Paul Mcmahon

George Frideric Handel and Giovanni Battista Draghi: Contrasting Approaches to Text Setting in John Dryden¿s a Song for St Cecilia¿s Day, 1687 Paul Mcmahon

This book examines the settings of John Dryden¿s poem A Song for St Cecilia¿s Day, 1687 by Giovanni Draghi & George Frideric Handel, establishing similarities and disparity in the text setting & word painting techniques employed by the two composers. Exploring the respective backgrounds of the poet and composers, the book also considers some of the poetic elements of Dryden¿s poem & their relationship to music, placing in context the musical setting of a poem in honour of St Cecilia. Deeper analysis of the methods of text setting, word painting practices & structural components of the two compositions reveals similarities & contrasts in methodology & in the effectiveness of the resulting musical material. The development of musical form in the years separating the two works contributes in part to the variance in text setting practice, though it is Draghi¿s pre-occupation with small scale effects & the word painting of individual textual elements that contrasts sharply with Handel¿s broadly structured conception of the poem. This book will appeal to amateur & professional musicians alike, as well as to readers interested in poetry & music of the 17th and 18th centuries.