The Palace and Park by Phillips, Forbes, Latham, Owen, Scharf, and Shenton

[Born in Rohrau, on the frontiers of Austria and Hungary, 1732. Died at Vienna, 1809. Aged 77.] The son of very poor and humble parents, who cheered their poverty and supported their labour by home music. The family concerts constituted Haydn’s initiation into Art. He was a passionate neophyte. At the age of thirteen, he had composed a mass, which he was unable to write correctly. Taken into the service of the great master Porpora, he submitted to menial drudgery in order to have the advantage of his instruction. In 1760, he entered the better service of Prince Esterhazy, with whom, as Court Musician, he continued for the space of twenty-five years. During that period, some of his finest symphonies were produced. In 1791, he went, on invitation, to London, and continued there for thirteen years, sending forth his inimitable works, and receiving honour on every side. In 1794, he returned to Germany, established himself in the suburbs of Vienna, and composed the oratorio of “The Creation.” He died in 1809, from agitation, it is said, induced by the advance upon Vienna of the French army. Haydn is one of the greatest of modern musicians. He set free the spirit of instrumental music, and purified his art by the purity, simplicity, and beauty of his works. He is remarkable for lucid melody and for his power of effective painting. His labours were enormous and his compositions countless. He could himself reckon up to 800 works, large and small, and there he stopped.