Performances

Scientific work also helped considerably to enliven performing activity. Since 1952 regular Saturday evening concerts have taken place in the museum. In the beginning it was predominantly works by Handel that were played. Later Handel's contemporaries were included in the programmes, and finally these programmes were developed to link up with other collections in the museum. Furthermore, during the years 1956 to 1964 gramophone recitals were given and lectures held, the content of which was increasingly integrated with the concerts. Thus in 1958 the underlying theme was “Music and Society”, in 1959 “Handel and his Times”, and in 1961 “The Musical History of the City of Halle from its Beginnings to the Present”.

This thematic combination of all three types of performance came to an end in 1961 for practical reasons and the gramophone recitals were continued as a separate series with their own content.