Needless to say that George Frederick Handel, the greatest composer of all times according to Ludwig van Beethoven, influenced many British and non-British musicians. The aim of this article is to study Handel’s influence on the English musician Michael Tippett (1905-1998). Handel was both a model and a counter-model for the English composer, as is expressed in some of Tippet’s musical pieces and essays. As a model, his influence on Tippett’s works particularly appears in compositions such as Concerto for Double String Orchestra (1938-39), based on the German-born composer’s concerti grossi, Fantasia on a Theme of Handel (1939-41), whose main theme is borrowed from Suite No.1 for harpsichord in B flat major, HWV (1733 volume) and A Child of Our Time (1939-41), which uses the tripartite structure of Handel’s Messiah. On the contrary, Handel is considered a counter-model by Tippett regarding the way to set an English text to music.
