How successfully do you think Handel's 'The King Shall Rejoice' fits the occasion for which it was written?

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How successfully do you think Handel's 'The King Shall Rejoice' fits the occasion for which it was written?

'The King Shall Rejoice' was just one of Handel's four Coronation Anthems, which were written in 1727 for the accession of George II. The King requested Handel, after the original composer appointed to write the piece of music, William Croft died.

The first movement 'The King Shall Rejoice', opens in the key of D major, with a long introductory ritornello, this exercises the strength of the orchestra. The key of D major allowed Handel to exploit the availability of trumpets, which were generally played in this key at the time, and the use of the brass was necessary to create the sense of magnificence and ceremony by a state occasion such as this, as was the use of the timpani. Strategic uses of cadences are particularly common throughout, providing perfect order and structure to the piece. Repetition of phrases is also a device, which gives the piece excellent order. This movement is full of primary chords I IV and V, and was Handel's typical chordal structure. It was very simple but effective. The note values are linked to the actual words, for example the word 'strength' is used with a long note value, showing the definition of the word. The trills added decoration, making gestures of royal significance.
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Tension is built up by the time we reach the opening of the choral section (A). A rich, powerful homophonic texture gains presence at this stage, with fine use of declamatory style dotted rhythms, giving this new section emphasis on the lyrics. In addition to this, the voices are singing in unison and this gives a vast impact. Dramatic pauses are put in on the second phrase sung by the choir. This focuses on increasing the tension for a spectacular opening. Handel uses descending melismatic sequences on the word 'rejoice', this is an adaptation of word painting, which ...

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