Back in school I heard the story that Haydn wrote the “Surprise Symphony” because he was sick of people sleeping through his music, and wanted to startle them awake. It seems like this was a myth.
From the Wikipedia article:
In Haydn’s old age, his biographer Georg August Griesinger asked him whether he wrote this “surprise” to awaken the audience. Haydn replied:
No, but I was interested in surprising the public with something new…
Why do all the cool stories from history end up being made up?
Hey man, you remember that time we went to vegas and had that shootout with some mob goons, banged fifteen hookers, and rescued dogs from a fighting ring?
Great weekend! We gotta do it again sometime
He can’t, as he’s currently serving a life sentence for selling grannies.
Grannies? Like enslaving old women?