Handel’s Memories A selection from Grand Concertos op. 6 Al Ayre Español Eduardo López Banzo 1 Handel’s Memories A selection from Grand Concertos op. 6 Al Ayre Español Eduardo López Banzo conductor & harpsichord GEORG FRIEDRICH HÄNDel (1685-1759) CD 1 CD 2 Grand Concerto op. 6 no. 1, in G major Grand Concerto op. 6 no. 10, in d minor [1] A tempo giusto 1:49 [1] Ouverture 4:12 [2] Allegro 1:38 [2] Air 4:42 [3] Adagio 5:39 [3] Allegro 2:56 [4] Allegro 2:37 [4] Allegro 2:34 [5] Allegro 0:04 [5] Allegro moderato 2:01 Grand Concerto op. 6 no. 8, in c minor Grand Concerto op. 6 no. 5, in D major [6] Allemande 5:42 [6] [Ouverture] 3:56 [7] Grave - Andante allegro 3:24 [7] Presto 2:05 [8] Adagio 1:30 [8] Largo 2:53 [9] Siciliana 3:59 [9] Allegro 2:11 [10] Allegro 1:08 [10] Menuet: Un poco larghetto 3:19 Grand Concerto op. 6 no. 6, in g minor Grand Concerto op. 6 no. 11, in A major [11] Larghetto e affettuoso 4:01 [11] Andante larghetto, e staccato 5:29 [12] Allegro ma non troppo 1:36 [12] Allegro 1:40 [13] Musette: Larghetto 6:01 [13] Largo e staccato 1:55 [14] Allegro 2:48 [14] Andante 4:46 [15] Allegro 2:18 [15] Allegro 5:09 total time 44:24 total time 50:02 4 5 Eduardo López Banzo conductor & harpsichord * violin 1 viola Farran James, concertino Pedro Luis Arteche Raúl Orellana de la Fuente, concertino Benjamin Scherer Andrés Cardona Jorge Jiménez Campos Krishna Nagaraja Ander Berrojalbiz Echevarría violoncello violin 2 James Bush, concertino José Manuel Miguel Ángel Aguiló Matas Navarro Aguilar, concertino Adriana Alcaide García violone Félix Ferrer Ballester Francisco Aguiló Matas Esther Pons theorbo Julian Behr harpsichord ** Carlos García Bernalt * Italian harpsichord Philippe Humeau, 2007 ** German harpsichord 2 keyboard Bruce Kennedy, 1991 Acknowledgements: Universidad de Salamanca for the loan of the harpsichord made by Bruce Kennedy (1991), copy of C. Zell 1728 6 7 The Grand Concertos the best in Europe, to the singers, of the oratorio. Several months The year 1739 marked the 25 year and Handel’s Memories with whom he did not always have before he composed the Grand anniversary of Arcangelo Corelli’s optimal relationships. In 1733, he had Concertos, he premiered Saul and Concerti Grossi Op. 6, published George Frideric Handel arrived in a notorious clash with one of the most Israel in Egypt, with which he tried to posthumously in Amsterdam in 1714. England towards the end of 1710, famous castrati of the time, Senesino, please audiences by means of colorful This mythical collection was deeply encouraged by a group of music who founded, with the support of a instrumentation and abundant chorus admired and emulated, and Handel, lovers excited by the extraordinary good portion of the aristocracy, the appearances. They were far from who knew Corelli well (they worked success he had achieved with his Opera of the Nobility, determined being his first oratorios, but Handel together in Rome in 1707), took opera Agrippina in Venice. At the to rival the German composer. Two was now determined to experiment, advantage of the anniversary to con- beginning of the 18th century, Italian opera companies were too seeking a compromise between his ceive his own cycle (it seems to be no London was a very prosperous city much for a city where this genre had style and British musical tradition. coincidence that the German author in need of talent to modernize and seriously declined during the previous numbered his cycle also Op. 6). He revitalize its theatrical performances, decade, hence the considerable Practically at the same time, Handel wrote the 12 concerts in autumn, in and the German musician, who was losses they both accumulated became interested again in instru- a short month, and in 1740, he pub- then at the service of the Elector during consecutive seasons. In 1737, mental music. During previous years, lished them as Grand Concertos. The of Hanover (who would soon be Senesino’s opera closed permanently. he had premiered several concerts collection contains a surprising quan- crowned King of Great Britain), was Handel, exhausted by excessive work for organ and orchestra, which he tity of newly composed material, as the ideal candidate. and the constant upsets, became inserted between acts in his oratorios. well as some borrowings, such as the seriously ill. The experience had been very suc- memories or musical anecdotes, writ- For many years, Handel was the most cessful, and people came to see him ten with intense lyricism and certain acclaimed composer of Italian opera Once he recovered, the German improvise in his long ad libitums for sentimentality, previously absent from in London, premiering at a rate of musician decided to change his organ. At the beginning of 1739, he his instrumental music. one show a year, and managing all plans dramatically and, although he published his trio sonatas Op. 5, and aspects related to production, from premiered a few more operas, he finally, at the end of September, be- His “operatic” Concerto No. 8, the orchestra, which became one of concentrated his efforts in the domain gan composing the Grand Concertos. written in the ill-natured, though also 8 9 lovely, tonality of C minor, is one of Handel tried to use the melody of the family which was very fashionable to incorporate these influences in his the most dramatic in the collection, wonderful Siciliana in his Saul oratorio in Europe during the first half of the works. The finale (allegro moderato) is and concurrently possesses one of and in the opera Imeneo, but in both 18th century. The Musette was one of an appropriate moment to introduce, the most interesting structures. It cases it was finally discarded, finding the composer’s favorite pieces, and as Purcell did in some of his dances, a starts with a movement based on at last a perfect home in this concert. he frequently played it between acts stroke of humor. the main motif of an allemande He learned the art of writing these in his oratorios. Its pompous aspect, – “a German piece” – by Johann pathetic sicilianas from Alessandro which invokes the Hanoverian London, The fourth movement in Concerto No. Mattheson, published in his Pièces de Scarlatti, who was living in Naples emphasized by the warm tonality 5, also known as St. Cecilia’s Concerto, clavecin (London, 1714, the same year in 1708 while the German musician of E flat major and the rich tone of is an ardent venticello, popular in as Corelli’s concerts). Handel met visited the city. “Italy was a school for the violins playing in unison on their the bay of Naples (where Handel and became friends with Mattheson melody whose secrets – Mattheson lowest string, was very appreciated by premiered in 1708 his serenata in Hamburg, and the latter, who used to say - young Handel ignored”. the public. Aci, Galatea e Polifemo), the start provided him with his first job in of which finds its inspiration in the opera, declared having had quite a The main theme of the Mussette of Concerto No. 10 is a homage to initial motif of the essercizi No 26 by bit of influence on the development Concerto No. 6 is somewhat related Henry Purcell (1659?-1695), whose Domenico Scarlatti, whom Handel of Handel’s dramatic style. He was to an aria of the Harmonischer energetic overture of the orchestral had befriended during his trip to Italy. possibly the first person to suggest Gottes-Dienst (1726) by Georg suite in Abdelazar uses Handel as a Perhaps this motif, percussion-based to Handel that he pursue a career Philipp Telemann – another friend model, while the Air reminds us of the in nature, was characteristic of the in London. His memories from of his youth - which Handel had mysterious and ambiguous tonality Neapolitan folklore of the time? Hamburg and the trip in his youth already used for the aria “Son confusa of some of the fantasies and pavanas to Italy in 1706 permeate the pages pastorella” in the opera Poro (1731). for string by the British musician. An The Componimenti Musicali by of the concerto No. 8, in which we However, it’s highly probable that this elegant movement à la française, and Gottlieb Theophil Muffat, with whom can distinguish some opera scenes: pastoral theme is of French origin and another, passionate and virtuous, in the German composer exchanged Agrippina (his first major success related to the mussette de cour, an the Italian style remind us that Purcell music during the 1730s, provide in Venice), Giulio Cesare e Imeneo. aristocratic instrument of the bagpipe was one of the first British composers Handel with some ideas from which 10 11 he builds formidable orchestral Al Ayre Español witness the 2004 Spanish National movements in these concertos. “He Al Ayre Español was founded in 1988 Music Award, bestowed upon the takes other men’s pebbles and by Eduardo López Banzo, in an effort group by the Spanish Ministry of polishes them into diamonds”, the to challenge the pervading clichés that Culture. British composer William Boyce used often surrounded the performance of to say of him. It could not be more Spanish baroque music at that time. The fact that Al Ayre Español has not true when we observe the use Handel The spirit of the ensemble has always settled for becoming a specialised makes of these and other loans. been to refute these clichés with early music ensemble, but chosen musicological rigour, performance instead to create a musical philosophy Eduardo López Banzo excellence and by striving to insufflate “al ayre español” (à la espagnole), has new life to music from the past, thus allowed the project to be flexible opening them up to contemporary enough to adapt itself to different audiences.