Musical contribution - May 2024

Menuet (HW 434) - Georg Friedrich Händel (1685-1759)

This month we’re continuing to put together a Concerto featuring works by Händel. We already made a start in 2023 by offering the 2nd and 4th movements. This month we’re featuring a serene third movement.

This minuet comes from his 1st suite for harpsichord (434) and is in G minor, ensuring that it fits beautifully between the other two movements (Bb major).

Many different arrangements of this minuet still exist. From extremely romantic arrangements with broad harmonies, to 2 to 3-part excerpts. This arrangement is somewhere in the middle. We know that Händel improvised while conducting the orchestra, so the exact version simply doesn’t exist.

With respect to registration, this movement sounds stunning with flute stops, either on one manual or with a leading stop (you could also add tremulants). However, you could also consider an accompaniment based on a broad string instrumental idiom with stops that let the melody sing out.

Kind regards,

André