Press Conference with Franz Joseph

Charles Gibson: Good evening from ABC news. We have just learned that the famous of the Classical era, Franz Joseph Haydn, has suddenly appeared at an elementary school in North Carolina. It’s not clear how he has come from the 1700s to the year 2005. He is holding a press conference with members of the press from all over the world.

ABC news: Welcome to the United States. Have you come to give a ?

Haydn: If I’m invited to play, I would be glad to, but I’d rather conduct one of my .

NBC news: Which would you like to conduct?

Haydn: That’s a good question. I might enjoy one of my “London” symphonies or the Surprise symphony. (The) Creation was probably my greatest work though.

The Sun Journal: Is that a symphony too?

Haydn: Oh, no. That is an .

News and Observer: Remind us again please. What is an oratorio?

Haydn: It’s sort of like a play or an opera, but there are no costumes, no scenery, and no dramatic acting. The whole story is sung by a chorus, solo singers, and small groups of singers. Many are stories from the Bible, like my Creation oratorio. Wall Street Journal: When and where were you born?

Haydn: In 1732 in .

Chicago Tribune: What language do you mainly speak?

Haydn: German is my first language, but I’m doing my best to speak English to you today.

New York Times: Is it true that you are called the “father of the symphony?”

Haydn: I’ve heard that. I didn’t invent the symphony, but I developed it into a form that many people thought was great.

CBS news: Is it true that you were very poor when you were young?

Haydn: Yes, very poor. My father made wheels for carriages, and my mother was a cook for a rich man. My first experience with a was scraping one stick across another.

CNN: Is that how you got your start in ?

Haydn: Both my parents loved music. My mother sang folk songs all the time, and my father sang and played the . There was always music in our house.

IHT: Is it true that you were a singer when you were eight years old?

Haydn: Yes, I sang in a in , Austria. When I got older my voice dropped, but I stayed with the choir and played my violin. La Monde: Do you like to play practical jokes?

Haydn: Goodness! (laughs and shakes head) I guess these stories get around! I’ll never forget when I sat behind an older member of the choir and pulled his wig off. I thought it was funny, but I was punished and kicked out of the choir.

Miami Herald: Where did you go then?

Haydn: I joined a group of touring musicians to earn money for food. We sang for birthday parties and weddings.

London Times: When did you begin your career as a great composer?

Haydn: There was a prince at my first symphony concert, and he asked me to come to his castle to direct his . It was a great job because I able to write all the music I wanted.

The Boston Globe: Is this where you became famous?

Haydn: Yes, I guess it was. Being in charge of all the prince’s music gave me the chance to meet the most famous people in all Austria. My music was played for many special occasions, so I became more and more famous.

Los Angeles Times: Were you famous toward the end of your life too?

Haydn: Yes, people called me “.” I was Vienna’s grand old man of music. I was famous all over the world.

USA Today: Is it true that you were good friends with Mozart? Haydn: Yes, (gets emotional, brushes back a tear) I still cry a little when I think of him. He died so young, and he was truly a genius as a composer! He and I were very close friends.

Dallas Morning News: What about Beethoven?

Haydn: I was Beethoven’s music teacher.

New York Post: I’ve heard that you wrote a lot of music. Exactly how many things did you write?

Haydn: Well, it’s been a long time ago, but the last I counted it was 104 symphonies, 68 string , and 52 , along with several dances, marches, cantatas, masses, oratorios, and operas. I think it would be around 750 different things if I added them all up.

Baltimore Sun: Is it true that honored you?

Haydn: Yes, I was very ill and at the end of my life. Napoleon had conquered nations with his French armies all over Europe. When he came to my city of Vienna, he posted a special honor guard outside my house so that no one would bother me. The French soldiers were very nice to me.

MSNBC: When you died, what was your funeral like?

Haydn: It was a big, national event. Mozart’s was sung at my funeral service.

The Guardian: What year did you die? Haydn: It was 1809 and I was 77 years old. My death marked the end of the Classical era in music.

National Geographic: What period of music came after that?

Haydn: My student, Beethoven, began the next era of music, called the “Romantic” era. Beethoven’s music was much more fiery and emotional than mine.

Time Magazine: How would you describe your music?

Haydn: My music was light, simple, serious, and elegant. The feelings in my music were more calm than the music that came before me and after me.

Rolling Stone: Have you heard any modern American music on the radio here? If you have, what did you think?

Haydn: Hmmm, what do you think?