Franz Haydn
AustriaBiography of Franz Haydn
Franz Haydn was an Austrian composer and a representative of the Viennese classical school. He was a great master who constantly renewed his language. Alongside Mozart and Beethoven, Haydn formed and brought to an exceptional degree of perfection the style of the so-called Viennese classicism. The beginnings of this style can be traced back to the Baroque era, while its later period leads directly to the Romantic era.
Haydn's fifty years of creative life filled the deepest stylistic gap between Bach and Beethoven. In the 19th century, all attention was focused on Bach and Beethoven, often forgetting the giant who was able to bridge the gap between these two worlds. Haydn was an Austrian composer, one of the greatest classics of the musical arts.
Haydn was born on March 31st or April 1st, 1732 (the exact date of his birth is conflicting) into a peasant family in Rohrau, in the Burgenland region in eastern Lower Austria. His father, Matthias Haydn, was a carriage maker, and his mother, Maria Koller, worked as a cook in the household of Count Harrach, the owner of the estate in Rohrau. Joseph was their second child and their eldest son. It was previously believed that Haydn's ancestors were Croatians (who began to settle in Burgenland in the 16th century to escape the Turks), but thanks to the research of E. Schmidt, it was discovered that the composer's lineage was purely Austrian.
Early Years: Remembering his childhood, Haydn wrote in 1776: "My father... was a fervent lover of music and played the harp without knowing a single note. When I was five years old, I could perfectly sing his simple melodies, and this led my father to entrust me to the care of our relative, the rector of the school in Hainburg, so that I could learn the fundamentals of music and the other necessary sciences for youth... When I turned seven, the late Kapellmeister von Royer (G.C. von Royer, 1708-1772), passing through Hainburg, accidentally heard my weak but pleasant voice. He took me with him and assigned me to the chapel (of St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna), where I continued my education, learning singing, harpsichord, and violin from very good teachers. Until the age of eighteen, I successfully performed soprano parts, not only in the cathedral but also at court. Then I lost my voice, and I had to endure a miserable existence for eight whole years... I composed mostly at night, not knowing whether I had any talent for composition or not, and I diligently but not entirely correctly recorded my music. This continued until I had the good fortune to study the true foundations of the art with Mr. Porpora (N. Porpora, 1685-1766), who was living in Vienna at the time."
Career: In 1757, Haydn accepted an invitation from the Austrian aristocrat Count von Furnberg to spend the summer at his estate in Weinzierl, which was adjacent to the large Benedictine monastery in Melk on the Danube. It was in Weinzierl that the genre of the string quartet was born (the first 12 quartets written in the summer of 1757 formed Op. 1 and 2). Two years later, Haydn became the vice-Kapellmeister of Count Ferdinand Maximilian Morzin at his castle in Lukavec, Czech Republic. For Morzin's orchestra, the composer wrote his First Symphony in D major and several divertimentos for wind instruments (some of which were recently discovered in an unexplored Prague archive in 1959). On November 26, 1760, Haydn married Anna Maria Keller, the daughter of the count's hairdresser. This union was childless and overall unsuccessful; Haydn usually referred to his wife as the "spawn of hell."
Soon, Count Morzin disbanded the orchestra in order to reduce expenses. Haydn then accepted a position as the vice-Kapellmeister for Prince Paul Anton Esterhazy. The composer arrived at the Esterhazy estate in Eisenstadt in May 1761 and remained in the Esterhazy family's service for 45 years. In 1762, Prince Paul Anton passed away, and his brother Miklos "the Magnificent" became the ruler. During this time, the Esterhazy family gained fame throughout Europe for their patronage of the arts and artists. In 1766, Miklos transformed the family's hunting lodge into a magnificent palace, one of the richest in Europe. The Esterhazy palace, known as the "Hungarian Versailles," included a real opera house with 500 seats and a puppet theater (for which Haydn composed operas). Concerts and theatrical performances were held every evening in the presence of the prince.
Haydn and all the musicians of the orchestra were not allowed to leave Esterhaza as long as the prince was there, and none of them, except for Haydn and the orchestra conductor, violinist L. Tomassini, were allowed to bring their families to the palace. In 1772, the prince stayed in Esterhaza longer than usual, and the musicians asked Haydn to write a piece that would remind his highness that it was time for him to return to Vienna. This is how the famous Farewell Symphony was created. In the final part of the symphony, the musicians one by one finish their parts and leave, leaving only two solo violins on stage (played by Haydn and Tomassini). The prince was surprised to see his Kapellmeister and conductor extinguish the candles and head towards the exit, but he understood the hint, and the next morning everything was ready for the departure back to the capital.
Years of Glory: Gradually, Haydn's fame began to spread throughout Europe, aided by the activities of Viennese firms that corresponded with music and sold their products throughout the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Austrian monasteries also did a lot to spread Haydn's music; copies of his various works are stored in several monastery libraries in Austria and the Czech Republic. Parisian publishers printed Haydn's compositions without his consent. The composer, in most cases, was unaware of these pirated editions and, of course, did not receive any profit from them.
In the 1770s, opera performances at Esterhaza gradually evolved into regular opera seasons. The repertoire consisted mainly of operas by Italian composers, rehearsed and performed under Haydn's direction. Occasionally, he composed his own operas. One of them, "The World of the Moon" based on a play by C. Goldoni (Il mondo della luna, 1777), was successfully revived in 1959. Haydn spent the winter months in Vienna, where he became acquainted and befriended Mozart. They admired each other, and neither allowed anyone to speak ill of their friend. In 1785, Mozart dedicated six magnificent string quartets to Haydn. During a quartet gathering held at Mozart's apartment, Haydn told Wolfgang's father, Leopold Mozart, that his son was "the greatest of composers" that he had known either through reputation or personally. Mozart and Haydn enriched each other's creativity, and their friendship was one of the most fruitful partnerships in the history of music.
In 1790, Prince Miklos passed away, and Haydn gained temporary freedom of movement. Subsequently, Prince Anton Esterhazy, Miklos's successor and Haydn's new employer, did not have a particular fondness for music and disbanded the orchestra altogether. Learning of Miklos's death, Johann Peter Salomon, a German-born musician who had achieved great success in organizing concerts in England, hurried to Vienna and signed a contract with Haydn. English publishers and impresarios had long been trying to invite the composer to the British capital, but Haydn's duties as the Esterhazy court Kapellmeister did not allow for extended absences from Austria. Now, the composer eagerly accepted Salomon's offer, especially since the latter had two lucrative contracts: one for the composition of an Italian opera for the Royal Theater and another for the composition of 12 instrumental pieces for concerts. In reality, Haydn did not start composing all 12 pieces from scratch. Several nocturnes, previously unknown in England, had been written earlier by order of the Neapolitan king, and the composer also had several new quartets in his portfolio. Thus, for the English concerts of the 1792 season, he only composed two new symphonies (Nos. 95 and 96) and included several symphonies that had not yet been performed in London (Nos. 90-92), which were recently composed by order of Count d'Ony from Paris (known as the Paris Symphonies).
Haydn and Salomon arrived in Dover on the first day of the new year, 1791. Haydn was received with great honor everywhere, and Prince of Wales (future King George IV) showered him with numerous attentions. The cycle of Haydn's concerts organized by Salomon was a huge success. During the premiere of Symphony No. 96 in March, the slow movement had to be repeated – a "rare occurrence," as the author noted in a letter home. The composer decided to stay in London for the next season. For this season, Haydn composed four new symphonies. Among them was the famous Surprise Symphony (No. 104, Symphony with a drumbeat: in its slow movement, delicate music is suddenly interrupted by a thunderous drumbeat, as if Haydn wanted to make the ladies jump in their seats). Haydn also composed a beautiful chorus, The Storm, with English text, and a Concert Symphony (Sinfonia concertante).
On his way back home in the summer of 1792, Haydn, passing through Bonn, met Ludwig van Beethoven and took him as his student. The aging master immediately recognized the extent of the young man's talent and in 1793 predicted that Beethoven would one day be recognized as one of the greatest musicians in Europe, and he would proudly call himself his teacher. Haydn lived in Vienna until January 1794, then went to England and remained there until the summer of 1795. This trip was as triumphant as the previous ones. During this time, the composer created his last and best six symphonies (Nos. 99-104) and six magnificent quartets (Op. 71 and 74).
Final Years: After returning from England in 1795, Haydn resumed his former position at the Esterhazy court, now ruled by Prince Miklos II. The composer's main duty was to compose and rehearse a new Mass every year for the birthday of Princess Maria, Miklos's wife. This resulted in the creation of his last six Masses, including the Nelson Mass, which always enjoyed special popularity.
The last period of Haydn's creative life includes two major oratorios, The Creation and The Seasons. During his stay in England, Haydn became acquainted with the works of George Frideric Handel, and it seems that Messiah and Israel in Egypt inspired Haydn to create his own epic choral works. The oratorio The Creation was first performed in Vienna in April 1798, and The Seasons followed three years later. The work on the second oratorio, it seems, exhausted the master's strength. Haydn spent his last years in peace and tranquility in his cozy house on the outskirts of Vienna, in Gumpendorf (now within the city limits). In 1809, Vienna was besieged by Napoleon's troops, and in May they entered the city. Haydn was already very weak; he only got out of bed to play the Austrian national anthem on the piano, which he had composed a few years earlier. Haydn died on May 31, 1809.
Development of Style: Haydn's style is organically connected to the ground on which he grew - Vienna, the great Austrian capital, which was a "melting pot" for various traditions, including Italian, South German, and others. Viennese composers of the mid-18th century had several different styles at their disposal. One was "strict," intended for Masses and other church music, where polyphonic writing still played the main role. Another style was for opera, where the Italian manner prevailed until Mozart's time. The third style was for "street music," represented by the genre of cassations, often for two horns and strings or for a wind ensemble. When Haydn entered this colorful world, he quickly created his own style, which was unified for all genres, whether it be Mass or cantata, street serenade or keyboard sonata, quartet, or symphony. According to reports, Haydn claimed that C.P.E. Bach, the son of Johann Sebastian Bach, influenced him the most. Indeed, Haydn's early sonatas closely followed the models of "Hamburg Bach."
As for Haydn's symphonies, they are firmly rooted in the Austrian tradition. Their prototypes were the works of G.C. Wagenseil, F.L. Gassmann, d'Ordonnance, and to a lesser extent, M. Monn.
Works: Among Haydn's most famous compositions are The Creation and The Seasons, epic oratorios in the late Handelian style. These works made him famous in Austria and Germany to a greater extent than his instrumental works.
Conversely, in England and America (as well as in France), Haydn's orchestral music forms the foundation of his repertoire. Some of his symphonies, such as the Surprise Symphony, enjoy particular preference, deservedly or not. The London Symphonies, such as No. 12 in D major (London), are still popular in England and America. The last period of Haydn's symphonic output was very successful and demonstrated his mature compositional style.
Unfortunately, chamber music works are not as well-known or loved today, perhaps because the practice of domestic, amateur quartet and ensemble playing is gradually disappearing. Professional quartets performing for the "public" are not the same environment in which music is played for the sake of music itself. Haydn's string quartets and piano trios, containing deeply personal and intimate expressions of the musician's thoughts, are primarily intended to be performed in an intimate chamber setting among close friends, not by virtuosos in grand, cold concert halls.
The 20th century revived Haydn's masses for soloists, choir, and orchestra - monumental choral masterpieces with complex accompaniment. Although these works have always been foundational in the church music repertoire of Vienna, they had never previously spread beyond Austria. Nowadays, however, sound recordings have brought these beautiful works to a wide audience, primarily belonging to the late period of the composer's creative output (1796-1802). Among the 14 masses, the most perfect and dramatic is the Missa in Angustiis (Mass in the Time of Fear, or Nelson Mass, composed during the days of the historical victory of the English fleet over the French at the Battle of the Nile in 1798).
In terms of keyboard music, the late sonatas (Nos. 50-52, dedicated to Theresa Jansen in London), late keyboard trios (most of them written during Haydn's time in London), and the exceptionally expressive Andante con variazione in F minor (in the autograph, held in the New York Public Library, this composition is titled "sonata") are particularly noteworthy. This piece appeared in 1793, between Haydn's two trips to England.
In the genre of instrumental concerto, Haydn did not become an innovator and did not have a particular affinity for it. The most interesting example of a concerto in Haydn's body of work is undoubtedly the Trumpet Concerto in E-flat major (1796), written for an instrument with valves, a distant predecessor of the modern valved trumpet. In addition to this late composition, the Cello Concerto in D major (1784) and a series of elegant concertos written for the Neapolitan king, Ferdinand IV, are worth mentioning.
