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Home , Alessandro Scarlatti, Antonio Caldara, Arcangelo Corelli, Bernardo Pasquini, Capella Cracoviensis, Domenico Scarlatti

CONVERSAZIONI II Duelling

Sounds Anna Dennis Andrew Radley Julian Perkins director Noelle Barker OBE (1928–2013) Sounds Baroque was privileged to have had Noelle Barker as its first honorary patron. In addition to being a distinguished soprano, Noelle was a formidable teacher and a refreshingly honest friend. Her indefatigable support was invaluable in launching this series of conversazioni concerts and recordings. Conversazioni II is dedicated to her memory.

2 CONVERSAZIONI II Duelling Cantatas

Sounds Baroque Jane Gordon and Jorge Jimenez Jonathan Rees and da gamba James Akers archlute, guitar and Frances Kelly triple

Anna Dennis soprano Andrew Radley countertenor

Julian Perkins , organ and director

3 (1668–1727) Io che dal terzo ciel (Venere e Adone) 24:26 1 Recitativo – Io che dal terzo ciel raggi di gioia (Venere) 1:00 2 – Come infiamma con luce serena (Venere) 2:32 3 Recitativo – Se già nacqui fra l’onde (Venere) 0:49 4 Aria – T’amerò come mortale (Adone) 3:22 5 Recitativo – Non m’adorar, no, no (Venere) 0:23 6 Aria – Tutto il bello in un sol bello (Venere) 2:08 7 Recitativo – È il mio volto mortale (Adone) 0:21 8 Aria – Ove scherza il ruscel col ruscello (Venere e Adone) 1:37 9 Recitativo – Del ruscel dell’augello il canto e’l suono (Venere e Adone) 0:34 10 Aria – La pastorella ove il boschetto ombreggia (Venere e Adone) 4:12 11 Recitativo – Qual farfalletta anch’io (Venere e Adone) 1:03 12 Aria – Meco parte il mio dolore (Venere) 1:49 13 Recitativo – Ecco ti lascio, o caro (Venere e Adone) 0:36 14 Aria – Usignol che nel nido sospira (Venere e Adone) 3:54

Antonio Caldara (c1670–1736) Trio in E minor, op. 1, no. 5 (1693) 8:17 15 Grave 2:04 16 Vivace 1:50 17 Adagio 3:10 18 Vivace 1:11

Attributed to (1685–1759) 19 Rondeau in G major 2:01

(Giuseppe) (1685–1757) 20 Sonata in G major, K 63 Capriccio (Allegro) 2:43

(Pietro) (Gaspare) Scarlatti (1660–1725) Questo silenzio ombroso (Il Sonno)† 10:41 21 Largo – Questo silenzio ombroso 1:48

4 22 Adagio – Dolce piange 4:17 23 Adagio – [Andante] – Adagio – Andante moderato – Or mentr’io dormo 4:34

Domenico Scarlatti 24 Sonata in , K 32 Aria 1:28

George Frideric Handel 25 Sonata in G major 4:47 (alternative version of HWV 579)

Amarilli vezzosa (Il duello amoroso), HWV 82 24:51 26 Sinfonia (Allegro – Adagio) 1:33 27 Menuetto 1:03 28 Recitativo – Amarilli vezzosa (Daliso) 0:39 29 Aria – Pietoso sguardo (Daliso) 3:27 30 Recitativo – Dunque tanto s’avanza (Amarilli) 0:35 31 Aria – Piacer che non si dona (Amarilli) 4:05 32 Recitativo – Sì, sì, crudel, ti accheta (Amarilli e Daliso) 0:57 33 Aria – Quel nocchiero che mira le sponde (Amarilli) 2:17 34 Recitativo – Amarilli, Amarilli, in vano tenti (Daliso) 0:38 35 Aria (Largo) – È vanità d’un cor (Daliso) 5:20 36 Recitativo – Or su, già che ostinato (Amarilli e Daliso) 1:50 37 Aria – Sì, sì, lasciami ingrata (Amarilli e Daliso) 2:24

Jane Gordon solo (tracks 33 and 35) and Sarah Moffatt ripieno violin (tracks 29, 31 and 33) † The viola da gamba enjoyed great popularity in Roman conversazioni as a solo and obbligato instrument, with including Handel, Gasparini and writing for it in these roles. It was used only rarely as a continuo instrument in late-17th-century , principally in the North, where French culture had its greatest influence. But given the delicate, intimate and transparent qualities which it shares with Alessandro Scarlatti’s Questo silenzio ombroso, one can easily imagine that for this work the gamba might have been used, exceptionally, as a continuo instrument.

5 Prince Francesco Maria Ruspoli Marescotti (1672–1731)

6 Duelling Cantatas

THE ECCENTRIC QUEEN CHRISTINA OF Sweden led a scandalous life after her exile to during the , often at colossal expense to her adopted Roman Catholic church. She made a decisive impact upon the cultural life of aristocratic society in Rome by gathering round her a circle of poets, authors, artists and musicians, all of whom were fascinated by the reform of Italian poetry (including libretti for musical entertainments). They felt that the corrupting indulgence of contemporary writing could be purified through the restoration of classical Greek simplicity. Setting their work in the pastoral world of Arcadia (a district of Greece in the Peloponnese peninsula), the authors reimagined a lost paradise in which lovers experienced all sorts of situations: bitter quarrelling, jealous rivalry and cruel rejection frequently simmered close behind the depictions of emotional bliss and erotic satisfaction (and vice versa). Thus the elegance and purity of classical antiquity as reinterpreted by the Italian Renaissance was infused with the dramatic impulse and emotional yearning of the Baroque. In 1690, one year after Queen Christina’s death, fourteen of these Italian literary reformers founded the Accademia degli Arcadi (‘The Arcadian Academy’), holding their early meetings at Roman venues such as the Janiculum Hill or the gardens on the Palatine owned by the powerful Farnese family. The movement quickly grew across Italy; influential members included the poets and librettists Silvio Stampiglia, , Carlo Sigismondo Capece and, later on, (pupil of the founder-member Gianvincenzo Gravina). Prominent members of the academy also included generous patrons of music and the arts such as the powerful Venetian diplomat Cardinal Pietro Ottoboni (great-nephew of Pope Alexander VIII, who promoted Ottoboni to the post of vice-chancellor of the Roman Catholic church), the wealthy cardinals Benedetto Pamphilij and Carlo Colonna (both from old aristocratic Roman families), and the Marquis Francesco Maria Ruspoli (raised to the rank of Prince of Cerveteri by Pope Clement XI in 1709). The Arcadian Academy’s Sunday afternoon gatherings (conversazioni) took place in members’ palatial residences or beautiful gardens – the latter perhaps a convenient environment that embodied the literary aim of returning to harmonised idyllic nature. George Frideric Handel’s Amarilli vezzosa (HWV 82) was first performed on 28 October 1708 for such an occasion hosted by Ruspoli at his home, the Palazzo Bonelli (nowadays the seat of Rome’s provincial government). Handel was never a member of the Arcadian Academy, but by the time he visited Rome the group’s membership already included several renowned Italian performers and composers: seven musicians, among them , had been invited to join in May 1696. The virtuoso keyboard player , the violinist and the prolific vocal Alessandro Scarlatti (father of Domenico) were admitted as members in April 1706, having already been associated with the Arcadian circle for many years. Like their patrons from the secular and ecclesiastical aristocracy, the Arcadian composers-in-residence adopted pseudonyms: Corelli was ‘Arcomélo Erimanteo’ (Arcomélo = the melodious bow), Pasquini was ‘Protico Azeriano,’ and Scarlatti was ‘Terpandro Politeo.’ It is likely that all of the official Arcadian Academy musicians (and some honoured guests such as Handel) contributed to conversazioni with performances of instrumental and vocal cantatas (often with just accompaniment or sometimes with additional instruments). It is impossible to reconstruct an Arcadian Academy conversazione exactly as it may have happened during Handel’s visits to Rome, but it seems unlikely that any would have showcased the music of only a single composer. This recording presents one of the cantatas that Handel composed for Ruspoli within the context of instrumental and vocal chamber music by several of his Italian contemporaries who were closely connected to the Arcadian Academy. Sounds Baroque’s performances invite listeners to imagine the academicians and their guests spending their Sunday afternoon in an elegant 18th-century picture gallery, palatial salon or beautiful Roman garden. 7 In particular, the concept of duels proliferates throughout this album. Handel’s charming and nuanced dialogue cantata Amarilli vezzosa is often known as Il duello amoroso because of its two quarrelling lovers; two voices also contend harmoniously with each other in the selected cantatas by Alessandro Scarlatti and Gasparini. The alternating keyboard music by Handel and his exact contemporary Domenico Scarlatti (both born in 1685) gives a speculative impression of the amiable musical duel between the two composers that was reputedly hosted by Cardinal Ottoboni at his sumptuous home, the Palazzo Cancelleria (where Corelli had resided as Ottoboni’s director of music since 1690). We do not know what music the two virtuoso keyboardists played, and whether it represented anything in their best-known publications of solo keyboard pieces; but they probably improvised and responded to each other’s extemporised material (see Duelling Maestri, p. 11). Two violins spar amiably with each other in a from ’s op. 1 collection (published by Giuseppe Sala, , 1693); although Caldara started his musical career as a cellist at St Mark’s Basilica and became an influential and successful composer in his native La Serenissima, he also had some significant Roman connections: he was employed as Prince Ruspoli’s maestro di cappella from July 1709 until May 1716, during which time he wrote about 180 cantatas for Ruspoli’s Sunday morning conversazioni. Caldara spent the rest of his life working as vice- at the imperial court in , where he was frequently the first composer to set music to new libretti by the imperial court poet Metastasio (another Arcadian Academy alumnus). Francesco Gasparini was from a small town near Lucca in , and by 1682 he was working as an at the Church of Madonna dei Monti in Rome. He probably studied with Corelli and Pasquini, and in 1687 he took part as a violinist and composer in Arcadian conversazioni hosted by Cardinal Pamphilij at the Palazzo Doria Pamphilij, which led to his setting some of Pamphilij’s own verse to music (Handel likewise set several of Pamphilij’s texts to music two decades later). In 1701 Gasparini was appointed maestro di coro at Venice’s Ospedale della Pietà, where he directed all of the illustrious musical activities at the girls’ orphanage and expanded the teaching staff, hiring as violin teacher. However, Gasparini’s flourishing career as an opera composer eventually distracted him away from Venice; in 1713 he was granted six months’ leave from the Pietà, and he did not return (Vivaldi temporarily stood in for the absent Gasparini but was never promoted to the full musical directorship). In July 1716 Gasparini replaced Caldara as maestro di cappella to Prince Ruspoli, and in 1718 he was formally admitted to the ranks of the Arcadian Academy, with the pseudonym ‘Ericreo.’ The majority of Gasparini’s extant cantatas survive in manuscripts that were copied neatly for use in Arcadian Academy performances (these are now preserved in the Santini Collection in Münster). Io che dal terzo ciel was written out by the professional Roman music copyist Francesco Antonio Lanciani for Prince Ruspoli in 1716. The goddess Venus (soprano) sings that her heart is inflamed with love for the handsome mortal Adonis (alto), who responds that he worships and loves her; she declares that she has abandoned her immortal divinity and is content to exist under a humble pastoral disguise in order to be united with Adonis. They exchange vows of undying fidelity and love, and sorrow that they must part for a while. They compare themselves to emotive emanations of nature such as burbling streams, refreshing breezes, a startled butterfly caught in a treacherous light (i.e. a flame), and the lament of the mythological nightingale Philomel. There is no hint of the impending tragedy of Adonis’s death during a boar hunt (caused by the envious Diana), but the educated Arcadian audience certainly knew and understood the tragic irony presented in the cantata’s poetry. The melodic invention of the , finely crafted concise ritornelli for two violins, smooth narrative flow and attractive musical details (such as the lilting pastoral idiom for the duet ‘La pastorella ove il boschetto ombreggia’ and the solo violin’s imitation of a nightingale in the concluding duet ‘Usignol che nel nido sospira’) attest to the 18th-century music historian ’s praise of Gasparini’s cantatas as ‘graceful, elegant, natural, and often pathetic.’ 8 The Sicilian-born Alessandro Scarlatti divided much of his long career between Rome and . A legend claims he studied briefly with in Rome, and his early works composed during the 1670s were for the papal city, but from 1683 to 1703 he spent most of his time in Naples (where he became a successful opera composer and maestro di cappella of the royal chapel). One of his numerous patrons in Rome was Cardinal Ottoboni, who arranged for him to become assistant director of the Cappella Liberiana in S. Maria Maggiore in 1703 (he was director briefly in 1706, again with Ottoboni’s help). The account of the ceremony marking Scarlatti’s admission to the Arcadian Academy in April 1706 describes him not only as a ‘distinguished master of music,’ but also a ‘professor of poetry.’ He wrote about 800 cantatas for various patrons in Naples and Rome; the manuscript of Questo silenzio ombroso, a duet cantata for two solo voices and basso continuo, is dated 17 September 1707. Rather than a dramatic dialogue between two characters, Scarlatti presents two singers combining together to function as a single narrative ‘voice’ which invokes a vision of the nightingale Philomel and complains without hope about the melancholic despair of lost love. Two disgruntled lovers argue without achieving reconciliation in the 23-year-old Handel’s Il duello amoroso. The Ruspoli household’s financial accounts (now in the Vatican library) reveal that the bill for Antonio Giuseppe Angelini’s copying of the performance material was dated 28 August 1708, but the cantata con strumenti was not performed until 28 October 1708. Handel may not have been involved in the performance, because after 12 September he no longer resided at the Palazzo Bonelli, and had probably travelled to the court of Ferdinando de’ Medici in . However, Ruspoli seems to have regarded the performance as a particularly festive occasion: his servant ‘Ascanio’ was paid to deliver invitations, which were only ever issued for special events. Three additional violinists were hired to supplement Ruspoli’s household continuo team and regular violinist Domenico Castrucci (who later played in Handel’s opera orchestra in London); the soprano and alto Pasquale Betti were paid three silver scudi each. The cantata is set in a lonely wood and depicts the shepherd Daliso’s exasperated amorous pursuit of the spiteful Amaryllis. After an evocative of Daliso’s chasing after Amaryllis, each character performs two solo arias: Amaryllis goads Daliso into carrying out his threat to use force in order to possess her and, when he baulks at stabbing her, she mocks his inability to prove himself man enough for her. As her father Sylvanus approaches, Amaryllis mockingly dismisses Daliso’s feeble love as he reproaches her bitterly in the final duet. It is curious that Handel later adapted this music for the similarly cynical conclusion to his opera (1731). In fact, he recycled several key moments from Il duello amoroso: Daliso’s siciliano ‘È vanità d’un cor’ was recast just over a year later for ’s ‘Pur ch’io ti stringo al sen’ in his Venetian opera , and Daliso’s ‘Pietoso sguardo’ (itself taken from material composed the previous year for his Florentine opera ) was used again in his London , Il pastor fido and .

Ꭿ Dr David Vickers, 2014

9 Duelling Maestri

GEORGE FRIDERIC HANDEL VERSUS DOMENICO Scarlatti, versus Louis Marchand, versus … Competitions between maestri were a popular sport in the 18th century and allowed composer-performers to indulge in the touchstone of their art: improvisation. Those of you who heard our last recording, Conversazioni I, may recall that I promised that Conversazioni II would feature Domenico Scarlatti’s K 63 and Handel’s Sonata in G major, HWV 579. According to Dr Graham Pont, these very pieces may have originated as improvisations at the alleged ‘trial of skill’ that famously took place between Handel and Scarlatti at one of the weekly conversazioni at Cardinal Ottoboni’s palace in Rome.1 My promise to include these pieces is fulfilled with this recording, save that the version of Handel’s Sonata in G major heard here differs marginally from HWV 579. The latter is two bars longer and is clearly written for a double-manual harpsichord, since there are numerous indications of I and II throughout the movement. I find these continual manual changes distracting, and so instead perform what may be an earlier version of this piece on a single-manual instrument. Handel’s Sonata in G major is the kind of impressive work one can imagine the young Saxon firing off in friendly opposition to his Italian rival at their supposed contest. Its continuously fast-moving figurations make it something of a moto perpetuo: I like to describe this dashing brilliance as ‘hormonal Handel.’ Handel was certainly fond of this piece, for he transmogrified it into ‘Vo’ far guerra’ in Rinaldo (1711) – possibly the first extensive scripted harpsichord solo to feature in an opera.2 He obviously wanted to make an impression in his London stage debut, and this revolutionary use of the humble harpsichord in a solo rage aria at the end of an act, a point usually reserved for a lead singer, could perhaps be compared to the elevation of the in J. S. Bach’s fifth Brandenburg , composed about a decade later. But it would be a mistake to assume that improvisational contests were merely about digital dexterity. Moving the emotions of the listener was as important to composers in the 18th century as it was to in his and operas at the turn of the 17th. Scarlatti’s K 32 is an elegant that combines plaintive intervals with expressive appoggiaturas, evoking a restrained simplicity that touches the heart. It is not known whether this piece was improvised at a competition, but the music’s finesse does indicate that the Neapolitan was a master of emotional nuance and maybe testifies to ’s description of Scarlatti as a ‘galant’ player. The obvious resemblance between the openings of the other two solo keyboard pieces in our programme makes it easy to imagine the one being improvised in response to the other. While the Rondeau attributed to Handel has a clear harmonic plan with two episodes, the second of which is in the relative minor, there is a delicious harmonic ambiguity at the end of K 63. After going to the Neapolitan second – A flat major – Scarlatti has a theatrical tussle between the home key of G major, and G minor. Minor-key pieces sometimes end with a major chord in what is known as a Tierce de Picardie, but here Scarlatti reverses that convention and there is an unexpected intrusion of the tonic minor in the penultimate bar before the work’s final note – a single G in each hand. Should the performer realise these last Gs as a chord and, in doing so, play it in the major or minor key? This playful ending to the jocular K 63 underlines what seems to have resulted in a strong friendship between Handel and Scarlatti. John Mainwaring, Handel’s first biographer, who is thought to have derived his account of Handel’s early years from the composer himself, relates that, following their putative keyboard duel, ‘So greatly was [Scarlatti] struck with [Handel’s] peculiar method of playing, that he followed him all over Italy, and was never so happy as when he was with him.’ © Julian Perkins, 2014 10 1. ‘Handel versus Domenico Scarlatti: Music of an Historic Encounter’ (Göttinger Händel-Beiträge, 1991, Volume 4, 232–247). Pont suggests that K 63 is a Scarlattian response to (or parody of) Handel’s Sonata in G major, HWV 579, possibly played in their famous keyboard duel. Pont develops this intriguing hypothesis in ‘Handel versus Domenico Scarlatti: New Light on the Historic Encounter’ (Göttinger Händel-Beiträge, 2010, Volume 13, 115–124). He proposes that the single-manual version of the Sonata in G major heard here was the one that Handel performed in the competition. Handel may have produced the two- manual version of the piece later for Cardinal Ottoboni, who owned several two-manual instruments (they were rare in Italy at that time). 2. The harpsichord solo in ‘Vo’ far guerra’ was rewritten (or transcribed) by William Babell as the concluding movement in his Suits of the Most Celebrated Lessons (London, 1717). This piece now takes on epic proportions and lasts 259 bars, more than twice the length of HWV 579, of which one bar is over three pages of continual hemi-demisemiquavers! See Pont’s article, ‘Reminiscences of Rinaldo: the keyboard transcriptions of ‘‘Vo’ far guerra’’,’ Ad Parnassum, 2011, Volume 9, Issue 17, 7–35.

First page of Alessandro Scarlatti’s Questo silenzio ombroso

11 Io che dal terzo ciel F. Gasparini 8 Aria – Duetto Aria – Duet Adone Adonis Text: Anon. Ove scherza il ruscel col ruscello Where the stream plays with the stream 1 Recitativo – Venere – Venus e s’intrecciano i rami coi rami and where branches intertwine with each other, Io che dal terzo ciel raggi di gioia I, who from the third heaven scatter così Amore con dolci legami there Cupid will tie with tender knots spargo sui cori amanti, rays of joy on loving hearts, il mio sen col tuo sen stringerà. my breast to your breast. or da nube di pianti, have now eclipsed my heart’s serenity eclissato ho nel seno with clouds of tears Venere Venus per un volto mortale il bel sereno. because of a human face. Ove l’aura con l’aura respira Where the breeze blows with the breeze e s’abbracciano i rami coi rami, and where branches embrace each other; 2 Aria – Venere Aria – Venus fra contenti, fra vezzi, fra amori amongst joys, affections and loves, Come infiamma con luce serena As a celestial sun inflames il mio cor col tuo cor goderà. my heart will rejoice with your heart. sol celeste terrena beltà, a worldly beauty with a calm light, così un sol di bellezza terrena so a sun of worldly beauty 9 Recitativo – Duetto Recitative – Duet arde e infiamma celeste deità. burns and inflames a celestial goddess. Adone Adonis Del ruscel dell’augello il canto e’l suono, The stream’s sounds and the bird’s song 3 Recitativo – Venere Recitative – Venus è una voce gradita are a pleasant voice Se già nacqui fra l’onde, If I was born amidst the waves, ch’ai piaceri c’invita. that invites us to pleasures. per te nell’onde del mio pianto io moro. in the waves of my tears I am now dying. Adone, mio tesoro, Adonis, my love, Venere Venus ah, se di Cipro entro il devoto tempio ah, if in the devotional temple of Cyprus Ed il , il boschetto, il colle e’l rio, And the plain, the woods, the hill and the stream consacrasti al mio onor vittime e incensi, you consecrated victims and incense to my honour è un teatro di gioia al petto mio. are a theatre of joy for my heart. su l’ara del mio core, on the altar of my heart, deh, consacrami, Adone, oggi il tuo amore. alas, Adonis, consecrate me to your love today. 10Aria – Duetto Aria – Duet La pastorella ove il boschetto ombreggia In the grove’s shade the shepherdess 4 Aria – Adone Aria – Adonis mira che a pascer va le pecorelle goes to pasture her little sheep, T’amerò come mortale I will love you as a mortal, e per colmar col latte le fiscelle, and to fill the cans with milk come dea t’adorerò; I will worship you as a goddess; stringe le poppe alla sua cara greggia. she milks her dear flock. al tuo seno, alle tue piante, to your breast and to your footsteps fido servo e vero amante, o Venus, I will be Il villanello ove ch’il pian s’avalla Downhill the peasant di te, o Venere, sarò. your faithful servant and true lover. pone in faccia del sole lo specchietto, turns a hand-mirror to the sun, ed a quel raggio vola l’augelletto, and the little bird flies to that beam 5 Recitativo – Venere Recitative – Venus come a raggio mortal cieca farfalla. like a blind butterfly to a mortal ray. Non m’adorar, no, no, No, no, do not worship me, chè del ciel più non son nume immortale, for I am no longer an immortal goddess of the 11Recitativo – Duetto Recitative – Duet ma sotto spoglia vile e pastorale, heavens, Venere Venus Adone, idolo mio, but under a humble and pastoral disguise Qual farfalletta anch’io As a butterfly, I too was compelled per te la deità posi in oblio. for you, Adonis, my idol, già dal lucido incanto del tuo ciglio by the shining enchantment of your eyes I have left my divinity in oblivion. a scender dalle stelle fui costretta; to descend from the stars. ma da forza fatale or son astretta, But now I am constrained by the force of fate 6 Aria – Venere Aria – Venus della spoglia mortal franger il velo to break the veil of my human disguise Tutto il bello in un sol bello In your face love unites e su l’ali d’amor volare al cielo. and fly to heaven on the wings of love. nel tuo volto unisce amor, all the beauties in one, acciò provi in un contento therefore you feel in one happiness Adone Adonis il contento d’ogni cor. the happiness of every heart. Dunque partir vorrai So you wish to depart, e lasciarmi potrai and are able to leave me 7 Recitativo – Adone Recitative – Adonis in braccio del dolore? in the arms of sadness? È il mio volto mortale, My human face, presso alla tua beltà, compared to your beauty, Venere Venus come l’atomo vil ch’è bello ancora is like the humble atom that is more beautiful Non parto, Adone, no, se teco resta I do not leave, Adonis, if my heart quando con i suoi raggi il sol indora. when the sun gilds it with its rays. nel discolto tuo crine avvinto il core. stays here with you bound in your flowing hair.

12 12Aria – Venere Aria – Venus Piange ancor His companion Meco parte il mio dolore, I leave with my grief, la sua compagna also weeps, teco resta il mio piacer; my happiness remains with you; che fida si lagna faithfully lamenting ed a te pensando il core and my heart will only be happy del foco d’amor. the fire of love. solo in te potrà goder. in thinking of you. 23Adagio – [Andante] – Adagio – Andante 13Recitativo – Duetto Recitative – Duet moderato Venere Venus Or mentr’io dormo, Now while I sleep, Ecco ti lascio, o caro, Now I leave you, my love, almeno vedesse questo core I wish my heart at least could see men volo al cielo ad invidiare il suolo. I will fly to heaven and envy the earth. l’imago di Fileno the vision of Philomel spogliata di rigore! divested of severity! Adone Adonis Amor, così farai God of Love, enable it Ecco mi lasci, o cara, Now you leave me, my love, ch’io dorma si ch’io non mi svegli mai, that I may sleep and never wake again, resto nel suolo ad invidiare il cielo. I will stay on the earth and envy heaven. che se in sonno goder non poss’io, and if in sleep I am not able to be happy, sia pur sonno di morte il sonno mio. may my sleep be the sleep of death. 14Aria – Duetto Aria – Duet Adone Adonis Translation: Sounds Baroque Usignuol che nel nido sospira The nightingale that sighs in the nest se la madre dolente rimira when he looks at his sad mother Amarilli vezzosa G. F. Handel girne lungi dal tenero sen, flying far from his tender bosom; Text: Anon. col suo canto alla bella infelice do you know what he says 26Sinfonia: Allegro – Adagio sai che dice? with his song to the unhappy beauty? ‘‘Deh, fra poco, ritorna mio ben.’’ “Alas, my love, come back soon.” 27Menuetto

Venere Venus 28Recitativo – Daliso Recitative – Daliso Usignuol che va lungi dal prato, The nightingale that flies far from the meadow Amarilli vezzosa, Pretty Amaryllis, per cercare alimento bramato, in search of needed food; appunto in questa solitaria foresta, just here, in this lonely forest, al suo figlio che mesto mirò, do you know what she says dove neppur giungon del sole i rai, where even the sun’s rays do not reach, col suo canto alla prole infelice with her song to her unhappy brood di pianto sospirai; I have sighed in tears; sai che dice? that looked sadly at her? quante pene soffersi, how many agonies have I suffered, ‘‘Si, fra poco, mio ben, tornerò.’’ “Yes, my love, I will be back soon.” sol per cagion del tuo superbo orgoglio: only because of your arrogant pride. o la mercede, o la vendetta io voglio. Now I would have recompense or revenge. Venere e Adone Venus and Adonis Così del duolo in sen Thus with a sadness in my heart 29Aria – Daliso Aria – Daliso qual Filomena, o cara, anch’io dirò: like that of Philomel,* I will also say, my dear: Pietoso sguardo A pitying glance, ‘‘Deh, fra poco, ritorna mio ben.’’ “Alas, my love, come back soon.’’ vezzo bugiardo, a deceitful endearment, ‘‘Si, fra poco, mio ben tornerò.’’ ‘‘Yes, my love, I will be back soon.’’ più non lusingano no longer beguiles questo mio cor. this heart of mine. Translation: Sounds Baroque Tempo è da cedere It is time to give way alle mie lagrime, to my tears, Questo silenzio ombroso A. Scarlatti che più resistere for my grief Text: Anon. non sa’l dolor. can no longer be restrained. 21Largo Questo silenzio ombroso, This shady silence, 30Recitativo – Amarilli Recitative – Amaryllis ove soave spira where a light breeze sweetly blows Dunque tanto s’avanza So does the bold desire leggera auretta e un usignuol sospira, and a nightingale sighs, d’un pastorel che m’ama of a shepherd who loves me gli stanchi lumi miei chiama al riposo. calls my tired eyes to rest. la temeraria voglia? E, stolto, credi dare so much? And, fool, do you think che la mercé che chiedi that the obligation of a pledge 22Adagio ti possa dar necessita d’impegno? can give you the reward you seek? Dolce piange The solitary nightingale Misero, e non t’avvedi Wretched man, do you not realize romito usignuolo sweetly weeps, che quel piacer ch’oggi il tuo cor desia that the pleasure which today your heart desires sfogando quel duolo venting the sadness figlio del genio mio d’uopo è che sia. must be the offspring of my own inclination? che chiude nel cor. that is shut in his heart.

13 31Aria – Amarilli Aria – Amaryllis 36Recitativo – Duetto Recitative – Duet Piacer che non si dona The pleasure that is not bestowed Amarilli Amaryllis per opra del piacer by an act of pleasure Or su, giàcche ostinato Come on then, if stubbornly you will più tosto è pena. very soon becomes pain. oscurar d’onore il pregio, shut out the merit of honour; Forza crudel che sprona The cruel force that incites il core trapassami col ferro; pierce my heart with a dagger; l’altrui voglia goder another to enjoy his desire e poi, crudele, di questo sen fedele, and then, cruel man, over this faithful heart, fende l’arena. comes to nothing. di cui non curi il tormentoso affanno, for whose agonizing grief you have no thought, renditi pure a tuo piacer tiranno. become a tyrant for your pleasure. 32Recitativo – Duetto Recitative – Duet Daliso Daliso Daliso Daliso Sì, sì, crudel, ti accheta Yes, yes, cruel one, you shall be subdued; Come? Amarilli? Oh Dio, dunque… What? Amaryllis? O God, then… o sia forza, o sia genio, o sia dispetto whether by force, inclination or resentment, pria di morir fra lusinghieri affanni before my sighs lead me to death, Amarilli Amaryllis meglio è rapir ciò che donar si vieta. it is better to seize what is denied as a gift. Non più! Desio No more! I would have you satisfy the l’empia voglia saziar che ti tormenta: wicked desire that torments you. Amarilli Amaryllis barbaro! Su, che fai? Cruel man, come, what will you do? Semplicetto che sei, cangia consiglio: Fool that you are, change your plan: Prendi lo strale e in questo sen l’avventa. Take the blade and plunge it into my heart. mal si gode quel bene poorly enjoyed is a gift che dall’odio si acquista o dal rigore: gained by hate or cruelty: Daliso Daliso il vero amor solo d’Amore è figlio. true love is the child of Love alone. Vincesti, ah sì vincesti, ora ti chiedo You have triumphed, ah, you have triumphed! pietade all’error grave; now I ask forgiveness for a grave misdeed; 33Aria – Amarilli Aria – Amaryllis alma che di penar fu sempre accesa, my soul, always ravaged by suffering, Quel nocchiero che mira le sponde The sailor who espies the shore già sitibonda aspetta already eagerly expects la tema dell’onde dismisses the fear of the waves giusto risentimento all’alta offesa. your just anger at my great offence. dal sen discacciò. from his heart. Ma se intanto pretese conforto But if meanwhile he thinks he is safe, Amarilli Amaryllis invece del porto instead of the harbour Ecco giunge opportuno Here, at the right moment, lo scoglio trovò. he finds a rock. Silvano il mio buon padre; or sappi comes Sylvanus, my good father; amico semplicetto pastorello, now understand, dear and simple shepherd, 34Recitativo – Daliso Recitative – Daliso che tu credendo a lusinghieri detti that when you believed the deceitful words Amarilli, Amarilli, in vano tenti Amaryllis, Amaryllis, in vain you try del mio timore usato, of my well-practised fear, you lost con speranze fallaci uscir dal laccio with false hopes to escape the trap perdesti il tempo ed il piacer bramato. your opportunity and the pleasure you desired. ove ponesti il piede; in which your foot is caught; che di tua data fede though a thousand might be the oaths 37Aria – Duetto Aria – Duet benché fossero mille i giuramenti of your pledged faith, either the stream Daliso Daliso sempre in sostanza poi washes away its substance, Sì, sì, lasciami ingrata, Yes, yes, leave me, ungrateful girl, o il rio l’accolse o li rapiro i venti. or the winds blow it away. ma pria rendimi il cor. but first give me back my heart; Sei tu selce spietata, you are as hard as flint, 35Aria – Daliso Aria – Daliso priva di senso e ardor. void of feeling and passion. È vanità d’un cor It is useless for a heart quel vivere in Amor to live always Amarilli Amaryllis sempre sperando. hoping for love. Su, su, restati in pace Come, come, be at peace Convien più volte udir Is it enough to hear many times né più chiedermi Amor; and no longer seek love from me; promesse di gioir promises of joy, no, non hai tu la face no, you do not have the torch ma non il quando? but not know when they may be fulfilled? per accender ardor. to kindle love’s flame. ! Translation: Anthony Hicks The translation of Amarilli vezzosa by the late Anthony Hicks is reproduced by kind permission of the Trustees of the Handel Institute.

14 Kantaten im Duell

DIE EXZENTRISCHE KÖNIGIN CHRISTINA VON Schweden führte während der 1650er Jahre nach ihrer Verbannung nach Rom ein skandalöses Leben und verursachte damit der römisch-katholischen Kirche, zu der sie übergetreten war, oft beachtliche Kosten. Sie nahm auf das kulturelle Leben der adligen Gesellschaft Roms einen entscheidenden Einfluss, da sie einen Kreis von Dichtern, Schriftstellern, Künstlern und Musikern um sich versammelte, die alle von der Reform der italienischen Dichtung (darunter auch Libretti zur musikalischen Unterhaltung) begeistert waren. Sie vertraten die Ansicht, zeitgenössische Literatur könne durch die Rückkehr zur klassischen Einfachheit der griechischen Antike ihren verderblichen Einfluss verlieren. Die Autoren siedelten nun ihre Werke in der pastoralen Welt Arkadiens an (einer Gegend auf der Peloponnesischen Halbinsel), in einem verlorenen Paradies, wo die Liebenden alle erdenklichen Situationen zu meistern hatten: Bitterer Streit, Eifersucht auf den Rivalen und grausame Zurückweisung lauerten hinter der Schilderung emotionaler Glückseligkeit und erotischer Befriedigung (und umgekehrt). Die Eleganz und Reinheit der klassischen Antike wurden somit in der Neuinterpretation durch die italienische Renaissance durchdrungen von den dramatischen Impulsen und der emotionalen Sehnsucht des Barocks. 1690, ein Jahr nach Königin Christinas Tod, gründeten vierzehn dieser italienischen Literaturreformer die Accademia degli Arcadi („Akademie der Arkadier“). Ihre ersten Zusammenkünfte hielten sie in Rom ab, auf dem Janiculum oder in den Gärten auf dem Palatin, die der mächtigen Familie Farnese gehörten. Die Bewegung breitete sich bald über ganz Italien aus; einflussreiche Mitglieder waren die Dichter und Librettisten Silvio Stampiglia, Apostolo Zeno, Carlo Sigismondo Capece und, später, Pietro Metastasio (Schüler des Gründungsmitglieds Gianvincenzo Gravina). Zu den prominenten Mitgliedern der Akademie zählten auch großzügige Förderer der Musik und Künste wie der mächtige venezianische Diplomat Kardinal Pietro Ottoboni (Großneffe Papst Alexanders VIII., der Ottoboni auf den Posten des Vizekanzlers der römisch- katholischen Kirche beförderte), die wohlhabenden Kardinäle Benedetto Pamphilij und Carlo Colonna (beide aus alten römischen Adelsfamilien) sowie der Marchese Francesco Maria Ruspoli (der 1709 von Papst Clemens XI. in den Rang eines Principe di Cerveteri erhoben wurde). Die Mitglieder der Arkadischen Akademie trafen sich sonntagnachmittags zu ihren conversazioni in ihren Palazzi oder schönen Gärten – letztere vielleicht ein passende Umgebung, die das literarische Ziel der Rückkehr zu einer als harmonisch empfundenen Natur versinnbildlichte. Georg Friedrich Händels Amarilli vezzosa (HWV 82) wurde anlässlich eines solchen Treffens am 28. Oktober 1708, bei dem Ruspoli der Gastgeber war, im Palazzo Bonelli (heute Sitz der römischen Provinzregierung) uraufgeführt. Händel war nie ein Mitglied der Arkadischen Akademie, aber zur Zeit seines Rombesuchs gehörten der Gruppe bereits einige namhafte italienische Interpreten und Komponisten an: Sieben Musiker, darunter Giovanni Bononcini, waren im Mai 1696 eingeladen worden, sich ihr anzuschließen. Der Orgel- und Cembalovirtuose Bernardo Pasquini, der Geiger Arcangelo Corelli und der überaus produktive Vokalkomponist Alessandro Scarlatti (Domenicos Vater) wurden im April 1706 als Mitglieder aufgenommen, nachdem sie dem arkadischen Zirkel bereits seit vielen Jahren verbunden waren. Wie ihre Mäzene der weltlichen und geistlichen Aristokratie nahmen die zur Akademie gehörenden Komponisten Pseudonyme an: Corelli war „Arcomélo Erimanteo“ (Arcomélo = „der melodische Bogen“), Pasquini wurde „Protico Azeriano“, Scarlatti hieß „Terpandro Politeo“. Es ist zu vermuten, dass alle offiziellen Musiker der Arkadischen Akademie (und einige Ehrengäste wie Händel) zu den conversazioni mit Aufführungen instrumentaler Kammermusik und vokaler Kantaten (oft nur mit Continuobegleitung, manchmal mit zusätzlichen Instrumenten) beitrugen. Eine solche conversazione der Arkadischen Akademie während Händels Romaufenthalt lässt sich in ihrem Ablauf nicht genau rekonstruieren,

15 unwahrscheinlich ist jedoch, dass jeweils nur die Musik eines einzelnen Komponisten vorgestellt wurde. Diese Einspielung zeigt eine der Kantaten, die Händel für Ruspoli komponierte, im Kontext der instrumentalen und vokalen Kammermusik verschiedener seiner italienischen Zeitgenossen, die der Arkadischen Akademie eng verbunden waren. Das Ensemble Sounds Baroque will mit seinen Aufführungen dem Hörer eine Vorstellung davon vermitteln, auf welche Weise die Akademiker und ihre Gäste ihre Sonntagnachmittage in einer eleganten Bildergalerie des 18. Jahrhunderts, einem luxuriösen Salon oder einem schönen römischen Garten verbrachten. Einen großen Raum nimmt in diesem Album das Konzept der Duelle ein: Händels bezaubernde und nuancenreiche Dialogkantate Amarilli vezzosa ist auch unter dem Titel Il duello amoroso bekannt, weil sich in ihr zwei Liebende zanken; und zwei Stimmen wetteifern harmonisch in den ausgewählten Kantaten Alessandro Scarlattis und Gasparinis. Die Musik für Tasteninstrumente im Wechsel dazu, mit der Händel und sein Altersgenosse Domenico Scarlatti (beide 1685 geboren) vertreten sind, lässt ahnen, wie sich das freundschaftliche musikalische Duell zwischen den beiden Komponisten abgespielt haben mochte, das angeblich im Palazzo Cancelleria stattfand, Kardinal Ottobonis prunkvoller Residenz (wo Corelli seit 1690 als Ottobonis Musikdirektor residierte). Wir wissen nicht, welche Musik die beiden Tastenvirtuosen spielten und ob Stücke aus ihren bekanntesten Veröffentlichungen für Tasteninstrumente solo dabei waren; aber sie improvisierten vermutlich und reagierten jeweils auf das Material des Kollegen (s. Maestri im Duell), S.27. Zwei Violinen begegnen einander zu einem freundschaftlichen Wettstreit in einer Triosonate aus Antonio Caldaras Sammlung op. 1 (1693 von Giuseppe Sala in Venedig veröffentlicht); Caldara begann seine musikalische Laufbahn als Cellist an San Marco und wurde in seiner Heimatstadt Venedig ein einflussreicher und erfolgreicher Opernkomponist, hatte jedoch auch beachtliche Verbindungen in Rom: Von Juli 1709 bis Mai 1716 war er als Ruspolis maestro di cappella tätig und schrieb in dieser Zeit über 180 Kantaten für dessen conversazioni am Sonntagmorgen. Seine restlichen Lebensjahre verbrachte Caldara als Vizekapellmeister am kaiserlichen Hof in Wien, wo er häufig als erster Komponist die neuen Libretti des kaiserlichen Hofdichters Metastasio (ein weiterer Alumnus der Arkadischen Akademie) vertonte. Francesco Gasparini stammte aus einer kleinen Stadt in der Toskana in der Nähe von Lucca und wirkte ab 1682 als Organist an der Kirche Madonna dei Monti in Rom. Er studierte vermutlich bei Corelli und Pasquini, nahm 1687 als Geiger und Komponist an den arkadischen conversazioni von Kardinal Pamphilij im Palazzo Doria Pamphilij teil und vertonte einige der eigenen Verse Pamphilis (Händel vertonte zwanzig Jahre später ebenfalls mehrere Texte Pamphilijs). 1701 wurde Gasparini zum maestro di coro am Ospedale della Pietà in Venedig ernannt, dem Waisenhaus für Mädchen, deren glanzvolle musikalische Aktivitäten er leitete und für die er Antonio Vivaldi als Violinlehrer engagierte. Gasparinis wachsende Erfolge als Opernkomponist führten ihn jedoch schließlich weg von Venedig; 1713 erhielt er sechs Monate Urlaub von der Pietà – und kehrte nicht zurück (Vivaldi vertrat den abwesenden Gasparini zeitweise, erhielt aber nie die gesamte musikalische Leitung der Institution). Im Juli 1716 vertrat Gasparini Caldara bei Ruspoli als maestro di cappella, und 1718 wurde er, mit dem Pseudonym „Ericreo“, offiziell in die Arkadische Akademie aufgenommen. Der überwiegende Teil der von Gasparini vorhandenen Kantaten ist in Manuskripten überliefert, die für die Aufführungen der Arkadischen Akademie sorgfältig kopiert worden waren (sie befinden sich heute in der Santini-Sammlung in Münster). Io che dal terzo ciel wurde 1716 von dem professionellen römischen Kopisten Francesco Antonio Lanciani für Ruspoli erstellt. Die Göttin Venus (Sopran) singt, sie habe sich in einen Sterblichen verliebt, den schmucken Jüngling Adonis (Alt), der erwidert, er vergöttere und liebe sie; sie erklärt, sie habe ihre göttliche Unsterblichkeit aufgegeben und begnüge sich damit, verkleidet als bescheidene Hirtin zu leben, um mit Adonis vereint zu sein. Sie schwören

16 einander unsterbliche Liebe und Treue, beklagen, dass sie sich eine Weile trennen müssen, und nehmen bei der Schilderung ihres Befindens gefühlvoll Bezug auf die Natur: plätschernde Bäche, erfrischende Brisen, ein erschreckter Schmetterling, der in einem trügerischen Licht (das heißt einer Flamme) gefangen ist, sowie die mythische Nachtigall Philomel. Es gibt keinen Hinweis auf die bevorstehende Tragödie von Adonis’ Tod während einer Wildschweinjagd (von der missgünstigen Diana verursacht), aber das gebildete Publikum der Arkadischen Akademie kannte und verstand sicher die im Kantatentext dargebotene tragische Ironie. Die melodische Erfindung der Arien, die prägnanten, sorgfältig ausgearbeiteten Ritornelli für zwei Violinen, der glatte Erzählfluss und attraktive musikalische Details (so das beschwingte pastorale Idiom des Duetts „La pastorella ove il boschetto ombreggia“ oder die Imitation der Nachtigall durch die Solovioline im abschließende Duett „Usignol che nel nido sospira“) beweisen, dass der Musikhistoriker des 18. Jahrhunderts Charles Burney Gasparinis Kantaten zu Recht als „anmutig, elegant, natürlich und oft pathetisch“ gerühmt hat. Der aus Sizilien stammende Alessandro Scarlatti wirkte einen großen Teil seiner langen Laufbahn zwischen Rom und Neapel im Wechsel. Einer Legende zufolge studierte er kurz bei Giacomo Carissimi in Rom, und seine frühen, in den 1670er Jahren entstandenen Werke waren für Rom bestimmt, während er von 1683 bis 1703 die meiste Zeit in Neapel verbrachte (wo er ein erfolgreicher Opernkomponist und maestro di cappella der vizeköniglichen Hofkapelle wurde). Einer seiner zahlreichen Mäzene in Rom war Kardinal Ottoboni, der dafür sorgte, dass er 1703 zum Hilfskapellmeister in der Cappella Liberiana von ernannt wurde (1706 wurde er für kurze Zeit dort Kapellmeister, wieder durch Ottobonis Vermittlung). Der Bericht über die Feier anlässlich Scarlattis Aufnahme in die Arkadische Akademie im April 1706 schildert ihn nicht nur als „hervorragenden Meister der Musik“, sondern auch als „Professor für Dichtkunst“. Er schrieb rund 800 Kantaten für verschiedene Mäzene in Neapel und Rom; das Manuskript von Questo silenzio ombroso, einer Duettkantate für zwei Solostimmen und Basso continuo, trägt als Datum den 17. September 1707. Statt eines dramatischen Dialogs zwischen zwei Figuren verbindet Scarlatti zwei Singstimmen zu einer einzigen „Erzählstimme“, die eine Vision der Nachtigall Philomel heraufbeschwört und sich hoffnungslos über die Melancholie und Verzweiflung beklagt, die eine verlorene Liebe mit sich bringt. In Il duello amoroso des 23-jährigen Händels zankt sich ein verärgertes Liebespaar, ohne eine Versöhnung zu erreichen. Aus Ruspolis Haushaltsbüchern (jetzt in der Bibliothek des Vatikans) geht hervor, dass die cantata con strumenti erst am 28. Oktober 1708 aufgeführt wurde, während Antonio Giuseppe Angelinis Rechnung für das Kopieren des für die Aufführung bestimmten Materials als Datum den 28. August 1708 trägt. Händel war an der Aufführung möglicherweise nicht beteiligt, denn nach dem 12. September wohnte er nicht mehr im Palazzo Bonelli und war vermutlich an den Hof Ferdinandos de’ Medici in Florenz abgereist. Für Ruspoli dürfte jedoch die Aufführung ein besonders feierliches Ereignis gewesen sein: Sein Diener „Ascanio“ wurde dafür bezahlt, Einladungen zu übermitteln, was nur bei besonderen Anlässen geschah. Drei weitere Geiger wurden zur Unterstützung der hauseigenen Continuogruppe Ruspolis und seines Stammgeigers Domenico Castrucci (der später in Händels Opernorchester in London spielte) engagiert; die Sopranistin Margherita Durastanti und der Altkastrat Pasquale Betti erhielten jeweils drei silberne scudi als Gage. Die Kantate spielt in einem einsamen Wald und schildert, wie der Hirte Daliso verzweifelt der tückischen Amarilli nachstellt. Nach einer Ouvertüre mit Anklängen an Dalisos Hatz auf Amarilli singt jede Figur zwei Soloarien: Amarilli stachelt Daliso dazu an, seine Drohung wahrzumachen und sie mit Gewalt zu nehmen, und spottet, als er zögert, sie zu erstechen, über seine Unfähigkeit, sich ihr als Mann zu beweisen. Als ihr Vater Silvano auftaucht, weist Amarilli spöttisch Dalisos schwache Liebe zurück, was er ihr im abschließenden Duett mit bitteren Worten

17 vorwirft. Bemerkenswert ist, dass Händel diese Musik für den ähnlich zynischen Schluss seiner Oper Poro (1731) adaptierte. Überhaut verwertete er aus Il duello amoroso verschiedene Schlüsselmomente: Dalisos Siciliano „È vanità d’un cor“ wurde ein gutes Jahr später zu Ottones „Pur ch’io ti stringo al sen“ in seiner venezianischen Oper Agrippina überarbeitet, und Dalisos „Pietoso sguardo“ (selbst aus Material übernommen, das er im Jahr zuvor für seine florentinische Oper Rodrigo komponiert hatte) wurde in seinen Londoner Opern Rinaldo, Il pastor fido und Flavio erneut verwendet.

Ꭿ Dr David Vickers, 2014

Maestri im Duell

GEORG FRIEDRICH HÄNDEL GEGEN DOMENICO Scarlatti, Johann Sebastian Bach gegen Louis Marchand, Muzio Clementi gegen Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart… Wettbewerbe zwischen Maestri waren im 18. Jahrhundert ein populärer Sport und boten Komponisten, die selber spielten, Gelegenheit, sich dem Prüfstein ihrer Kunst zu stellen: der Improvisation. Wer unsere letzte Einspielung, Conversazioni I, gehört hat, erinnert sich vielleicht, dass ich versprach, Conversazioni II werde Domenico Scarlattis K63 und Händels Sonate in G-dur HWV579 enthalten. Laut Graham Pont könnten eben diese Stücke bei der angeblichen „Geschicklichkeitsprobe“, die bekanntlich zwischen Händel und Scarlatti bei einer der wöchentlichen conversazioni in Kardinal Ottobonis Palazzo in Rom stattfanden, als Improvisationen entstanden sein.1 Mein Versprechen, diese Stücke zu berücksichtigen, ist mit dieser Aufnahme erfüllt; allerdings unterscheidet sich die hier zu hörende Fassung von Händels Sonate in G-dur geringfügig von HWV 579. Letztere ist zwei Takte länger und eindeutig für ein doppelmanualiges Cembalo bestimmt, da es den ganzen Satz hindurch Hinweise auf I und II gibt. Ich finde diese ständigen Manualwechsel lästig und spiele daher, was eine frühere Version des Stückes auf einem einmanualigen Instrument gewesen sein könnte. Händels Sonate in G-dur ist ein eindrucksvolles Werk der Art, wie es der junge Sachse in freundschaftlicher Begegnung mit seinem italienischen Konkurrenten bei ihrem angeblichen Wettbewerb auf seine Hörer abgefeuert haben könnte. Ihre sich in schneller Folge fortbewegenden Figurationen machen sie gewissermaßen zu einem Perpetuum mobile – ich bezeichne diese forsche Brillanz gern als „hormonalen Händel“. Händel mochte dieses Stück offensichtlich, denn er verarbeitete es zu „Vo’ far guerra“ in Rinaldo (1711) – vielleicht das erste ausgedehnte Cembalosolo, das ausdrücklich für eine Oper komponiert wurde.2 Er wollte wohl bei seinem Londoner Bühnendebüt beeindrucken, und dieser revolutionäre Gebrauch des bescheidenen Cembali in einer solistischen Zornesarie am Ende des Aktes, einem Ort, der üblicherweise einem führenden Sänger vorbehalten ist, wäre vielleicht mit der gehobenen Stellung des Cembalisten zu vergleichen, die J. S. Bach diesem in seinem rund zehn Jahre später komponierten fünften Brandenburgischen Konzert gewährte. Man sollte jedoch nicht glauben, bei diesen Improvisationswettkämpfen sei es nur um Fingerfertigkeit gegangen. Die Zuhörer zu Emotionen zu bewegen, war für Komponisten im 18. Jahrhundert ebenso wichtig wie für Claudio Monteverdi in seinen Madrigalen und Opern an der Wende zum 17. Jahrhundert. Scarlattis K 32 ist ein elegantes Menuett, das klagende Intervalle mit ausdrucksvollen Appoggiaturen verbindet und eine verhaltene Schlichtheit ausstrahlt, die herzergreifend ist. Es ist nicht bekannt, ob dieses Stück bei einem Wettstreit improvisiert wurde, aber die Raffinesse der Musik zeigt auf jeden Fall, dass der Neapolitaner ein Meister emotionaler Nuancen war, und bestätigt vielleicht Johann Joachim

18 Quantzs Urteil, Scarlatti sei ein „galanter“ Spieler gewesen. Die offenkundige Ähnlichkeit zwischen den anderen beiden Solostücken in unserem Programm legt die Vermutung nahe, dass sie als Reaktion aufeinander improvisiert wurden. Während das Händel zugeschriebene Rondeau einen klaren harmonischen Plan aufweist, bestehend aus zwei Episoden, davon die zweite in der parallelen Molltonart, weist das Ende von K 63 eine wunderbar harmonische Mehrdeutigkeit auf. Nach dem Übergang zur neapolitanischen Sekunde – As-dur – präsentiert Scarlatti eine theatralische Rauferei zwischen der Grundtonart G-dur und g-moll. Stücke in Moll enden zuweilen mit einem Durakkord, einer „picardischen Terz“, aber Scarlatti kehrt hier diese Konvention um und lässt in den vorletzten Takt vor der Schlussnote des Werkes die Molltonika eindringen – ein einzelnes G in jeder Hand. Sollte der Interpret diese letzten G- Noten als Akkord erkennen und sie somit in der Dur- oder Molltonart spielen? Dieser spielerische Schluss des heiteren K 63 betont, was offenbar zu einer engen Freundschaft zwischen Händel und Scarlatti führte. John Mainwaring, Händels erster Biograph, der sein Material über die frühe Lebensphase des Komponisten von diesem persönlich erhalten haben soll, berichtet über die Zeit nach ihrem mutmaßlichen Musikerduell: „So angetan war [Scarlatti] von [Händels] eigentümlicher Spielweise, dass er ihm durch ganz Italien folgte und noch nie so glücklich gewesen war wie in seiner Gegenwart.“

© Julian Perkins, 2014

Übersetzungen: Gudrun Meier

1 „Handel versus Domenico Scarlatti: Music of an Historic Encounter“ (Göttinger Händel-Beiträge, 1991, Bd. 4, 232–247). Pont vertritt die Meinung, K 63 sei eine Antwort (oder Parodie) Scarlattis auf Händels Sonate in G-dur HWV 579 gewesen, die möglicherweise bei ihrem berühmten Musikerduell gespielt wurde. Pont entwickelt diese faszinierende These in seinem Aufsatz „Handel versus Domenico Scarlatti: New Light on the Historic Encounter“ (Göttinger Händel-Beiträge, 2010, Bd. 13, 115–124). Er vermutet, die einmanualige Version der hier zu hörenden Sonate in G-dur sei diejenige gewesen, die Händel in dem Wettstreit aufführte. Händel könnte die zweimanualige Fassung später für Kardinal Ottoboni geschaffen haben, der verschiedene zweimanualige Instrumente besaß (sie waren damals in Italien eine Seltenheit). 2 Das Cembalosolo in „Vo’ far guerra“ wurde von William Babell als abschließender Satz in seinen Suits of the Most Celebrated Lessons (London 1717) abgeschrieben (oder transkribiert). Dieses Stück nimmt jetzt epische Dimensionen an und enthält 259 Takte, mehr als die doppelte Länge von HWV 579; ein aus fortlaufenden Vierundsechzigsteln bestehender Takt erstreckt sich über drei Seiten! Siehe Ponts Aufsatz: „Reminiscences of Rinaldo: the keyboard transcriptions of „Vo’ far guerra“, Ad Parnassum, 2011, Bd. 9, Heft 17, 7–35.

19 SOUNDS BAROQUE

‘… young musicians, fuelled by intellectual curiosity and a corporate commitment to excellence, with enterprise and genuine flair.’ – Classic FM SOUNDS BAROQUE DELIGHTS IN COMMUNICATING the passion and theatricality of music written largely in the 17th and 18th centuries. The group comprises established singers and period instrumentalists who perform both as soloists and ensemble musicians with many of Europe’s leading groups and opera houses.

Based in London, Sounds Baroque has broadcast on BBC Radio 3 and appeared at London’s Southbank Centre. In addition to performances throughout the UK, they have appeared at international festivals in Cheltenham, London, Ryedale, Tel Aviv and York. They have given world- premières of works by Paul Ayres and Stephen Dodgson, and often stage educational projects in conjunction with performances. Following their acclaimed debut CD in 2011 for Avie Records, this recording is the second in a series that primarily explores the wealth of vocal and instrumental music that may have been conceived for artistic gatherings – or conversazioni – in Rome. www.soundsbaroque.com

Described by The Times as a ‘delectable soprano and a serene, ever-sentient presence,’ Anna Dennis studied at the with Noelle Barker OBE. Her concert and operatic performances have included appearances at the BBC Proms, the Wigmore Hall, the Royal Opera House, English National Opera, the Berlin Philharmonie, La Scala Milan, Bregenz Festspiele, La Cité de la Musique Paris, Göttingen International Handel Festspiele, Moscow’s Rachmaninov Hall and Tokyo’s Hitomi Hall. Her repertoire ranges from Monteverdi and Mozart to Berio, Boulez and even Damon Albarn, and she frequently premieres new operas and concert compositions. She has worked with such conductors as Edward Gardner, Emmanuelle Haïm, Martyn Brabbins, Thomas Adès, William Lacey, Philip Pickett and Andrew Parrott and with such ensembles as the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Les Arts Florissants, Britten Sinfonia, the Gabrieli Consort, Le Concert d’Astrée, Capella Cracoviensis, the BBC Symphony Orchestra, Arcangelo and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra.

20 Described by The Independent as having a ‘timbre of juicy masculinity,’ Andrew Radley read music and was a choral scholar at Clare College, Cambridge before winning scholarships to study at the Royal Academy of Music, London and the Paris Conservatoire (CNSMDP). In addition to a busy concert career, working with such eminent conductors as René Jacobs, Lars Ulrik Mortensen, Laurence Cummings, Christian Curnyn, and Nicholas McGegan, he has also sung principal roles at the Staatsoper Berlin, Aix-en-Provence Festival, Göttingen International Handel Festival, Edinburgh Festival, Welsh National Opera, Opera North, Scottish Opera and the Royal Danish Opera. www.andrewradley.com

Director of Sounds Baroque, Julian Perkins has performed with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and the Orchestra of the Sixteen, and has performed and recorded at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. His solo harpsichord recordings feature a range of important historical instruments, including the Queen’s Shudi harpsichord at Kew Palace. In addition to appearances at the Anghiari Festival, Julian’s engagements have included staged productions of Telemann’s (Buxton Festival), Mozart’s (Dutch National Opera Academy), a Handel pasticcio – Handel Furioso (Grimeborn Festival), Arne’s The Cooper, Stradella’s San Giovanni Battista (Guildhall School of Music & Drama) and Arne’s (New ). He has also directed the world-première recording of Daniel Purcell’s The Judgement of Paris for Resonus Classics with Spiritato and the Rodolfus . www.julianperkins.com

21 SOUNDS BAROQUE IS EXTREMELY GRATEFUL to the following organisations and individuals for supporting this recording: Arimathea Charitable Trust Fidelio Trust Lionel Anthony Charitable Trust

Conversazioni Circle Anonymous Adam Pollock Lionel & Marylyn Anthony Peter & Angela Radley Rev’d Dr Sam & Jo Bailey Wells John Ramster Robert & Sandy Baker Jane Reed Sheila Barnes John Reid James Bowman CBE John & Rosarii Sabido Vern & Elfrieda Heinrichs Mary Tee Jonathan & Yvonne Horsfall Turner Charlotte Way Christopher King Simon & Glenys Weil Barry Lock William Whitehead Dr Hugh & Diana Perkins Hugh & Penny Whitfield Richard Perkins Tony Wingate

In addition to those listed, we would like to thank Emma Abbate, Noelle Barker OBE, Dr Rosemary Bechler, Valentina di Taranto, Simon Foster, Melanne Mueller, Dr Graham Pont, Alastair Ross, Dr Ruth Smith, Dr W. Dean Sutcliffe, Dr David Vickers, Dr Carlo Vitali, Judith Wardman and many others who have made this project possible. — Julian Perkins

Recorded in All Saints’ Church, East Finchley, London, 16–18 July 2013. Recording Producer: Adrian Peacock Recording Engineer: Will Brown Keyboard instruments prepared and tuned by Keith McGowan in varieties of tempérament ordinaire, except for Handel’s Amarilli vezzosa, which is in Young II temperament. Sung text translations: Sounds Baroque and (Amarilli vezzosa) Anthony Hicks. ൿ 2014 The copyright in this sound recording is owned by Julian Perkins. Ꭿ 2014 Julian Perkins. www.soundsbaroque.com Marketed by Avie Records. www.avie-records.com

22 Images and Photographs

Cover: Detail from Venus and Adonis, 1794, Antonio Canova (1757–1822). De Agostini Picture Library / A. Dagli Orti / The Bridgeman Art Library Booklet back: Venus, Cupid, Folly and Time (‘Allegory of the Triumph of Venus’), 1540–1545, Agnolo di Cosimo (1503–1572), usually known as Il Bronzino. Courtesy of the National Gallery, London. Il Bronzino’s paintings might have been among those that formed a backdrop to conversazioni. Two of his works are still in the ownership of the Colonna family, who are descendants of Arcadian Academy members and musical patrons. CD booklet: Photograph of Noelle Barker OBE. Ꭿ Vernon Zaciosi. – Prince Francesco Maria Ruspoli Marescotti (1672–1731). Engraving by Arnold van Westerhout after a portrait by Antonio David; frontispiece to Filippo Buonanni’s Musaeum Kircherianum (1709–1710). Private collection, courtesy of Dr Carlo Vitali. Ruspoli was the first-born to Alessandro Marescotti, fifth count of Vignanello. However, by testament of his paternal grandmother, Vittoria Ruspoli, and after long legal battles, he finally secured the latter name (and corresponding rich estate). He was primarily known as Ruspoli by his contemporaries. – The first page of Alessandro Scarlatti’s continuo cantata for two voices, Questo silenzio ombroso (Il Sonno), in an Italian manuscript of c1740, CUL MS.Add.9465, p. 101. Reproduced with the permission of Cambridge University Library. All rights reserved. – Photographs of individual performers and Sounds Baroque during the recording sessions at All Saints’ Church, East Finchley, London, 2013. Ꭿ Andy Craggs. www.andycraggs.com

Instruments

Baroque violins made by Giovanni Paolo Maggini, Brescia, c1600 and Vincenzo Ruggieri, Cremona, 1680. Baroque cello made by Clive Morris, 2010 after Matteo Goffriller, Venice, c1700. Seven-string viola da gamba made by Jane Julier, 1994, after Michel Colichon, Paris, 1693. 15-course archlute made by Ivo Magherini, 2005. 5-course made by Bruce Brook, 2003, after Alexandre Voboam, Paris, 1676. 14-course theorbo made by Gunter Marx, 1986. Italian triple harp made by Claus Hüttel, 2009, after a painting entitled The Artist and his Family attributed to Carlo Francesco Nuvolone (1608/1609–1662), Pinacoteca di Brera, Milan. Single-manual Italian harpsichord made by Colin Booth, 2003, after Ioannes Baptista Bertarinus, Rome, 1577. Single-manual continuo organ made by Klop Orgelbouw, Garderen, 2007.

23 24 SOUNDS BAROQUE and Julian Perkins on AVIE Records

Conversazioni I Cantatas from a Cardinal’s Court AV2197

Ingenious Jestings Handel · Nares Eight Harpsichord Setts AV2152

25 AV2296