The commemoration of the life-work of great men and women is a laudable trait of civilized humanity. Very often, the occasions used for this purpose are their birth and death anniversaries. As far as great musical composers are concerned, this year - 2009 is particularly blessed with many such anniversaries – the 350th birth anniversary of Henry Purcell, the 250th death anniversary of George Friedrich Handel, the 200th death anniversary of Franz Joseph Haydn, and last but not least the 200th birth anniversary of Felix Mendelssohn! The purpose of this article is to very briefly outline the life-histories of these great masters.

Henry Purcell is generally recognised as England’s greatest composer of all time. He was born in London in 1659. He was the son of Thomas Purcell, a musician attached to the Chapel Royal, which was the most important musical establishment in England. Henry Purcell joined the Chapel Royal as a boy chorister. He became the organist of Westminster Abbey at the age of 21 and retained this important position during the rest of his life. He also held the post of ‘Composer in Ordinary’ to the Chapel Royal from 1677.

Henry Purcell composed more than five hundred compositions, which included both religious and secular works. Purcell wrote a large volume of vocal as well as instrumental music. In 1680 he published a superb set of fantasies for stringed instruments. Purcell was a close friend of John Dryden. He composed music for several of the poet’s plays, including ‘King Arthur ( 1691). However, Purcell’s most endearing masterpiece has been his opera ‘Dido and Aeneas’ ( 1689 ), which is based on Virgil’s Aeneid. His Te Deum in D ( 1694 ) and Jubilate in D ( 1695 ) also count among his great works. Purcell married in 1681 and was the father of six children. However, very little is known about his personal life. Even the date of his birth remains unknown. However, he was recognised as one of the greatest musicians during his lifetime. He died in London on 20th November 1695 and was buried in Westminster Abbey with great honours.

The great German – British composer George Friedrich Handel was born in Halle, Germany on 23rd February 1685. Handel, who was a musically gifted child, was determined to pursue a career in music. However, his father wanted him to become a lawyer instead. Eventually, the son had his own way. At the age of 18 Handel went to Hamburg – an important musical centre in Northern Germany, and took up a post as violinist in an opera orchestra. There he composed his first opera Almira( 1705 ). From Hamburg he went to Italy – the birthplace of Opera, where he was soon acclaimed as a genius. He returned to Germany in 1710 and took up the post of court conductor at the court of the princely ruler of Hanover. However, he soon went to England and settled permanently in London. Handel lived in England as a freelance composer. Unlike in Germany, this was possible in bourgeois England. He received the support of the wealthy middle class in addition to the patronage of the aristocracy. As a musician he was successful. He became famous throughout Europe as a great composer.

Handel composed a large number of religious and secular works. These included both vocal and instrumental compositions. Initially Handel was very successful as an opera composer. He composed a large number of operas. However, later on he began to write oratorios and became the world’s greatest composer of oratorios. His great oratorios oratorios are Saul ( 1738 ), Israel in Egypt ( 1738 ), Messiah ( 1742 ), and Jephtha ( 1752 ). Messiah is generally considered to be the greatest oratorio ever written. It contains the famous ‘ Hallelujah Chorus’. His instrumental masterpieces include the celebrated Water Music suite ( 1717 ) and the ‘Harmonious Blacksmith’ ( 1720 ). The former is an orchestral work while the later is a movement of a harpsichord suite.

Handel remained a bachelor throughout his life. Towards the end of his life he became blind. He died on 14th April 1759 and was buried in Westminster Abbey with great honours. He is recognised as one of the greatest composers of the Baroque period. After listening to the ‘Hallelujah Chorus’ Haydn said, " He is the master of us all". Beethoven, considered Handel to be the greatest composer who ever lived. During the last years of his life, he diligently and intensely studied Handel’s compositions.

The great German – Austrian composer Franz Joseph Haydn was born in Rohrau - a little village in eastern Austria, on 31st March 1732. His parents, who were poor villagers, were unable to provide him a good school education. However, thanks to his beautiful voice, he was able to join the choir of Vienna’s St Stephen’s Cathedral as a choir-boy. He had to leave the choir at the age of 16 when his voice broke. Thereafter he taught himself music composition. In particular he studied the sonatas of Carl Philip Emmanuel Bach, who was a son of Johann Sebastian Bach.

In 1761 Haydn joined the services of the wealthy and cultured Ezterhazys. In 1766 he became the Kapellmeister to the music loving Prince Nicholas Esterhazy. He soon became famous throughout Europe as a great composer. When Prince Esterhazy died in 1790, Haydn settled down in Vienna, which became his permanent residence for the rest of his life. In 1791 he was invited to visit England. He visited England twice. During his first visit in 1791 he was conferred a honourary doctorate by the University of Oxford. Both his trips to England were highly successful artistically as well as financially.

Joseph Haydn is rightly recognised as the father of the modern symphony. He composed more than 100 symphonies, which includes the well-known Solomon Symphonies ( 1791-1794 ), which are also known as the London Symphonies. He is also the father of the modern string quartet. His ‘ Emperor Quartet’ ( circa 1798 ) is one of his masterpieces in this genre . Haydn also wrote numerous other instrumental works such as concertos and sonatas. He also composed many sacred compositions, among which his oratorios ‘The Creation’ ( 1798 ) and ‘ The Seasons’ ( 1801 ) take pride of place. He became a close friend and a great admirer of Mozart. Later on he became the teacher of the young Beethoven for a short while.

Haydn married when he was twenty eight years old. However, before long he had to separate from his wife, who was a quarrelsome woman. Thereafter he led the life of a bachelor. Haydn was a friendly, unassuming and fun-loving person. His music mirrors these personal characteristics. On the whole he led a happy life. He died in Vienna on 31st May 1809. He is recognised as one of the greatest composers of the classical period.

The great German composer Felix Mendelssohn was born in Hamburg, Germany on 3rd February 1809. We was the son of a wealthy banker and the grandson of the philosopher Moses Mendelssohn. Accordingly, he was brought up in a cultured and well-to-do environment. Mendelssohn, who was a child prodigy, started composing music at a tender age of eleven. He developed a close friendship with the 72 year old Goethe at the age of twelve. He studied music under the eminent German musician Carl Friedrich Zelter and became one of the greatest composers of the romantic period. The Italian Symphony ( 1833 ), the Scottish Symphony ( 1842 ), the Hebrides Overture ( 1830 ), the ‘Songs Without Words’ for piano ( 1829 – 1845 ), and the oratorio ‘Elijah’ ( 1846 ) count among his great masterpieces.

4 Apart from his great contribution as a composer, Mendelssohn also played an important role as a musical educationist and conductor. He was the first director of the Leipzig conservatoire and a great pioneer in the revival of the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. He died in Leipzig on 4th November 1847.