Aria: "Vo' dar pace" from "Tamerlano" (HWV 18 Act I No. 2) for Double-Reed Quartet

George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (1685 – 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well-known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concerti. He was born in Halle, Germany and spent his early life in Hamburg and Italy before settling in London in 1712, where he spent the bulk of his career and became a naturalised British subject in 1727. He was strongly influenced both by the middle-German polyphonic choral tradition and by composers of the Italian Baroque. In turn, Handel's music forms one of the peaks of the "high baroque" style, bringing Italian opera to its highest development, creating the genres of English oratorio and organ concerto, and introducing a new style into English church music. He is consistently recognized as one of the greatest composers of his age. The German-born Handel, after spending some of his early career composing operas and other pieces in Italy, settled in London, where in 1711 he had brought Italian opera for the first time with his opera Rinaldo. A tremendous success, Rinaldo created a craze in London for Italian opera seria, a form focused overwhelmingly on solo arias for the star virtuoso singers. In 1719, Handel was appointed music director of an organisation called the Royal Academy of Music (unconnected with the present day London conservatoire), a company under royal charter to produce Italian operas in London. Handel was not only to compose operas for the company but hire the star singers, supervise the orchestra and musicians, and adapt operas from Italy for London performance. Tamerlano (Tamerlane, HWV 18) is an opera seria in three acts by George Frideric Handel. The Italian libretto was by Nicola Francesco Haym, adapted from Agostino Piovene's Tamerlano together with another libretto entitled Bajazet after Nicolas Pradon's Tamerlan, ou La Mort de Bajazet. The opera was staged by the Royal Academy of Music in the King's Theatre at the Haymarket, London. Viewed as one of Handel's major works, he composed it in the space of 20 days in July 1724, in a year in which two more great operas were composed by him: Rodelinda and Giulio Cesare. Rodelinda and Tamerlano were shorter than Giulio Cesare, about thirty numbers each compared to forty-four in Giulio Cesare. Eve Meyer has noted that the role of Bajazet was one of the first major tenor roles in opera, and has also commented on the place of the opera in the context of the contemporary fashion for Turkish culture (turquerie). The opera is scored for two recorders, two flutes, two oboes, bassoon, two horns, strings, and continuo instruments (cello, lute, harpsichord). 18th century musicologist Charles Burney wrote of Tamerlano: "the overture is well known, and retains its favour among the most striking and agreeable of Handel's instrumental productions.. Many of Handel's operas offer perhaps more specimens of his fire and learning, but none more pleasing melodies and agreeable effects." Paul Henry Lang wrote in 1966: "here the principal role, that of Bajazet, is given to a tenor....This is the first great tenor role in opera. Handel was entirely successful in portraying Bajazet." Source: Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamerlano). Although originally written for Opera, I created this arrangement of the Aria: "Vo' dar pace a un alma altiera" (I want to give peace to a proud soul) from "Tamerlano" (HWV 18 Act I No. 2) for Double-Reed Quartet (2 Oboes, English Horn & Bassoon). Made with MuseScore 4 Sounds.