Sheet music by William Babell


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William Babell (or Babel) was an English musician, composer and prolific arranger of vocal music for harpsichord.
Babell's transcription of arias from Handel's opera Rinaldo includes 'Vo' far guerra', which Handel intended as a showpiece for his harpsichord playing and is quite remarkable in its virtuosity; Babell's transcription was made from his memory of how Handel improvised in performances.[1][2] In 1894, Friedrich Chrysander published Babell's piano reduction of Rinaldo in the Händel-Gesellschaft volume 48.
Babell also wrote original sonatas for violin or oboe and continuo, concertos and other miscellaneous works. His slow movements are thought to show valuable insight into early 18th-century practices of ornamentation and extemporization.