
Unfortunately, the marriage was an unhappy one.Ĭount Morzin suffered financial difficulties and had to let Haydn go in 1761. In 1760, Haydn had enough money to marry Maria Anna Theresia Keller (1729–1800), the daughter of an organist. Haydn’s roles included leading the count’s orchestra, for which he composed his first symphonies. He obtained aristocratic patronage, eventually being employed as a Kapellmeister or music director by Count Karl Joseph Morzin. Whilst it premiered successfully in 1753 critics soon closed it down because of the uncensored “offensive remarks” in the libretto, written by Johann Joseph Felix Kurtz.īetween 1754 and 56, Haydn returned to freelance work, including for the court in Vienna. As his skills improved, so did his public reputation, which earned him a commission to write his first opera Der krumme Teufel (The Limping Devil). To rectify this, Haydn worked his way through books by Johann Joseph Fux (1660-1741) and studied the works of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714-88). Working with Porpora, Haydn realised his education lacked music theory and composition. With Porpora’s help, Haydn learnt “the true fundamentals of composition”. Jobs included working as a music teacher and singing on the streets until 1752 when he found a position as valet-accompanist to the Italian composer Nicola Porpora (1686-1768). With the help of a friend, who provided Haydn with accommodation, Haydn started working as a freelance musician. He also had a reputation as a practical joker and, after going one joke too far, was caned and dismissed from the school in 1745. Stephen’s Cathedral was a leading European music centre and attracted large aristocratic audiences for whom Haydn and the other boys performed.Īs Haydn got older, his voice changed, making him unsuitable for Reutter’s choir. The tuition lacked musical theory and composition, but Haydn picked up some of this knowledge through practice and performance. Joseph, Michael and the other choirboys received an academic education as well as voice, violin, and keyboard lessons. His brother Michael joined him there in 1745. After several months of training, Haydn moved to the Kapellhaus in Vienna with Reutter where he worked as a chorister for nine years. Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna and was on the lookout for fresh talent. The people of Hainburg heard Haydn singing the treble parts in the church choir and brought him to the attention of the composer Georg von Reutter (1708-72). Fortunately, his passion for singing was his saving grace.

Haydn learnt to play the harpsichord and violin under Frankh’s tuition but suffered neglect in other ways, such as nourishment and clothing. As Frankh’s apprentice, Haydn trained as a musician and never returned to his parents. When Haydn was only six years old, his parents sent him to a relative and schoolmaster called Johann Matthias Frankh in Hainburg. Haydn’s younger brother Michael (1737-1806) was also musically gifted, and their parents worried the village of Rohrau was not the right place for them to enhance their skills. Haydn’s mother Maria could not read music either, yet Haydn’s childhood was very musical, often singing with his neighbours.
HAYDN COMPOSITIONS HOW TO
In his younger years, Mathias learnt to play the harp by ear, although he never learnt how to read music. Portrait of Joseph Haydn by Thomas Hardy (1791)įranz Joseph Haydn, born on 31st March 1732, grew up in the Austrian village Rohrau, where his father, Mathias Haydn (1699-1763) served as Marktrichter or mayor.

But who was Haydn, other than the composer of over 100 symphonies and over 80 string quartets? The nickname caught on, and people far and wide adopted the term for the older composer, including Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-91). “Papa Haydn” was the affectionate name bestowed on Franz Joseph Haydn, the father of the symphony and the string quartet, by musicians who worked for him.
