Deborah: Handel the Charming Brute and the Birth of Oratorio
In 1733 Handel started work on his first purpose-written English oratorio, Deborah. However, the piece was not popular with audiences at the time, partly due to Handel's doubling of ticket prices. The composer was in severe financial difficulty: his partnership with the impresario Heidegger was collapsing, he was being constantly lambasted by the Prince of Wales and his cronies, and a cartoon was doing the rounds showing
Handel as a greedy hog. Catherine Bott explores Deborah and Handel's corresponding misfortunes.