Great
Classical Music
Composers

(Franz) Joseph HAYDN

31 March 1732 - 31 May 1809 (age 77)

Portrait by Paul Helm
click on image for more info

Austrian composer Josef Haydn. So called "Father of the Symphony" and also "Father of the string quartet". He was an important influence on Mozart, Beethoven and many more.

Family

Born: Rohrau, Austria, March 31, 1732 - May 31, 1809
Father: Mathias Haydn, wheelwright
Mother: Maria Koller, cook
Siblings: Michael Haydn, composer, Johann Evangelist Haydn - tenor
Partners: His first great love, Therese Keller, became a nun. He later married her sister Maria Anna - not a happy marriage.
He had numerous extra marital affairs.
Children: May have had children with his long term mistress singer Luigia Polzelli.
Grave: Bergkirche, Eisenstadt, Burgenland, Austria.

Personality

A small man with dark, pock marked skin, an ugly big nose, a jutting chin and protruding lower lip. Not a pretty sight - yet he was admired and pursued by women.
He had a great sense of humour and was a cheerful soul with a warm heart. He once wrote of himself "As God has given me a cheerful heart, He will forgive me for serving Him cheerfully."
He was a very hard worker and very methodical. Every day was full with concerts and rehearsals yet he managed to produce a vast volume of compositions.

Works

- 104 Symphonies
- over 90 String Quartets
- 32 Piano Trios
- 62 Piano Sonatas
- Concertos for Piano, Cello, Trumpet, Harpsichord
- Stabat Mater
- 14 Masses,
- Oratorios: The Creation, The Seasons
- Choral Works
- over 330 songs

A Video Documentary

An interesting documentary on the life and music of Haydn by 'How Stuff Works'. It lasts about 35 minutes and opens in a new window.
Click on the image.

Trumpet concerto

Tine Thing Helseth (20) made her recording debut release on SACD internationally in February 2008, toghether with Norwegian Chamber Orchestra. This video was made during the recording sessions. Norwegian.
click on image - opens in a new window.

Quotes

- "Young people can learn from my example that something can come from nothing. What I have become is the result of my hard efforts."

- "I was cut off from the world. There was no one to confuse or torment me, and I was forced to become original."

- "I was never a quick writer, but composed with great care and efforts."

- "Whenever I think of God I can only conceive of Him as a Being infinitely great and infinitely good. This last quality of the divine nature inspires me with such confidence and joy that I could have written even a miserere in tempo allegro."

and a joke.....
Q: Why couldn't Mozart find his piano teacher?

A: He was Haydn!