Antonio Montagnana: Progression of a Handelian Bass Jason Lester
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Florida State University Libraries Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School 2006 Antonio Montagnana: Progression of a Handelian Bass Jason Lester Follow this and additional works at the FSU Digital Library. For more information, please contact [email protected] THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF MUSIC ANTONIO MONTAGNANA: PROGRESSION OF A HANDELIAN BASS By JASON LESTER A Treatise submitted to the College of Music In partial fulfillment of the Requirements for the degree of Doctor of Music Degree Awarded: Fall Semester, 2006 The members of the Committee approve the treatise of Jason Lester defended on October 31, 2006. _____________________________ Stanford Olsen Professor directing treatise _____________________________ Charles Brewer Outside Committee Member _____________________________ Roy Delp Committee Member _____________________________ Douglas Fisher Committee Member The Office of Graduate Studies has verified and approved the above named committee members. ii I would like to thank all of family members for their constant support and patience throughout this process, specifically Karol, Sharlette, Edward, Annette, Bill, Pam, and Helen. I am grateful for Jon, Ken, and Greg for keeping me accountable to the goals set forth on a weekly basis. In addition, I would like to thank Professors Douglas Fisher, Roy Delp, Stanford Olsen, and Charles Brewer for their guidance on this project. Lastly, I am deeply grateful to my wife, Laurie, for her humor, patience, and belief in me. Thank you for your demonstrations of encouragement and kindness. I love you very much. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Figures v Abstract vi 1. INTRODUCTION 1 2. GIUSEPPE MARIA BOSCHI 7 3. ANTONIO MONTAGNANA 12 4. EZIO 18 5. SOSARME 28 6. ORLANDO 36 7. CONCLUSION 50 BIBLIOGRAPHY 52 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 57 iv LIST OF EXAMPLES 2.1 Handel “Amor dà guerra” 1724 7 3.1 Handel “Nel mondo e nell’abisso” 1731 12 4.1 Handel “Nasce al bosco” 1732 19 4.2 Handel “Già risonar” 1732 . 21 4.3 Handel “Già risonar” 1732 22 5.1 Handel “Fra l’ombre” 1732 26 5.2 Handel “Sento il cor che lieto gode” 1732 28 6.1 Handel “Gieroglifici eterni” 1733 34 6.2 Handel “Lascia Amor, e siegui Marte” 1733 36 6.3 Handel “Tra caligini profonde” 1733 39 6.4 Handel “Sorge infausta una procella” 1733 41 v ABSTRACT The purpose of this paper is to acknowledge the importance of Antonio Montagnana’s vocal and dramatic abilities and to show how they contributed to George Frideric Handel’s method of composing for the bass voice in opera. George Frideric Handel’s operatic roles for the bass voice are quite varied, with some vocal selections more appropriate today for baritones and others better suited for basses. It was common practice for Handel and his contemporaries to tailor the vocal writing of their music for the singers in a given cast. One such singer was basso, Antonio Montagnana, whose principal association with Handel began in 1731 and ended in 1733. During this brief period of time, Handel composed several notable operatic roles and arias for Montagnana. By focusing on Handel’s compositional style before Montagnana’s arrival and during their association, the author intends to show not only Handel’s ability to adjust to his singers’ capabilities, but also Montagnana’s strengths as a complete musician. Giuseppe Maria Boschi, Handel’s principal bass prior to Montagnana, will be discussed briefly in order to draw a comparison with the changes made in Handel’s compositional technique for the bass voice after Montagnana joined Handel’s company. All three operatic roles premiered by Montagnana, Varo in Ezio (1732), Altomaro in Sosarme (1732), and Zoroastro in Orlando (1733), will be examined with respect to both the musical and dramatic choices made by Handel. These roles represent diverse characterizations and a variety of vocal challenges for the singing actor, and provide a testament to the talents and skills of this incomparable basso. vi CHAPTER 1 Introduction George Frideric Handel’s career as a composer of opera seria was a long and prosperous venture that spanned several decades and countries. During the Baroque period, a composer’s operatic output established a large portion of his reputation.1 Handel’s long-term commitment to opera seria was evident, even as the sacred oratorio became wildly popular. Between the ages of nineteen and fifty-five, Handel composed forty-one operas.2 Premieres of Handel’s operas took place in Hamburg, Venice, Florence, and London, which witnessed thirty-five of his new operas.3 Even though Handel was a German composer, composing Italian operas for an English speaking audience, his compositional skills transcended these cultural barriers and made for a successful venture, at least for some time. Unlike many composers of his era, Handel did not only make his living with the patronage of nobility, but also succeeded through determination and hard work as a composer, conductor, and impresario.4 Scholars have categorized Handel’s operas based variously on their literary, musical, and dramatic characteristics, as well as by the cities in which they were premiered.5 Perhaps the most useful tool to organize Handel’s operas is to categorize them by segments of time. 1720-1728, during the time that Handel managed the Royal Academy of Music, is one such period. The Royal Academy of Music was not a music school or an organization where training took place, but was an institution established to 1 Carl Steven LaRue, “The Composer’s Choice: Aspects of Compositional Context and Creative Process in Selected Operas from Handel’s Royal Academy Period.” (Ph.D. diss., University of Chicago, 1990), 1. 2 Ibid. 3 Leneida Marie Crawford, “The Performance of Contrasting Roles in Selected Works of G. F. Handel: Otho in “Agrippina,” Dejanira in “Hercules,” Daniel in Belshazzar.” (D.M.A. diss., University of Maryland College Park, 1996), 5. 4 Barbara Doscher, “George Frideric Handel: He Wrote for Specific Voices.” Journal of Singing 52 (September 1995), 33. 5 LaRue, “The Composer’s Choice,” 2. 1 produce regular seasons of Italian opera in London. When Handel traveled throughout Europe, he would recruit and engage the best singers to participate in his operas. Some of these singers were castrato Francesco Bernardi (known as Senesino), sopranos Francesca Cuzzoni and Faustina Bordoni, and bass Giuseppe Maria Boschi. Many of these singers remained with the Academy for several years, which created stability in the company from season to season. During this time, Handel also used the same two librettists, Nicola Haym and Paolo Rolli, for all of his operas. Another period of operas occurred after the fall of the Royal Academy of Music when Handel and impresario J. J. Heidegger collaborated to form the King’s Theater in London’s Haymarket, also known as the Second Academy, which operated from December 1729 until June 1734. The noblemen who helped finance the Royal Academy relinquished their managerial rights of the theater to Handel and Heidegger during this five-year span. These two gentlemen were now responsible for all the Italian operas produced at the King’s Theater, which allowed them the freedom of selecting repertoire, both for revivals and for new compositions.6 The aforementioned noblemen preferred serious, heroic operas, but with his new position of power, Handel varied the types of productions presented in the theater. A production of Partenope occurred during this time, a work the Royal Academy had rejected because of its “depravity.”7 Productions of pasticcios, as well as operas by Italian composers took place during this span. In addition, the development of the English oratorio took place during this time under Handel’s direction. Despite the efforts of modern scholars to categorize Handel’s operas into clearly defined sections, the principal ambition of Handel was to produce seasons of Italian opera for London audiences, regardless of literary, musical or dramatic choices.8 For a brief span during the operation of the Second Academy, an Italian bass named Antonio Montagnana was a member of the roster. His vocal and dramatic abilities were outstanding, although his tenure was short-lived, only lasting one and one-half 6 George Frideric Handel, Orlando, program notes by Anthony Hicks, L’Oiseau-Lyre 430-845-2, 1991, Compact Disc, 11. 7 Ibid. 8 LaRue, “The Composer’s Choice,” 2. 2 years. Handel began utilizing compositional techniques in Montagnana’s arias and recitatives that had previously been reserved for the prima donna or the castrasto of the cast. In order to understand the implications of that statement, the author will briefly discuss the compositional process Handel undertook. An important decision made by Handel before he began the compositional process was determining the cast. Regarding the composers of opera seria and the librettists, Reinhard Strohm states, “…the first consideration was the cast of singers available, and this could even play a part in deciding the choice of subject.”9 In Handel’s compositional process, the strengths and weaknesses of a cast, both musically and dramatically, strongly affected the final product. The individual abilities of the cast could even determine and change the dramatic structure of the opera, thus requiring the librettist to alter and adapt the source material to coincide with the talents of the performers. The librettist would adjust the libretto in order to assign the correct number of arias for each singer, the placement of the arias, and the dramatic intent of the text.10 Carl Steven LaRue sums up the expediency in Handel’s writing: “…frequently, practical necessity seems to have been the mother of artistic invention.”11 This penchant for practicality is evident in Handel’s scores, in where he would write the timing of each act. 12 It is clear that Handel was a businessman and practicality was an essential part of making money.