George Frederick Handel (1685-1759) had his ups and downs throughout his life. For a while he was paralyzed and could not walk or write. In the meantime, and before that phase in his life, he had written a lot of operas. When he turned 60, he thought his career was over, but settling in England, he experienced a revival, and wrote the Messiah in 24 days while in England. It is calculated that it has close to a fourth of a million notes, covering the birth, passion and resurrection of Christ, with majestic choral pieces, solos and haunting melodies that culminate with the splendid Hallelujah Chorus. When it was first performed in 1743 in presence of King George II, he was so elated by its beauty that he stood up, and ever since, every time the Hallelujah Chorus is played, people stand up out of respect and sheer enthusiasm. He eventually wrote other oratorios, including one of my favorites 'Israel in Egypt' which contains a lot of splendid choruses.
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