THE V I O LIN AND ITS MUSIC, GEORGE HART, "HE VIOLIN: ITS ...

7HE VIOLIN AND ITS MUSIC.
I t is at least remarkable that Bach and Handel,
of equal fame, and of whom it may be said, to
mention one is to think of the other, should have
come into the world in the same year, and within a
month of each other. Handel was born at Halle,
Lower Saxony, February 23rd, 1685. Though
inferior as a prodigy to Mozart, Handel nevertheless
was a musical phenomenon, and, like Mozart,
was an exception to prodigies in general, where
youthful genius burns with such vitality, that, when
manhood is reached, nothing remains for the flame
to feed upon. His powers of improvisation on the
Organ were extraordinary ; the difj.iculties of the
Harpsichord, the Hautboy, and the Violin, were, to a
great extent, overcome in his teens. On the death
of Handel's father, the youthful musician suddenly
found himself dependent on his own exertions for
his maintenance. He decided to quit Halle for
Hamburg, where he hoped to obtain some employment
in his profession, that would enable him to
spend some time among the musicians of Italy. At
Hamburg he entered the orchestra of the theatre
as a Violinist ; three years later he found himself
in possession of means to carry out his longwished-for
visit to Italy. Though importuned long
before this by Prince Gaston de Medici, brother of
the Grand Duke of Tuscany, to accompany him to
,Florence, Handel, with that spirit of independence
which manifested itself throughout his career,
declined, preferring to be neither under restraint