Die Macht der Musik: Georg Friedrich Händels Alexander’s Feast

John Dryden’s poem »Alexander’s Feast or The Power of Music – an Ode in Honour of St. Cecilia’s Day« (1697) was highly praised by critics and set to music by Georg Friedrich Händel in 1736. The musical version, too was a celebrated work of art. Even though the poem was written for St. Cecilia’s Day, it is set not in the Christian era but in the time of Alexander the Great after his conquest of the Persian capital Persepolis.

This collection of essays explores the piece from different perspectives (English Literature, Classical Philology, Musicology, Theology) and provides new results gained from interdisciplinary studies. Special attention is paid to the relationship between language and music. The book includes a list of performances containing unpublished material as well as a discography and indices of names and objects. It is thus a useful compendium both for specialists and a broader public.