The choral group I'm in is singing three coronation anthems by baroque master Georg Handel. He wrote them to honor another George, King George II, and one of the pieces, Zadok the Priest, has been the must-have anthem for all coronations in England since then.
I pondered the meaning of "baroque," which comes from the Italian word for "bizarre." That definition seems the perfect tie-in to another piece of music I am studying: Be Quick or Be Dead by Iron Maiden.
The differences are obvious—mood, tempo (I will never be able to play lead guitar that fast), complexity. The similarities are more subtle. Handel wrote about king and God; Iron Maiden about sin and punishment (I think). Handel repeats lyrics over and over (I dare you to count the hallelujahs), so does Iron Maiden. Let's see, both have abundant hair, although Handel's was a wig. Handel had adoring fans, ditto Iron Maiden.
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