L.L. George Frederick Handel - Suite in F

This piece has served the purpose of concentrating all of the aspects of High Baroque. The sense of controlled harmonic flow, both vertical and horizontal, are astoundingly apparent. The harpsichord sound alone almost immediately puts one into the proper mindset to understand Baroque music. The rhythms in dance sections are very energetic and syncopated. Whereas, the slower movements exemplify an improvised treatment of the themes, with pitches circulating in ornamentation around the central melody. The elegance of the piece (not to mention the playing of none other than Glenn Gould) as well as its emotional poignance makes it one of my favorites from the Handel literature.

Handel was born in 1685, the same year as Bach, and died in 1759. He wrote 42 operas alone is his lifetime, not to mention all of his cantatas, solo keyboard works, and oratorios. Handel was honored by being included in the Calendar of Saints of the Lutheran church. Arnold Schonberg's Concerto for String Quartet and Orchestra is based on Handel's Concerto Grosso.