LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Joseph Haydn: Composers
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In 1795-1800, on his return to the Continent, Haydn not only continued his extraordinary productivity but turned once again in a new and progressive direction as a composer. The quartets of Opus 71 belong to 1793; the six of Opus 76 (including the Emperor and Sunrise Quartets) were composed as late as 1797-1798; and the final quartets of Opus 77, Nos. 1 and 2, and the unfinished Opus 103 come from 1799 and 1803. In 1797 Haydn wrote the "Kaiser-Hymn" as a deliberately patriotic gesture in time of war, and it became, as he intended that it should, the Austrian national anthem. In 1796-1798 he set to work on the first of his two final major works - the oratorios The Creation and The Seasons.
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Around 1781 Haydn established a friendship with Mozart, whose work he had already been influencing by example for many years. According to later testimony by Stephen Storace, the two composers occasionally played in string quartets together. Haydn was hugely impressed with Mozart's work, and in various ways tried to help the younger composer. During the years 1782 to 1785, Mozart wrote a set of string quartets thought to be inspired by Haydn's Opus 33 series. On completion he dedicated them to Haydn, a very unusual thing to do at a time when dedicatees were usually aristocrats. The extremely close 'brotherly' Mozart-Haydn connection may be an expression of Freemasonic sympathies as well: Mozart and Haydn were members of the same Masonic lodge.
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The relationship of the violin and ‘cello to the keyboard in the Haydn trios is essentially a supportive one. The ‘cello reinforces the bass-line, supporting the harmonic structure, while the violin accompanies with double-stops; complements the melody line played by the harpsichordist’s right hand with doublings and counterpoint; and, makes occasional solo forays. While the C Major Trio is the most virtuosic of the works presented here and the E-flat minor the most lyrical, the E Major Trio is perhaps the most interesting. What about the key of E Major inspires composers to such imaginative heights? (Listen to Mozart’s late Trio in E Major (KV 542) on the QCT’s recording of the 1788 trios for Lyrichord ###???)
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In his last years Haydn was much weakened by illness and old age. His last work, a string quartet, in 1803 remained unfinished. In 1809 Napoleon's troops occupied Vienna and the French Emperor posted a guard of honour before the great composer's house. Nonetheless, the mortally ill Haydn rose from his bed to play his imperial anthem loudly in patriotic protest. The great man died on 31st May, 1809.
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[One] friend in Vienna was Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, whom Haydn met sometime around 1784. According to later testimony by Michael Kelly and others, the two composers occasionally played in string quartets together. Haydn was hugely impressed with Mozart's work and praised it unstintingly to others. Mozart evidently returned the esteem, as seen in his dedication of a set of six quartets, now called the "Haydn" quartets, to his friend. For further details see Haydn and Mozart.
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In 1749, Haydn had matured physically to the point that he was no longer able to sing high choral parts. On a weak pretext, he was summarily dismissed from his job. He evidently spent one night homeless on a park bench, but was taken in by friends and began to pursue a career as a freelance musician. During this arduous period, which lasted ten years, Haydn worked many different jobs, including valet/accompanist for the Italian composer Nicola Porpora, from whom he later said he learned "the true fundamentals of composition". He labored to fill the gaps in his training, and eventually came to write his first string quartets and his first opera. During this time Haydn's professional reputation gradually increased.
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