Genres of theatrical overtures by Thomas Augustine Arne 7 ‌­volumes containing madrigals in Italian style, songs The creative work of other musicians is repre- for consort, anthems and fancies for consort of viols. sented by secular music and church compositions Among those who served as court musicians or are represented by service and/or 2–3 anthems: musicians in rich families there is a group of com- John Wilbye, John Cooper, Benjamin Cosyn, Rob- posers and performers (virginalists, lutenists, per- ert Johnson, George Kirbye, Thomas Lupo, Fran- formers playing the viol) who created a rather big cis Pilkington, Giles Tomkins, Thomas Warwick. amount of anthems as well as a lot of images mainly Also including Richard Nicholson, who was a mu- of secular instrumental music: Orlando Gibbons sic teacher in Oxford University and an author of (for about 40 anthems), Martin Peerson (more than only two anthems. 20 anthems), Thomas Ford (19 anthems). Having This panorama shows an inseparable connec- left 35 anthems Thomas Weelkes contributed the tion of socio-political, geographic and official fac- secular vocal sphere with four books of madrigals tors with a relatively high degree of activity in cre- containing together for about 100 ‌­samples. ation of anthems. References: 1. Wilson-Dickson, E. The Story of Christian music/trans. from English. L. B. Levin, V. N. Genk. SPb.: Mirt, – 2001. 2. Crowest F. J. Phases of musical England. London: The English publishing company, – 1881. 3. David C. Price. Patrons and musicians of the English Renaissance. Cambridge: Cambridge university press, – 1981. 4. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. URL: http: www.oxforddnb.com (accessed: 19.03.2016). 5. Peter L. Huray. Music and the reformation in England, 1549–1660. Cambridge: Cambridge university press, – 1978. 6. The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians/Ed. by Stanley Sadie. – 2001. 1 electron. opt. disk (CD-ROM). DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.20534/EJA-16-3-37-40 Klimchuk Anastasia Sergeevna, Novosibirsk State Conservatoire named after M. I. Glinka Student of the 4th course, Faculty of the Theory and Composition E‑mail: [email protected] Genres of theatrical overtures by Thomas Augustine Arne Abstract: Research of the overtures to the operas and masques of the English composer of the XVIII century Thomas Arne. Implementation of genre and composition types of Italian, French and one-part sonata overtures. Keywords: Thomas Arne, opera, masque, ‌­overture. Thomas Augustine Arne (1710–1778) is a ‌­considered to be an outstanding figure of the mu- great English theatre composer in his generation sic and theatre art and one of the main figures of who developed the national traditions in the con- the history of the English music. He is an author of ditions of prevalence of the Italian opera at the about 100 stage works (30 operas and 12 masques English stage and who is still not so well-known in are among them), he collaborated with the lead- the Russian musicology. In Great Britain he is ing London Theatres such as ‘Drury Lane’ ‌­and 37 Section 3. Musical arts ‘Covent Garden’ and he also worked due to the the period of the model stabilization. The flourishing orders of the Dublin Smoke Alley Theatre, thereby of the creative work of Arne (‘Artaxerxes’) coincides contributed greatly into the history of the music with domination of the Italian overture at the Euro- theatre of Ireland. pean stage. The creation of ‘The Fairy Prince’ was The great majority of Arne’s theatrical music at the time of the composer’s creative maturity and appeared to be lost, but the scores of some works simultaneously exclusion of the model by one-part were saved wholly, the rest is going to exist as sepa- sonata overture. rate items in vocal collections. Our attention is di- The overture to the masque ‘Alfred’ is made due rected to eight works made by the composer within to the Italian model ‘fast-slow-fast’, its composition 33 years and presenting a section of different genres characteristics are typical to the overture of such shown at the English stage of the XVIII century: type. The form is considered to be organized in a masques ‘Comus’ (1738), ‘Rule Britannia’ (1755), complex way as each of three parts is represented ‘Alfred’ (1740) and ‘The Fairy Prince’ (1771), op- as a finished structure. The first part (Es-dur) is eras ‘Eliza’ (1754) and ‘Artaxerxes’ (1762), comic written in the sonata form, i. e. having two themes opera ‘Thomas and Sally, or The Sailor’s Return’ of non-contrasting content and being differentiated (1760), pastiche ‘Love in a Village’ (1762). Due to due to the movement type; the second theme is held the studying of the history of their creation and stag- for the first time in the key of dominant (B-dur), ings we can suppose that the works were made at the appears in the development section and then in the similar conditions (performing line-up, production reprise it sounds in the main key (B-dur). The de- place) and kindred genre models — a masque and velopment section is concentrated around the keys an opera — up to the time of their making [2, 65]. of the close kindred — B-dur and g-moll. The sec- However, while exploring them in more details ond part (c-moll) — Andante — represents a simple there are clear differences among the compositions three-part form with the middle of the developing created on the basis of one genre model and increas- plan. At its end there is a small final part representing ing due to the degree of complication from earlier to some transfer between the parts where the main later opuses, which are probably connected with the key is going to be returned. The third part (Es-dur) evolution of the composer’s works. It is rather clear being a lively and impetuous final in the minuet on the basis of the analysis of the overtures. genre is created due to the complicated three-part The overtures to the theatrical productions were form with the shortened reprise and the developing made by Arne due to the different models without middle part, where the first part is a simple three- attaching them to a separate genre of a work. Tak- part form with the modulation to the key of domi- ing eight compositions under studying all overtures nant B-dur with further returning to the main one in there are going to be divided into three groups ac- the middle section. In respect to the theme the parts cording to the type of the composition model: Ital- are rather traditional. The main character of the ian type, French (or French-Italian) type and one- theme of the first part is a heroic pathetic element part sonata overture. expressed in the dotted march rhythm, duple me- The Italian model includes the overtures of such tre, fast beat, impetuous movement of the sixteenth masques as ‘Alfred’ and ‘The Fairy Prince’, opera seria rhythmic values being periodically ‘broken’ by syn- ‘Artaxerxes’. Its main characteristics are a three-part copes (especially in the second theme). The second form, tempo contrast of parts ‘fast-slow-fast’, active part is a contrast to the first one not only due to the type of music of the first part made on the basis of beat, but also to the theme which is rather close due sonata logics, restrained lyrics of the second part and to its content to the vocal music, it is full of trills and a dance final. Arne used this model during different grace notes and it is intricate due to the rhythm. The periods of his creative work and at different stages of minuet represents a sphere of the genre and dancing the history of the Italian overture. ‘Alfred’ is referred theme being joyous and impetuous, the beat is get- to the period of the first success of the composer‌­and ting faster with the help of the change of 4/4 metre 38 Genres of theatrical overtures by Thomas Augustine Arne to 3/8 metre and constant pulsatile movement of the es in some details. The tempo contrast is ‌­followed in- sixteenth rhythmic values. accurately: the second and third parts are written at the The overture to the opera ‘Artaxerxes’ is also same allegro tempo, but the third part sounds more related to the Italian model, though the compos- regular due to the change of 4/4 metre into 3/2 metre er deviates from the permanent correlation of the and it can be regarded as relatively slow. The forms of tempos. The first part has an indication of Andan- the parts and their interrelation are quite traditional: te, but with the themes of the cheerful type which the first part is a simple three-part form in the qua- becomes solemn and exalted within the unhurried druple metre being compact due to the scope, but it is movement. Such beginning of the overture is prob- supposed to perform it in the slow largo tempo; the ably connected with the plot of the opera telling second part is a fast triple fugue for 4/4; the third about the royalty’s hard fortune and too fast tem- part is a complex three-part form. The theme of the po is inappropriate here. Due to the form the parts overture is very interesting. The whole composition is are made analogically to the parts of the overture to held at the same key — D-dur. The music of the first ‘Alfred’: the first one is a sonata form with a rather part clearly reminds slow solemn processions being detailed development section, the second one is a full of dotted rhythm forms and rare, but lively lead- simple three-part form and the third one is a com- ing passages.