
Great Masters: Haydn - His Life and Music
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Narrated by:
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Robert Greenberg
Almost from the moment it was first set to paper, the music of Franz Joseph Haydn (1732-1809) - technically superb, rich in quality, and widely imitated - has exemplified the Classical style, creating not only the Classical-era symphony but setting the standard, through his own 68 string quartets, against which that form has ever after been judged.
And yet Haydn, despite the influence left by more than 1,000 works, seems to no longer get his due, often thought of as an aged figure surpassed and overshadowed by Beethoven and Mozart, who actually credited Haydn, the only contemporary he admired, and with whom he formed a lasting and artistically fruitful friendship, with teaching him how to write string quartets. Even Beethoven, whose relationship with his compositional teacher was troubled and stormy, would never have been able to write his triumphant Ninth Symphony without the influence of Haydn's crowning achievement, the towering 1798 oratorio, Creation.
Now, in a series of eight vivid lectures, you can learn to understand and appreciate the music of one of the most original and influential composers of all time as you explore his origins, influence, and greatest works.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.
©2000 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2000 The Great CoursesListeners also enjoyed...




















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The lectures and music examples have an adequate balance with the lectures illustrating the music examples.
It does bother me that the sound quality of the music in these presentations is generally poor and almost always monophonic. After all, the music is polyphonic.
Greenberg is entertaining
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One of the Best
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Incredible Narrator
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He delivers and transmits his wisdom and passion.
Great.
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Haydn. excellent historical narrative.
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It IS hard work to educate as well as entertain, and just like Joseph Haydn himself, Greenberg strives for a great balance and combine these two aspects admirably. Also in praise of him: he offers us extensively well-researched material, supported by memoirs of eye-witnesses, correspondence of family, friends, analysis from contemporary newspapers and critics; quotes from old and modern biographies, results of musical analysis and parts of well-chosen musical pieces. He always gives you a narrower and wider historical and cultural context and manages to transport you into the era of his chosen composer and presents his subject in 3D. All his lectures are accompanied by PDF material outlining and summarising the content.
Last but not least, quite a few of his lectures are/were included in The Great Courses series on Audible to borrow for free, for which I am truly grateful.
I learned about Haydn in school as he has had important ties to Hungary and while I also enjoy his music a lot, I have not given him too much thought altogether. But after listening to these biographic lectures by Greenberg, I stand corrected and remorseful ... and am much more appreciative of and impressed by "Papa Haydn" than I was before. Plus I added some more music to listen to for my "Vienna Classics" channel on Youtube. :)
Haydn's life makes for a truly engrossing tale and Greenberg makes the most of it.
The most interesting points for me were the friendship between Haydn and Mozart (who was half Haydn's age when they met and the two men could not have been more different even had they tried), the far from ideal relationship between Haydn and the young Beethoven and the whole musical journey Haydn completed.
He had a long way to travel from starting off as a choirboy in Vienna's St Stephen Cathedral, struggling as a freelancer musician and composer, becoming a music "officer" of the Esterhazy family while slowly establishing himself as an acknowledged composer, to finally reaching celebrity status in London while being made the doctor of music in Oxford, meeting the Prince of Wales (later George IV) and George III and finally being revered by all in Vienna at the end of his life.
The body of music he created is truly staggering, the process of creating his own music among the musical impressions he received (Carl Philip Emmanuel Bach, Mozart, J.S. Bach, Handel) is fascinating.
A much recommended biography/listen.
Entertaining and informative
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Fantastic! I'm a Haydn convert!
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So Good!
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Great listen
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Hayden ,Great Master
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