Portrays the life of the composer, depicts his musical career in Germany and England, and examines the development of his music

Written by the foremost British Handel scholar, these essays encompass a variety of opera-related subjects, including shorter pieces for "The Listener" and substantial surveys, such as "Shakespeare in the Opera House" and "Beethoven and Opera." Scholarly articles containing the results of original research appear alongside essays intended for the general reader with an interest in opera. The collection spans thirty-five years of work. In light of recent information, each essay has been updated, annotated, and revised for this volume.

Product Description: Looking in depth at Handel's oratorios and masques in dramatic form--among them some of the highest achievements of musical drama ever written--Dean here discusses general questions of history, style, and performance, and explains how the oratorios have been progressively misrepresented since Handel's day; subsequent chapters detail each of his eighteen works in this genre...read more