Written by Anna Vorhes

Born
March 31, 1732, Rohrau, Lower Austria

Died
May 31, 1809, Vienna

Instrumentation
Soprano, tenor and bass vocal soloists, SATB choir, three flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, contrabassoon, two horns, two trumpets, two trombones, timpani, harpsichord, strings

Duration
1 hour 49 minutes

Composed
October 1796 - April 1798

World Premiere
First a private premiere at the Palais of Prince Josef Schwarzenbe for the commissioning group, the Gesellscraaft Kavaliere (Society of Gentlemen) on April 30, 1798, by subscription only.  The concert was repeated May 7 and 10 of that year.  The public premiere happened a year alter on March 19, 1799, at the Burgtheater in Vienna.

Something interesting to listen for
This oratorio sparked Haydn's imagination and led him to use the technique called word painting.  In the Baroque era this was a usual technique to translate words into musical phrases.  An example would be depicting "running down the hill" with downward motion in the singers and instruments.  Here Haydn takes it tot he next degree.  The opening statement of the earth being void and without shape leads to some very unusual (for the Classical era) harmony.  We hear the cosmos being disorganized.  As the creation commences, when we learn of the creation of light, we hear the chorus and orchestra arrive at a powerful C major chord, shining pure light through sound.  Birds, insects and fish are given voice in the fifth day.  When the beasts are created in the sixth day, listen for lions roaring, whales with great deep voices, and all the other creatures you can imagine, ending with the creation of Adam and Eve.  This piece has drawn listeners into the biblical story of creation since Haydn conceived it.  

Program Notes

By the time Franz Joseph Hadyn wrote this piece he was recognized as the most powerful and beloved composer in Europe.  His long association with the Esterhazy family had become in name only, allowing the composer to travel Europe conducting and writing as he pleased.  He still received financial support from the Esterhazy prince, but very little was requested of him.  On the other hand, the public in Paris, and especially in London, was eager to have him visit to share his music.  He had a vast catalog to choose from, having completed most of his 104 symphonies, countless string quartets and concerts, and many religious pieces.

On a visit to London in 1791, Haydn was invited to attend a Festival of Oratorios at Westminster Abbey.  Here he heard vast orchestral and choral forces present various oratorios.  Among them were Handel's Messiah and Israel in Egypt which included musical depictions of the plagues sent to convince the pharaoh to release the Israelites.  His impresario Johann Peter Saloman presented Haydn with a libretto of the story of the creation taken from the Bible and quoting the story from the book of Genesis, selected passages of the Psalms, and passages from John Milton's Paradise Lost.  The author of the original libretto remains unknown.  When Haydn returned to his home in Vienna, he shared the libretto with several of his supporters, including Baron van Swieten, a close advisor of Holy Roman Emperor Franz Joseph.  Baron van Swieten encouraged Haydn to take on the project, offering to translate the text from the original English into German.  This translation was the text Haydn set.  When he finally sent the work to his publisher, both German and English (translated back from the German by Baron van Swieten) were published together.  Both languages are a bit awkward in the format Haydn shared, especially because it was the language and usage of the eighteenth century.  Today, some retranslation and adjustments are made to be sure listeners understand the intent rather than awkward phraseology.

As soon as audiences heard The Creation they clamored to hear it again.  The premiere was private, by subscription.  It was repeated twice more within a fortnight.  As the publication with the English and German texts went to print in February 1880, an English impresario named John Ashley arranged with the publisher to immediately send a messenger with the score and parts to England.  Saloman, Haydn's impresario, was in the process of scheduling an English premiere when Ashley stole his thunder presenting the oratorio March 29, 1800.  The work was presented forty-three times in Haydn's life, with the composer conducting or attending many of these events.  It was presented March 27, 1808, by the University of Vienna to celebrate Haydn's seventy-fifth birthday.  The composer was present, as was his former pupil Ludwig von Beethoven.  Contemporary reports have the student kneeling at his master's feet and expressing his love and gratitude that such a fine mentor had supported his own talents.

Oratorios follow the format of a concert setting rather being staged as an opera.  Handel had invented the genre partly to avoid the prohibition of opera during the penitential seasons of lent and advent, choosing plots from the Bible and avoiding the drama of opera.  Haydn includes five characters spit between three singers.  For the first five days of creation, we are guided by three angels: Gabriel, sung by the soprano soloists, Uriel, sung by the tenor soloist and Raphael, sung by the bass soloist.  On the sixth day the bass and soprano soloists will become Adam and Eve as they are created and explore the Garden of Eden.

The Creation divides easily into three parts.  The first part depicts days one to four.  The first day begins with the orchestra presenting the void before God created the world.  In a world where lovely four bar questions and answer phrases were the norm, this must have felt quite unusual.  While to our ears this may sound a bit tame, remembering the regularity of Haydn's symphonies and string quartets or Mozart's symphonies and concertos, will give us a sense of how unusual this was to the audiences of Haydn's time.

The second day considers the waters from the great seas to the small brooks.  Day three is the creation of land as it separates from the sea, and the addition of plants.  The sun, moon and stars appear on day four.

The second part of The Creation offers birds and fish on day five.  Birdsongs are familiar in orchetral settings, and these are especially interesting and enjoyable.  Day six highlights the creation of animals.  Here we are treated to all kinds of imaginateve sounds to depict domestic beasts and wild animals.  The lion's roar is especially satisfying.  While we know whale sounds a re real and high pitched, in Haydn's day they were imagined to be quite low.  Listen for the basses, celli and even contrabassoon creating their deep-sea sounds.  You can easily imagine many other creatures created until as the section comes to an end, Adam and Eve are created.  The second section closes with the idea "Achieved is the Glorious Work".  Haydn sets this concept first as a lovely Handelian fugato, finally concluding with a full blown double fugue.

The third and final section depicts Adam and Eve exploring their new home and getting to know each other.  The bass sings as Adam with the soprano taking the role of Eve in answer.  They sing an exhilarating twelve-minute duet that explores their relationship with their new home, each other and with their creator.  The chorus offers their support to this new union.  There is a slight sense of the inevitable disaster of sin as we reach the end, but it does not spoil the cheerful mood of this entire work.

Like Bach, Haydn wrote at the end of each score either "Soli Deo Gloria" (To God alone be the glory) or "Laus Deo" (praise God.).  His religion was not put on for the sake of these works or to entice the audience to support his music.  He was a devout Catholic man and truly felt the presence of God in his life.

Many people have written about this oratorio.  One of the most interesting and appropriate quotes comes from Tim Munro, writing for the St. Louis Symphony.  He says of the chorus:

"The main job of Haydn's chorus is to pop champagne corks and party hard, proclaiming and exalting and glorifying late into the night."

The musicians for tonight's concert from soloists to orchestra players and singers of the South Dakota Symphony Orchestra Chorus are here to create for you Haydn's joyful oratorio.  May you be uplifted by this incredible work written by a happy musician late in his life.