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There was certainly plenty for him to do at Esterhaz--more than
he had ever been required to do at Eisenstadt. Royalties, nobles
and aristocrats were constantly at the palace; and music was one
of the chief diversions provided for them. The prince was very
proud of his musical establishment, and desired to have it
considered the best of its kind in Europe. The orchestra of the
opera was formed of members of the Capelle; "the singers were
Italian for the most part, engaged for one, two, or more years,
and the books of the words were printed. Numerous strolling
companies were engaged for shorter terms; travelling virtuosi
often played with the members of the band. Special days and hours
were fixed for chamber music, and for orchestral works; and in
the interval the singers, musicians and actors met at the cafe,
and formed, so to speak, one family." Something more than
creative genius was obviously required to direct the music of an
establishment of this kind. A talent for organization, an eye for
detail, tact in the management of players and singers--these
qualities were all indispensable for the performance of duties
such as Haydn had undertaken. That he possessed them we may
fairly assume from more than one circumstance. In the first
place, his employer was satisfied with him. He raised his salary,
listened attentively to all his suggestions, and did everything
that he could to retain his services. In the second place, his
band and singers were sincerely attached to him. They saw that he
had their interests, personal and professional, at heart, and
they "loved him like a father." The prince paid them well, and
several of them were sufficiently capable to receive appointments
afterwards in the Imperial Chapel. Pohl gives a list of the names
about this time, but, with one or two exceptions, they are quite
unfamiliar. J. B. Krumpholtz, the harpist, was engaged from 1773
to 1776, and Andreas Lidl, who played in London soon after
leaving the band, was in the service of the prince from 1769 to
1774.
The sum paid to Haydn at this date was not large as we should now
consider it, but it was sufficient to free him from financial
worry had it not been for the extravagance and bad management of
his wife. The prince gave him about 78 pounds, in addition
to which he had certain allowances in kind, and, as we have
already said, free quarters for himself and his wife when
she thought fit to stay with him. Probably, too, he was now
making something substantial by his compositions. Griesinger
declares that he had saved about 200 pounds before 1790,
the year when he started for London. If that be true, he must
have been very economical. His wife, we must remember, was making
constant calls upon him for money, and in addition he had to meet
the pressing demands of various poor relations. His
correspondence certainly does not tend to show that he was
saving, and we know that when he set out for London he had not
only to draw upon the generosity of his prince for the costs of
the journey, but had to sell his house to provide for his wife
until his return.
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