Learning to Ornament Handel's Sonatas Through the 's Ears Part III: Conclusions

David Lasoc~i and Eva Legene

n part II ofthis article (August), we began to look at free ornamentation I in Handel's vocal music. We exam~ ined what we considered to be the best example of his free ornamentation, the aria "Siete rose rugiadose:' and drew at~ tention to the intricacy and unpredict~ ability ofthe composer's rhythms. In part III we continue to discuss the rhythmic aspect of Handel's free ornamentation. Then we examine some contemporane~ ous examples of ornamentation that have been held up as models by modern per~ formers.

Our study of the ornaments in Han~ del's cantatas has shown us that his rhythms may partake in what we may term "rhythmical progression'~ either ac~ celerando or rallentando. This may have been a way for Handel to write down what his finest singers did naturally in performance. Burney, for example, says ofCuzzoni: "She had ...the power of oc~ . casionally accelerating and retarding the measure in the most artificial and able manner by what the Italians call tempo rubato."l (Robert Donington defines tem~ q I I _ q % i d· FI 1_Ufffi J Jhi Di." '-_ _L~ po rubato as "the displacement of ~~ v bf Il-::::;::--=-*S!-r-s 2­ -2--_, q- q; D r-; rhythm, or sometimes of accent, within an underlying tempo which is not dis~ Example 1. "Se pensate che mi moro" from cantata Nice, che fa? che pensa? turbed.")2 HWV 138 (1707-09), mm. 15-17. To take the accelerando first, Example 1 (on the syllable "pen" of the word "pensa:' think) shows a progression that __ ~1T .~ occurs several times: tension is built up ~ by holding back a phrase twice with ,.. ~ stopping points, then finally letting loose into the cadence. Example 2 shows an instance of both accelerando and rallen~ tando for the purpose of word painting. 4~ 2 The filled~in octave (on the syllable Example 2. "0 voi che mascoltate"from cantata Partl, l'idolo mio, HWV 147 "quan" ofthe word "quanti;' how many?) (after 1710), mm. 16-17. accelerates to the g~ then is slowed by

November 1989 137 The eminent scholar offIandelian Winton Dean has written of these or.. namented arias: These ornaments are of great importance, both for themselves and as a model of the type ofdecoration Handel recommended and Af - fan - ni del pen-sier, Un sol mo-men to, Da-te-mi pa - c~al-men, approved. They differ radically from what we usually hear today. While they offer the singer ample opportunity to display her technical skill, it is the flexibility of the voice and its expressive power, not its range, that Handel exploits. The compass is virtually confined to that of the arias as first composed, extended upwards by a tone at very rare climaxes (not more than one in each aria). There are no concessions to showmanship or vapid pyrotechnics, and above all no infringe ... ment ofthe affection of the music; this is vir... tuosity at the service of art. Although the original line is floridly decorated, it is never obscured or distorted beyond recognition. f The ornaments are often bold and unexpect... ed but are directed always towards intensi... fying the emotion behind the notes."

Contemporaneous examples of ornamented movements ~ A number of examples of ornamented movements written by Handel's contem' Af-fan ----- ni del pen-sier, Un sol mo men to, poraries have survived, two of which have been taken as models by modern performers for the ornamentation of p Handel's sonatas. After discussing the background to these examples, we will explain why we disagree strongly with this point of view. The barrel ... organ ornamentations. The examples that have attracted the most attention in recent years are two or.. namented organ by Handel

Da-te-mi pace_al - men, E pOl tor - na --- te. preserved on a barrel organ in the Colt .. ~ Clavier Collection, Bethersden, Kent, England.!J One of these concertos, that in F major, HWV 293 (Opus 4, No.5; 1735), is a "borrowing" by the composer Example 3. "Affanni del pensier" from opera Ottone, HWV 15 (as ornamented by (a parody in the sense defined in part I) Handel, probably for a performance in 1727), mm. 7-16; ta~en from Winton ofthe sonata for alto recorder and basso Dean, ed., G.F. Handel: Three Ornamented Arias (London: Oxford University continuo in F major, HWV 369 (Opus Press, 1976), 3-6. Reproduced by permission of the publisher. 1, No. 11; c. 1725-26). A sampling from the barrel organ version ofthis is given in Example 4. This transcription first came to the at.. tention of recorder players through the upward turn, preparing the major performance, for an English singer inex.­ David Munrow's use of it in his 1974 seventh leap to e/~ perienced in the art of ornamenting. 3 An recording of the F major sonata.6 In his We are fortunate in having three arias excerpt from the most florid of them is program notes, Munrow wrote: '~A.1... in which the composer wrote both a sim.. given in Example 3. (The text means: though one or two ornaments are more pie melody line and an ornamented line "Troubled thoughts. A sole moment, at suited to the keyboard, the majority fit - those from Ottone mentioned in part II least, you give me peace, and then you the recorder admirably and have been in.. (under "Essential graces"), which were return.") Make your own ornamentation eluded here since they may be ta~en to apparently ornamented just prior to a of"Affanni del pensier" in Handel's style. represent the sort ofgracing which Handel

138 The American Recorder would have expected and enjoyed in his a sonatas" (our italics). A recording ofthe barrel organ itself has recently been Grove issued by Olivier Roux.' Also recently, I~i I t ~ UI Irmtraud KrUger has made a recording of EIf!r Gm'TI~ 1rII,tr both concerto transcriptions on the or... gan. 8 Elsewhere she has written that f they give us "a model, as far as the vari... ous forms ofornaments and their context {are} concerned....The next step would :jjJJ consist ofpreparing other Handel pieces I;:: :3: : 1:': ~:: 1 with similar ornaments:'9 David Fuller has argued convincingly that the barrel organ in the Colt collec... tion dates from around 1790, or about sixty,five years after the composition of I~ i r [b[Ui,rfrf' !E' 'EFfffUE j 11 I , the sonata.10 He suggests playing the transcriptions accurately and fully as a ~ good exercise in learning the forms ofthe ornaments.ll As to whether such or... namentation represents Handelian style : J ;, ; or tradition, Fuller suggests that "at least ~: I:: : i some English performers played this way over a rather broad span of time in the mid,eighteenth century," but he adds: b "We can equally well imagine, ofcourse, ...that a player intimately familiar with Allegro Handel's own playing would throw up his hands in horror at the ornamental elV cess:'12 How well in fact do these examples represent Handelian style? We hope to I:::: :i:::;: ::1:::;::£:::i:: :1 have shown that the surviving examples ofthe composer's own ornamentation are Example 4. Organ concerto in F major, HWV 293, as ornamented in a barrel infinitely more skillful than the barrel organ transcription of c. 1790, first movement, mm. 1-5; second movement, mm. organ ornaments. Compare them with a 1-3; ta~en from G.F. Handel: Two Ornamented Organ Concertos (Opus 4, piece ofHandel's own in a similarly lavish Nos. 2 and 5) as Played by an Early Barrel Organ, ed. David Fuller ornamental style, the Air con Variazioni (Hac~ensac1{, N.J.: Jerona Music Corporation, 1980). COpyright 1980 by Jerona quoted in the first example in part II. Music Corporation. Reproduced by permission of the copyright owner. Handel's movement has rhythmic variety and flexibility, a cantabile line, craftsman ... ship, and artistry-features Singularly lacking in the repetitive and unimagina ... tive barrel organ transcriptions. structural from ornamental notes by poser's.lS In any case, he thought enough Babell's ornamented slow movements. giving the latter smaller note'heads; for of Handel's music to write ornamented About two years after the death ofWil... the remaining movements, that attempt versions for of some of his liam Babell (c. 1690-1723)-a London was abandoned. Only in one instance is opera arias,16 Babell would have known harpsichordist, organist, and composer the distinction completely clear: the woodwind instruments through his -Walsh and Hare published two sets of third movement (Poco Largo) ofthe sec' father, a bassoonist,!' and also been ex' twelve sonatas by him, the first set for ond sonata from the fIrst set presents a posed to the playing of such leading violin or oboe and basso continuo, the simple melody line with a moving bass woodwind performers of the day as John second for violin, oboe, or transverse line, while the fourth movement (Ada' Baston, Johann Ernst Galliard, Jean flute and basso continuoP The title page gio) ornaments that melody line and Christian Kytch, and John Loeillet, who of each set announces: "With proper simplifies that bass line. The openings of were also members of the theater or' graces adapted to each adagio by the the two movements are brought together chestras. Babell's posthumous sonatas, author:' Almost every slow movement in Example 5. the keys and range of which show that has written...out ornamentation by the As a theater musician, Babell would they were primarily intended for the composer. For the fIrst few slow move ... have performed under Handel in Rinal ... oboe rather than the violin or flute, were ments, the notation attempted-not do,H and there is an unconfirmed report presumably written for one or more of wholly successfully-to distinguish that he was a keyboard pupil ofthe com, these performers to play in public con'

November 1989 139 Handel has left us some wonderful ex-­ Adogio ~ amples that can again inspire us. We draw attention to the composer's vir ... ( ~ ~wg rTrr~rrFrrrrrrl FD tuosic use of rhythm, and in particular Poro largo what we have called "rhythmical pro ... gression:' ~ We have also supported our belief that L two contemporaneous examples of or... namented movements (a barrel organ T with two Handel organ concertos, and oboe sonatas by William Babell), some ... times recommended as models for or... namenting Handel's music, have limited Ir rn~ value in comparison with Handel's own ornaments. ~ Handel was, of course, a great impro ... viser; but first and foremost he was a great composer who did consider his work "with care and reflection" (Quan~). Do not worry for the time being about improvising your ornamentation, but de... velop your powers ofinvention by study... ing Handel's. To quote Quantz again, Example 5. William Babell, Sonata in C minor for violin or oboe and basso "For, when you are playing it is unlikely continuo, Opus 1, N.o. 2 (London, c. 1725), third movement (line 2), fourth that you will, on the spur ofthe moment, movement (lines 1 and 3), mm. 1-6. improve upon the invention of a com.. poser who may have considered his work at length:'21 You can still supply in per... formance the verve and spontaneity that stemmed from good improvisation. Later, certs or theater intermission entertain... namented arias: "showy and brilliant when you feel at home in Handelian ments. lessons, which by mere rapidity offinger style, you can work towards the goal we Thus it seems probable that Babell's in playing single sounds, without the advocate: being able to improvise good ornamented slow movements represent, assistance oftaste, expression, harmony, inventions through the composer's ears. at least in floridity, the kind ofornamen... or modulation, enabled [himJto astonish tation being practiced by the leading ignorance, and acquire the reputation of David Lasoc~i, a music librarian at In" oboists of London during the second a great player at a small expense ....I diana University, writes about woodwind decade of the eighteenth century.l8 remember well in the early part ofmy life instruments, their history, repertory, and Anthony Baines has speculated that the being a dupe to the glare and glitter of performance practices. Eva Legene, Pro" ornamentation "shows how Kytch might this kind of tinsel."2o We side with fessor of Music at Indiana University, have dealt with an adagio:'19 Perhaps it Burney in favoring musical substance teaches the recorder and early music in the was even the kind ofornamentation that over tinsel, and for this reason we do not Early Music Institute of the School of those oboists used when they performed recommend Babell's oboe sonatas as Music. Handel's sonatas. Should we therefore models for the ornamentation ofHandel. take Babell as a model for our own or... Notes namentation of Handel? Conclusions IGeneral History of Music, II, 737. Burney says To help us answer that question, let us In the three parts of this article we pre ... that Faustina, on the other hand, "sung adagios take a look at Babell's ornamentation. sent a practical approach to learning to with great passion and expression. but was not equally successful ifsuch deep sorrow were to be The style is distinguished by its some ... ornament Handel's sonatas. We suggest, impressed on the hearer as might require dragging, what arbitrarily introduced flurries of first, that you learn about the rhetorical sliding, or notes ofsyncopation, and tempo rubato" short, even note ...values, the shape of approach to composition. Next we ask (General History of Music, 11.746, translatingJo­ each flurry tending to be straightfor... you to study some ofHandel's variations hannJoachim Quant2;'s autobiography in Friedrich and write some ofyour own on the same W. Marpurg. Historisch-Kritische Beytrage zur Auf wardly down... up (sometimes up... down)~ nahme der Musi~ I [Berlin. 1754-55}. 240). For an with little subtlety or variation. In com ... themes. Then we show how Handel's example of Faustina's free ornamentation, see paris on with Handel's "Siete rose rugia ... practice ofreusing his materials furnishes George J. Buelow, "A Lesson in Operatic Perfor­ dose;' Babell's ornamentation appears us with ornamental material. We also mance Practice by Madame Faustina Bordoni," in dull and mechanical, designed to show present examples of Handel's use of A Musical Offering: Essays in Honor ofMartin Bern­ stein, ed. Edward H. Clinkscale fi Claire Brook off the performer's fast fingers rather essential graces and recommend his flex-­ (New York: Pendragon Press, 1977).79-96. than his invention. We find appropriate ibility and variety ofornaments in your 2The Interpretation of Early Music, new version a description by Burney of Babell's or... own practice. As for free ornamentation, (London: Faber fi Faber. 1974}.430.

140 The American Recorder 3For a further example, see Winton Dean, "Vocal Southern Illinois University Press, 1973), I, 1718). Babell's version of the aria "Lascia ch'io Embellishment in a Handel Aria," in H.C. Robbins 190-91. pianga" is reproduced in Hans,Peter Schmitz;, Die Landon & Roger E. Chapman, ed., Studies in Eigh, uSir John Hawkins wrote that "it seems the fame Kunst der Verzierung im 18. Jahrhundert (Kassel: teenth,Century Music: A 'Tribute to Karl Geiringer of Babell's abilities had reached Hamburgh, for Barenreiter, 1955), 104-05. on his Seventieth Birthday (New York: Oxford Mattheson says he was a pupil of Handel; but in 170n Charles Babell, see "Babel, Charles" in University Press, 1970), 151-59. this he was mistaken, for Handel disdained to teach Biographical Dictionary, I, 190. 4''The Recovery ofHandel's Arias;' in Music in his art to any but princes." See A General History 18Examples of similar floridity can be found in Eighteenth Century England: Essays in Memory of ofthe Science and Practice ofMusic (London, 1776; slow movements from three recorder sonatas by Charks Cudworth, ed. Christopher Hogwood & ed. Charles Cudworth, 2 vots., New York: Dover, Jean Baptiste Loeillet: Opus 3, No.2; Opus 3, No. Richard Luckett (Cambridge: Cambridge Univer' 1963), n, 826. 8; and Opus 4, No.3. sity Press, 1983), 111. 16Published as Suits {sic J of the Most Celebrated 19Woodwind Instruments and their History, 3rd ed. 'For an edition of these concertos see G .F. Lessons Collected and Fitted to the Harpsicord {sic J (London: Faber & Faber, 1967). 280. Handel, 'Two Ornamented Organ Concertos (Opus or Spinner . ..With Variety of Passages by the Author 2°General History of Music, n, 996. 4, Nos. 2 and 5) as Played by an Early Barrel Organ, (London: Walsh & Hare, 1717; Richard Meares, 210n Playing the Flute, 169. transcribed with commentary by David Fuller (Hackensack, N.J.: Jerona Music Corporation, 1980). See also David Fuller, "Analyz;ing the Per' formance of a Barrel Organ," 'The Organ Yearboo~ 11 (1980): 104-15. 6Argo, England, ZRG 746, 1974. H 1ST 0 RIC A L 'Handel, Un enregistrement d'ipoque sur un orgue a. cylindres du 18e sieck (Erato, , 9.724,1985; INSTRUMENTS RCA, , ZL 30974 or. c. 1986). See also INCORPORATED the interview with Roux by Jacqueline Ritchie, LEVIN "Une memoire musicale infallible;' Flute a. bec et in, struments anciens 19 (September 1986): 16-17. HISTORICAL WOODWIND SPECIALISTS 8Christophorus, Germany, SC GLX 74 039, Custom instruments made in our shop - Renaissance and baroque recorders, shawms, 1987. 17th C. jagotto, baroque and classical , baroque oboes and classical clarinets 9'1\ New Look at Handel's Organ Concertos: Two Surviving Works with Contemporary Or, From other makers - Recorders and other historical woodwinds by namentation;' 'The American Organist 22, no. 10 Moeck and Kobliczek; continuo and chamber organs by Gerrit C. Klop (October 1988): 84-85; originally published in Ger' Our shop continues to offer over 20 years of experience man as "Zwei verz;ierte Orgelkonz;erte Hiindels in in the set-up and repair of most historical woodwinds. Musikaufz;eichnung des 18. Jahrhunderts," Ars Please write for our free catalog. Organi 35, no. 1 (March 1987): 17-21. Levin Historical Instruments Inc., POB 407, Newfoundland, NJ 07435 (201)697-0535 lOOn the other hand, Roux ("Une memoire;' 17) says-without providing any evidence for his view-that his investigations have led him to at, tribute the ornaments toJohn Christopher Smith, Jr. (1712-95), Handel's assistant and successor. Ac, cording to KrUger ('1\ New Look," 85, n. 8), Roux wrote her a letter in July 1986 in which he pro, 9'iie Early Music mised to write up his evidence when he had the time and opportunity. We look forward to its publication. On Smith and his relationship to Handel, see Alfred Mann, "Handel's Successor: Shop John Christopher Smith the Younger," in Music in Eighteenth,Century England, 135-45. IN LONDON AT U"{IJn mastering this exercise {i.e., playing the transcriptions as writtenJ he {the modern organist J will have acquired an ease and fluency in the ex' SCI10I I ecution and application ofconventional ornaments that will enable him to embellish spontaneously and according to his own notions ofwhat is in good Here in our central London shop we specialise in: taste the other concertos of Handel and similar music, in the confidence that 18th'century ears would find his playing broadly familiar, ifindividual • Recorders, a recently increased selection in detail. Those who play the flute {i.e., recorderJ • Early Musical Instruments may accomplish the same thing with the concerto in F... :' ('Two Ornamented Organ Concertos, xi.) • Early Instrument Kits 12'Two Ornamented Organ Concertos, x. • Strings, Reeds and other accessories 13XII Solos for a Violin or Hautboy with a Bass Figura for the HarpSichord . .. Part the First of his • Used Instruments, including Lutes, Posthumous Wor~s (c. 1725); XII Solos for a Violin, Recorders and several Viols Hoboy or a German Flute with a Bass Figura for the Harpsichord . .. Part the Second of his Posthumous • MailOrder Wor~s (c. 1725). 14The fullest biography of Babell is the article "Babel, William" in A Biographical Dictionary ofAc, tors, Actresses, Musicians, Dancers, Managers and Other Stage Personnel in London 1660-1800, ed. Philip H. Highfill, Jr., Kalman A. Burnim, & Ed, ward A. Langhans (Carbondale & Edwardsville: 48 Great Marlborough Street. London. WIV 2BN - Tel: 01-437 1246 Fax:01-437 0263 Trade Dept.: Brunswick Road. Ashford. Kent. TN23 lOX - Tel: 0233 628987 Fax: 0233 610232

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