toms of his hosts
made him feel less at his ease. The incessant noise of the streets was
a source of great discomfort to one who had been so long accustomed to
the silence of the country; and he positively refused to fashion
himself to the late hours of London. When, later on, he removed his
lodging to Lisson Grove, he writes in a strain of rejoicing to a
Vienna friend that he has at length found himself in the country amid
lovely scenery, where he lives as if he were in a monastery! It is
difficult for us to imagine the Lisson Grove of a century ago, when
the road stretched away through green fields and woodland spaces.

The first of Salomon's concerts was held on March 11, 1791, at the
Hanover Square Rooms. The hall was crowded, and the performance of
Haydn's 'Symphony' (Salomon, No. 2) was received with great applause;
nor would the audience remain satisfied until the _adagio_ movement
had been repeated--an event of such rare occurrence in those days as
to call for comment in the newspapers. This marked the beginning of a
most successful series of concerts, at each of which Haydn received a
great ovation. His benefit took place on May 16, and realized L350.

The Handel Commemoration Festival--the fifth and last of the
century--was held in Westminster Abbey during this visit, and it must
have been a moving sight to Haydn to observe the crowds flocking to
the Abbey early on that summer morning in order to hear the master's
greatest work. Haydn had secured a seat close to the King's box--a
position which commanded a view of the nave and the vast concourse of
listeners. Rarely had those venerable walls looked down upon such a
sea of expectant faces as that which was turned towards the distant
bank of musicians and singers when the moment drew nigh for the
performance to begin. There was reverence expressed in the hushed
silence which pervaded every nook and corner of the Abbey at that
supreme moment--a befitting reverence both for the dead composer whose
immortal work was to be celebrated, and for the sacredness of the
subject which he had chosen for illustration. As the oratorio
proceeded Haydn became more and more impressed. He had never heard the
'Messiah' performed on so grand a scale before, and when the opening
chords of the 'Hallelujah Chorus' rang through the nave and the entire
audience sprang to their feet, he burst into tears, exclaiming to
those around him, 'He is the master of us all!'

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