A Dictionary of Music and Musicians/Haym, Nicolo
HAYM, Nicolo Francesco, born at Rome, of German parents, came to England in 1704. A little later, he engaged with Clayton and Dieupart in an attempt to establish Italian opera in London; and played the principal cello in Clayton's 'Arsinoe.' 'Camilla' was Haym's first opera, produced at Drury Lane, April 30, 1706. His next performances were the alteration of Buononcini's 'Thomyris' for the stage, and the arrangement of 'Pyrrhus and Demetrius' [see Nicolini], which, in his copy of his agreement (in the writer's possession), he calls 'my opera,' though in reality composed by A. Scarlatti[1]. For the latter he received £300 from Rich, while he was paid regularly for playing in the orchestra, and bargained for a separate agreement for every new opera he should arrange or import. The principal parts in 'Pyrrhus and Demetrius' were sung by some of the performers in Italian, and by the rest in English; but this absurd manner of representing a drama was not peculiar to England. These operas continued to run from 1709–11, and in the latter year his 'Etearco' was produced; but the arrival of Handel seems to have put Haym to flight. In Nos. 258 and 278 of the Spectator, for Dec. 26, 1711, and Jan. 18, 1712, are two letters, signed by Clayton, Haym, and Dieupart, in which they protest against the new style of music, and solicit patronage for their concerts at Clayton's house in York-buildings. Haym was ready however to take either side, and in 1713 he reappears as the author of the libretto of Handel's 'Teseo,' a position which he filled again in 'Radamisto,' 'Ottone,' 'Flavio,' 'Giulio Cesare,' 'Tamerlano,' 'Rodelinda,' 'Siroe,' 'Tolomeo,' etc. for Handel; 'C. M. Coriolano,' and 'Vespasiano,' for Ariosti; and 'Calfuruia' and 'Astianatte,' for Buononcini. He seems to have been no more particular about claiming the words than the music of others; for he claims the book of 'Siroe,' though it is the work of Metastasio (see Burney, iv. 329). His merit as a musician, however, entitled him to better encouragement than he received; he published 2 sets of Sonatas for a violins and a bass, which show him to have been an able master, and his talent for dramatic music may be appreciated from an air printed by Sir. J. Hawkins in his History (chap. 174).
Haym was a connoisseur of medals. He published 'Il Tesoro delle Medaglie antiche,' 2 vols. Italian and English, 4to. He also wrote 'Merope' and 'Demodice,' two tragedies; and published a fine edition of the 'Gierusalemme Liberata' of Tasso, and a 'Notizia de' Libri rari Italiani,' a useful book. Hawkins tells us (as above) that he also had the intention of printing a History of Music on a large scale, the prospectus of which he published about 1730. He had written it in Italian, and designed to translate it into English, but relinquished the scheme for want of support. It must not be omitted, that we owe to the pencil of Haym the only known portraits of our great early English masters, Tallis and Byrd, engraved by G. Vander Gucht, perhaps for the projected History of Music. The two portraits are on one plate, of which only one impression is known to exist. On abandoning the musical profession, he became a collector of pictures, from two of which he probably copied the heads of Tallis and Byrd. Fétis, incorrectly as usual, puts his death in 1720; he must have died shortly after the publication of the above-mentioned prospectus, for he is mentioned as 'the late Mr. Haym' in vol. 3 of the 'Merry Musician' (circ. 1731).- ↑ Haym composed for this, it is true, a new overture and several additional songs, which have considerable merit.