Haydn's Oratorio The Seasons

Choral Singing / Oratorio

Oratorio The Seasons ('Die Jahreszeiten') followed Haydn's earlier masterpiece, The Creation

Franz Joseph Haydn's oratorio 'The Seasons' ('Die Jahreszeiten): facts, the cast, brief history, and other Haydn-related information.

The Seasons followed Haydn's greatest work The Creation, both oratorios based after a Handel model instead of the traditional Italian oratorio. 

Facts about The Seasons:

Composer: (Franz) Joseph Haydn (1732-1809), an Austrian composer born in Rohrau, Austria. 

Original Title: Die Jahreszeiten

Original Language: German

Text: Gottfried van Swieten (Baron von Swieten), Austrian patron of the Arts. The words are based on the English poem The Seasons by James Thomson.      

Form: Four parts: Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter – a total of 44 musical numbers.

Date of Writing: 1799-1801.

First Performance: Vienna, in the palace of Prince Schwarzenberg, April 24, 1801.

Haydn's "The Seasons" performed by Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Howard Arman.   Felicitas Fuchs, soprano. Andrew Staples, tenor. Reinhard Hagen, bass.  MDR Radio Choir of Leipzig.




Here's another link:  With Herbert von Karajan conducting  the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra:  Haydn's "The Seasons" in German. Soloists: G. Janowitz, W. Hollweg. 

The Oratorio's Cast:

Simon, a tenant farmer (bass)

Hanne, his daughter (soprano)

Lucas, a young peasant (tenor)

The oratorio is a four-part mixed chorus

The Orchestra: Flutes, clarinets, bassoons, contrabassoons, oboes, horns, trumpets, trombones, timpani, strings, continuo with cello and harpsichord.

Brief History of The Seasons:

The Seasons followed the path of its predecessor, Haydn's most successful oratorio The Creation and therefore it can be deduced that whether van Swieten talked Haydn into producing this succeeding oratorio or not is immaterial. Haydn was enjoying extreme  respect and admiration from people after "The Creation." On the other hand, the maestro was now 67 years old.

Haydn's popularity as an instrumental composer went quickly far and wide. From all the great joy that "The Creation" brought him, "The Seasons" took on. One again, the text of the composition was arranged by Gottfried can Swieten, who also had great influence on the younger Mozart. A highly cultured Viennese patron of the arts, van Swieten once again produced a text to make the best use of Haydn's talents and make it another masterpiece.   

Prominent aristocrats guaranteed the best conditions, an honorarium at the same time oversee the production premiere.

The premiere on April 24, 1801 was an enormous success, and immediately two more performances followed on 29^th of April and 1^st of May. The audience was enrapt with the highest accolade for the wearying but elated composer. He gave his all for this oratorio and felt that it was his last.

Haydn said about the effect of "The Seasons" (The World of the Oratorio by Kurt Pahlen, Scolar Press, 1990):

"… I had to struggle for days at a time with the smallest details."       

Brief Synopsis of The Seasons:

The theme of the seasons is an obvious one, the normal season changes of the year – spring, summer, autumn, winter. Other composers have tried the idea including baroque composers Vivaldi and Telemann. Vivaldi's violin concerto cycle Le Quattro Stagioni (The Four Seasons) is extremely popular to date.

The oratorio has four parts:

Spring

Summer

Autumn

Winter

with a total of 44 musical numbers.

The character Simon, the farmer, observes the stuggle between the elements – starting from spring (as when Hanne feels the first gentle winds of spring) to the harsh winter (destroying blossoms and sprouts.) – a symbol for the passing of life.  

Between the main melody and its repetition at the conclusion, a splendid and enchanting exchange between the voices (male and female) is used.

However, The Seasons doesn't end in melancholy, as expressed by the chorus and the soloists, but that of greatest and deepest joy, signifying an acceptance of the human life.

Other Famous Oratorios:

Bach's St Matthew Passion
Handel's Israel in Egypt

Handel's Messiah
Handel's Saul 

Haydn'sThe Creation

Mendelssohn's Elijah

Mendelssohn's St Paul 

Resource:

The World of Oratorio by Kurt Pahlen (1990)

Note:  I originally wrote this piece for Suite101.com, 10 October 2007.  This is a shorter piece. /Tel  

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