1) Compare J.S. Bach's Zion hears the Watchmen from Cantata no. 140 and Handel's Messiah. Listen once without reading about them and then again after reading what the composers were doing. ??Are the instruments used differently? Similarly? Are the textual themes apparent when you listen to the music?
2) How did religion affected music and the writing of music from these periods. Explain your point with an example.