THE UNIVERSITY OF SHEFFIELD H. MARINHO CARVALHO J. C. BACH'S LONDON KEYBOARD SONATAS: STYLE AND CONTEXT PhD July 2003 J. -C. BACH'S LONDON KEYBOARD SONATAS: STYLE AND CONTEXT by Helena Paula Marinho Silva Carvalho Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of PhD in Performance Practice Department of Music University of Sheffield July 2003 TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS iv SUMMARY v INTRODUCTION 1 CHAPTER 1. J. C. BACH: THE PUBLISHED SOLO KEYBOARD SONATAS 7 1.1. The London sonatas 7 1.2. Motivic structure 8 1.3. Formal characteristics 14 1.3.1. Non-sonata formats 15 1.3.2. Sonata forms 18 1.4. Instruments-the pianoforte 33 I. S. Style features 47 CHAPTER 2. J. C. BACH: THE PUBLISHED ACCOMPANIED KEYBOARD SONATAS 61 2.1. The accompanied-sonata genre 61 2.2. J. C. Bach and the accompanied-sonata genre 71 2.3. The accompanied sonatas-instruments 76 2.4. Instrumental style 87 2.5. Stylistic features 110 2.6. Sonata forms 124 2.7. Non-sonata formats 141 CHAPTER 3. ACCOMPANIED AND UNACCOMPANIED SONATAS 149 CONCLUSION 171 BIBLIOGRAPHY 177 IV ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I am indebted to my supervisor, Dr. Alan Brown, for his thorough and secure guidance, and for all the help during the years this project lasted. A number of people and institutions were essential for the completion of this research: the Portuguese Fundagdo para a Glenda e Tecnologia, forth eir generous grant; Dr. Colin Lawson and Dr. John Irving, for enlightening conversations; Dr. Jane Davidson and my friends and family, for their encouragement;Jacques Ogg and Paul McNulty, for invaluable information on early-piano construction and performance; and the staff at the British Library. To Isabel, who will never read this. V SUMMARY J. C. Bach's keyboard works include several sets of accompanied sonatas, a genre that enjoyed a wide popularity during the Classical era, but never found its way into the concert repertoire. The accompanied sonata was a genre meant for domestic performance; the solo keyboard sonata, on the other hand, was adopted in due course by concert audiences. J. C. Bach composed works within both genres during most of his productive years, and his output constitutes a corpus of remarkable consistency. J. C. Bach's removal to London in 1762 coincided with his clear adoption of a galant style, marked by the Italianate influence, and the abandonment of most Baroque traits. The British milieu provided additional factors: the rise of the pianoforte, a thriving music-publishing market, and a great interest in domestic music making among the affluent classes. These factors marked J. C. Bach's output at various levels. Keyboard works had to conform to the proficiency of the amateur performer, a fact reflected in the accompanied output mostly. The number of movements, their length, and the inclusion of particular technical devices are readily observable differences between the two genres. The most remarkable distinction lies perhaps in the preference for binary sonata format in the accompanied. sonatas from the mid 1760s to the 1770s, in spite of a later tendency for tripartite designs in both genres. J. C. Bach's lifelong preference for motivic phrase structure conditioned his keyboard production and partly explains the gap in quality between some of his works and sonatas composed around the same time by Haydn and Mozart, who developed more effective means to connect the melodic material to higher structural units. J. C. Bach's influence, however, endured in Mozart's handling of melody, and his keyboard production vi constitutes, in spite of some flaws, a noteworthy example of elegance and craftsmanship. 1 INTRODUCTION Among the instrumental genres that came to light during the Classical period, none was so representative for the Classical style as the sonata, a term which is applied not only to a multi-movement work, but to a formal and dramatic design for individual movements as well. This formal design, now known as first-movement sonata form or sonata-allegro form, can be found in all types of composition during that period, not only chamber, but also vocal and orchestral music. Among the wealth of repertoire representing the genre, a specific type of sonata bloomed during the second half of the eighteenth century: the accompanied keyboard sonata. This type of composition is generally regarded as a minor representative of the sonata repertoire. Nevertheless, its importance for a complete knowledge of the Classical period cannot be overlooked, as it represented, in quantity and popularity, a major production at the time. William S. Newman even proposes, among other criteria set to determine the limits for the Classical period, "the rise and fall of the accompanied keyboard setting. "' The accompanied keyboard sonata is a matter hardly discussed in general musicological studies of the Classical period. The fact that this repertoire is hard to access, since it survives almost exclusively in original editions, added to the fact that it is seldom performed, partly explains the lack of interest of musicologists in dealing with its characteristics. On the other hand, this type of work has been overshadowed by later keyboard ensemble compositions, characterised by more balanced solutions in the relation between the instruments. The lesser quality of much of this repertoire also explains its absence from Classical music studies, even from those that 1 William S. Newman, The Sonata in the Classic Era, 3d ed. (New York: W. W. Norton, 1983), 4. 2 discuss instrumental music at length. Since Eduard Reeser's monograph on 2 the keyboard sonata with violin accompaniment in Paris, a few authors have researched this repertoire, usually departing from a geographical standpoint. England was perhaps the country where the publication of music for this type of ensemble was more widespread. Among the collections in British libraries we find a remarkable number of publications that can be classified as accompanied sonatas. These works are usually entitled 'sonatas', even though we may also find designations such as 'lessons', 'trios' or 'quartets'. The instruments required are usually the harpsichord or the pianoforte for the keyboard part, and string instruments for the accompanying parts. The violin (with the flute as an alternative), and the cello (which usually doubles the keyboard's bass line) are among the instruments most often indicated for the performance of accompanied keyboard works. Sometimes the composer added the indication that the accompanying parts could be played ad libitum, which allowed a solo keyboard performance. In spite of their outward variety, these pieces have in common two main characteristics: the use of sonata form in one or more movements, and the fact that the keyboard part is predominant in the ensemble. Among the many British publications of accompanied keyboard sonatas, we find several sets by J. C. Bach. His work presents a unique opportunity to review this material in the light of contemporary compositional conventions and performance practice. In fact, J. C. Bach's output represents a specific type of accompanied sonata, an Italian-influenced, instrumentally 'unbalanced' solution, as the sonatas by his brother Carl Philipp Emanuel, who also composed accompanied sonatas, can be said to represent the 'German', more balanced approach to the medium. In addition, J. C. Bach composed and published both solo and accompanied sonatas throughout his career. This enables us to compare the solo and accompanied works, to determine compositional differences, and to demonstrate how closely related these differences were to contemporary 2 Eduard Reeser, De Klaviersonate met Vioolbegeleiding in het Parysche Musiekleven ten Tiden van Mozart (Rotterdam: Brusse's Uitgeversmaatschappij, 1939). 3 performance practice and conventions, and to the characteristics of the instruments extant in J. C. Bach's time. J. C. Bach's musical trajectory in England shows scarce connections to his earlier musical training. After the death of his father, his musical and personal upbringing was taken over by his half-brother Carl Philipp Emanuel in Berlin. J. C. Bach then moved to Italy in 1755, where he studied with Padre Martini and was appointed organist at Milan Cathedral, before settling in London from 1762 to his death, in 1782. His mature works show little of the Empfindsam style he was exposed to during his Berlin years, and less even of the strict counterpoint teachings of Padre Martini. There is a marked stylistic contrast between the works composed in Berlin, and the works composed in Italy and London. The Baroque traits of J. C. Bach's Berlin keyboard concertos, for instance, display a compositional style so divergent from that of his London concertos, that an uninformed listener could be led to believe that these works issued from different composers. J. C. Bach showed a remarkable ease in adapting his style to current trends, and adhered naturally to the new Italian style that was asserting itself all over Europe. His prolonged stay in Italy and his experience as an opera composer undoubtedly marked his chamber style and his keyboard works. J. C. Bach came to be regarded in his own time as an example of the light, galant and charming musical expression associated with the Italian style of composition. J. C. Bach was a prolific composer in many genres. He composed orchestral, operatic, sacred, chamber and keyboard works. His activity as an opera composer in London was mainly connected to productions for the Royal Theatre at the Haymarket. Charles Terry writes that "though his reputation as a composer of Opera brought him to England, it is remarkable that Bach's output, compared with that of his popular contemporaries and competitors, was small. "3 In fact, Bach's success as an opera composer in London was not overwhelming: in spite of the staging of several operas and contributions for pasticcios, he found more acceptance as an instrumental 3 Charles Sanford Terry, John Christian Bach, 2d ed.