4.4.1.- mini_send

importance and the music, although sensitive to the expression of a text, was nevertheless the composer’s priority. Many musicians continued to find this style appropriate for church music, for two reasons:

1. The texts of religious compositions, usually taken from familiar biblical or liturgical sources, were easily recognized, even in a complex polyphonic setting.

2. The cool emotional atmosphere of this style was considered to enhance worship.

Many of the same composers, however, having the Baroque love of drama, often reversed the relationship between music and text in their secular songs, allowing the emotional content of the words to determine the means of expres- sion. This expressive style, which Monteverdi referred to as the second practice or the stile moderno, was generally homophonic in texture. (See Table 13.1.) Thus, according to the first practice, in which the music was more significant than the text, the established rules of music theory were observed and the tex- ture was predominantly polyphonic. In the second practice, the text dominated the music, and rules might be broken for the purpose of better expressing the words. Here the texture was usually homophonic.

Although the system of tonality was not fully established when Monteverdi wrote his first madrigals in the new expressive style, he observed certain tonal principles. Monteverdi’s bass line was an organizing and stabilizing element; it supported the melody or melodies above and gave his music a sense of direc- tion, of harmonic drive. He and other early Baroque composers thought of the triad as a true chord rather than as the result of combining melody lines. Recog- nizing rudimentary relationships between triads, they produced music with a new sense of stability. This allowed composers to venture away from the tones of the key they were in, since the strong sense of key held the music together. Not only dissonance, but also chromaticism—the use of tones from the chro- matic scale, not included in the scale of the current key—came to be used more freely. The reliable movement of the bass voice and the systematic use of logical chord progressions supported the increasingly bold use of chromaticism and dissonance in music. _ _ 122 P a r t T h re e The Baroque (1600–1750) TA B L E

1 3 . 1

First Practice Second Practice

Polyphonic texture Homophonic texture Music dominates text Text dominates music Often used for church music Often used for secular songs

The Baroque did not invent musical drama. The an- cient Greeks had combined music with drama; in the Middle Ages, music accompanied liturgical plays; and

in the sixteenth century, short but spectacular music dramas called intermedii had entertained audiences between the acts of a play. Even madrigals some- times constituted mini-music dramas, with different voices or combinations of voices answering each other in dialogue form.

However, with the possible exception of the Greeks, musicians before the Baroque period had not produced a type of vocal music suitable for a full- length music drama. The several independent voices of a polyphonic madrigal made it difficult to follow a complex text. Even the solo madrigal, a late- sixteenth-century solo song with instrumental accompaniment, remained too de- pendent on musical considerations to enhance the expression of a lengthy text. On the other hand, the new type of vocal writing introduced by the Florentine monodists was eminently suited for dramatic recitation. The invention of mon- ody, in fact, was of unparalleled importance to the history of Western music, demonstrating for the first time that a soloist could express a text clearly and dramatically while singing beautiful music. The earliest operas (musical dra- mas sung throughout) consisted almost entirely of the new style. Less elaborate than some of the earlier intermedii, the earliest operas, composed around 1600, set the same librettos (texts) to music over and over again. The well-known sto- ries, based on Greek mythology, gripped audiences’ attention with the expres- siveness of the new singing style and with the sheer beauty of the highly trained singing voice.

Monteverdi, however, was the first composer to realize that fully successful music drama requires a skillful blending of the literary, visual, and perfor- mance arts. Like his contemporaries Caravaggio and Shakespeare, Monteverdi was a pioneer in the expression of human emotion. His 1607 opera L’Orfeo, a great success in its day and today generally considered the first great opera, formed a powerful bridge between the Renaissance and the Baroque and still profoundly moves audiences in opera houses around the world.

More varied, more complex than monody, Monteverdi’s vocal music lives as magnificent in its own right while pointing toward the elaborate operas of the mature Baroque. In L’Orfeo, Monteverdi demonstrates recognition of two types of solo singing, each implied, though not achieved, by monody: the recitative and the aria.

Recitative

The word recitative (from the same root as recitation) refers both to a particular style of singing and to a particular piece of music. The style is closely related to spoken declamation, and the piece is a section of music sung in that style. Several characteristics of recitative render it particularly suitable for the rapid exchange of dialogue or the efficient and economical presentation of a long text.

T h i r t e e n Dramatic Music of the Baroque 123

_ _

EARLY OPERA

res-i-tah-t¯evⴕ(or reh-chih-tah-t¯evⴕ)

Melody The melody of a recitative reflects something of the natural inflec- tion that would occur in a spoken presentation of the text. The vocal range of a recitative is usually rather narrow, as it is in speech, although extremely high or low pitches may be used for descriptive or dramatic purposes.

Rhythm The rhythm of recitative is free or flexible, with the words nor- mally set in syllabic style. The rhythm may be metered, but in performance the singer freely adapts the rhythm to that of the text.

_ _

“Tu se’ morta” from L’Orfeo

Composer: Claudio Monteverdi (1567–1643)

First produced: 1607

Genre: Recitative.

Texture: Homophonic. The bass line indicates the chords to be filled in by the accompanying keyboard instrument.

Harmony: Basically tonal. Dissonance is used for expressive effect.

Timbre: A solo tenor voice accompanied by a portable organ and a bass lute.

Melody: The chromatic, declamatory melody line appears motivated more by textual than by purely musical concerns.

Rhythm: Replicates that of the text as it would be spoken. Occasional pauses (such as after the first word, “Tu . . .”) effectively indicate Orfeo’s highly emotional state.

When Orpheus (Orfeo) learns of Euridice’s death, he vows in despair to follow her to the underworld.

Text:

Tu se’ morta, se’ morta, Thou art perished, art perished,

mia vita. beloved,

ed io respiro, and I yet linger,

tu se’ da me partita, thou art from me departed, se’ da me partita per mai più, art from me departed forever, mai più non tornare, yea never returning,

ed io rimango nò! Nò! And I remain here—no! no! che sei versi alcuna cosa ponno, for if verses may have any power, n’andrò sicu ro al più profondi then shall I seek the most profound

abissi, abysses,

e in tenerito il cor del rè del and with my song entreat the king of

l’ombre, shadows

meco trarotti a riverder to let me bring thee to see again the

le stelle, heavens,

o se ciò negherammi empio destino, or if this cruel fortune still denies me, rimarò teco in compagnia I shall stay with thee within the realm

di morte! of shadows!

Addio terra, Farewell earth, then, Addio cielo, farewell heavens, e sole, addio. and sunlight, forever.

Reprinted from Masterpieces of Music Before 1750. Compiled and Edited by Carl Parrish and John F. Ohl, by permission of W. W. Norton & Com- pany, Inc. Copyright 1951 by W. W. Norton & Company, Inc. Copyright renewed 1979 by John F. Ohl and Catherine C. Parrish.

L I S T E N I N G E X A M P L E

1 6

Form Recitative is flexible in form, adaptable to the demands of the text.

Texture Recitative is generally homophonic in texture, consisting of a vocal line supported by an instrumental accompaniment.

1. Dry recitative is accompanied by occasional chords played on a keyboard, or by a small group of instruments.

2. Accompanied recitative is accompanied by an orchestra.

“Tu se’ morta” (Listening Example 16) is generally referred to as a recitative, though it has the emotional expressiveness later associated more often with arias. In this poignant soliloquy from Monteverdi’s L’Orfeo, Orpheus grieves over the death of his beloved wife, Euridice. Notice Monteverdi’s dramatic use of word painting, setting stele (stars) and sole (sun) to high tones and taking abissi (abysses) and morte to the depths of tenor range.

Aria

An aria (in English works sometimes called an “air”) is more closely concerned with music than with text. It often corresponds to a dramatic soliloquy, provid- ing the opportunity for reflection on, and emotional reaction to, events that have occurred in the drama and/or have been related through recitative. In this sense, the aria was well adapted to the Baroque doctrine of the affections, con- fined as it was to the expression of a particular mood or emotional state. The text of a Baroque aria is usually rather short, with words and phrases repeated for dramatic emphasis and for musical organization.

Arias differ from recitatives in melody, rhythm, form, and accompaniment. (See Table 13.2.)

Melody Arias often have soaring melody lines, designed to move the emo- tions and display the beauty of the singing voice. Since the text is of secondary importance, there may be ample opportunity for vocal display. During the

T h i r t e e n Dramatic Music of the Baroque 125

_ _ Yu-rih_ⴕ-dih-s¯e (English) or ¯ A-oo-rih-d¯e_ⴕ-ch¯a (Italian)

TA B L E

1 3 . 2

Recitative Aria

Melody Close to spoken inflection Designed to express emotion Usually narrow range and display the singing

of pitch voice Rhythm Free, flexible Metered

Form Flexible, adapted to text Follows a formal design Texture Homophonic Homophonic

Accompaniment Keyboard (dry) or Orchestra orchestra (accompanied)

Baroque, singers were expected to add elaborate embellishments to the melody, especially during the repetition of a section of the piece.

Rhythm An aria has metered rhythm and is performed with less distortion of the rhythm than is typical of recitative.

Form An aria has a formal design. One frequently used form is the da capo

aria, which has an ABA design. The first section (A) and the second (B), usually contrasting in mood, melodic material, and key, are presented; then the singer repeats section A, usually adding vocal embellishments.

Accompaniment An aria is accompanied by the orchestra, which not only supports the vocal line and enriches the sonority but often has a melodic function as well, introducing or imitating phrases of the vocal line and provid- ing instrumental preludes and interludes.

Much as with the madrigal, the British imported Ital- ian opera but then invented their own style of opera in the English language. One of the greatest English com- posers of all time, Henry Purcell (Figure 13.1), excelled in the creation of vocal

126 P a r t T h re e The Baroque (1600–1750) _ _

HENRY PURCELL

(C. 1659–1695)

dramatic works, including the brief but lovely opera Dido and Aeneas, written for performance by the limited resources at a girls’ boarding school.

A boy chorister in the Chapel Royal until his voice broke earlier than normal, Purcell then assumed other musical chores at the court, soon becoming a fine organist, a knowledgeable keeper of instruments, and a music copyist. He wrote sacred choral music, numerous keyboard works, and fine instrumental music, all revealing his mastery of canon and of ground bass: the art of compos- ing a piece over a bass ostinato. The bass pattern, or ground, “obstinately” re- curs throughout the piece, supporting the melody and harmonies above it. Purcell’s moving aria “When I am laid in earth,” from Dido and Aeneas, illus- trates his gift for composing over a ground. Further, this aria and the recitative that precedes it (Listening Example 17) beautifully illustrate many of the prin- ciples we have outlined distinguishing these two dramatic vocal forms from each other.

The first public opera house opened in Venice in 1637, and soon there were opera houses in other Italian cities and other countries as well. But by the early eighteenth

century, the classical ideals of the Florentine Camerata had been overturned. No longer did opera purport to express a dramatic text simply and naturally. The drama now had become a mere framework around which composers and stage designers created marvelous musical and visual effects. Staging, costumes, and scenery grew ever more elaborate. With the aid of complicated machinery, gods flew to earth, people ascended to heaven, and earthquakes, fires, and tem- pests added to the entertainment. At an opera staged by Bernini in Rome, a “fire” on the stage appeared so real that the audience fled from the theater! It seems ironic that the classically inspired monody led very soon to the extrav- agant, flamboyant, romantic form of later Baroque opera.