Andréanne Brisson Paquin Sherezade Panthaki Reginald Mobley Scott Brunscheen Mischa Bouvier Alexa Haynes-Pilon, cello Deborah Fox, theorbo and guitar Jory Vinikour, harpsichord and direction

Agostino Steffani A son très-humble service Duets for Sophie Charlotte of (1654-1728) A son très-humble service Duets for Sophie Charlotte of Hanover

Andréanne Brisson Paquin, soprano Sherezade Panthaki , soprano Reginald Mobley , countertenor Scott Brunscheen , tenor Mischa Bouvier , Alexa Haynes-Pilon, cello Deborah Fox, theorbo and guitar Jory Vinikour, harpsichord and direction

2 CD 1

1 Pria ch’io faccia altrui palese (ABP, SP) ...... 6’57

2 Inquieto mio cor, lasciami in pace (ABP, RM) ...... 8’19

3 Ah! che l’ho sempre detto* (ABP, SB) ...... 9’22

4 Che volete, o crude pene (SP, RM) ...... 6’11

5 Aure, voi che volate* (RM, MB) ...... 8’15

6 Cangia pensier, mio cor* (SP, ABP) ...... 7’14 Total Time: 46’23

CD 2

1 Crudo Amor, morir mi sento (ABP, RM) ...... 8’58

2 Non ve ne state a ridere* (SP, SB) ...... 7’36

3 Ravvediti, mio core* (SP, ABP) ...... 8’27

4 Sia maledetto Amor (RM, MB) ...... 8’55

5 Io mi parto, o cara vita (SP, SB) ...... 8’59 Total Time: 42’59 * World Premiere Recordings

3 Tokens of friendship: Steffani’s duets for Sophie Charlotte ‘…lors qu’on aura le bonnheur de servir V[otre] M[ajesté] icy, elle y trouvera une bonne recreüe de duetti, puisqu’il y en a deja un couple de douzaines à son tres-humble service.’ ‘…when one has the pleasure of serving Your Majesty here, she will find here a good crop of duets, since there are already a couple of dozen at her most humble service.’

hus wrote Steffani in Hanover to Sophie Charlotte in Berlin on 7 December 1702. His letter is the last in a short correspondence that documents both a remarkably open and Thuman relationship between composer and patron and the creation of an important pair of manuscript volumes of his chamber duets for two voices and basso continuo. Steffani had known Sophie Charlotte since at least 1682, when he was the 27-year-old Director of Chamber Music at the Catholic court of and she a thirteen-year-old princess at the Protestant court of Hanover. He served Munich for twenty-one years (1667– 88), primarily as a musician but also as an unofficial diplomat, and enjoyed a good relationship with the elector’s son Maximilian Emanuel, an amateur musician who sang tenor and played the bass . Having succeeded his father and, in 1680, reached the age of eighteen, Max Emanuel needed to make a suitable marriage. Sophie Charlotte was one of the young ladies to be considered, Steffani the person charged with sounding out her parents. Sophie Charlotte was an exceptional individual. Her mother, Sophie of the Palatinate, a grand-daughter of James I of , was one of the best-known female intellectuals in Germany, with active interests in the arts. Her father, Ernst August, duke of Hanover and tit - ular bishop of Osnabrück, nurtured the ambition of uniting the house of Brunswick-Lüneburg and securing the elevation of Hanover to an electorate (which he did). He was also besotted with Italian music and theatre, making numerous visits to before establishing opera in a new theatre at Hanover. Sophie and Ernst August had seven children, of whom Sophie Charlotte was the fourth and the only girl; her oldest brother, Georg Ludwig, became King George I of Great Britain. Born on 30 October 1668, Sophie Charlotte was blessed with her mother’s intelligence, curiosity and wit, and with talents for languages and music. For her general education she was placed in the care of a court governess, Katharina von Harling, but for music lessons she went 4 to the organist, Johann Anton Coberg. At the age of fifteen she visited the French court in Paris and made an impression with her harpsichord-playing. In addition to German she learnt to speak and write French, the language of courtly society, and studied Italian and English. Like other members of the Hanover court she benefited from the influence of the great philosopher and mathematician Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, excelling as one of his pupils. It was in 1682 that Steffani went to Hanover to explore the possibility of Sophie Charlotte marrying Max Emanuel. He hoped for success, enjoyed friendly discussions with her mother and father and their advisers, but did not secure an agreement. Nevertheless, he returned to Munich with the affection and respect of those whom he had met, including Leibniz and the secretary and poet Ortensio Mauro. Sophie Charlotte married Friedrich, prince of Brandenburg, in 1684, bore a daughter in the following year and a son in 1688. That year, also, her husband succeeded his father as elector of Brandenburg; three years later he was granted the title King in Prussia and she became queen. One of her grandsons became Frederick the Great. In 1688 Steffani returned to Hanover as Kapellmeister – effectively, director of opera. There he composed a new three-act work for every carnival from 1689 to 1695 (and a couple of one-act works); from 1695 he was too busy as a diplomat to write further operas for the court. During the 1690s Sophie Charlotte visited Hanover often, not least because she had entrusted her young son to her own childhood governess. Sometimes she went back for the summer retreat to the palace and gardens of Herrenhausen (just outside Hanover), sometimes for carnival. In July 1697 there was a production of Luigi Mancia’s pastoral opera La costanza nelle selve , attended by Tsar Peter the Great. According to Mauro, Steffani’s regular librettist, ‘it was a lady at court, endowed with singular talent, who selected the subject and laid it out and …prepared me to have it performed on the stage in nothing other (I can say) than my rhymes’. The identity of the ‘lady at court’ is suggested by a letter written at Herrenhausen in mid-August, in which Sophie stated that Ernst August had been to Hanover ‘to please my daughter, to see her pastorale ’. Sophie Charlotte’s interest in music also found expression in Berlin. Even before mid-1699, when the first phase of her new palace, Charlottenburg, was opened, she created a small ensemble for the performance of Italian chamber music, vocal and instrumental. The mainstays of her establishment were Attilio Ariosti and Giovanni Bononcini, but other composers and performers were employed for short periods, among them Ferdinando 5 Alexa, Jory, Deborah, Sherezade, & Andréanne Chiaravalle, Ruggiero Fedeli, Francesco Antonio Pistocchi and Giuseppe Torelli. Sophie Charlotte was the dedicatee of Pistocchi’s pastorale Il Narciso (1697, Ansbach), Torelli’s Concerti musicali , op. 6 (Augsburg, 1698) and, most notably, Corelli’s Sonate , op. 5 (, 1700); in 1700–1702 she put on seven modest dramatic works – five by Ariosti and two by Bononcini. 6 During the 1690s, also, she presumably renewed her acquaintance with Steffani, and he must have written many of his chamber duets. As John Hawkins observed in his Memoirs of the composer [1750]: It was about this time, when a taste for music prevailed so greatly at Hanover , that Steffani composed his duets, which have acquired him such an universal reputation. It is probable that he might apply his studies so much to this species of composition, in compliance with the taste of the ladies of that court; for it is observable that the poetry of them is altogether of the amatory kind, and it appears by little memorandums, in several copies, that many of his duets were composed at the request of divers ladies of distinction, and that some were made for their own private practice, and amusement …two duets, beginning Inquieto mio cor and Che volete , these appearing to have been made for, and sung by her highness the electress of Brandenburg. Sophie Charlotte was more involved than Hawkins thought. Che volete and Inquieto mio cor are two of three duets that Steffani composed for her and sent to her from in 1699 . In the previous year she had written the text of Crudo Amor , one of his finest duets. In 1700 she visited Max Emanuel in Brussels, where he had been resident since 1692 (as governor of the ) and had set up court in style. The visit brought together two admir - ers of Steffani’s music, for whom the composer, nearly twenty years earlier, had attempted to broker a marriage. Towards the end of what was probably their only meeting, they bade each other farewell by singing the chamber duet Io mi parto , which he had written for the occasion.

he correspondence between Sophie Charlotte and Steffani from 1698 to 1702 bears witness to her admiration for him and his duets. On 19 November 1700 she declared Tthem ‘incomparable according to my taste; for none of the pieces that reach me from all quarters touch me as they do’. In a later letter, dated 25 July 1702, she told him that ‘it would give me great pleasure to accompany you in some duet, for I have a good quantity. I have them sung by Bononcini and Attilio, because the others do not perform them in the correct style, and they are always full of admiration for him who composed them’. She must have accompanied them at the harpsichord and learnt this ‘correct style’ at Hanover, from Steffani himself. 7 When the composer replied to this letter, on 6 September, his spirits were at a low ebb. Sophie Charlotte’s reference to ‘a good quantity’ of duets had made him realise that his music was scattered far and wide: …it is not without considerable grief that I see all the bagatelles that have been my more serious occupation for thirty years – that I see them, as I say, in such disorder that nothing belongs any more to anything else; and to know that they are dispersed by such a cruel dissipation that, if in my last days I have some remaining life to give to a peaceful pastime, I cannot hope to amuse myself with my music without begging for the pieces from door to door, without even the hope of putting them together as I had done with such effort and pleasure. Steffani now saw the dispersal of his duets as a symbol of his recent expenditure of time and energy on diplomatic affairs. The death in 1700 of Sherezade & Andréanne King Carlos II of Spain had triggered a succession crisis in which different candidates were champi - oned by the emperor and the French king. As Europe divided in support of one or the other, Hanover sided with Leopold I, with Louis XIV. Steffani was tasked with trying to persuade Max Emanuel to back the emperor. In 1701–2 he did everything he could to achieve this end, travelling the length and breadth of Europe and writing countless letters and memorandums. By the time he wrote to Sophie Charlotte, he knew he had failed: two days later, Max Emanuel laid siege to the imperial city of Ulm. Steffani’s next letter to her (9 November 1702) suggests that he was now more despondent than ever but had found an effective antidote: 8 Madame, the bitter grief caused me by the affairs of the world; the pain I suffer at seeing so many people, for whom I have a particular respect, wishing to destroy them - selves …all this, I say, Madame, and a million other similar things have plunged me into a gravity that resembles perfectly well an unbounded hypochondria. …In this extremity, which makes me lead a life that is truly a burden, I have thrown myself headlong into music. …I am amusing myself by turning upside down all the duets of mine that I no longer like, and I am recreating them in a manner that pleases me greatly. …But I would not know how to give my new work the form that I intend for it if Your Majesty were not kind enough to help me by getting Attilio to send back to me the music that Madame Kielmansegg left for him, and particularly book Eight of the duets, which is still in his hands, and the three [duets] that I had the honour to send Your Majesty from Brussels and which I do not have …I ask this favour, Madame, Sherezade, Jory only as a loan, on which I shall pay very Scott & Alexa handsome interest. The pain of diplomatic failure was eased by the balm of musical composition. Steffani worked his way out of depression by revising those of his duets that no longer pleased him and bringing them together in a new manuscript collection. To this end he gathered all the duets that he could, including the three that he had sent to Sophie Charlotte from Brussels and ‘book 8’, which had been left for Ariosti by Madame Kielmansegg, the wife of Georg Ludwig’s master of the horse. 9 Sophie Charlotte was thrilled by this news and on 21 November encouraged him to strike while the iron was hot: …Throw yourself in headlong, I beg of you. Music is a friend that will not forsake you nor deceive you, is not a traitress, and has never been cruel to you, for you have drawn from her all the charms and raptures of heaven …I will send you the list of all the duets that I have; you will choose which you want and I will send them or bring them myself. …I assure you that nothing has been lost here because I have had everything copied and nobody has had the things in their hands except myself and Attilio. Steffani replied five days later: …After much searching and much labour I have gathered together all the originals of my duets, so well that I lack only two of the three that I had the honour to send to Your Majesty from Brussels. I should be most embarrassed if I had to say which they are, for I do not Reggie with recording remember a single word of them; but I do know well that of those three I have only producer Dan Merceruio Placidissime catene . If Your Majesty would be so kind as to have the other two sent to me as quickly as possible, she would do me a very great favour… And on 7 December he returned to the matter of the Brussels duets: I will tell Your Majesty …that I am waiting for the two of the last three of which I took the liberty to speak in my last letter on the 26th of last month; and that when one has the pleasure of serving Your Majesty here, she will find here a good crop of duets, since there are already a couple of dozen at her most humble service. Lord! when will that be? 10 The letters of Steffani and Sophie Charlotte are surprisingly direct and personal in tone, and very revealing. True, he addressed her as ‘Your Majesty’ and used courtesies typical of the period, but he also expressed strong feelings; she, in turn, responded spontaneously and with warmth. When he felt he had failed as a diplomat, she encouraged him as a composer; when she was trying to nurture music in Berlin, he encouraged her by reviving her memories of music at Hanover. Their relationship was clearly based on his long acquaintance with her and her parents and on their mutual affection and respect. Since she was about fourteen years younger than him, she may have regarded him as a kind of uncle; she certainly addressed him more as a relative or friend than as a servant.

teffani’s letters also convey valuable information about his duets and their sources. They make clear that he intended to revise some but not all of them, that he planned to include Sthe revised versions in a new manuscript collection, and that he assembled a separate collection of two dozen duets as a gift for Sophie Charlotte. The bulk of his new collection is now in the Royal Music collection at the in London (R.M. 23.k.13–20); to judge by the numbers on the covers, it comprised at least thirteen volumes, of which eight survive, two in Steffani’s hand. The ‘couple of dozen’ duets are also in the British Library, in two manuscripts bearing a monogram composed of the letters ‘S’ and ‘C’ (R.M. 23.k.7–8); the first volume bears the title Regia dignum modulamen aure (‘Euphony worthy of royal breath’ [performance]). That these manuscripts, too, are part of the Royal Music collection suggests that they never left Hanover, in which case, sad to say, Sophie Charlotte probably never received them. The duets in these recordings fall into two groups. As noted above, four of them were composed specifically for Sophie Charlotte: Crudo Amor , of which she wrote the words, was composed in 1698; Che volete and Inquieto mio cor , from the following year, are two of ‘the three’ that Steffani sent her from Brussels (a recording of the third, Placidissime catene , was released by Musica Omnia in 2018); Io mi parto was written for her visit to Max Emanuel in 1700. The other seven duets are taken from the two volumes that Steffani intended for Sophie Charlotte and must have been completed by 7 December 1702, when he mentioned the ‘good crop’ in a letter. Four of these works ( Ah! che l’ho sempre detto , Aure, voi che volate , Cangia 11 pensier and Pria ch’io faccia ) are revisions of duets that also survive in earlier versions; the other three are known only in the versions presented here. The words of an Italian chamber cantata or duet are rarely ascribed or attributable to an author. It is remarkable, therefore, that the poets of over half the duets in these recordings are known and that two of them were women. In addition to Sophie Charlotte there is Brigida Bianchi (1613–1703), an actress and singer (stage name Aurelia) in the Comédie italienne at the French court. The words of Ah! che l’ho sempre detto were published in her L’inganno fortunato …con alcune poesie musi - cali (Paris, 1659) and reprinted, along with Sia maledetto Amor , in her Rifiuti di Pindo: Poesie (Paris, 1666); Steffani probably encoun - tered both poems when he visited Paris in 1678–9. The authors of Che volete and Inquieto mio cor are named in the sources as Count Francesco Palmieri and abbate Conti, Andréanne & Reggie respectively. Palmieri also wrote other texts for music, including the libretto of ’s opera Briseide (1696, Hanover); Conti was identified by the nineteenth-century Handel scholar Friedrich Chrysander as Carlo Conti, a professor. That Che volete and Inquieto mio cor appear together in many Steffani sources suggests that Conti, like Palmieri, was associated with Hanover. More surprising, however, is the ascription of Io mi parto to Francesco Maria Paglia, a poet and librettist who in the 1680s and 90s was based main ly in Rome: maybe Steffani, Sophie Charlotte or Max Emanuel had a connexion with him. Io mi parto is unique in Steffani’s output, both in presenting a real-life situation and in setting a dialogue. The singers are distinct characters—Sophie Charlotte (soprano) and Max 12 Emanuel (tenor)—engaged in conversation. The tender melan - choly of their sentiments is perfectly evoked in Steffani’s set - ting, with its minor mode, gentle tempos, bittersweet suspensions and occasionally chromatic melodies. Similar features are found in other works that express the sentiments of an individual (the poet) – texts that could have been set as a solo cantata but where a second voice enlarges the range of available textures and techniques. In Crudo Amor , for example, the pain of unrequited love—the subject most commonly addressed—informs some vigor - ous vocal counterpoint, including stretto, while exasperation with Cupid is reflected in Non ve ne state and Sia maledetto Amor by Sherezade, Reggie & Jory energetic rhythms and melodic leaps. The singers of Pria ch’io faccia share a secret with Cupid, while those of Cangia pensier intend to take love lightly: in both cases the major mode suggests a carefree approach, which is heightened by metrical changes and textural contrasts. At the other extreme, the abject misery of Che volete and Inquieto mio cor prompts intense chromaticism and dissonance in minor keys. The dominance of amatory verse in the works recorded here is characteristic of secular Italian music of the period, but the sensitivity and resourcefulness of the settings are hallmarks of Steffani’s style. So is his attention to musical structure. One might expect the contrast between and aria, typical of the solo cantata, to be reflected, in chamber duets, by an alternation 13 Alexa, Jory, Sherezade, Deborah & Reggie between solos for each singer in turn and movements for both voices combined, but the reality is far more complex. Some of the works presented here are scored for both voices throughout, but while Che volete and Ravvediti, mio core are through-composed, like a madrigal, Pria ch’io faccia is based on a strophic poem of which the final line is repeated as a refrain. In Ah! che l’ho sempre detto , Non ve ne state and Sia maledetto Amor a refrain is the dominant feature of the structure. Each of these works comprises two movements, the first (A) being the refrain, the second (B) a setting of a strophic text: the overall structure is ABAbA. That the final portion of B/b is set for solo voice adds impact to the return of the duet texture. 14 The remaining five works include separate solo movements. Cangia pensier is the only one without recitative: here the opening duet movement is repeated after two arias – contrasting settings of a strophic text. The standard form of the solo cantata—recitative-aria- recitative-aria—is most closely paralleled by the solo-duet-solo-duet layout of Aure, voi che volate . The solo movements consist of , of which the last line or couplet is set in aria style – a form known as an aria cavata (or simply ‘cavata’). This kind of solo is found also in Crudo Amor and Inquieto mio cor , but not in Io mi parto , where each solo consists of recitative followed by a short but independent aria; in all three of these works the solos are framed by the two duets. Knowing the singers of Io mi parto , we must, finally, consider the question of performance. Compared with other duets on this recording, Io mi parto requires a fairly limited vocal range and avoids awkward leaps, virtuoso flourishes and extended coloratura. In other words, the vocal lines were apparently tailored to the ability of amateur singers. It is surprising, therefore, that in Crudo Amor, Che volete and Inquieto mio cor , which also were composed for Sophie Charlotte, there are passages that would probably have been too difficult for amateurs. These duets, and the others recorded here, must have been conceived with professional singers in mind. According to Sophie Charlotte, Ariosti and Bononcini (a bass) sang Steffani’s duets. It is not known who took the soprano part, but of the other musicians who were with her in Berlin, Chiaravalle and Pistocchi were well-known , and Fedeli sang in opera in Germany. It is not difficult to imagine Steffani’s duets being sung by such musicians, accompanied at the harpsichord by Sophie Charlotte. The works that he prepared for her in the autumn of 1702 were a demonstration of his gratitude for her support at a difficult time, her encou- ragement a spontaneous expression of her admiration and affection for him and his music . His duets for her bear witness to a valuable friendship between composer and patron. When he wrote to her in December of that year, he hoped to see her in Hanover: ‘Lord! when will that be?’ The answer, probably, is ‘never’, for their correspondence ended soon afterwards and she died on 1 February 1705, at the age of thirty-six. -Colin Timms

15 ontreal-born soprano Andréanne Brisson Paquin is Mequally experienced in many different musical genres, singing baroque, classical, operatic and contemporary repertoire. In past seasons she has been invited to the Festival International de Lanaudière, Montreal Baroque Festival, Festival Baroque de Pontoise, Lufthansa Baroque Festival, Music and Beyond Festival, and Montreal Bach Festival. She has been guest soloist with I Musici, Arion, Les Voix humaines, Pallade Musica, Masques, Caprice, Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre Métropolitain de Montréal, and Musica Angelica.

As a recitalist, Andréanne’s qualities are well suited to the intimacy of chamber music. She has won many national and international prizes, such as the Guy-Soucie Excellence Award, Second Prize in the Concours International de Musique de Chambre de Lyon, Second Prize in the Eckhardt-Grammatée competition, and Second Prize and Duo Prize at New York City’s Joy in Singing. She was also a finalist at the Montreal International Musical Competition in 2012.

16 opra no Sherezade Panthaki enjoys an international career in music of Sthe baroque period and beyond, collaborating with many of the world’s leading interpreters, including Nich olas McGegan, Masaaki Suzuki, Nicholas Kraemer, Mark Morris, and Matthew Halls. Her busy concert schedule features numerous oratorios, operas, and cantatas by Handel, Bach, Vivaldi, Purcell, Monteverdi and others, in performances with the Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, Bach Collegium Japan, Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra, the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl, Boston Early Music Festival, NDR Radiophilharmonie (Hanover, Germany), Spoleto Festival, Houston Symphony Orchestra, Music of the Baroque (Chicago), Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, and Musica Angelica (Los Angeles). She is also widely acclaimed for her interpretations of 19th-21st century repertoire, including Brahms’ Requiem , Orff’s Carmina Burana , Mendelssohn’s Elijah and Poulenc’s Gloria . Born and raised in India, Ms. Panthaki began her musical education at an early age. She holds a graduate Artist Diploma degree with top honors from the Yale School of Music and the Yale Institute of Sacred Music, where she was the winner of multiple awards of distinction.

17 lorida-born, Boston-based countertenor Reginald L. Mobley fully intended to Fspeak his art through watercolors and oil pastels until circumstance demanded that his own voice should speak for itself. Since reducing his visual color palette to the black and white of a score, he’s endeavored to open up a wider spectrum onstage. A musical Ronin who spends more time in airport lounges than in his own home, Reggie enjoys frequent collaborations with many of the leading period performance ensembles in the US and Europe, such as the , Agave Baroque, Bach Collegium San Diego, Boston Early Music Festival, Monteverdi Choir & English Baroque Soloists, Pacific MusicWorks, Philharmonia Baroque, Freiburger Barockorchester, and the Handel and Haydn Society. With the latter, he had the honor of becoming the first black person to lead H+H during its 2015/16 bicentennial season. Never bound by conventional countertenor repertoire, Reggie has a fair bit of non-classical work in tow. His first professional work was in Musical Theatre, and while working in Japan (as a singer/actor for Tokyo Disney), he performed cabaret shows of gospel, jazz, and torch songs in jazz clubs around Tokyo. And, though not one to regret, Reggie has considered rediscovering his artistic roots. So if you see him post-concert, forego an autograph and ask for one of his self-acclaimed stick figure drawings. 18 cott J. Brunscheen , tenor, has received national acclaim for his rece nt perform - Sances in Haydn’s L’isola disabitata , Marais’ Ariane et Bacchus , and Cesti’s Orontea with Haymarket Opera. Other successes in opera include Purcell’s The Fairy Queen with Chicago Opera Theater and Long Beach Opera; Rossini’s Mosè in Egitto ; Glass’ The Fall of the House of Usher ; the world premiere of Stewart Copeland’s The Invention of Morel (Chicago Opera Theater); Poulenc’s Dialogues des Carmélites (Caramoor Festival); La Cenerentola (Lyric Opera of Chicago – Lyric Unlimited); Don Giovanni (Opera New Jersey); Die Zauberflöte and Tosca (Madison Opera). In concert and oratorio, he has appeared as tenor soloist in Handel’s Messiah and Judas Maccabaeus , Mendelssohn’s Elijah , Orff’s Carmina Burana , Mozart’s Requiem , Respighi’s Lauda per la Natività, Donizetti’s Miserere, and many Bach cantatas. Scott has been a prize-winner and a finalist in the Oratorio Society of New York, Grand Rapids Bach Festival, and Handel Aria competitions. When not performing, he teaches voice at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa.

19 Photo by: Alli Haapasalo ischa Bouvier is widely regarded as a singer of keen musicality and unique beauty of tone, and has been praised by Opera News for his “soothing, Mcavernous baritone that can soar to heights of lyric beauty.” He has appeared with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, Mark Morris Dance Group, Orquesta Sinfónica de Puerto Rico, American Bach Soloists, ACRONYM, Apollo’s Fire, Alabama Symphony Or chestra, TENET Vocal Artists, Bronx Opera, Musica Sacra, Princeton Glee Club, Mirror Visions Ensemble, Boston Pops, Columbus Symphony Orchestra, Helicon Ensemble, Colorado Symphony, Bach Collegium San Diego, New York Festival of Song, The Knights, and in recital throughout the United States and in Canada and Europe.

20 ecently descri bed by Early Music America as “a special artist with a R brilliant future,” Alexa Haynes-Pilon has quickly established herself in the early music scene performing with numerous ensembles on baroque cello, da gamba, baroque and dulcian. She is the principal cellist of Musica Angelica Baroque Orchestra, a member of Musica Pacifica, and co-founder of the Los Angeles based Ensemble Bizarria. She has also performed and recorded with the American Bach Soloists and other baroque ensembles across North America. An avid educator, she co-founded and is the Artistic Director of Los Angeles Baroque (LAB), a community baroque orchestra based in South Pasadena, CA, and has been a faculty member of the San Francisco Early Music Society summer workshops, the Road Scholar Hidden Valley workshop in Carmel Valley, and the Port Townsend Early Music Workshop near Seattle. Alexa studied baroque cello with Christina Mahler and viola da gamba with Joëlle Morton at the University of Toronto. She has recently completed a doctoral degree in early music performance at the University of Southern California, where she studied performance practice with Adam and Rotem Gilbert, baroque cello and viola da gamba with William Skeen, and baroque bassoon and dulcian with Charlie Koster.

21 eborah Fox is a lutenist with a span of repertoire ranging Dfrom medieval to , as a soloist and as a chamber music and baroque opera continuo player. She has performed with major early music ensembles and in festivals from Newfoundland to Australia. She graduated from Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts, and received the Certificate of Advanced Studies in Early Music at London’s Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Her teachers have included Paul O’Dette, Pat O’Brien, and Nigel North. She is the founder and director of Pegasus Early Music in Rochester, NY, and the director of NYS Baroque in Ithaca and Syracuse, NY.

Photo by: Libby Hedrick

22 JORY VINIKOUR Harpsichordist, Conductor

wo-time Grammy® Award nominated Tharpsichordist Jory Vinikour is recognized as one of the outstanding musicians of his generation. A highly diversified career brings him to the world’s most important festivals and concert halls as recital and concerto soloist, and partner to several of today’s finest artists. Born in Chicago, Jory studied in Paris with Huguette Dreyfus and Kenneth Gilbert on a Fulbright scholarship. First Prizes in the International Harpsichord competitions of Warsaw (1993) and the Prague Spring Festival (1994) brought him to the public’s attention, and he has since appeared in festivals and concert series throughout much of the world. In 2019 he made his debut at the Ravinia Festival, playing Bach’s Goldberg Variatio ns. At the Aspen Festival he conducted Bach’s six Brandenburg Concertos . Increasingly active as a conductor, he recently appeared with the St. Louis Symphony, and conducted four performances of Handel’s Messiah for the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra in late 2019. He made his solo debut with the Cleveland Orchestra in March 2018, performing Poulenc’s Concert champêtre under the direction of 23 Stéphane Denève, and will perform this work with the Wiener Akademie under Martin Haselböck at Vienna’s Musikverein in May 2020. Jory’s debut recording for Sono Luminus, the complete harpsichord works of Rameau, was nominated for a Grammy® award in the category of Best Classical Solo Instrumental Recording in 2013, an honor also accorded to his Toccatas (Contemporary American works for harpsichord) in 2015. His recording of Bach’s Partitas for harpsichord was released to great acclaim in late 2016. Recent releases include 20th Century Harpsichord Concertos (Leigh, Rorem, Kalabis, Nyman), Bach’s Sonatas for and obbligato harpsichord with Rachel Barton Pine (Cedille Records 2018), Bach’s Partitas for solo harpsichord , Bach’s Sonatas for and obbligato harpsichord with Stephen Schultz (Music and Arts 2018), and the first volume of Duetti da camera by Steffani (Musica Omnia 2018). In recent seasons, Jory has appeared as conductor/soloist with the Bergen Philharmonic, Hong Kong Philharmonic, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Musica Angelica, Korea Chamber Orchestra, musicAeterna, Juilliard415, and Alabama Symphony. For Milwaukee’s Florentine Opera he directed John Blow’s Venus and Adonis alongside Purcell’s Dido and Aene as, and directed Monteverdi’s Incoronazione di Poppea . He recently made his debut at Salzburg’s Mozartwoche, directing a double bill of Mozart’s Bastien und Bastienne and Der Schauspieldirektor .

I am greatly indebted to Colin Timms, Emeritus Professor of Music at the University of Birmingham, U.K., author of Polymath of the Baroque: Agostino Steffani and His Music (New York: , 2003), Honorary President of the Forum Agostino Steffani (Hanover), and the world’s leading authority on the life and music of the composer. Colin’s contribution was central to this project, for he not only developed the overall concept of the programme but also provided the musical scores, texts of the duets and his own English translations, as well as writing the essay and helping to edit the rest of the booklet. For his invaluable assistance, I would like to express my heartfelt thanks. -Jory Vinikour 24 Texts and Translations

CD 1 Pria ch’io faccia altrui palese

Pria ch’io faccia altrui palese Before I tell anyone else who it is chi mi tien fra lacci stretto, who holds me tightly ensnared, di mia man con giuste offese by my own hand I’ll wrench my heart, mi trarrò l’alma dal petto. with justified injuries, from my breast. Vuò morire I will die pria che dire before I reveal la cagion del mio desio: the cause of my desire: basta ben che lo sappia Amore ed io. suffice it be known to Cupid and me. Ch’io riveli quello strale Before I reveal the dart che lasciò l’alma ferita, that left a wound in my heart, nel mio duol, benché mortale, in my suffering, though this be fatal, voglio perdere la vita. I want to forfeit my life. Cheto, cheto, Quietly, quietly ma secreto, and secretly spererò quel che desio: I will hope for my heart’s desire: basta ben che lo sappia Amore ed io. suffice it be known by Cupid and me.

Inquieto mio cor, lasciami in pace

Inquieto mio cor, lasciami in pace! My restless heart, leave me in peace! Tu per infidi, insidiosi oggetti For unfaithful, insidious lovers speri, temi, ardi, geli e in van sospiri; you hope, fear, burn, freeze and sigh

25 i tuoi fervidi affetti in vain; your fervid affections ti sembrano diletti e son martiri. strike you as pleasures but are pains. Più tranquillo è di te lo stesso inferno: Hell itself is more tranquil than you: cede il flagel d’Aletto, the whip of Alecto and the cruelty cede la crudeltà del duolo eterno of eternal grief yield to the ardour a quell’ardor che ti consuma e sface. that consumes and kills you. Stelle ingiuste, Amor ingrato, Unjust stars, ungrateful Cupid, nacqui solo per languir. I was born only to languish. Se non posso mai gioir, Since I can never be happy, fate almen ch’abbia quest’alma grant at least that my heart qualche tregua, may have some respite, qualche calma al suo martir. some rest from its suffering. ‘Abbate [Carlo] Conti ’

Ah! che l’ho sempre detto

Ah! che l’ho sempre detto, Ah! I always said ch’Amor mi tradirà! that Cupid would betray me! Ho troppo frale il petto Too fragile is my heart ai colpi di beltà. to withstand beauty’s blows. In due luci tutte ardore The wicked archer hid himself si celò l’iniquo arciero, in two eyes all ablaze, poi con guardo lusinghiero then with an alluring glance mi trafisse a morte il core. pierced my heart to the quick. Qual rimedio al mio dolore, What compensation for my grief, nume irato, or si darà? angry god, will you give me now? Ah! che l’ho sempre detto, Ah! I always said ch’Amor mi tradirà! that Cupid would betray me!

26 Se talor con mesti accenti If in mournful tones narro a Lilla i miei martiri, I disclose my pain to Lilla, mi risponde: “I tuoi sospiri she’ll reply, “So far as I’m concerned, son per me gettati ai venti.” your sighs are wasted breath.” Qual conforto a’ suoi tormenti What respite from my torment l’alma mia sperar potrà? can my heart expect? Ah! che l’ho sempre detto, Ah! I always said ch’Amor mi tradirà! that Cupid would betray me! Brigida Bianchi

Che volete, o crude pene

Che volete, o crude pene, What do you want, cruel pains, dal mio sen che langue e more? from my languishing, dying breast? Se cercate forse il core, If you are looking for my heart, andate da colei che seco il tiene! go to her who has taken it away! Or se il cor non è più mio, Now that my heart is no longer mine, dio d’amore, a chi ’l rapio god of Love, turn your arrows volgi i dardi e il tuo rigore! and coldness on her who stole it! Come poss’io penar se non ho core? How can I suffer if I have no heart?

Count Francesco Palmieri

Aure, voi che volate

Aure, voi che volate Breezes, you that waft d’intorno all’idol mio, round my beloved, per pietà li ridite il mio tormento; for pity’s sake tell her of my torment;

27 e se non posso, oh Dio, and if I cannot, oh God, experience provar questo contento the satisfaction of telling her myself ch’oda da me ’l duol, voi glie ’l narrate, of my grief, you tell her about it, zeffiretti cortesi, aurette grate. courteous zephyrs, gracious breezes. Dite a Filli ch’io mi moro Tell Phyllis I am dying e m’uccide il suo rigor. and that her coldness is the cause. Più la speme non m’avviva, Hope no longer revives me; da conforto l’alma è priva, my heart knows no comfort; giunge tardi ogni ristoro: all succour comes too late: cado vittima al dolor I fall a victim of despair. Diteli che per lei … ma no, tacete: Tell her that for her … but no, wait: nel vostro mormorio as you murmur, li sussurri all’orecchio il dolor mio; whisper my grief into her ear; pur se parlar volete then, if you wish to speak alla bella crudel che mi ferì, to the cruel beauty who wounded me, li direte così: address her thus: “Quando mai avrà mercè “When will my lengthy servitude una lunga servitù? ever earn your reward? Se pirausta innamorato If like an infatuated moth mi nodrisco nel mio ardor, I feed myself on ardour, mai farammi un dì beato the god of love with flaming torch con sua face il dio d’amor, will never bring me a day of peace, e sperar non dovrò più and I must no longer hope se costante è la mia fe’.” for my love to be true.”

Cangia pensier, mio cor

Cangia pensier, mio cor, Think again, my heart, se la speme t’ingannò: if hope has let you down.

28 non servir a nume ingrato, No longer serve the ungrateful god che spietato who, lacking pity, a te solo brought you tanto duolo destinò. so much woe. Sospirar per la bellezza To languish for a beauty è follia, credilo a me, is but folly, take it from me, se in gradir non ha fermezza if pleasure does not last e in amare senza fe’. and love is without faith. Col desio, che sempre alletta, Full of desire, which always delights, ad amar l’anima va, my heart goes out to love ma quel bene ch’ella aspetta but never succeeds in finding conseguir sempre non può. the treasure for which it hopes.

CD 2 Crudo Amor, morir mi sento

Crudo Amor, morir mi sento Cruel Love, I feel I’m dying ma d’un lento aspro martir: from a slow, bitter pain: o tu frena il mio tormento, either halt my torment o tu sprona il mio morir. or hasten my death. Come nel mar d’amore In the sea of love di continue procelle ira fatale the fatal anger of continual storms alla sdruscita nave will never allow the battered boat del mio misero core of my miserable heart mai non permetterà toccar le sponde, to reach the shore, né mai per maggior male sperar potrò nor, to my greater distress, can I ever che l’assorbiscan l’onde. hope that the waves will engulf it. Ah, che della mia stella Ah, the implacable coldness

29 l’implacabil rigore, of my star, to deprive me per tormi ogni conforto, of any relief, denies me equally egualmente mi nega i scogli e ’l porto. the rocks and the harbour. La stella ch’a me splende The star that shines on me con un benigno aspetto with a benign appearance mi guida qual cometa a’ precipizi; guides me like a comet to destruction; la speme che m’inganna the hope that deceives me consolar mi promette promises to console me e più e più m’affanna. but distresses me more and more. Ah, che purtroppo è vero Alas, it’s all too true che sperato contento that contentment, so longed for, delle nostre miserie è l’alimento. feeds our unhappiness. Amor, se mai pietade Love, if you can ever feel pity tu puoi sentir d’un core for a heart which, by hoping che sperando e penando omai si sface, and suffering, is now dying, o toglimi la speme o dammi pace. either take my hope or give me peace. È la speme un falso bene Hope is a false blessing che lusinga un vero affanno; that deludes true distress; sol per lei con dolce inganno only through her, by the sweet deceit di Cupido, of Cupid, nume infido, an untrustworthy god, son eterne le catene. are the chains [of love] everlasting. Così, seguendo le fallaci idee Thus, following the false ideas di speme lusinghiera, of deceptive hope, the heart mai non gode quel cor che sempre spera. that always hopes is never happy.

Sophie Charlotte Electress of Brandenburg

30 Non ve ne state a ridere

Non ve ne state a ridere Don’t you start laughing, oh thoughts, se sciolti ve n’andate, o miei pensieri, as you walk away free, che due begl’occhi neri for two lovely dark eyes are taking si son vantati di volervi uccidere. pride in wanting to kill you. Van girando intorno al core They are going round your heart con eserciti di sguardi with armies of glances e, vibrando acuti dardi, and, brandishing sharp arrows, fanno strada al dio d’amore. are carving a path for the god of love. Voi codardi che farete? You cowards, what will you do? Cederete, You will give in, ed al mal che soffrirete and at the pain that you suffer vano fia lagnarsi e stridere. in vain will you complain and shriek. Si faranno a poco a poco Little by little they will turn di voi stessi empi tiranni, you yourselves into impious tyrants; vi faranno immensi danni, they will do you immense harm; vi portanno a fiamma e fuoco. they will bear you to fire and fury. Negl’affanni che direte? In your suffering what will you say? Piangerete, You will weep, et avvinti nella rete and vanquished and ensnared vi farete ancor deridere. you’ll be derided once again.

Ravvediti, mio core

Ravvediti, mio core. Think hard, my heart. Tante lagrime, All this weeping, tante gemiti, all this sobbing – a che giovano what is the point 31 se i sospiri, se i martiri if your sighing, if your suffering servon solo ad accrescerti il dolore? serves only to increase your grief? Non han forza i miei lamenti My laments are too weak d’impetrar pietosa aita; to summon the aid of pity; è cagion de’ miei tormenti the only cause of my torment sol colei che chiami vita. is she whom you call life. S’a morire mi condanna If your barbaric coldness il tuo barbaro rigore, condemns me to death, che pretendi dal mio core, what do you want from my heart adorata mia tiranna? beloved tyrant? Le mie pene, le catene, My pains, my chains, prendi a gioco, you laugh at them and burn ed ardi al pianto mio, geli al mio foco. at my weeping and freeze at my fire.

Sia maledetto Amor

Sia maledetto Amor, Cursèd be Cupid, se dall’arco d’un ciglio m’avventa if from the arc of an eyebrow saetta non lenta he shoots me a dart, not slow, ch’impiagami il cor. that wounds my heart. Sia maledetto Amor. Cursèd be Cupid. Se pietosa fosse almeno If the cause of all my harm la cagion d’ogni mio danno, at least showed me some pity, goderei che questo seno I would rejoice that my heart fosse stanza a tanto affanno. was the site of so much pain. Ma per me, lassa, non sanno But for me, alas, quelle luci incrudelite to heal my wounds those pitiless eyes per sanar le mie ferite do not know how to radiate scintillar altro che ardor. anything other than ardour.

32 Sia maledetto Amor. Cursèd be Cupid. Se talor nel mio tormento If occasionally, in my torment, I ask chiedo aita a chi m’uccide, for help from the one who slays me, per mostrar che n’ha contento to show she’s content with this mi schernisce e se ne ride. she scorns me and laughs at me. Per pietà, stelle homicide, For pity’s sake, homicidal stars, affrettate il mio morire: hasten my death: che soffrir tanto martire to suffer so much pain non è dato ad un sol cor. is not given to a single heart. Sia maledetto Amor Cursèd be Cupid. Brigida Bianchi

Io mi parto, o cara vita

S Io mi parto, o cara vita, I am leaving, my dear one, e tu resti, amato bene; while you remain, my beloved; T Resto solo, o cara vita, I remain alone, my dear one, e tu parti, amato bene; while you leave, my beloved; S non tradir la mia ferita, do not betray my affliction: T non scordar la mia ferita, do not mistune my affliction: ST per pietà delle mie pene. have pity for my pain . S Che bagni acqua d’oblio That waters of oblivion should la memoria gentil della mia fede, drown the tender memory of my love, credilo pur, Fileno, believe me, Philenus, incapace è ’l mio seno. my heart cannot allow this . Porto impressa una sembianza I bear a face impressed [on my heart] per virtù del dio d’amor, by virtue of the god of love, né potrà la lontananza and separation will not be able risanar la piaga al cor. to heal the wound it has made . 33 T Ch’io ti tradisca, o bella, That I should betray you, my beauty, quando tu cangi cielo when you go elsewhere e lasci a me dell’amor tuo la stella, and leave to me the star of your love, mai non sarà, tel giuro. that will never happen, I swear to you . Anzi far nol potria, Indeed, I could never do that benché fosse infedel l’anima mia. even if my heart were unfaithful . Occhi belli, con lume sì vago Lovely eyes with such beautiful light, altro lume regnar non potrà, no other light can reign in my heart; o incontrando sì lucida imago if ever it met such a radiant image, amarebbe la vostra beltà. your beauty is what it would love . S Venga meco il pensier nel mio partire, May the memory of you come with me as I leave, T Resti dunque il pensier nel tuo partire, May the memory of you remain with me as you leave, S benché teco sen resti il mio gioire though my pleasure stay with you . T benché teco sen vada il mio gioire. though my pleasure leave with you .

Francesco Maria Paglia

34 Recording Dates: October 7th-11th 2018 Recording Location: Sono Luminus Studios, Boyce VA www.sonoluminusstudios.com Executive Producer: Peter Watchorn, Musica Omnia, Inc. Producer: Dan Merceruio Engineer, Mixing, Mastering: Daniel Shores Recording Technician: Allison Noah Translations: Colin Timms Graphic Design & Layout: Nathan Lambshead, Goodnews Graphics Front Cover: Noël Jouvenet III: Portrait of Sophie Charlotte of Hanover as a Young Woman. By permission of: Stiftung Preußische Schlösser und Gärten Berlin-Brandenburg. Photo: Roland Handrick Back Cover: Giorgio Maria Rapparini: Portrait of Steffani in ‘Le portrait du vrai mérite dans la personne serenissime de Monseigneur l’Electeur palatin… l’an 1709’. By permission of: Heinrich-Heine- Institut, Düsseldorf Blanka Bednarz Photo by: Paweł Maciejewski

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