This piece was a part of one of Handel’s oratorio’s; namely, Solomon. Handel composed the music between May 5 and June 13 of 1748. It was originally orchestrated for 2 oboes however, it has been transcribed into arrangement for various other groups such as string quartet. This song itself is in the key of B flat major which means that two flats are present throughout the piece; those being b flat and e flat. It is also, as with most baroque compositions, written in common time which denotes that there will be four beats per measure and the quarter note will receive the denotation of one beat.
George Frederic Handel, one of three major Baroque composers, was born in Germany in 1685. However, many of his most famous compositions were written in Britain which is quite easy to tell because they feature a distinctly elegant, British aura rather than the powerful aura often, (but not always), emitted by pieces written by German composers. Since the time of the publication of this piece, it has developed into a song often played at weddings due to its orderly, precise dynamic changes that gives it a soothing, delicate feel.
Personally, I have experience with this piece in a way that many others do not. Since I myself play the violin, I can fondly remember sitting in the back of my Middle School’s 7th and 8th Grade String Orchestra playing this song with some of the most talented orchestral members to pass through the school district, (who were all leading instrumentalists with featured roles in each piece). While this definitely improved the overall quality of the performance, I couldn’t help feel a little bit of extra pressure to do well since it would be the 8th grader’s last concert in the Middle School, (it was a real passing of the torch moment). My music teacher was, as usual fantastic at teaching us “little” 7th graders how to play the piece correctly while allowing the 8th graders to shine, (I still marvel at her mastery of that orchestra and, up to this day, remains one of my favorite teachers ever). Anyways, I hope, when you listen too it, you can enjoy it as much as I do. Please comment any pleasant memories with this piece or any other piece that you may have had and, as always, thank you for reading.
Bass Clef
I remember hearing this played at the middle school concert under the direction of the amazing Mrs. O’Hara. It was eye opening to my husband who had not been to string concert since elementary school days. He got a glimpse into how wonderful string pieces can be.