Haydn: The Creation, "Sing To The Lord"

Franz Joseph Haydn traveled around quite a bit during his long musical career. During one such journey to England, he had the opportunity to hear several performances of large-scale choral works, particularly the oratorios of Handel. This certainly sparked Haydn's interest in writing a large oratorio for chorus, soloists and orchestra. The result was his masterpiece, The Creation, with a libretto based on elements from the Book of Genesis, the Book of Psalms, and John Milton's epic poem Paradise Lost. This excerpt we just played for you is a celebratory chorus that takes place at the very end of the work, in which all creation praises God for his work.