Biography (read more)
Joseph Haydn was an Austrian composer of the Classical period, born in Rohrau and active for nearly three decades as music director to the wealthy Esterházy family at their rural Hungarian court, a relative isolation he later said forced him to become original. Following his patron’s death in 1790 he traveled to London for two extended visits before returning to Vienna, where he remained until his death. His enormous output includes 107 symphonies, numerous string quartets and piano trios, masses, and the two late oratorios The Creation and The Seasons. He died at home in Vienna in 1809, at age 77, following a period of declining health.
Widely credited as the “Father of the Symphony” and the “Father of the String Quartet” for his central role in shaping and standardizing Classical sonata form, Haydn exerted enormous influence on his younger contemporaries and pupils, including Mozart and Beethoven. His symphonies, quartets, and late oratorios remain cornerstones of the orchestral, chamber, and choral repertoire, and he is regarded as one of the principal architects of the Classical style.
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