Dictionary of Music - Birding America

Haydn, Franz Joseph 179Some of his works were for instruments that he himselfdesigned and built. For years concentrating onchamber music, for which it was easier to get performances,Harrison later wrote more works for orchestraas several prominent conductors championedhim. His works include Pacifica Rondo (1963), asuite for various Asian instruments; the puppet operaYoung Caeser (1971); Elegiac Symphony (1975),which blends Asian and Western elements; Paradefor MTT (1995), for conductor Michael TilsonThomas, which includes a tack piano, with thumbtacksstuck in the hammers for a metallic sound;Rhymes with Silver (1996) for chamber ensembleand solo cello; and many pieces for gamelan.hautbois (ō bwä′).The French word for OBOE.Hawaiian guitar Also, lap guitar, slide guitar,steel guitar. A type of guitar that is held flat acrossthe player’s lap. Its metal strings are mounted higherabove the finger-board than those of the ordinaryguitar and are stopped with a movable steel bar orslide held in the player’s left hand. There are nofrets. The player strums the strings with the fingersof the right hand, which are protected by metal orplastic tips, and glides the stopping bar over thestrings, producing various special effects (glissando,vibrato, etc.). The Hawaiian guitar developed inHawaii from the classical guitar, which had beenbrought there by U.S. sailors. Today, the instrumentis almost always used with electronic amplification,and mainly for country and Western music. Anotherkind of Hawaiian guitar is supported on a stand andhas a pedal tuning system.Haydn (hīd′ən), Franz Joseph (fränts yō′zef),1732–1809. An Austrian composer rememberedchiefly for his instrumental compositions—keyboardsonatas, string quartets, and more than a hundredsymphonies—as well as some exceptionallyfine choral music. Along with Mozart andBeethoven, Haydn is one of the main representativesof the CLASSIC style. Haydn began studying musicas a young boy and supported himself through anumber of musical posts, beginning at the age ofeight as a choirboy in the famous choir of St.Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna. In 1761 he beganworking for the family of his most important patron,Prince Nicolaus Esterházy, at Eisenstadt, and in thecourse of the next thirty years Haydn became Austria’smost highly regarded composer. In 1791 hewent to England at the invitation of the GermanbornEnglish impresario, Johann Peter Salomon(1745–1815). During his year-and-a-half’s staythere, and on a second trip in 1794, Haydn wrote hisSymphonies nos. 93–104, which include many ofhis finest works in the form. Late in life, Haydnturned to choral music; between 1796 and 1802 hewrote two splendid oratorios (The Creation, TheSeasons), six Masses, and the hymn that becameAustria’s national anthem (Gott erhalte Franz denKaiser, “God Sustain the Emperor Franz”).Affectionately known as “Papa Haydn,” thecomposer was essentially a gay, amiable person,qualities reflected in the humor, warmth, and liltingmelodies of his music. Three composers exerted amajor influence on him. During his youth, Haydnstudied the keyboard works of Karl Philipp EmanuelBach, with their emphasis both on elegance andrefinement and on the expressive qualities of thekeyboard instrument. In 1781 Haydn met Mozart,and the two men became close friends; each influencedthe other, especially with regard to the form ofthe string quartet. Haydn wrote some sixty-eightworks in this form, transforming it from what hadbeen basically a piece for solo violin accompaniedby second violin, viola, and cello, to a work inwhich all four instruments had equal importance.Finally, during his first trip to England, Haydn heardthe music of Handel, and its influence is apparentboth in his oratorios and in his late Masses.Among those of Haydn’s symphonies and quartetsthat are performed particularly often are:Farewell Symphony (no. 45), Oxford Symphony (no.92), Surprise Symphony (no. 94), Military Symphony(no. 100), Clock Symphony (no. 101), DrumRoll Symphony (no. 103); Sun Quartets (op. 20),Russian Quartets (op. 33), Razor Quartet (op. 55,no. 2), Quintenquartett (op. 76, no. 2), EmperorQuartet (op. 76, no. 3). In addition to those worksalready mentioned, Haydn wrote concertos for