1 LP - 6.41929 AW - (p) 1975

Kompositionen für Altus







Johann Christoph Bach (1642-1703)


Lamento "Ach daß ich Wassers genug hätter" --' --"
A1
Solokantate für alt, 2 Violinen, 2 Bratschen und Basso continuo






Dietrich Buxtehude (1637-1707)


Jubilate Domino (Psalm 98, 4-6)
--' --"
A2
Solokantate für Alt, Viola da gamba und Basso continuo







Christoph Bernhard (1627-1692)


Was betrübst du dich, meine Seele (Psalm 42, 6)
--' --"
A3
Geistliche Kantate für Alt, Viola da braccio, Viola da gamba und Basso continuo






Marc'Antonio Ziani (um 1653-1715)



Alma Redemptoris Mater --' --"
B1
Geistliche Motette für Alt, 2 Posaunen, Fagott und Basso continuo






Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767)


Ach Herr, strafe mich nicht (Psalm 5) --' --"
B2
Kantate für Alt, 2 Violinen und Basso continuo






 
Paul Esswood, Alt / Countertenor



CONCENTUS MUSICUS WIEN (mit Originalinstrumenten)

- Alice Harnoncourt, Violine (1,5), Violetta (3)
- Eduard Hruza, Violone (1,2,3,4)

- Walter Pfeiffer, Violine (2)
- Ernst Hofmann, Posaune (4)
- Peter Schoberwalter, Viola (1) - Horst Küblöck, Posaune (4)
- Josef de Sordi, Violietta (1) - Milan Turkovic, Fagott (4)

- Kurt Theiner, Viola (1)
- Herbert Tachezi, Orgel
- Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Violoncello (1,4,5), Viola da gamba (2,3)




Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Gesamtleitung

 
Luogo e data di registrazione
1974
Registrazione live / studio
studio
Producer / Engineer
-
Prima Edizione CD
-
Prima Edizione LP
Telefunken "Das Alte Werk" - 6.41929 AW - (1 lp) - --' --" - (p) 1975

Programme Music of the Baroque Era
The famous music theorist Glareanus in his “Dodecachordon" (1557) praises the melismatic richness of the alto voices in the motets “Domine non secundum” and “Victimae paschali” by Josquin Desprez. Other works of the period around 1500 are also marked by the preferential treatment accorded to the ,,altus“ (or counter-tenor) part. Altus was the description given to the high male voice, since alto as a female voice did not become a reality of musical life until the 18th century. As regards the history of composition, the altus emerged around 1450 as the second highest part of the four-part chorus, as the counterpart to the tenor as the carrying voice. Originally it referred to a technique of style, but also meant a tonal equivalent.
Since the vocal range of the male altos extended from middle tenor to middle soprano pitch, and in exceptional cases even beyond this, the alto was a highly favoured voice range, in addition to the soprano of the prima donnas, not least of all because of the advanced degree of vocal culture displayed by the trained singers. The part of Orpheus in Christoph Willibald Gluck’s “Orpheus e Euridice” (1762) is the best example known today from the comprehensive opera literature of the l7th and 18th centuries. However, the castratos who had emigrated from Spain to France and Italy since the middle of the 16th century failed to find acceptance in either the Catholic or Protestant church. The altos in the papal chapel were falsetto-singing men, the tenorini. In the Latin schools of Protestant Germany the choral alto parts were mainly sung by boys, while soloist passages, such as in the sacred concertos and extending as far as the solos in some of Bach’s works, were transposed for falsetto males. Nevertheless the vocal art of the castratos and the style of opera also had a modifying effect on concertante church music. In the late 17th and early 18th centuries four-part singing was one of the especial musical pleasures in Leipzig student circles; in addition to the alto, the soprano was also sung falsetto, since women had no access to private music making of this kind.
The domain of the altos, especially of the castratos, was Italian opera, which was in full bloom at that time and the standard of which was decisive for the musical reputation of a court (excepting Versailles). The singers encountered respect and highly paid positions in the rich princely courts of Italy and of the German-speaking area, including even Warsaw and St. Petersburg. The expressive alto voice, the considerable technical and musical abilities of the singers, had a contributory decisive effect on the tonal criteria of opera seria. Altos were in every respect the complement to the prima donna. Heroic roles were parts for high male voices, as a rule for castratos, with particularly broad vocal range, Thus in this connection Mozart was able to describe the castrato as “primo uomo", as the first man (as opposed to the “prima donna”). The two main performers competed for the favours of the princes.
The castrato Baldassare Ferri (1610-1680) was admired by contemporaries for his breathing and trill techniques. When he went from the court in Warsaw to Vienna in 1655 he made a major contribution to the advancement and reputation of the court opera. The emperors Ferdinand III and Leopold I overwhelmed him with gifts to such an extent that he was able to bequeath 600,000 ducats to religious foundations. Carlo Broschi, with the stage name Farinelli (1705--1782), was probably the most famous castrato of the 18th century. He received his training from the highly regarded Neapolitan opera composer Nicola Porpora, in whose opera “Eumene” Farinelli scored unparalleled success in Rome in 1722. He frequently performed in Vienna and, on the advice of Emperor Karl VI, he also studied more serious styles of singing. On the recommendation of Porpora he was engaged by Händel’s opponents to perform in London, where his appearance was a decisive reason for the failure of Händel’s operatic undertakings, This is probably also the reason why Händel in his last operas, from 1735 onwards, composed the heroic roles for a tenor voice. In 1737 Farinelli went to the Spanish court, where his singing is said to have had a favourable effect on the depressions of Philipp V. Furthermore, due to his favoured position, he was able to influence political decisions.
For all this, the fate of the acclaimed vocal virtuosos was combined with castration, and there was no lack of detractors. In addition there was the growing significance of women in various sectors of musical life; above all, changes in musical taste contributed to the end of his vocal and compositional style. Mozart had a fine feeling for changes and applied them without being revolutionary, but also coming to terms with practical necessity. Thus the role of Idamentes in “Idomeneo" is in this sense the last major part for high male voice, in as much as “Idomeneo” marks termination of opera seria and the style of singing connected with it. It was not until the 20th century, under the influence of historical research, that the male alto found interpreters for earlier music, first in Alfred Deller and then in Paul Esswood.
----------
Marc'Antonio Ziani first worked in Italy, gaining a reputation there as a composer of opera. In l700 he was appointed to the Vienna Court Opera where, in addition to operas, he composed numerous sacred musical works.“Alma redemptoris mater” is conspicuous for the expressive text declamation, with the virtuoso rendering of the vocal part, further supported by the instrumental effects of the trombones.
Georg Philipp Telemann’s cantata “Ach Herr, strafe mich nicht" originates from the collection entitled “Fortsetzung des harmonischen Gottesdienstes” (1731/32). The cantatas in this collection are envisaged for small ensembles in churches, but also for music-making in the home.
Dietrich Buxtehude is the most important composer of Protestant church cantatas prior to Bach. “Jubilate Domino” is particularly demanding from the singer’s point of view, since there are no melody instruments for accompaniment and interludes, the expression line and representation being scored solely for the vocal part.
In his compositions Christoph Bernhard, a pupil of Heinrich Schütz, represents in detail the vocal figures and the transposition of the theatrical (operatic) style to church music. His sacred concerto “Was betrübst du dich meine Seele" is a representative example of Italian dramatic vocal art, transferred to Middle German concertante church music.
Among the works of the Bach family prior to Johann Sebastian, the cantata “Ach, daß ich Wassers g’nug hatte” by Johann Christoph Bach stands out for the intensity of its expression and bold harmony. He was described in the family cronicles as the "great and expressive composer“.
Gerhard Schuhmacher
English translation by Frederick A. Bishop

Nikolaus Harnoncourt (1929-2016)
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