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was born on February 24, 1685 in Halle, Germany. One of the greatest composers of the late baroque period (1700-50) and, during his lifetime, perhaps the most internationally famous of all musicians. Handel was born February 24, 1685, in Halle, Germany, to a fami ....

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.... to Rome, enjoying the backing of both the nobility and the clergy, and in the late spring of 1707 he made an additional short trip to Naples. In Italy, Handel composed operas, oratorios, and many small secular cantatas; he ended his Italian visit with the stunning success of his fifth opera, Agrippina (1709), in Venice. Handel left Italy for a job as court composer and conductor in Hannover, Germany, where he arrived in the spring of 1710. As had been the case in Halle, however, he did not hold this job for long. By the end of 1710 Handel had left for London, where with Rinaldo (1711), he once again scored an operatic triumph. After returning ....