HANDEL, GEORGE FRIDERIC

born Feb. 23, 1685, Halle, Saxony died April 14, 1759, London, Eng. German (until 1715) Georg Friedrich Hndel, or Haendel German-born English composer of the late Baroque era, noted particularly for his operas, oratorios, and instrumental compositions. He wrote the most famous of all oratorios, the Messiah (1741), and is also known for such occasional pieces as Water Music (1717) and Music for the Royal Fireworks (1749). Additional reading Comprehensive popular biographies are Percy M. Young, Handel, rev. ed. (1965, reissued 1979); and Jonathan Keates, Handel: The Man and His Music (1985). Paul Henry Lang, George Frideric Handel (1966, reprinted 1977), is a monumental study. Documentary biographies include Otto Erich Deutsch, Handel (1954, reprinted 1974); and H.C. Robbins Landon, Handel and His World (1984). Christopher Hogwood, Handel (1985), includes a detailed chronological table.