Handel has unfortunately fallen out of favor among classical music fans in the modern era. Beyond the Messiah (his most famous oratorio), Water Music and Music for the Royal Fireworks, his music isn't well-known or widely performed today. ********************** Trevor Pinnock and the English Concert Orchestra George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) Water Music Polydor, 1983 ********************** But this composer was treasured during his day in his adopted homeland of England, and his output was massive, encompassing 29 oratorios, 42 operas, more than a hundred cantatas, and countless other works of chamber music. If I were in "CD buying mode" rather than "listening to the CDs I already own" mode, I'd probably purchase recordings of some of Handel's oratorios, or some of his suites for keyboard and harpsichord. But for now I'll have to settle for a careful listen to today's recording, Water Music, which is Handel's second best-known work after t...
"The study of the history of music and the hearing of masterworks of different epochs will speediest of all cure you of vanity and self-adoration."