Joseph Haydn
1732 – 1809 Austrian composer
Austrian composer who did much to shape the symphony and the string quartet, a central figure of the Classical style.
- Religion
- Roman Catholic
- Affiliations
- Esterházy court
Joseph Haydn spent most of his career in the service of the wealthy Esterházy family, writing music for their court. Working in near isolation, he developed the symphony and the string quartet into the forms that defined the Classical era, earning the nickname father of the symphony. Late in life he grew famous across Europe, with celebrated visits to London. He taught the young Beethoven and was a close friend of Mozart.
Connections
- mentor of Ludwig van Beethoven — Studied with Haydn after arriving in Vienna.
- mentor of Ludwig van Beethoven — Taught the young Beethoven after he came to Vienna in the 1790s.
- associate of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart — Close friends who admired each other's work in Vienna.
In the timeline
- 1770 Haydn shapes the symphony composer