Rumour has it that Joseph Haydn was inspired by Handel’s Messiah. The Austrian composer heard it for the first time during a trip to England. He was already 65 years old, with a wealth of achievements, and yet he was said to have felt as though he knew nothing about composition, and had to start his musical education from the very beginning.

This is the story behind The Creation oratorio, an expansive hymn devoted to nature created by the hand of God. But you can forget dull descriptions of the natural world: Haydn uses sounds to masterfully illustrate each scene, from the renowned musical version of chaos in the prelude, through the warmth of the rising sun, to the roar of the lion and the delight of the inhabitants of the Garden of Eden in the world around them.

Joseph Haydn The Creation

Paulina Boreczko – soprano
Nicholas Sharratt – tenor
Sebastian Szumski – bass
Jacek Kociuban – cello
Andrzej Zawisza – harpsichord
Kraków Philharmonic Orchestra and Choir
Andrzej Kosendiak – conductor
Teresa Majka-Pacanek – choirmaster