Structure
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The structural and rhetorical achievements in Athalia project a dramatic concept that may be unique in Handel's output. The tonal plan of the oratorio hinges on key associations with rhetorical significance. Handel's musical treatment echoes the original play's division into five parts, the characters' psychological duality and their polarization in pairs, and the acceleration of the dramatic pace towards the end.
The rhetorical and structural coherence of Athalia effects specific interpretive choices for performance. It also reveals a musical and dramatic form that anticipates the operas of Gluck and Mozart. It may represent a particular and persuasive example of the influence of French aesthetics on Handel.
Read more about this topic: Athalia (Handel)
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