Franz Joseph Haydn

Franz Joseph Haydn Scott 1428 (2010) On March 31, 1732, composer Franz Joseph Haydn was born in Rohrau, Austria. He was honored as part of a three stamp issue released on October 24, 2009 by Vatican City entitled Music Day. One in a continuing series of sets honoring great musicians and composers, this set recognizes George Frideric Handel, Franz Joseph Haydn and Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy. In addition to the three stamps, the issue also included a compact disc featuring works of the three greats in classical music. Haydn, a contemporary of Handel during the Classical period, was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions to musical form have led him to be called the Father of the Symphony and the Father of the String Quartet. He spent much of his career as a court musician for the Hungarian noble Esterházy family, which somewhat isolated him from other composers and musical trends. However, his music circulated widely, and he was perhaps the most celebrated composer of his day in Europe. Among his proteges were Mozart and Beethoven, as well as his elder brother, the composer Michael Haydn. Haydn died on May 31, 1809, in Vienna, Austria. References: Wikipedia.com, Joseph Haydn UFN, October 24, 2009, Music Day Handel (1685-1759) Haydn (1732-1809) Mendelssohn-Bartholdy (1809-1847) Vatican Philatelic Society website (www.vaticanstamps.org), Stamp Database Search