First Nights - Handel's Messiah and Baroque Oratorio
While Italian opera set the standard in the Baroque era, German composer George Frederic Handel quickly gained popularity for his oratorios, which put operatic techniques to work in the service of sacred music. Handel's Messiah premiered in Dublin on April 13, 1742, and remains popular to this day. Harvard's Thomas Forrest Kelly (Morton B. Knafel Professor of Music) guides learners through Messiah's musical highlights, while detailing Handel's composition process, the preparations and rehearsals, and the premiere performance.
Learners in this module of First Nights need not have any prior musical experience. In this unit, you will learn the basics of musical form and analysis, the genres and styles used in Messiah , the circumstances of its first performance, and its subsequent history.
Additional First Nights Modules:
Monteverdi's L'Orfeo and the Birth of Opera
Handel's Messiah and Baroque Oratorio
Beethoven's "Ninth Symphony"
Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique and Program Music in the 19th Century
Igor Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring: Modernism, Ballet, and Riots
What you'll learn
- Get to know some wonderful music
- Identify genres and subgenres of 18th-century opera and oratorio
- Understand text-music relationships in the Baroque period
- Distinguish basic aspects of musical texture and musical form
- Appreciate cultural context and performance circumstances of Handel's Messiah
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| Rating | 5.0★ based on 4 ratings |
|---|---|
| Length | 3 weeks |
| Effort | 3 weeks, 3–5 hours per week |
| Starts | On Demand (Start anytime) |
| Cost | $99 |
| From | Harvard University, HarvardX via edX |
| Instructor | Thomas Forrest Kelly |
| Download Videos | On all desktop and mobile devices |
| Language | English |
| Subjects | Humanities Art & Design |
| Tags | Art & Culture Humanities History Music |
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What people are saying
most complex structures combined
Professor Kelly's ease of explaining the most complex structures combined with a wealth of information about cultural and historical context of that day, full with interesting trivia and scholar research, makes this course a wonderful contribution to the world of MOOCs.
my dearest classical pieces
I was curious at first to see what it offers, since 'For unto us' is one of my dearest classical pieces.
full with interesting trivia
strong recommendation for everybody
I can't wait for the other ones planned - a strong recommendation for everybody.
as an excerpt
As an excerpt of a review of Messiah's premiere says - "conspired to transport and charm the ravished Heart and Ear" - this course does the same.
mentioned on twitter
I loved this course - I just happened to see it mentioned on Twitter, a few weeks before Christmas, and it made me very happy at a time when there wasn't much to be happy about.
other ones planned
since 'for unto
weeks before christmas
few weeks
historical context
just happened
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| Rating | 5.0★ based on 4 ratings |
|---|---|
| Length | 3 weeks |
| Effort | 3 weeks, 3–5 hours per week |
| Starts | On Demand (Start anytime) |
| Cost | $99 |
| From | Harvard University, HarvardX via edX |
| Instructor | Thomas Forrest Kelly |
| Download Videos | On all desktop and mobile devices |
| Language | English |
| Subjects | Humanities Art & Design |
| Tags | Art & Culture Humanities History Music |
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