Hercules, an Oratorio in Score. Composed in the Year 1744 [HWV 60] - Handel, George Frideric 1685-1759; Broughton, Thomas 1704-1774 (London Arnold, 1787)
Librettist Broughton, a lover of music, knew Handel, and supplied words for some of his compositions, including a libretto based on Sophocles' Women of Trachis and the ninth book of Ovid's Metamophises for the drama Hercules, first performed at the Haymarket in 1745.Handel's biographer, Paul Henry Lang, praises Broughton's libretto for its "good theatrical sense" and the way in which it peels away any extraneous elements of the narrative to concentrate on the central drama of jealousy.
Ex Libris W. Fr. H. Ayrton (manuscript)
Keywords: 18th Century (1701-1800); Oratorio; Vocal music; United Kingdom