Händel: The Harmonious Blacksmith (exp. with 5 different instruments)

Pianoteqenthusiast wrote:

G.F. Handel Suite No 5 in E Major. 'The Harmonious Blacksmith’ (At the end of the suite, part of it).

For harpsichord, but people play it on piano, I thought why not with several different instruments, because sometime in the 90s I heard a version on the radio where a person played this piece of music on different synthesizers, different sounds. I thought wow, modern, Händel up to date...From here I got the idea to do it my way.

Using: Orgtq 1, Harpsichord Rucker, Bösendorfer Warm, Orgtq 2, Mk l Bamboo.

https://youtu.be/M_z-hFXBiY8

An unproven history

The story is that Handel, when working for James Brydges the future Duke of Chandos at Cannons between 1717 and 1718, once took shelter from the rain in a smithy, and was inspired to write his tune upon hearing the hammer on the anvil: the regularly repeated pedal note (B in the right hand) in the first variation, can give the impression of a blacksmith hammering.

A variation on the story is that he heard the blacksmith singing the tune which would later become the Air; this explanation fits in nicely with Handel's general technique of borrowing tunes. The story never appeared in Handel's lifetime and its authenticity is unproven. It is mentioned in a publication called "The Musical Magazine" in 1835. The legend began three-quarters of a century after Handel's death with Richard Clark in his Reminiscences of Handel (1836).

All the best, everyone

Stig

Edit. There are some more stops used in Organteq 2 than in the video Orgtq 2.

Dear Stig,

Your performance with 5 instruments from Handel's Harmonious Blacksmith is truly interesting. I really enjoyed listening to it, while with a different instrument we flew through the centuries through the magnificent music of the Master of Halle.
This gives me an extra incentive to continue my experiments on Handel's music.
Thanks and greetings from Italy
Carmelo