Following the success of Die Schöpfung (The Creation), which had swiftly gained popularity throughout Europe, Haydn’s librettist Baron Gottfried van Swieten suggested another project, based on James Thomson’s pastoral epic, The Seasons. One of Haydn’s last major works, Die Jahreszeiten depicts the yearly cycle of life in the countryside through the eyes of three peasants, providing us with music of thrilling vitality and creativity.