Ode for the Birthday of Queen Anne


Ode for the Birthday of Queen Anne is a secular cantata composed by George Frideric Handel to a libretto by Ambrose Philips, of which the first line, "Eternal source of light divine", provides an alternative title for the work. It was probably composed during January 1713 for a performance on 6 February 1713, although there is no record of the performance having actually taken place. Other catalogues of Handel's music have referred to the work as HG xlvi A; and HHA i/6.

Overview

The cantata celebrates Queen Anne's birthday, and the accomplishment of the Treaty of Utrecht to end the War of the Spanish Succession. It is scored for 3 solo voices, choir and chamber orchestra.
Queen Anne was said by the Duke of Manchester to be "too careless or too busy to listen to her own band, and had no thought of hearing and paying new players however great their genius or vast their skill." Nevertheless, and whether or not she ever heard this ode for her birthday, she granted Handel a "pension" of two hundred pounds a year, for life.

Structure

Each of the seven stanzas of the ode concludes with the following words sung by the chorus:
*
*
*
*
*

Notable performances

On 23 August 2007, Kate Royal performed the aria "Eternal source of light divine" at the Proms.
On 19 May 2018, Elin Manahan Thomas performed the aria "Eternal source of light divine" as the bridal entry music for the Wedding of Prince [Harry and Meghan Markle|wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex], accompanied by the event's orchestra and with David Blackadder playing the trumpet obbligato.

Selected recordings

Although composed for countertenor, the section "Eternal source of light divine" is often sung by sopranos. For example: