2 Gateway to Italian Art Songs Table of Contents About This Edition . 3 Gaetano Donizetti Page CD Track Leonora . 108. 18 The Composers and Their Times . 5 Se a te d’intorno scherza Songs (Romanza) . 113. 19 Luigi Rossi Page CD Track Che vuoi di piú? (Duet) . 117. 20 Anime voi (Cantata) . 9. 1 Vincenzo Bellini Mario Savioni Per pietà, bell’idol mio (Arietta) . 125. 21 Fugga Amor/Segua Amor (Duet) . 18. 2 Vaga luna, che inargenti (Arietta) . 130. 22 Il zeffiro (Arietta) . 136. 23 Alessandro Scarlatti Alfin m’ucciderete (Cantata) . 26 Marietta Brambilla Recitative: Alfin m’ucciderete . 29. 3 L’allegro (Ballata) . 140. 24 Aria: Io morirei contento . 32. 4 Recitative: Clori mia, Clori bella . 36. 5 Giuseppe Verdi Aria: Faría la pena mia . 38. 6 In solitaria stanza (Romanza) . 146. 25 Deh, pietoso, o Addolorata Francesco Conti (Romanza) . 153. 26 Dopo tante e tante pene (Cantata) . 44 Aria: Dopo tante e tante pene . 46. 7 Luigi Arditi Recitative: Dubbio di vostra fede . 49. 8 Il bacio (Valzer) . 162. 27 Aria: Quella fiamma che m’accende . 50. 9 Amilcare Ponchielli Dimenticar, ben mio (Romanza) . 174. 28 Francesco Durante Alfin m’ucciderete (Duet) . 57. 10 Francesco Paolo Tosti Donna, vorrei morir (Melodia) . 179. 29 Giovanni Battista Pergolesi Ideale (Melodia) . 182. 30 Dite ch’ogni momento (Aria) . 67. 11 Ruggiero Leoncavallo Vincenzo Righini Mattinata . 188. 31 Nò, non vedrete mai (Arietta) . 74. 12 Lasciati amar . 192. 32 Isabella Colbran-Rossini Giacomo Puccini Già la notte s’avvicina (Barcarola) . 80. 13 Sole e amore . 198. 33 E l’uccellino (Ninna-nanna) . 202. 34 Nicola Vaccai Non giova a sospirar Gabriele Sibella (Canzonetta veneziana) . 83. 14 Un’organetto suona per la via (Romanza) . 206. 35 Gioachino Rossini Madrigale (Romanza) . 210. 36 Chi m’ascolta il canto usato (Arietta) . 88. 15 Musical Terms in Italian . 215 La dichiarazione (Arietta) . 94. 16 La pastorella dell’alpi . 101. 17 Phonemes of Italian . 216 Gateway to Italian Art Songs 3 About This Edition The title, Gateway to Italian Art Songs, embraces Song texts have been edited for uniformity; spelling is what Italians call musica vocale da camera, that is, songs modernized. In older sources words and syllables were written for the home or concert hall, not for the church often written carelessly or spaced incorrectly under the (musica da chiesa) or opera (musica da teatro). notes, resulting in inappropriate accentuation. Italian sing- ers would simply correct such errors at sight, as they have The story of musica vocale da camera begins in the been corrected here. same time and place as the history of opera, with the often told story of the Camerata of Florence. This volume The first word of a line of verse is capitalized when it begins with the next generation, the cantata composers is printed in verse form, but not when the text is printed who flourished in Rome in the mid-1600s. The story with music. continues with selections from the Baroque to the early 1900s. This is the first anthology that offers a “gateway” Old manuscripts typically had no more punctuation for singers to explore beyond the early music with which than a period at the end of the aria. Even in printed music, their study customarily begins into the Romantic songs of punctuation was not standardized before the 1900s. I have the bel canto composers and beyond. punctuated the texts in a modern style to clarify the mean- ings of the texts. Our constant goal—artistic communication with an audience— can only be accomplished when a singer Some written punctuation signs stand for breaths but clearly understands the message and meaning of the song. others do not. The difference is found only by reading the The commentary pages before each song help with the poem aloud. I have inserted two kinds of phrase markings preparatory steps that should come before actual singing: above the vocal line: translating and analyzing the text and researching the historical background of both text and music. 1) ≤, where the musical line must be interrupted in order to articulate the text correctly; Because these songs come from manuscripts and from , publishers in several countries it is necessary to impose 2) where a breath may be taken if it is uniformity on them without altering them significantly. needed for convenience. Modern clefs are used, small note values are beamed together, and obvious misprints are corrected without any special notice. Practicing with the CDs Coordinated with this book are two CDs containing all Throughout the book, slurs are used in the modern of the piano accompaniments, artistically recorded by Joan way to indicate that a sung syllable extends over more than Thompson, pianist, under my close supervision. The per- one note. In works composed after 1800 dotted slurs are formances are intended to be expressive and faithful to the used to show where composers placed slurs for other rea- composers’ wishes, while avoiding extreme interpretations sons, e.g., to show expressive legato, to mark breath phras- that could be misleading to students. The recordings are a portamento ing, or to indicate a between two notes. learning tool that is meant to be used until you have the opportunity to enjoy the collaboration of a live pianist. If the original sources contain ornaments, they are They cannot substitute for the excitement of interactive reproduced exactly here. If they are ambiguous, the cor- music making, and you should not feel that you must rect performance is suggested in a footnote. In the 1600s, adhere to their exact tempos and nuances in your own real singers may have improvised vocal ornaments more or performances. less constantly and intuitively. However, historical sourc- musica da camera es state that should be ornamented In songs without an introduction, you will hear your much less than operatic music. Certainly, composers after opening pitch played on the piano several times in the 1800 wrote out the ornaments they wanted, and one should tempo of the first measure. Also, if there is a difficult seldom add more. entrance after a pause in the music, the piano may play the next notes of the voice part and then continue with the Tempos in Italian music are seldom metronomic, but accompaniment. metronome markings are suggested as starting points. Italian tempo and style markings are translated in an appendix at the back of the book. 4 Gateway to Italian Art Songs Sources The commentary before each song states where it was Appreciation is also due to the Music Library of the found (except for published songs that are in my personal University of Southern California, Rodney Rolfs, Librarian, collection). Thanks are due to the foundations and govern- where much basic reading was done. ments that maintain these treasures and to the staff members who helped me access them. In the commentaries, libraries Every writer about music must acknowledge the rich are identified by their cities, as follows: resources of The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. Another important reference work is known Berlin: Staatsbibliothek preussischer Kulturbesitz, by the acronym of its publisher, UTET; its full name is Musikabteilung; Dizionario enciclopedico universale della musica e dei musicisti (Turin, 1985). Brussels: Bibliothèque Royale Albert Ier; Budapest: Research Library for Music History, Acknowledgments Franz Liszt Academy of Music; Joan Thompson, my wife, often passed up the usual London: British Library; pleasures of vacations in Paris and Rome. Instead, she shared in the excitement of discovering songs and spent Los Angeles: University of California, hours copying scores by hand when we were not allowed to Walter H. Rubsamen Music Library; photocopy them. I am grateful for her unending enthusiasm and support, her musical insights, and her careful proofread- Milan: Biblioteca del Conservatorio di Musica ing and editorial suggestions. ‘Giuseppe Verdi,’ Dr. Agostina Laterza, librarian; Prof. Luigi Marzola of the Conservatorio di Musica ‘G. Naples: Biblioteca del Conservatorio di San Pietro a Majella; Verdi,’ Milan, worked closely with me to resolve questions about the phonetics and translations. His musical and lin- New York: Mary Flagler Cary Music Collection of guistic insights were invaluable (but any errors that may The Pierpont Morgan Library; remain are mine, not his). Paris: Bibliothèque Nationale; Valuable musical insights came from harpsichordist Roswitha Klotz and cellist Udo Klotz, who performed the Regensburg: Bischöfliche Zentralbibliothek; Rossi and Scarlatti cantatas with me in Regensburg, Germany. Rochester: Eastman School of Music Library; Rome: Biblioteca Musicale Governativa del Among the talented professionals at Alfred Music, I Conservatorio di Musica di S. Cecilia; would particularly like to acknowledge the guidance of Karen Surmani and the masterful layout design by Bruce Vatican: Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana; Goldes. Vienna: Oesterreichische Nationalbibliothek. If this Gateway is successful, it will awaken young singers’ curiosity and provide some of the necessary tools to explore more Italian art songs, especially reaching into the rich repertoire of the 1900s, the songs of Ottorino Respighi, Francesco Cilea, Barbara Giuranna, Luigi Dallapiccola and many others. John Glenn Paton Los Angeles Anime voi 9 Anime voi Luigi Rossi (c1597–1653) /luidi rossi/ anime voi ke sete per involar kwel bεl ke si mi pjatʃe 1. Anime voi, che sete 18. Per involar quel bel che sì mi piace. Souls you, who are to abduct that beauty who so me pleases. dalle fuɾje dabisso opprεsseooɾa mindʃeloziʃʃeunastro 2. Dalle furie d’abisso oppresse ogn’ora, 19. M’ingelosisce un’astro, by-the Furies of-Abyss oppressed every-hour, me-makes-jealous a-star, kredetea me kredete mi turbaoi pjaneta 3. Credete a me, credete 20. Mi turba ogni pianeta. believe – me, believe me upsets every planet. ke kwel mal ke vakkɔɾa tεmo kil tʃεloistesso 4. Che quel mal che v’accora 21.