1685 was a very good year for German composers. Within the space of a month, two of the greatest were born: Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frideric Handel. Handel's father was a barber and surgeon, which sounds like a strange combination today, but back then those occupations went hand in hand. Even though Handel was very interested in music, his father didn't think that was a good way to earn a living, so he wanted his son to be a lawyer. The story goes that Handel _ a quiet piano into the house so that he could practice in secret. One day, Handel went along when his father went to shave a duke. While his father was working, Handel sat down and played the duke's organ. The duke was so impressed that he convinced Handel's father to let his son study music, and Handel finally got to learn how to compose. Handel soon discovered that what he liked most was opera. In fact, he was so passionate about opera that he even fought a duel   over it with one of his friends. Since Italy was the place to learn about opera composing, Handel went off to Italy to study. When he got home, he got a job as court composer for a German prince. Having landed such a wonderful job, Handel immediately asked his boss for time off. He wanted to go to England, where he'd heard that there weren't nearly enough composers to satisfy the British taste for Italian opera. After great success writing opera in London, Handel came back to Germany. Then fate played a funny trick on Handel and his boss. The Queen of England died, and it just so happened that the prince Handel worked for was next in line to the British throne. When he arrived in London as King George, followed Handel, his court composer in Germany. In addition to serving the King, Handel became one of the most successful opera composers of his time. And he also produced them and traveled all over Europe to hire the best singers. There are stories of battles with rival opera producers and of fights between rival singers. Handel apparently had quite a temper. If you ever go to London, look for Handel's grave in Westminster Abbey, where there's a wonderful monument to him. How did Handel begin to learn to compose?
His father was sure of his future success. His performance impressed a duke. He begged his father to send him to Italy. He practiced hard and taught himself music.