Author Description

The music of Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven forms a cornerstone of the modern repertoire, but very little is known about the context in which these composers worked. This volume of twelve essays by leading international scholars covers some of the musical traditions and practices of this little-understood period of music history. Beginning with the early decades of the eighteenth century, the volume documents selected aspects of musical life and style from the late Baroque period to the early years of the nineteenth century. The four main areas covered in this exploration of new territories in music history are orchestral music, sacred music, opera and keyboard music. Georg Reutter (Haydn's teacher), Antonio Salieri (Mozart's colleague) and Joseph Wolfl (a rival of Beethoven) are only three of the prominent musicians of the period who are discussed at length.