Water Music is a set of short pieces for orchestra by George Frideric Handel. He wrote it for a boat party. On a summer evening in 1717, King George I sailed up the River Thames in London, and about 50 musicians floated beside him on their own boat and played. The king liked the music so much that he had it played three times. The best first piece for a child is the “Hornpipe,” which lasts about three minutes.
Quick facts
- Composer: George Frideric Handel, born in Germany, lived in London
- First played: July 17, 1717, on the River Thames
- Length: about an hour for all of it, in three groups called suites
- Shape: more than 20 short pieces, most of them dances
- Listen for: horns and trumpets
The boat party
The king and his guests boarded a royal boat at about eight in the evening. A second boat carried the orchestra. The two floated up the river with the tide, and so many other boats came along to listen that the river was crowded.
The party ate supper at the far end and sailed back. They reached the palace at about half past four in the morning. The players had played for hours.
Music made for outdoors
Sound drifts away over open water. Handel needed instruments that carry.
Horns. Two horns call back and forth. In 1717, horns were a new sound in an English orchestra.
Trumpets. Bright and loud, they cut across the river.
Oboes and bassoons. Their reedy tone carries well in open air.
Strings. A large group of violins, violas, cellos, and basses.
The score has no part for a harpsichord, which would have been hard to fit on a boat.
Five pieces to hear first
“Hornpipe.” The best-known piece. Trumpets play a bold, bouncing tune, and the horns answer with the same tune. Then the strings take a turn. A hornpipe is a lively dance that sailors were known for.
“Air.” A calm, graceful tune for strings and oboes. An air is a song without words.
“Bourrée.” A quick dance in two beats. It is played three times, each time by a different group of instruments.
The opening Overture. A grand, slow start with crisp rhythms, then a fast, busy section.
“Minuet.” A stately dance in three beats, with the horns in front.
What to listen for
Echo. In the “Hornpipe,” one group plays and another group answers. Point to one side of the room for the trumpets and the other for the horns.
The same tune, new colors. Handel repeats a tune with different instruments, so it never sounds stale.
A steady beat. These are dances. The beat never wavers, and it is easy to step to.
Things to do together
Hold a boat party. Line up chairs as a boat. Give one person a paper crown. Play the “Hornpipe” and sail up the hallway.
Call and answer. Split into trumpets and horns. Stand up when your group plays.
Dance the minuet. Step in threes, slow and tall. Then skip to the “Bourrée.”
Bath time music. Play Water Music at bath time with a toy boat.
Draw the river. Draw the king’s boat, the music boat, and the crowd of small boats on a listening journal page.
Handel and the king
Handel was born in Germany and worked for a German prince. He moved to London and stayed. Then the same prince became King George I of Great Britain. Water Music helped keep Handel in the king’s favor.
Years later, Handel wrote another piece for the outdoors: Music for the Royal Fireworks.
Words to know
Suite. A set of short pieces meant to be played together.
Hornpipe, bourrée, and minuet. Three kinds of dance from Handel’s time.
Print and play
Read Handel for kids and print the Handel fact sheet. For the period this music comes from, see Baroque music for kids. To learn about horns and trumpets, read brass instruments for kids.
More guides are listed in classical music listening guides for kids.
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Use it with your kids
Print a listening page, a practice chart, or a composer fact sheet. Or try a tool, such as the composer timeline or the piece picker.