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In 1776 Haydn composed "La Vera Costanza" for the Court Theatre
of Vienna, but owing to certain intrigues it was declined by the
management and produced at Esterhaz instead. The opera was
subsequently staged at Vienna in 1790, and six of its airs and a
duet were published by Artaria. This incident makes it
sufficiently plain that Haydn had his opponents among the
musicians and critics of Vienna as well as elsewhere. Burney says
a friend in Hamburg wrote him in 1772 that "the genius, fine
ideas and fancy of Haydn, Ditters and Filitz were praised, but
their mixture of serious and comic was disliked, particularly as
there is more of the latter than the former in their works; and
as for rules, they knew but little of them." If we substitute
"humorous" for "comic," this may be allowed to fully represent
the views of the critics and amateurs of Vienna in regard to
Haydn's music.
And, unfortunately, the incident just mentioned was not a
solitary one. In 1778 Haydn applied for membership to the
Tonkunstler Societat, for whom he had in reality written his "Il
Ritorno di Tobia." One would have expected such a body to receive
him with open arms, but instead of that they exacted a sum of 300
florins on the ground of his non-residence in Vienna! Not only
so, but they would fain have brought him under a promise to
compose for them whenever they chose to ask him. This latter
condition Haydn felt to be impossible in view of his engagement
at Esterhaz, and he withdrew his admission fee. That the society
were not ashamed of themselves is obvious from a further episode.
Some years after this they desired Haydn to rearrange his "Tobia"
for a special performance, and when he demanded payment for his
trouble they promptly decided to produce Hasse's "Elena" instead.
Everything comes to the man who waits. After his second visit to
London the Tonkunstler Societat welcomed Haydn at a special
meeting, and with one voice appointed him "Assessor Senior" for
life. In return for this distinction he presented the society
with "The Creation" and "The Seasons," to which gifts, according
to Pohl, its prosperity is mainly owing.
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