Apple: Handel's "Messiah" obscene!

[mindseye]

One of my very favorite composers!

Should keep in mind that during that era repackaging material was not all that unusual. "Sampling" is not as new a technique as some think!

[Boris Godunov]

Originally posted by mindseye
Should keep in mind that during that era repackaging material was not all that unusual. "Sampling" is not as new a technique as some think!

Repackaging one's own material was a common and accepted practice. Many of the arias from the Messiah are actually Handel's own pieces recycled from earlier operas.

However, plagiarizing from other composers on the level Handel did wasn't that common, and the fact that his contemporaries were compelled to draw special attention to it shows that he was rather exceptional in this regard.

While Andrew Lloyd-Webber isn't 1/100th the composer Handel was, at least he steals his music from folks who are long dead, not his contemporaries!