Franz Joseph Haydn was the second of twelve children. His family was quite poor. When Franz was six, his parents sent him to live with a family relative, Johann Frankh, in Hainburg, Austria. Mr. Frankh was private music teacher and gave Franz lessons on the harpsichord, violin, and in music harmony and theory. In Hainburg, young Franz sang in a church boychoir and eventually became the chief solist for the group. When Franz turned 17 and became too old for the boychoir, he made a living playing harpsichord and violin. He also bgan composing and completed his first mass at age 19, his first string quarted at 23, and his first symphony at 27. He married his wife, Anna, in 1760. They separated a few years later but Haydn continued to support Anna for the rest of her life.

In 1761 (age 29), he became the assistant choirmaster to Prince Paul Esterhazy, an Austrin prince who was a great admirer of music. Haydn eventually became a full-time court musician and lived and worked in the Esterhazy palace for 29 years, until the death of the prince in 1790. His daily routine required him to provide music for family concerts, private performances, and worship services. The prince also had an excellent orchestra whih regularly performed Haydn's compositions. Living in the palace, Haydn was cut off fromt he musical centers of Europe and, except for a few brief trips to Vienna, Austria, was not exposed to the music of other composers. He therefore developed his own style of music. He was not influenced by other composers with the exception of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, who Haydn met in 1781. When they met, Haydn was 49 and Mozart was 25. Nevertheless, the older Haydn was influenced by the younger Mozart.

In 1791, after the death of Prince Esterhazy, Haydn traveled to London where he was highly regarded by British royalty. Here he met George Frideric Handel and was much impressed with Handel's oratorios. In 1795 he returned permanently returned to Austria and settled in Vienna where he wrote the Emperor's Hymn, which is now the national anthem of Austria. Inspired by Handel, Haydn also wrote several uccessful oratorios. By his mid-60s, Haydn's health was failing. For the last 10 years of his life he wrote little, although he frequently attended concert performances of his music. Haydn was lucky to have a nice patron, but it was not until Haydn was over 40 that his music became successful in teh Exterhazy palace. To listen to an excerpt from Haydn's famous Surprise Symphony, go to the Visual and Audio page.