach was one of the leading maestros of the previous era, the classical period will bear the names of Hayden and Mozart. Joseph Hayden was born on 31 March 1732 in Rohrau, Austria to Mathias Haydn and Maria nee’ Koller. His father was a wheelwright who was also the "Marktrichter” (the village head) while Maria was the cook in the palace of Count Harrach, the presiding aristocrat of Rohrau. While both his parents were musically illetreate, his father could play the harp and was a folk singer. Hayden grew up in the village in a musical environment, with frequent singing sessions in his house and the village. From this rustic musical setting to the sophistication of Austrian music was a big leap for the young Haydn; one that would not be accomplished without a great deal of suffering. Haydn being musically gifted, his uncle Johann Matthias Frankh, the schoolmaster and choirmaster in Hainburg, took him in as his ward so that he could receive formal training in Music. Haydn went with Frank to Hainburg when he was six years old and never again lived with his parents. For reasons that are not really clear – perhaps due to poverty or simply due to indifference, Haydn was not fed very well in this household and writes of being constantly hungry. However, he did learn to play the violin and the harpsichord. He also played treble parts in the church choir, which soon attracted the attention of the general public. After here, he was accepted as the ward of Georg von Reutter, the director of music in St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna in 1740 moved to Vienna, where he worked for the next nine years as a chorister and his younger brother Michael joined him in 1745. However, he still continued to be hungry though Reutter did give his education in Latin, the languages and the violin (Geiringer & Geiringer). Moreover, St Stephen’s Cathedral was at the center of Austrian Musical tradition and Haydn benefitted enormously simply by means of the exposure and collaboration that he was able to form there. With his physical maturity, he was soon unable to be a choirboy any longer and by 1749, declared his independence from Reutter, and began work as a freelance musician. The time as a freelance musician is not particularly fun to anyone but given his age and his disposition, Haydn seemed to have enjoyed his time. He used this period of his life to fill in the lacunas of his musical education, particularly in the theory of music and in learning composition. He devoted extensive time to Gradus ad Parnassum by Johann Joseph Fux and the works of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, both of which he would later claim to major influences on his work. May of his works were being published at this time, no most often he did not get any financial benefit from it. He wrote his first opera Der krumme Teufel "The Limping Devil" in 1753 (closed down immediately afterwards) and served as conductors of orchestra in several aristocratic households, but not securing a permanent position anywhere. The musicians of the age could find steady employment and success only under the patronage of aristocracy, and Hayden was occupied in several unsuccessful pursuits to this extent. Count Morzin, in 1757 became his first full time employer. This allowed Hayden to settle down and concentrate on his work. Also, his steady income allowed him to marry and he was wedded in 1760 to Maria Anna Aloysia Apollonia Keller. This was by all accounts, a disastrous endeavor and the couple were never happy (Jones, 2009). Haydn for one was originally in love with Theresa, who was the sister of Maria, and could never completely reconcile to his new wife. Both of them would stray away from their wedding and would take in lovers. In 1766, Prince Paul Anton of the Esterhazy family employed Haydn where he became a full Kappelmeister, or full music director. He would serve here for over 30 years and some of his most famous works were written here. The Paris symphonies (1785–1786) and The Seven Last Words of Christ (1786) were written during this period. Haydn had a very platonic relationship with Maria Anna von Genzinger (1754–93), the wife of Prince Nikolaus's personal physician in Vienna and they grew into a very close friendship. The insights of later day historians of music into the life and character of Joseph Haydn is very often from the letters that he exchanged with Mrs Genzinger. She died prematurely in 1793, which was an intense emotional blow for Haydn. His F – minor variations for piano, Hob. XVII:6 was written in her memory (Landon & Jones, 1988). In 1791 and 1794, Haydn made two extremely celebrated visits to London, which increased his fame and augmented his fortuned. The visits to England generated some of Haydn's best-known work, including the Surprise, Military, Drumroll, and London symphonies, the Rider quartet, and the "Gypsy Rondo" piano trio. He was also involved romantically with Rebecca Schroeter. It was while travelling to London in 1790 that Haydn met the young Ludwig van Beethoven in Bonn. Beethoven came to Vienna and during the time up to the second London visit was Haydn's pupil. By 1800, Haydn had become a public figure in Vienna and he worked at the Eszterhaza only part time. He lived in his palatial house in Vienna where he composed his two great oratorios – The Creation in 1798 and The Seasons in 1801. The last nine in his series of of string quartets, which included the Fifths, Emperor, and Sunrise quartets, were completed here. He was very soon physically impossible to compose, though his mind was ever active. His illness soon took charge of him, he was bedridden for the most part. Haydn died on 31 May 1809, in the period of the French occupation of Austria under Napoleon. Many attended his death and his life is celebrated to this day. He had many friends, though no children. During the time of Joseph Hayden, the compositional style of the Baroque period disappeared and he himself is widely credited for the establishment of the classical style of composition. Hayden himself was a generally well natured individual and most of compositions reflect this nature, being upbeat and illuminating. Haydn's fast movements tend to be rhythmically propulsive and often impart a great sense of energy, especially in the finales. Some characteristic examples of Haydn's "rollicking" finale type are found in the "London" symphony No. 104, the string quartet Op. 50 No. 1, and the piano trio Hob XV: 27. Haydn's early slow movements are usually not too slow in tempo, relaxed, and reflective. Later on, the emotional range of the slow movements increases, notably in the deeply felt slow movements of the quartets Op. 76 Nos. 3 and 5, Symphony No. 98, Symphony No. 102, and piano trio Hob XV: 23. The minuets tend to have a strong downbeat and a clearly popular character. Over time, Haydn turned some of his minuets into "scherzi" which are much faster, at one beat to the bar (Dies, 1963). Folk music also exerted an influence on Haydn, which is credited for his popular style – one that has been very popular among the audience then and now. The change in Haydn's approach was important in the history of music, as other composers soon were following his lead. Notably, Beethoven adopted the practice of taking his time and aiming high (Hopknss). Bibliography Dies, A. C. (1963). Biographical Accounts of Joseph Haydn. Geiringer, K., & Geiringer, I. Haydn: A Creative Life in Music . University of California. Hopknss, A. The Nine Symphonies of Beethoven. London. Jones, D. W. (2009). The Life of Haydn. Oxford university press. Landon, H. C., & Jones, D. W. (1988). Haydn: His Life and Music. Read More