Day 46: The Seasons (Spring, Summer)

HaydnCD46There are more German words on the back of today’s CD sleeve than one is likely to hear in a movie about World War II.

Today’s Haydn composition is Die Jahreszeiten, which means The Seasons.

Apparently, according to said sleeve, this is just the “Beginning” of The Seasons, although I’m not sure what that means.

Just Spring? Just Winter?

Winter, Spring, Summer?

Googling is called for. (Actually Googling wasn’t needed. Ogling was. I just sifted through all of the German words and discovered that this recording covers Spring and Summer. That likely means the next CD will be Fall and Winter.)

Here’s some info from its entry on Wiki:

The composition process was arduous for Haydn, in part because his health was gradually failing and partly because Haydn found van Swieten’s libretto to be rather taxing. Haydn took two years to complete the work.

Like The Creation, The Seasons had a dual premiere, first for the aristocracy whose members had financed the work (Schwarzenberg palace, Vienna, 24 April 1801), then for the general public (Redoutensaal, Vienna, 19 May). The oratorio was considered a clear success, but not a success comparable to that of The Creation. In the years that followed, Haydn continued to lead oratorio performances for charitable causes, but it was usually The Creation that he led, not The Seasons.

The aging Haydn lacked the energy needed to repeat the labor of self-publication that he had undertaken for The Creation and instead assigned the new oratorio to his regular publisher at that time, Breitkopf & Härtel, who published it in 1802.

The Seasons is written for a fairly large late-Classical orchestra, a chorus singing mostly in four parts, and three vocal soloists, representing archetypal country folk: Simon (bass), Lucas (tenor), and Hanne (soprano). The solo voices are thus the same three as in The Creation.

The oratorio is divided into four parts, corresponding to Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter, with the usual recitatives, arias, choruses, and ensemble numbers.

According to Wiki, The Seasons was published in 1802. Hayden was 70.

The performances are outstanding.

Like a previous composition (Messa Sancta Caeciliae), The Seasons is also “big.”

Soprano Helen Donath is superb, as she usually is. But tenor Adalbert Kraus is no slouch. Neither is baritone Kurt Widmer. And I’m not usually a fan of the baritone voice.

This may have been arduous composition for Haydn. But it’s not arduous for me to listen to. It’s a wonderful oratorio.

Listen for yourself.

NOTE: That isn’t the recording to which I listened today. It’s only the “Spring” part. Plus, it’s not the same orchestra or soloists. But it’ll give you an idea of the scope of this piece.

It’s big.

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