A performance guide to JS Bach's viola Dav Gamba … · GUIDE TO J.S. BACH’S VIOLA DA GAMBA...
Transcript of A performance guide to JS Bach's viola Dav Gamba … · GUIDE TO J.S. BACH’S VIOLA DA GAMBA...
Univers
ity of
Cap
e Tow
n
APERFORMANCEGUIDETOJ.S.BACH’SVIOLADAGAMBASONATASTRANSCRIBEDFORVIOLA
by
AzraIsaacs
ThisdissertationissubmittedinpartialfulfilmentoftherequirementsfortheDegreeofMasterofMusic.
SOUTHAFRICANCOLLEGEOFMUSIC
UNIVERSITYOFCAPETOWN
2014
Supervisor:ProfessorRebekkaSandmeier
The copyright of this thesis vests in the author. No quotation from it or information derived from it is to be published without full acknowledgement of the source. The thesis is to be used for private study or non-commercial research purposes only.
Published by the University of Cape Town (UCT) in terms of the non-exclusive license granted to UCT by the author.
Univers
ity of
Cap
e Tow
n
2
DECLARATION
Iherebydeclarethat“AperformanceguidetoJ.S.Bach’sVioladagambasonatas
transcribedforViola”ismyownworkandthatallsourcesthatIhaveusedor
quotedhavebeenindicatedandacknowledgedbymeansofcompletereferences.
Signed:_______________________________________
Date:_______________________________________
3
TableofContents
CHAPTERONE–INTRODUCTION ................................................................................. 5FOCALRESEARCHQUESTION ................................................................................................. 5BACKGROUND.............................................................................................................................. 5RESEARCHMETHODOLOGY .................................................................................................... 7LITERATUREOVERVIEW.......................................................................................................... 7LITERATUREONHIP ............................................................................................................................. 7LITERATUREONTHEPERFORMANCEPRACTICEONTHEVIOLADAGAMBA.......... 8EDITIONSOFTHESONATASTRANSCRIBEDFORVIOLA ..................................................... 9LITERATUREONTHEPERFORMANCEPRACTICEONTHEVIOLA................................... 9
CHAPTEROUTLINE ..................................................................................................................10CHAPTER2:HISTORICALLYINFORMEDPERFORMANCE..................................................10CHAPTER3:PERFORMANCEPRACTICEONTHEVIOLADAGAMBA............................10CHAPTER4:EDITIONSOFSONATASTRANSCRIBEDFORVIOLA...................................10CHAPTER5:PERFORMANCEPRACTICEONTHEVIOLA ....................................................11CHAPTER6:HOWTOPLAYBWV1027ONTHEMODERNVIOLA..................................11
CHAPTERTWO:HISTORICALLYINFORMEDPERFORMANCE ...........................12HISTORICALLYINFORMEDPERFORMANCEMOVEMENT............................................12
CHAPTERTHREE:THEVIOLADAGAMBA ...............................................................22PART1..........................................................................................................................................22VIOLTYPES ..............................................................................................................................................22HISTORY....................................................................................................................................................23TREATISES/TUTORS ...........................................................................................................................24
PART2..........................................................................................................................................25FRETS/TEMPERAMENT.....................................................................................................................25FRETS/FINGERING/CHORDALPLAYING ...................................................................................26BOWHOLD/BOWING .........................................................................................................................27RESONANCE/SOUNDQUALITY.......................................................................................................31ORNAMENTATION/BOW/VIBRATO.............................................................................................31
CHAPTERFOUR:THEEDITIONS .................................................................................33BÄRENREITER’SNEUEBACHAUSGABE(NBA)EDITEDBYHANSEPPSTEINWITHACRITICALREPORT ................................................................................................................34BWV1027:SONATANO.1 ................................................................................................................34BWV1028:SONATANO.2 ................................................................................................................35BWV1029:SONATANO.3 ................................................................................................................39
THEVIOLATRANSCRIPTIONS ..............................................................................................39BÄRENREITER,EDITEDBYHANSEPPSTEIN...........................................................................39G.HENLEVERLAG,EDITEDBYERNST‐GÜNTERHEINEMANN .......................................39
BREITKOPF&HÄRTEL,EDITEDBYERNSTNAUMANN................................................43BWV1027.................................................................................................................................................44BWV1028.................................................................................................................................................47BWV1029.................................................................................................................................................50
TECHNIQUESOFTRANSCRIBINGFORVIOLA ..................................................................53CONCLUSION ..............................................................................................................................56
CHAPTERFIVE:THEVIOLA ..........................................................................................57TREATISES ..................................................................................................................................57TECHNICALFACTORS..............................................................................................................57HOLDINGTHEVIOLA ..........................................................................................................................57FINGERING...............................................................................................................................................59ARTICULATION ......................................................................................................................................63
4
PHYSICALFACTORS .................................................................................................................65PRE‐TOURTEVERSUSTOURTEBOW ..........................................................................................65GUTVERSUSSTEELSTRINGS ..........................................................................................................66PITCHANDALTERNATETUNINGS ...............................................................................................67
STYLISTICFACTORS ................................................................................................................68VIBRATO....................................................................................................................................................68DYNAMICS ................................................................................................................................................68
COMMONBAROQUERHYTHMS ...........................................................................................69SYNCOPATION........................................................................................................................................69THEDACTYL............................................................................................................................................69DOTTEDRHYTHMS ..............................................................................................................................70
BAROQUEBOWTECHNIQUES...............................................................................................70INÉGALETECHNIQUE .........................................................................................................................70SLOWBOW...............................................................................................................................................70
MESSADIVOCE………………………………………………………………………………………………..71PERFORMANCEPRACTICE.....................................................................................................71
CHAPTERSIX:HOWTOPERFORMBWV1027ONAMODERNVIOLA ............74MOVEMENTI:ADAGIO.............................................................................................................75BOWING.....................................................................................................................................................75FINGERING...............................................................................................................................................76USEOFDOTS ...........................................................................................................................................77
MOVEMENTII:ALLEGROMANONTANTO .........................................................................78BOWING.....................................................................................................................................................78FINGERING...............................................................................................................................................79
MOVEMENTIII:ANDANTE ......................................................................................................79BOWING.....................................................................................................................................................79FINGERING...............................................................................................................................................80
MOVEMENTIV:ALLEGROMODERATO................................................................................80BOWING.....................................................................................................................................................80FINGERING ...............................................................................................................................................80
FIRSTHANDEXPERIENCE .....................................................................................................81BIBLIOGRAPHY.................................................................................................................83
5
CHAPTERONE–INTRODUCTION
FOCALRESEARCHQUESTIONAsaviolaplayerwhoiscurrentlylearningthevioladagambasonatas,Ihave
notedasignificantdearthofliteratureinthisfocalarea.Thishasbeen
particularlyevidentwhenapproachingtheviolatranscriptionsofBach’ssolo
cellosuitesandvioladagambasonatas.
MyaimistocreateaperformanceguidetoJ.S.Bach’sThreeSonatasforviolada
gambaandHarpsichord(BWV1027‐1029),transcribedforviola.Ishallbe
comparingthreeeditionsofviolatranscriptionstoBärenreiter’sNeueBach
Ausgabe,editedbyHansEppstein.Thiscomparisonwillfocusonarticulation
markingsandothereditorialdevicesusedtoadaptthesonatasfortheviola.
AnanalysisofthearticulationusedbyBachandhiscopyistscanonlybe
undertakenifperformancepracticeofthetimeisunderstood.The“Historically
InformedPerformance”(HIP)movementiscentraltothisunderstanding,and
hasbeenthetopicofmuchrecentdebate.Althoughthevioladagambaandviola
arebothstringinstruments,theydifferinsizeandemploydifferenttechniques.
Thus,shouldthearticulationandtimbreoftheformerbeimitatedinplayingthe
latter?Orshouldtheuniquequalitiesoftheviolabeembracedtocreatea
distinctsound?
Thus,myinterestinthisresearchtopicwaspiquednotonlybytheneedfor
interpretativeclarification;butalsobythepotentialtoaddressthespecific
technicaldifficultiesarisingduetothemechanicsoftheviola.
BACKGROUNDThethreesonatasforvioladagambaandharpsichordarebelievedtobe
arrangementsofworksoriginallyintendedforothercombinationsof
instruments.Thefirstofthese,BWV1027,isbasedonanearlierversionfortwo
flutesandbassocontinuo(BWV1039)whichinturncouldhavebeenan
arrangementofyetanearlierversion.BWV1027istheonlyoneexistingin
autograph.ItthereforehasaclearerandmorereliabledepictionofBach’s
writingforvioladagambawithregardstoarticulationmarkings.
6
Throughouthislifeandcareer,J.S.Bachviewedtranscriptionasaformofnew
composition(Paul.1953:308).AsachoirboyinLüneberg,hefirstrealisedthe
valueofcopyingtheworksofestablishedmastersasameansofabsorbing
technicalprinciplesandkeyconcepts(Paul.1953:308).DuringhisWeimar
period(1708‐1716),thisliteralcopyingdevelopedinto“freetranscription”,
whichultimatelyyieldedsixteenworksforharpsichordandanotherthreefor
organ,allofwhicharefreetranscriptionsofviolinconcertos.
Bachusedtranscriptionasameansof“refashioning”originalandadaptedworks,
inpursuitof“self‐expressionanddevelopmentofhiscraft”(Paul.1953:306).To
betruetotheworksofthegreatmasters,Rutledge(1979)suggeststhatone
shouldattempttorecapturetheirvisionduringthecompositionstage.Should
thisethosthenbefollowedwhenapproachingtheworksofBach‐acomposer
knownforrepeatedlytranscribingworksofhisownandothersinorderto
achievenewpossibilities?Inotherwords,shouldonealwaysstrivetoimitate
oldsounds;orratheraimtocreateanewstylebasedonoldmethods?According
toPaul(Paul.1953:307),Bach(asatranscriber)wasneveracceptingofthe
scrupulousadherencetohisoriginalideas.
Afterthedemiseofthevioladagamba,manysonataswereindangerofbeing
laidtorest.However,theenduringenthusiasmforandmusicalmeritofBach’s
workensuredthatishasbeenpreservedthroughtheages.Atthetime,themost
commonchoicetoreplacethevioladagambawasthecello,asbothareplayed
betweentheknees,andsharecommontechniqueandregister.Bycomparison,
theviolaisplayedonthearmanditsregisterisanoctavehigherthanthatofthe
violadagamba.Thus,thebodyofworkfocussedonperformanceconsiderations
forthecelloismoresubstantial,althoughitshouldbenotedthattheseare
rationalisedsuggestionsandopinionsthatformpartofanongoingdebate,rather
thanrigidlyformalisedmodels.PeterMartens,inhisdissertation,Inspiredbythe
Past,providesapracticalguideforcellistsintheexecutionofBaroquemusicon
moderninstrumentswithspecialreferencetoJSBach’sSixSuitesforSoloCello
(2007).
7
TheinterpretationofBach’smusichasalwaysbeencontroversial‐bothfor
musiciansandacademics;forpuristsandforthosewhoadvocatecomplete
personalfreedom.Itfollows,then,thatthedebateoftraditionversusfreedom
shouldpermeatethecurrentliterature,includingtherelativelysmallbodyof
workthatpertainstothevioladagambasonatasplayedontheviola.Thus,there
isasubstantialopportunityforfurtherresearchandinvestigationinthisfield.
RESEARCHMETHODOLOGYInordertoformulateanoriginalperformanceguidetotheThreeSonatas,Ishall
beginbyselectingthosesonatasthatareparticularlysuitedtotheviola.For
thoselesssuitable,Ishallassesstheirpotentialformodification.Thereafter,I
shallcomparethreeeditionsofviolatranscriptionstoBärenreiter’sNeueBach
Ausgabe(NewBachEdition)editedbyHansEppsteinoftheThreeSonatasfor
VioladaGambaandHarpsichord(BWV1027‐1029);focussingontheeditorial
techniquesusedanddecisionstakentoadaptthesonatasforviola.
Tobetterformulatewaysofapproachingtheperformanceaspectofthesonatas
ontheviola,anunderstandingofhowtheywereplayedandsoundedontheviola
dagambaisimportant.Thedevelopmentofthemodernviolaanditscapabilities
arecrucialintherealisationofanewand/orimitativesound.
LITERATUREOVERVIEW
LITERATUREONHIP
NicholasKenyonhascompiledabookofessaysbytheleadingcriticsand
academicsinthefieldof‘Authenticity’inearlymusicandbeyond(Kenyon.
1988).Thegroupofessays,raisingrecurringthemesaboutthenatureof
‘authenticity,’shinelightonthefollowingdebates:Istheuseofperiod
instrumentsinre‐creatingthemusicofthepastasignificantfactorwhen
comparedtomusicalunderstanding,culturalandsocialcontext,acoustical
conditionsandconcert‐givingsituations?Canthecomposerexpecttoholdany
influenceoverhis/hermusiconcehe/shehaswrittenit,andisthereamoral
obligationonthepublictofulfiltheoriginalintention?Istheunderstandingofa
pieceofmusicenhancedbyrestrictingoneselftousingonlythosemeansthat
8
wereavailableatthetimeofcomposition?Ifso,wouldthisthennotinhibitfull
self‐expressioninthemodernage?Kenyonstatesthatitisimpossibletore‐
createthepastwhenexecutingitinthepresent–aviewreminiscentof
Taruskin’sstandingthatHIPisaformoftwentiethcenturymodernism
(Taruskin.1995).
Inhisextensivestudyofbaroqueornamentation,Emery(Emery.1953)provides
substantial18thcenturyevidenceandagoodbasisforanunderstandingof
Bach’sintentions.Morerecently,JohnButt(Butt.2002)haspublishedPlaying
withHistory–anambitiousstudyofrecentdebatesonthetopicoftheEarly
Musicmovementandhistoricallyinformedperformance.
LITERATUREONTHEPERFORMANCEPRACTICEONTHEVIOLADA
GAMBA
Inhischronologicalaccountofthesoundofthevioladagamba,Rutledge(1991)
attemptstodecipherthemysterysurroundingtheinstrument.Inhiswork,he
recountsthesentimentsofHenrySaint‐George(oneofthemostactive
reintegratersstrivingtoreintroducetheviolintothemusicallifeofthetimes),
statingthattoplaynothingbuttheoldmusicisnottorevivetheinstrument
(viol)butforittosimplyremainwhereitwasbefore(Rutledge.1991:410).
Further,hesuggestsapproachingtheviolinamodernwaytogiveitnewlife
(Rutledge.1991:410).Thisposesthequestion:isitnecessarytoimitatethe‘old’
soundofthevioladegambaontheviolaconsideringitmaybe‘old‐fashioned’
andoutdated?
IntheirarticleentitledViol(grovemusiconline),RobinsonandWoodfieldprovide
acomprehensivehistoryofthedevelopmentoftheviol‐fromitsfifteenth
centuryoriginstoitsmodernrevival(Woodfield.Grovemusiconline.)Annette
Otterstedtalsoprovidesadequateliteratureonthetopic(Otterstedt.2002).In
hisearlywork,BachInterpretation:ArticulationmarksinPrimarysourcesofJ.S.
Bach,Butt(1990)attemptstoassessBach’suseofarticulationmarkingssuchas
slurs,dotsandstrokesinautographmanuscripts(oneofwhichisBWV1027).
ThispublicationprovidesinsightintoBach’smusicalstyleandcomposition
methods,thusalsoinformingthereaderofhisarticulationstyleandpatterns.It
9
encompassesthehistory,style,analysisandperformanceofBach’smusicandis
aninvaluableresourcetothoseinterestedinthefield
EDITIONSOFTHESONATASTRANSCRIBEDFORVIOLA
Ishallcomparethreeeditionsofthesonatastranscribedforviolato
Bärenreiter’sNeueBachAusgabe(NewBachEdition),editedbyHansEppsteinof
theoriginalscoringforvioladagamba.TheseeditionswillincludeBärenreiter
Kassel,publishedin1987,editedbyHansEppstein;G.HenleVerlag,publishedin
2000,editedbyErnst‐GünterHeinemann;andBreitkopfandHärtelin1947,
editedbyErnstNaumann.ThecriticalreportbyHansEppsteinwillprovide
insightintotheseeditorialdecisions.Inparticular,Ishallfocusontheeditorial
techniquesusedanddecisionstakentoadaptthesonatasforviola.
LITERATUREONTHEPERFORMANCEPRACTICEONTHEVIOLA
Stowell(Stowell.2001)providesanexcellenthistoricaldescriptionoftheearly
styleofviolaplaying.Thisispivotalinunderstandinghowbesttoapproachthe
sonatasontheviola.Inhiswork,Stowelldiscussestheliterature,historyand
repertoireoftheviolinandviola,andconsidersvariousrelatedinstruments.
Similarstudies(Lee.2004;Morris.1991)havebeenundertakentodescribethe
cellosuitesthatweretranscribedforviola.Anumberofviolaperiodicalsarealso
availablethatmayprovideinsightintotheprogressionofplayingmethod.These
includeTheAmericanViolaResearchSociety,TheBritishViolaResearchSociety
andTheInternationalViolaResearchSociety.IntheirarticleentitledViola
(Boyden,DandWoodward,A.grovemusiconline),BoydenandWoodward
provideageneralhistoryoftheviolafromitsconstructioninthe19thand20th
centuriestoitsplaceincontemporarymusicsociety.Furtherinsightinto
ornamentationcanalsobegleanedfromtheworkbyMcCarty(1997),which
summarisestheviewsoffiveleadingviolaperformersattemptingtoclarify
certainperformancepracticeissues.
10
CHAPTEROUTLINE
CHAPTER2:HISTORICALLYINFORMEDPERFORMANCE
Performancepracticeinvolvesallaspectsofmusicperformance–bothpastand
present.Itisofparticularrelevancetothemodernperformerconcernedwith
HistoricallyInformedPerformance(HIP).Fourmajorfacetsshouldbe
consideredwhenexploringperformancepracticesofthepast:a)notation(the
relationshipbetweenhownoteswerewrittenandhowtheywereintendedto
sound.Relevantcomponentsincludetempo,rhythmandarticulation);b)
improvisationandornaments;c)mattersoftuning,pitchandtemperament;and
d)instruments–theirhistory,mechanicsandmethodsofplaying.InChapter2,I
shalllookmorecloselyattheperformance(technique)andstructure
(technology)ofstringinstruments,specificallythevioladagambaandviola.
CHAPTER3:PERFORMANCEPRACTICEONTHEVIOLADAGAMBA
Anunderstandingofthesoundandmechanicsofthevioladagambaiscriticalin
ordertoplaythesesonatasontheviola.Chapter3willaddresstechniquesof
performancepracticeonthevioladagamba,includingbowing,articulationand
ornamentation.Themechanicsoftheinstrumentwillalsobereviewed,asthis
mayhaveinfluencedthekindofmusicwrittenforit.Forexample,theconcave
shapeofthebowcreatesaspecificnuanceofsound(Woodfield&Robinson.
grovemuisconline).
CHAPTER4:EDITIONSOFSONATASTRANSCRIBEDFORVIOLA
Thischapterwillincludeananalysisofthreeeditionstranscribedforviola.They
willbecomparedtoBärenreiter’sNeueBachAusgabe(NBA)oftheThree
SonatasforVioladaGambaandHarpsichord(BWV1027‐1029)editedbyHans
Eppstein,whichinturnwillalsobeanalysed.Thethreeeditionsinclude
BärenreiterKassel,publishedin1987,editedbyHansEppstein;G.HenleVerlag,
publishedin2000,editedbyErnst‐GünterHeinemann;andBreitkopfandHärtel,
editedbyErnstNaumann.
HansEppstein’scriticalreportonthesonatasprovidesanin‐depthanalysisof
editorialadditionsandchangesmadetoBach’sautographofBWV1027and
11
copyists’partsforBWV1028and1029.Thesechangesrefermainlyto
articulationmarkingssuchasslursanddots.
Inanalysingtheeditionsfortranscribedviola,thefollowingeditorialtechniques
willbeaddressed:transposition,articulationandornamentation.Bachhad
intendedforthesonatastobeplayedonasix‐stringedvioladagamba.The
implicationofthisisthat,whentranscribedforviola,certainsectionshadtobe
transposedtoamoresuitableregister.Chordswerealsoaffectedandtherefore
adapted.
CHAPTER5:PERFORMANCEPRACTICEONTHEVIOLA
Thischapterwillexplorethepossibilityofimitatingthesoundandarticulation
producedonthevioladagambaonthemodernviola.Inordertoaddressthis
topic,areviewofthehistoryanddevelopmentoftheviolaisrequired.Thiswill
includeaspectsofdesign,soundproductionandarticulation.Itishopedthatthis
chapterwillprovidetheknowledgeandtechniquesneededtoapproachthe
sonatasontheviola.
CHAPTER6:HOWTOPLAYBWV1027ONTHEMODERNVIOLA
InlieuofaconclusionthischapterwillapplytheBaroqueperformancepractice
techniquesdiscussedinthepreviouschaptertotheexecutionofBWV1027on
theviola.
12
CHAPTERTWO:HISTORICALLYINFORMEDPERFORMANCE
“PlayingBaroqueworksoninstrumentstheircomposerscouldnothave
knownbutwhichtheaudiencesareexpectedtoacceptasmodern
equivalentsisaformofunacknowledgedtranscription.”(Walls.2003.140)
HISTORICALLYINFORMEDPERFORMANCEMOVEMENTTheHistoricallyInformedPerformance(HIP)movementisoneofthemost
significantperformancestylestohaveemergedfromthetwentiethcentury.
However,ithaslongbeenshroudedincontroversyandcriticism,givingrisetoa
growingscholarlyandcriticaldebate.PioneersinthisfieldincludeLaurence
Dreyfus,HowardMayerBrownandRichardTaruskin.InhiswritingsTaruskin
suggeststhatHIPisasymptomoflatetwentiethcenturymodernism.Further,he
purportsthatverylittleinhistoricalperformanceistrulyhistorical,assomany
aspectsofperformancehavetobeinventedfromexistingpractices(Butt.
grovemusiconline).
TheHIPmovementbeganasameansofrevivingforgottenrepertoires,instruments
andperformancepractices.Inmorerecenttimes,thismovementhasgarnered
muchcontroversy,withopinionsdifferingonwhichconsiderationsandrulesneed
tobefollowed.Taruskinobservesthatthosewhoaimtoperforminahistorically
informedway,byusingperiodinstrumentsandrevivingoldplayingtechniques,
tendto“pickandchoosefromhistory’swares.”Therearemanyexampleswhere
performersofearlymusicknowinglydisregardthehistoricalevidencewhereverit
doesnotconformtotheirideaof‘thetruth’andstillpassitoffasbeingauthentic
(Taruskin.1995:165).Thismayleadto‘unhistoricalsounds’masqueradingas
historicalorauthentic.TheperformanceofHandel’soperasisoftencitedasone
suchexample.Duetotherarityofcapablefalsettistsatthetime,femaleperformers
wouldoftenbedressedasyoungmen.However,intoday’sperformance,the
countertenorispreferred.Taruskinclaimsthatalthoughthismaynotbe
historicallycorrect,itisindeed“authentic.”Heremindsusthathistorical
performanceisthesoundofnownotthen.Theauthenticityisnotderivedfromits
historicalresemblancebutfromitsbeingareflectionof20th‐centurytaste.Whydo
westrivetoplayhistorically,withthepossibilityofmisinterpretingthemusic,
13
whenwecancreatesomethingperhapsmorerelevanttotoday’saudiencesand
performers?
Further,Taruskinsuggeststhatanimitationofearly20th‐centuryrecordingsoflate
19th‐centurymusiccaninfactserveasatemplateforhistorically‐informed
performance.However,inrecenttimes,thisviewhasfallenoutoffavour,asthe
modernaudiencetendstodisregardtheseoriginalrecordings.Taruskincautionsthat
historyshouldnotbeforgotten–thatthemusicofthepastshouldnotbeabandoned,
butratherremadeintheimageofthepresent.HecriticizestheHIPmovementforits
lackofcreativity,attributingthistotherigidityofclassicalperformance
expressionism.
ThroughoutTaruskin’swork,thereisapervasiveconcernthattheessenceoftheHIP
movementshouldbepreserved.Hequestionswhethermodernismcouldthreatenthe
aimofHIP,thereliabilityofhistoricalinformationandtheintentionoftheperformers.
Healsoobjectstothedogmaticadherenceonlytoinstrumentsorstylesthatare
historicallycorrect,asthismaydevalueotheraspectsoftheperformance.Iagreewith
theseconcerns.Ideally,oneshouldbeeducatedonallaspectsoftheperformanceprior
toselectinganindividualisedstyle,whichitselfshouldbecolouredbytheperformer’s
owntaste.
AUTHENTICITY
HowardMayerBrown,anexpertinthefieldofAuthenticityinPerformancesuccinctly
summarisesitsfocaldebateasfollows:“Shouldweplaymusicinthewaythe
composerintendedit,orattheveryleastinawayhiscontemporariescouldhave
heardit”(Brown.grovemusiconline)?Hegoesontopositthatitisinfactimpossibleto
createastrictlyauthenticperformance,asuncertaintyaboutitscompositevariables
(suchasthecomposer’soriginalintentions)willalwaysexist.Further,evenifsuch
comprehensiveknowledgewereattainable,thereasonsforperformingmusichave
evolvedovertime.Thus,thecentralcontroversyoftheHIPmovementliesinthe
selectionoftheindividualvariables,whichshouldbecompromised.
Inthetwentiethcenturyalone,therehavebeenmajorchangesinperformancestyles,
sound,techniquesandtechnology.Somerepertories,however,callforspecific
14
techniquesandoriginalinstrumentation.Whentheparticularbalanceofthe
instrumentplaysanessentialroleincreatingtheappropriatecharacterinapiece,itis
perhapstheneffectivetousetheoriginalinstrumentation.Thisisparticularly
applicabletoworksoriginating17th‐and18th‐centuryFrance.Brownadvisesthatone
cannotdiscardallmusicofthepastsimplyduetoanapparentpaucityoftheresources
toperformit‘authentically’.Hegoesontoencouragetheperformanceofold
repertoires,evenifinan“inauthentic”way.Hesuggeststhatitisacceptabletoplay
Bach’smusiconmoderninstrumentsasthiswork“canemergeinaperformancethat
translatestheoriginalintomodernterms”(Kenyon.1988:30).
InhisseminalworkonAuthenticity,Haynessuggeststhatexplorationof(ratherthan
strictadherenceto)historicalideasmaybekeytooriginalityandauthenticity
(Haynes.2007:5).Taruskinsupportsthisviewbyadvisingthatadaptationofa
historically‐orientatedframeofmindcanenabletranscendenceofthe“habitual,and
thereforeunconsideredwaysofhearingandthinkingaboutthemusic.”Headdsthat
theintentionoftheperformershouldnotbeto“duplicatethesoundsofthepast,forif
thatwereouraimweshouldneverknowifwesucceeded”(Taruskin.1995:79).
CANONISM
Canonismmaybeconceptualisedasthefundamentalshiftinthinkingthatoccurredin
westernmusicalcultureduringthe19thcentury(Haynes.2007:6).Canonismis
characterisedbyagreatrespectforthecomposer;anobsessionwiththeoriginal
intentionofthecomposer;thepracticeoflisteningintenselytothemusic;andthe
repetitionofalimitednumberofworks(Haynes.2007:6).
HaynessuggeststhatCanonismisuniquetoclassicalmusicanddoesnotexistinany
othermusicalmedium.Baroquecomposers,forexample,wereheldinashighesteem
asweretheRomanticcomposers.Instead,theywereviewedmerelyastalented
craftsmanwhowereabletocomposelargequantitiesofqualitymusic.Oftenthis
musicwasintendedtobeplayedimmediately,andnottoendurethroughtheagesas
“iconicmasterpieces”(Haynes.2007:6).
HaynesdescribestheBaroqueperiodas“acelebrationofephemera”;aperiodwhere
musicthatwasthirtyyearsoldwasconsidered“old.”Thisisinstarkcontrasttothe
15
ethosoftheModernera,inwhichmusiccomposedacenturypriorcouldstillbe
viewedas“modern.”Thisshort‐livedphenomenonlasteduntiltheearly19thcentury,
duringwhichamajorshiftinaestheticoccurred.Sincethen,musicianshaveattempted
toincorporatethis“Romantic”stylisticapproachintotheirperformances(Haynes.
2007:21).However,inthemid‐1960s,anotherparadigmshiftoccurred,andmusicians
ofthetimedeliberatelystartedplayingindifferentstyles,thusgivingcredencetothe
HIPmovement.
Inessence,amusicologistcanonlyequipamusicianwiththeknowledgetoaida
performance.Ultimately,however,itistheresponsibilityofthemusiciantoexpress
themusic.Theroleoftheperformerhaschangeddrasticallyoverthecenturies.The
Baroqueperformerwasacraftsmanratherthananartistand‘served’whenplayingor
composingmusic.Therewerefewerconcertsintendedforpublicviewing,andmusic
wasoftencommissionedforprivateconcerts.Thisisincontrasttotheperformances
oftoday,whichcompriseprimarily“recycled”musicdesignedforpublicviewing.
Unlikecontemporarymusicians,Baroque‐eraperformerswerefarmoreconcerned
withthereactionsoftheiraudiences,astheseindividualswerebelievedtobemore
emotionallyinvolvedinthework..Today,however,musiciansaremoreconcerned
withthecomposers’originalintentionsforthemusic(Haynes.2007:131).
Mellersstatesthat“ourpredecessorstendedtothinkthatnoproblemexisted;one
simplyplayedthemusicaccordingtoinheritedcustom,andifintheprocessthey
refashionedit,thatwastheirright”(Mellers.1992:925).DuringtheageofBeethoven
andWagner,‐beforetheHIPmovement‐musicwasperformedandinterpretedtofit
theaestheticofthetime(Haynes.2007:26).Haynestermsthisattitude–
chronocentricism–apositioninwhichoneassumesthatone’sowntimeorperiod
representsthereferencepoint.Thisattituderemainedthenormwellintothe20th
century,withmanymusiciansseekingtopreservetheirmusicalheritage.Thus,the
conceptofadaptingorchangingone’sperformancestyletomatchthecurrentgenreor
eraofmusicdidnotoccurtothem.Consequently,across‐sectionofmusicalgenres
(includingBaroque,RenaissanceandevenMedieval)wasplayedinastandardised
‘Romantic’way(Haynes.2007:27)wellintothe20thcentury,Throughoutthe19th
century,earlymusicperformancesabounded.Forexample,Mendelssohnwasknown
tohostanumberofBachrevivalsincludingtheSt.MatthewPassionperformancesin
16
1829.Unliketoday,musiciansandaudiencemembersalikeviewedtheworksofthe
pastaspartoftheirpresent.Composersofthetime“lookeduponearlymusicnotasa
bodyofhistoricalartefactstobepainstakinglypreservedintheiroriginalstatebutasa
repositoryoflivingartthateachgenerationcould–indeedshould–reinterpretinits
ownstylisticidiom”(Haskell.2001:831).
Haynesdescribessymphonymusiciansasworkingwithinanacknowledgedtradition‐
theyplayrepertoirefromcenturiesagobutconsideritascurrent.Thus,they
approachallmusicalstylesinthesameway.Becausethemusiciansarenotthinking
historicallywhenperforming,theyarenotplayingso.“Onewaytobringthemusicof
thepastintothepresentandthenintothesphereoftimelessnesswastostripitofits
original,localandextra‐musicalmeanings.Byseveringallsuchconnections,itwas
possibletothinkofitnowasfunctionless.Allonehadtodonextwasimposeuponthe
musicmeaningsappropriateforthenewaesthetic”(Goehr.1992:246).Thisisan
archetypicallyRomanticconceptasitdescribesmusicenduringthroughtheages–a
conceptrejectedbyHIP.
Haynesrecommendsapproachingearlymusicwithanopenmind.Hearguesthatitis
impossibletoknowwithcertaintywhatmusicandinstrumentswerereallylikeinthe
Baroqueperiod.Thus,ouraimshouldnotbetostriveforperfection,aswewillnever
knowifwehavesucceeded.Rather,ourgoalshouldbetostriveto“realizethestyleas
weperceiveitatthisparticularmoment”(Haynes.2007:120).
IMPROVISATION/ORNAMENTATION
AmaincharacteristicoftheBaroqueperiodwastheuseofimprovisationin
performance‐nottobeboundorrestrictedbywhatwaswrittendown.Tobea
successfulmusicianofthetime,oneneededtopossesstheabilitytoplayandcompose
musicondemand.ImprovisationwasthuspartofthemusicallanguageoftheBaroque
period.Asaresultofthismusicaltraining,composersusedashort‐handofsortswhen
writingascore(analogoustoaroughsketch,orskeleton),rarelymakinguseofmarks
toindicateexpressionsuchasphrasing,dynamics,note‐shapingandflexibilityof
tempo.Thesegestures,whichwereeliminatedinthescore,wereimpliedinthe
playingstyleofthetime.Thiskindof‘thin’writingallowedtheperformerstousetheir
ownspontaneousinput,whichultimatelycharacterisedthefreedomandexpressive
17
qualityoftheBaroquestyle(Haynes.2007:4).Eachtimeapieceofmusicwasheard,it
wasdifferent,evenwhenplayedbythesameplayer.Itwasthisfeelingofflexibility
thatallowedthemusictobeplayedinmanymediawithmanycombinationsof
instruments(Haynes.2007:4).
IncontrasttothemusiciansoftheBaroqueperiod,performersoftodaydonotpossess
theinherentabilitytoimprovise.Inrecenttimes,therehasbeenashiftfromfreedom
toexpresstoanobligationtoplayexactlywhatiswritten.Haynesclaimsthat
contemporarytraininghasbecome“overspecialized”‐“theabilitytocreatemusichas
becometotallyseparatefromcreatingit”(Haynes.2007:3).Hebelievesthat
musiciansoftodayshould“sharethesenseoffreedomthatmusiciansfeltatthe
[Baroque]time.”Inordertoachievethissenseoffreedom,oneshouldtaketheroleof
arranger/co‐composer.AccordingtoHaynes’,“habitualCanonicthinking”–playing
thesamepiecesoverandoveragain‐hasimpairedmodernmusicians’abilityto
improvise(Haynes.2007:203).Notationisanotherfactorthatstuntsself‐expression‐
a“limiter”,inChristopherSmall’sview(Small.1998:110).PriortotheRomanticera
(pre‐IndustrialRevolution),musicianswerebetterequippedinthespheresof“orality
andliteracy.”TheywereeducatedtointerpretBaroquepartsthatoftenlacked
performanceinstruction(Haynes.2007:204).Baroquemusicianswereabletoread
andimproviseequallywell.
Whendiscussingtherelationshipbetweenperformerandcomposerduringthe
Baroqueera,Haynesstatesthat“thecomposerwritestheplainair,providingthe
performerwithinspirationandmaterialandtheperformercontributesunwritten
additionsonthespot.”Thus,therolesoftheperformerandcomposerwerepairedas
they“decidedhowtorealizetheeffect”ofthemusic.Handel’sorganconcertos,opus4
andopus7,havemovementsmarked“Adagioadlib”and“Fugaadlib,”which
containednowrittensolopart.Handelexpectedthemusiciantobeabletoimprovise
appropriately(Haynes.2007:205).
“Gracing,”atermusedfortheadditionofgracenotes,wasamainfeatureofthe
improvisatorystyleoftheBaroqueandwasadevicetoaddbeautyandsubstanceto
themusic.Itwas“toosubtletobecapturedonpaper”andwasintendedtobe“felt”
(particularlyinthe17thcentury).Theexecutionofsuch“graces”was“theultimatetest
18
ofmusicianshipandgraspofstyle,”oftenrevealingtheperformer’ssensitivityand
imagination(Haynes.2007:205).
PERIODVSMODERNINSTRUMENTS
Inhisdiscussionofthetechniquesusedtoperformearlymusic,JohnButtsuggests
thatperiodinstrumentsmaymaketheplayerawareofhistoricaldifferences,thus
forcinghimtorethinkhistechniquesandtoviewhisrepertoireina“newlight”(Butt.
2002:65).Whenengagingthedebateofmodernversusperiodinstruments,Haynes,
likeMalcolmBilson,agreesthat“noperformanceonmoderninstrumentsorsingers
usingoperaticstylecanapproachtheoriginalconception”andsoundofthemusicof
BachandMozart(Haynes.2007:156).Ontheotherhand,CharlesRosenobjectsto“old
instruments,”statingthat“alivingandunbrokenmusicallanguagefromthepast
[shouldbeexpressed]intothenewsoundofcontemporaryinstruments”(Rosen.
2000:211).Rosen’sviewiscontroversialandcontestedbymostwritersinthefield,
includingTaruskinandHaynes.Haynesquestionsthetermusedtoclassifymodern
instrumentsastheseinstrumentsexisted120‐150yearsagoandarethereforenot
modernintheslightest.Hepreferstousetheterm‘Romantic.’Perhapsamore
appropriatetermwouldbe‘Contemporary’whendescribingtheinstrumentsused
today.
Instrumentsareadaptedtomakethemusicofthetimeeasiertoperform.Theperiod
from1760–1840‐historicallyassociatedwiththeIndustrialRevolution‐wasalso
characterisedbyaseriesofsignificantmusicaldevelopments(BaroquetoClassicalto
Romantic)andinstrumentalchanges.Tuningalsobecamestandardisedtoasimple
EqualTemperament(Haynes.2007:151).Itcanbeargued,however,thatthese
changeswerenotalwaysforthebetter.OneexampleistheuseofRomantic
instrumentstoplayBaroque‐erawork.AccordingtoFabian(Fabian.2003),“The
dynamicnuancesanduneventonaltimbresthataresecondnaturetothebaroque
fluteorbaroquebowinghaveacrucialbearingonarticulationasthesedelineate
rhythmicorornamentalgroupsalmostautomatically,whileamodernfluteorviolin
canonlyimitatetheeffectbysubstitutemeanssuchasaccentingandagogic
inflections”(Fabian.2003:247).Further,Haynes’positsthat“better”reallymeans
19
best‐adaptedtothedemandsofthemusic;thatbymatchingtheappropriate
instrumenttotheappropriatemusic,onewillstandthebestchanceatsuccess.
Playingonperiodinstrumentsencouragestheperformertoexperimentwiththeir
soundsandtechniques,buthas“littledirecteffectontheplayer’sstylisticapproachto
themusic”(Haynes.2007:153).Inhisselectionofessays,TextandAct,Taruskinstates
that“instrumentsdonotplaymusic,peopledo”(Taruskin.1995:130).Baroquemusic
ischaracterizedbyquickdynamicchanges,whichareeasiertoexecuteonperiod
instrumentsthanonmodernones.Modernor‘Romantic’instruments,however,are
moreadaptedtolong‐linephrasingtoaccommodateamoreRomanticstyle.Thus,
whenmoderninstrumentsplayearlymusic,theyoftenjoinallthephrasingand
neglectthesubtlenuancesoriginallyfoundinthescore(Haynes.2007:153).
TheperiodbowsandgutstringsalsomakeiteasiertoachievetheeffectsofBaroque
music.AccordingtoHaynes,“theRomanticbowdoesnotaswillinglyshapeeachnote,
theRomanticreeddoesnotallowsuddenandextremechangesofdynamic,[and]the
Romantickeysystemeliminatestheoptionsofalternatefingeringandfinger‐vibrato”
(Haynes.2007:153).Today’sinstrumentsaretunedatapproximatelya’=440Hz,which
isasemitonehigherthantheinstrumentsforwhichBachcomposed.Thishasa
profoundeffectonthesoundqualityandtoneofthemusic,especiallyinworks
involvingsingers.
WhileTaruskinmaynotbeinfullagreementthat“originalinstruments”arenecessary
forearlymusicperformance,hedoessuggestthattheypossesssomepractical
advantagesincertainrepertoires.UsingBeethoven’scellosonatasasanexemplar,he
putsforwardthatproperbalanceoftheseworksisbetterachievedwithafortepiano
ratherthanagrandpiano.Taruskinjudgesthe‘artistry’ofaperformancebythe
performer’sabilitytostrategiseandmakethebestperformancedecision.“Ifabetter
balanceiseasiertoachieveinonemediumthaninanother,thenthoseworkinginthe
hardermediumdeservegreatercreditfortheirbalances”(Taruskin.1995:299).
Taruskinsub‐dividesclassicalmusicasfollows:theHIPmovement,wherenoworkof
artmaybecomprehended,orevenapprehended,exceptintermsofitshistoricity;and
the“mainstreampostmodernism”movement(Taruskin.1995:300).Taruskinbelieves
thatmusicofthepastmaybeexecutedonpresent‐dayinstruments,aslongasitis
20
doneinapost‐modernapproach,devoidofanymetaphysicalorethnocentric
assumptions.Inotherwords,oneshouldapproachthemusicwithoutpreconceived
notionsofhowitshouldsound,asitwouldbeimpossibletorecreatethesamesound
onadifferentinstrument.Althoughmostcellistsshyawayfromplayingtheviolada
gambasonatas,therecentsurgeinskilfulgambaandharpsichordplayershasensured
theseworksarenotneglected.InTaruskin’sview,however,herecallsnorecordingof
thiscombination“inspired”(Taruskin.1995:301).Hegoesontoreviewthreecello‐
pianorecordingsofBach’svioladagambasonatas,includingthe1950performanceby
PabloCasalsandPaulBaumgartner.ThisisanexampleofaBachperformanceinpre‐
modernistdays.Casalsapproachedthemusicinatypicallyromanticway.Ifitwere
viewedfromahistoricallyinformedperspective,itwouldbeconsideredabsurd
(Taruskin.1995:301).Casalswascriticizedfor“playingBachinthestyleofBrahms”
buthewasacontemporaryofBrahmsinatimewhereBach’smusicwasnotseenasa
“deadlanguageinneedofphilologicalrevival”(Taruskin.1995:302).Hesimplyplayed
themusictheonlywayheknewhow.Casalswasnotfacedwiththeproblemof
definingthestyleinwhichheplayedBachheonlyhadtoexcelinit.HeplayedBachin
thestylehewasmostfamiliarwith(inthestyleofBrahms)andthuscreatingasense
ofintimacywithBach.Heplayedinawayhefeltmostcomfortableandcouldtherefore
interpretthemusicinanauthenticway.Thatintimacyislostinmodernhistorical
performance,despitetheinclusionofsoundsthatmorecloselyresemblethe
performancesofBach’stime(Taruskin.1995:302).
AlthoughCasals’styleofperformanceisadmirable,itcannotbeemulatedinthe
presentday.Thisperformerlivedandworkedinahistoricalperiodfarmore
reminiscentofBach’serathanisours(Taruskin.1995:303).Thus,itcanbeargued
thathisauthenticitywas“inherited”(Taruskin.1995:303)fromhispredecessors.
Taruskinpurportsthatmodern‐daymusicianslackthisinherentauthenticity,often
revertingtoobediencetoone’steacherorrelianceonoriginalinstrumentsor
historicalevidence.Hebelievesthatthesearesimplymeansofevadingthe
responsibilityofchoiceanddecision.Inhisview,trulyauthenticinterpretersofmusic
ofthepastarethose“whosestylesowetheleasttogeneralizedpreceptandthemost
toacute,personal,andhighlyspecificobservation”(Taruskin.1995:303).Heuses
GlennGould’sinterpretationofthegambasonatas,inwhichapost‐modernist
21
approachisdepicted,asanexplanatoryexample.Gould’sunique,authenticsoundmay
beattributedtohisinterpretingthemusicthroughitstexture–thethree‐part
counterpointembodiedinthewriting.Gould’stechniquesincludefreelychangingthe
musictosuitthecounterpoint(byaddingchordsadlib),improvising,andexpanding
therhythmtocreateindependencebetweenthetwolines.
ThelastoftherecordingsforcelloandpianoisplayedbyMischaMaiskyandMartha
Argerich.Argerichtriestoimitatethetouchoftheharpsichordonthepiano,andits
styleatthecadences.However,thisresultsinlossof“pianisticintegrity”(Taruskin.
1995:305).
AccordingtoGlennGould(amongothers),Bachwasindifferenttotheinstrumentsfor
whichhecomposed,ratherintendingforhismusicitselftobethefocus.Anopposing
viewisthatBachwasundoubtedlyawareoftheinstrumentsforwhichhecomposed,
andkepttheirspecificaffectsinmind(Haynes.2007:158).Ultimately,thisdebatemay
onlyberesolvedbyindividualmusicianswhoshouldrelyontheirpersonaltasteto
informtheirperformancestyles.
Haynesquestionsthereliabilityoforiginalinstrumentsandadvisesthatimitatingthe
pastmaynotbethebestorwisestoption.Hecautionsthat“wecouldgotoofarwith
duplicatingthepastunthinkingly.Withoutexercisinganyjudgement,wecould
reproducesomecharacteristicthathamperedplayersatthetime…”(Haynes.
2007:159).Ifwemayrectify‘mistakes’orimproveuponthepast,“wemay
inadvertentlyeliminatedifferencesbetweenthepresentandthepast”(Haynes.
2007:159).Anexampleofthiscanbefoundineditionsinwhichbowingandfingerings
havebeenaddedtotheoriginalscore.InHaynes’sview,itis“prematuretoclaimwe
knowmuchyetabouthowmostperiodinstrumentsoriginallysounded,orwere
originallyplayed”(Haynes.2007:162).
22
CHAPTERTHREE:THEVIOLADAGAMBA
Thischapterwillbedividedintwoparts:thehistoryofthevioladagambaand
howitisplayed.Thesectiononitshistorywillincludethetypesofviols,the
playersandthetreatises;andthepracticalsectionwillincludethephysical
aspectsofthevioladagamba,suchasthefrets,temperamentandthebow,and
howtheyaffectthetechnicalapproachtoplayingtheinstrument.Thesetechnical
aspectsincludefingering,chordalplaying,bowingandhowtoholdthebow.
PART1
VIOLTYPES
Throughoutthe16thand17thcenturies,thevioltookonawiderangeofsizesand
forms.Themostpopularofthesewasthebassviol,alsocalledtheviolada
gamba.Duringitsearlyhistory,theviolunderwentconsiderablestructural
change,eventuallybecomingfairlystandardintheearly16thcenturywithits
“deepribs,slopingshouldersandmiddlebouts”(Woodfield.grovemusiconline).
Thebellyandthebackoftheviolareverylightlyconstructedwiththebelly
gentlyarchedandthebackflat,exceptatthetopwhereitslopesintowardsthe
neck.Theneck,too,hasundergonemanychangesduringitsdevelopmental
course.Intheearly17thcenturyitresembledthestructureofacello,andwas
fairlyround.WithsubsequentdevelopmentsinFrenchviolmaking,theneckof
theinstrumentbecameflatter,resemblingthatofalute.Ingeneral,theneckof
Frenchinstrumentswasofthinnerwoodandalsosetatagreaterangle.Thelyra
wasthesmallestofthebassviolfamily,buthasincreasedinsizeovertheyears
withthedivisionandconsortbassviols.Attheendofthe17thcentury,thesize
ofFrenchstringinstrumentstendedtoincrease,asaseventhstringwasadded
andabiggerbodywasrequiredtoaccommodatethechange1.
Likeitsfellowstringinstruments,theviolalsounderwentanumberofstructural
changes,Itacquiredabassbarandsound‐post,anditsneck(whichpreviously
hadbeenstraightandcontinuedthelineoftheupperedgeoftheribs)wasset
backatanangle,thusgivingthestringsgreaterelevation(Brown.1990:69).
1RousseaubelievedMonsieurdeSainteColombéaddedtheseventhstring(Rousseau.1687:24).
23
Mostviolshavesixstrings2.Thestandardsequenceofintervalsofthestrings
consistsofa4th,4th,major3rd,4th,4th.Themostcommontuningsequenceofthe
violsfoundinaconsortare:d‐g‐c’‐e’‐a’‐d”(treble);G‐c‐f‐a‐d’‐g’(tenor)andD‐G‐
c‐e‐a‐d’(bass).
HISTORY
Duringthelate16thandearly17thcenturies,manywell‐knownEnglishviolists
tookupresidenceandemploymentinGermany,Denmark,AustriaandSpain.
Thispopularisedtheuseoftheviolintheseregions,andhadamajorimpacton
itsdevelopment.AmongthemigratingmusicianswereWilliamBrade,Thomas
Simpson,WalterRowe,DanielNorcombe,HenryButelrandWilliamYoung.
BradeandSimpsonpublishedcollectionsofconsortmusicincludingmany
dancesbyEnglishcomposers.NorcombeandButlercomposeddivisionsthat
weregreatlycommended.Butlerwrotemoretaxingandvirtuosomusicforthe
viol,whichexploreditsrange.ThefirstpublishedsonatasbyanEnglishmen
includeWilliamYoung’sSonataea3,4e5fortwotofourviolins,obligatobass
violandcontinuo(1653).ThevirtuositydisplayedbytheseBritishviolistsmay
wellhaveinspiredthesolostyleoftheviol.
ThefrequentuseoftheviolinthescoringofLutheranchurchmusicisevidence
oftheviol’spopularityinGermanyinthe17thcentury.Atthistime,violswere
mostcommonlyusedtoexpressthe“deeplyfeltLutheranLamento”(Woodfield.
grovemusiconline),andcontinuedtobeusedinsacredcompositionsuntilthe
1680’s.Theseworkswerescoredaspartofaconsortconsistingeitherofmany
bassviolsorabassviolalongsideotherinstruments.Withtheacceptanceofthe
stringquartetasthecoreforthe18thcenturyorchestra,theviollostitsposition
intheinstrumentalensemble.However,18thcenturycomposersoccasionally
chosetoemployitsunusualtimbreforspecialeffect,particularlyinPassionsand
funeralcompositions.SuchcomposersincludeTelemannandCPEBach.JSBach,
renownedforhisuseoftheviolinsacredmusic,scoredforitinthreesacred
cantatas(BWV76,106,152),theTrauerOde(BWV198)andthreePassions.His
mostfamousariaswithviolobbligatoincludeEsistvollbrachtinStJohnPassion
2AseventhstringwasaddedtothebassviolinthelateseventeenthcenturyinFrance.Therearealsosomeformswithonlyfivestrings.
24
andKommsüssesKreuzintheStMatthewPassion.Bach,followingthe18th
centurytradition,usedthevioltoemphasizethelamentofhiswork(Woodfield.
grovemusiconline).
Towardstheendofthe17thcentury,thesoloviolschool(rootedintheEnglish
Divisionstyle)becameinfluencedbythe“thrivingItalianinspiredAustro‐
Germanviolinschool”(Woodfield.grovemuisconline).Manyvirtuosoviolin
players,suchasSchop,NicolausBleyerandBiber,werealsoviolplayers,and
begantoincorporatemorevirtuosopassagesofshowyscalesandarpeggiosin
violscores.
WhilethisvirtuosoviolstyleisevidentintheworksofCarolousHacquartand
JacobRiehman(Netherlandsschool),Schenkremainsthemostprolificofthe
school.Hisfirstpublicationofviolmusic,Tydenkonstoeffeningen(Amsterdam,
1688)comprisesfifteensonatasforviolandcontinuoofa“breath‐taking
virtuosonature…Multiplestoppingandtheuseofhighpositionsareall
hallmarksofhiswriting”(Woodfield.grovemusiconline).Telemannwroteone
work,anunaccompaniedsonata,intheGermanvirtuosotradition.CarlFriedrich
AbelwasthelastmemberintheGermanschooltowriteforvirtuousviol–his
twenty‐sevenunaccompaniedpiecesencompassalltechniquesofthevirtuoso
stylewith“resonantarpeggiatedpassageworkandlargeslursofuptothirty
notes,someofwhicharemarkedstaccato”(Woodfield.grovemusiconline).
TREATISES/TUTORS
Thepopularityoftheviolamongstamateurplayersresultedinthepublicationof
manyvioltutors,includingtreatisesbyGanassi,DanonvilleandSimpson.In
Woodfield’sview,themostinterestingandsignificantinstrumentaltutortohave
emergedfromthe16thcenturyisSylvestroGanassi’sRegolaRubertina(Venice,
1542‐1543).Thisworkincludesinformationaboutposture,bowingand
fingeringtechniques,tunings,methodsofplacingfretsandtestingthequalityof
strings,performingdiminutionsandaccompanyingsingersinthemannerofthe
liradabraccio(Woodfield.1978:544).AccordingtoWoodfield,itwasnotuntil
Simpson’spublicationoftheDivisionViolin1659thataworkof“comparable
25
value”becameavailable.Therefore,Ganassi’stutorremainsaninvaluableasset
tounderstandhowtheviolwasplayedinthe16thcentury.
Incontrasttotoday’stheorists,thefocusof16thcenturytheoristswasto
describethemanymelodicformulaewithwhichaperformercoulddecoratehis
music.Withthisstylecamemanytreatisesforindividualinstrumentsandthe
developmentofcontrastingidiomaticstyles.InPond’sopinion,thesolobassviol,
whichflourishedsobrieflyintheFrenchcourt,wasoneofthe“moreinteresting
examplesofthisdevelopment”(Pond.1978:512).Many(includingPond)believe
that,JeanBaptisteRousseau’sTraitedelaviol(1687)isthemostcomprehensive
treatisefortheviolplayer.
DuringBach’stime,theviolhadasatisfyingroleasasoloinstrumentand
participatedfullyintherichcantataandpassionrepertory(Brown.1990:67).Its
popularitypeakedinFrancefromabout1680onwards.Manytutorswere
publishedduringthistimeincludingDeMarchy’sPiecesdeviole(1685)and,a
yearlater,MarinMarais’sfivebooksofPieces.
PART2
FRETS/TEMPERAMENT
Frets,madefrompiecesofstretchedgut,aretiedaroundtheneckina
specializedfretknot.Whilethereareusuallysevenfretsplacedatintervalsofa
semitone,aneighthmaybeaddedattheoctave(Simpson.1659).Allfretsmaybe
finelyadjustedtoimprovethetuning.AccordingtoSimpson,thestringsshould
lieclosetothefingerboard“foreaseandconvenienceofstopping’”(Woodfield.
grovemusiconline).Consideringthefrettingoftheviol,itfollowsthatitwas
usuallytunedinequaltemperament.
Thetuning,particularlyoffrettedinstruments,becomesnoticeablewhenplaying
withkeyboardinstruments(Kuijken.1978:10).Inhistutor,Ganassi(1543)
includesadiagramdemonstratingtherepositioningoffretstomatchthe
temperamentoftheharpsichord.Hedoesnotprovideanexplanationforthe
repositioning,onlyinstructingtheplayertorearrangethefretsasshown.“Ifit
doesn’tsoundintuneoneshouldjustmovethem.Thiswillresultinunevenly
spacedfrets”(Ganassi.1543:60).
26
FRETS/FINGERING/CHORDALPLAYING
Ganassielaboratesextensivelyonfingerpatternsonallthefrets,including
patternsabovethefrets.SomeofthemorevirtuousplayersofGanassi’sera
playedbeyondthesefrets.Whenchangingpositionsanopenstringwasplayedto
avoidagapinthemusic.Ganassiwaswellawarethatthefingeringinfast
passageshadtobecarefullyconsideredinordertoaccommodatethebow.
Whereverpossible,stringcrossingsweretobeavoidedbyplayinginhigher
positionsonthelowerstrings–notonlyfromatechnicalperspective,butalsoto
retainthe“visualgracefulness”oftheperformer(Woodfield.1978:547).
Ganassiconsiderednotonlymattersoftechnicalitywhendealingwithfingering,
butalsoitseffectonthesound.Hisviewwasthattheinstrumentalistshould
strivetoimitatethehumanvoiceinitsabilitytoexpressarangeofemotionsand
tonesubtleties.Onesuchexamplemaybetoplayinahigherpositiononalower
string.Bychangingbowdirectionondifferentnotes,onemayalsochangethe
emphasisofthework,thusalteringitsmood.Woodfieldprovidesasummaryof
Ganassi’svariousleft‐handtechniques,thusdemonstratingtheextenttowhich
Ganassielaboratedonthesubject(Woodfield.1978:549).
Simpson’sruleforstoppingstatesthat,“…whenyousetanyfingerdownyouare
toletitrestthereuntilsomeoccasionrequiretheremovingofit.”Thistechnique
alsoensuresfor“betterorderoffingeringandthatthefingersmaypassmore
smoothlyfromnotetonote,withoutliftingthemtoofarfromthestrings…alsoto
continuethesoundofanotewhenthebowhathleftit”(Simpson.1659:5).
ThemostcharacteristicfeatureofFrenchviolplaying‐particularlyattheendof
the17thcentury‐ischordplaying.Violplayingwasoriginallyinfluencedbythe
linearstructureoftheluteandvocalmusic,beforeadoptingamorechordal
structure.However,theexecutionofsuchchordsmaydistorttherhythmand
flowofthemelody.“Achordoffourorfivenotesislikelytooverpoweramelody
linesimplybyvolumeandthereforeinterrupttheflowofmusicsomewhat
explosively”(Pond.1978:512).Thus,acertaindegreeoffreedomwasafforded
performersinordertofitachordintothemusic.Thevirtuosodemandsmadeon
theplayeralsoallowedforthedevelopmentofafreerhythmicstyleinFrench
27
violmusic,asthebeatneededtobeexpandedtoaccommodatethenumberof
writtennotes.Severalcomposersincludedanexplanatorytableoftheornaments
andtheirexecutionatthebeginningoftheirbooks.
Chords,forminganintegralpartofviolplaying,developedintheEnglishlyraviol
musicintheearly17thcenturyandbecomeverypopularamongstFrench
Baroquecomposers.Intheirdescriptionofthebowingofchords,Simpsonand
Macestatethatthelowestnoteshouldbesoundedproperlybeforethebowis
drawnacrosstheotherstrings.Simpsonadvisesthatthebasicapproachtoviol
fingeringallowsthemaximumresonanceofthechord.SimpsonandsomeFrench
playerspositionedtherightthumbatthebackoftheneckoppositetheindex
finger(firstfinger),whilethefollowersofSainteColombeplacedtherightthumb
oppositethemiddlefingerforbetterextensionandflexibility(Brown.1990:90).
BOWHOLD/BOWING
Theconcavedesignoftheviolbowprovides“theadvantageofamoresensitive
responsetothenuance”(Woodfield.grovemuisconline).Danonvillestatesthata
violbow“mustbeofChinesewood,andshouldnotbetooheavybecauseit
makesthebowinghandclumsy,nortoolight,becausethenitcannotplaychords
[easily]enough;butaweightproportionedtothehandwhichiswhyIleavethat
tothechoiceoftheonewhoplaystheviol”(Danonville.1687).
“Inmusicmaking,beautyrevealsitselfinthewayinwhichaplayerholdshis
instrument,whenhispostureandthemovementsofhishandandhiswhole
bodyaresocontrolledthathisaudienceiscompelledtofallsilent”(Ganassi.
1542/43:8).Whendiscussingthebowhold,Ganassistatesthatitshouldbeheld
withthreefingers‐thethumb,indexandmiddlefingers.Thethumbandmiddle
fingershouldholdthebowensuringitdoesnotfall,whiletheindexfingershould
“actasalever,topressthebowontothestringstoagreaterorlesserdegree,as
themusicdemands”(Ganassi.1542/43:9).Whendrawingthebowacrossthe
strings,thebowshouldbeatadistanceofapproximatelyfourfingers’width
fromthebridge,“drawingthearmbackwardsandforwardskeepingitrelaxed
withalightbutfirmtouch.”LikeSimpson,Ganassiagreesthatlongernotevalues
28
aremovedbythearm,whilemore“emphatic”passagesare“bestplayedby
movingthewrist”(Ganassi.152/43:10).
Throughhismethodofperformance,Ganassiexpressedthatviolplayingshould
beexpressive,thusimitatingthehumanvoice.Themeansbywhichheachieved
thisvarietyinexpressionincludea“tremar”orshakingofthebowarmandleft
hand(possiblyrepresentingtremolando(bowvibrato)andvibrato);andaltering
thevarietyoftonedependingonwhichpartofthestringisbeingplayed.
Whenconsideringthebowgrip,Simpsonstatesthatoneshould“holdthebow
betwixttheendsofyourthumbandtwoforemostfingers,neartothenut.The
thumbandthefirstfingerfastenedtothestalk;andthesecondfingersend
turnedinshorter,againstthehairsthereof;bywhichyoumaypoiseandkeepup
thepointofthebow”(Simpson.1659:5).
Woodfieldclaimsthataccentsarenotpossibleontheviolasthedownandup
strokesaredrawnacrossthestring,ratherthandownonthestring.Light
accentscanonlybeachievedbymeansofincreasedpressureatthebeginningof
eachstroke.Thus,violbowingisessentiallytheexactreverseofbowingonthe
violin.
Simpson’sruleforthemotionofthebowstatesthat,“whenthereisaneven
numberofquavers,semiquaversas2,4,6,8youmustbeginwithyourbow
forward.”Withoddnumberslike3,5,7,“thefirstofthatoddnumbermustbe
playedbackward.Andthisismostproperlythemotionofthebow;althoughnot
absolutelywithoutexception”(Simpson.1659:5).Forquick‐notepassages,the
notesshouldbeexpressedbymoving“somejointnearerthehand:whichis
generallyagreedupontobethewrist.”Therearetwomajorviewsconcerning
theuseofthe‘elbow‐joint.’Oneadvisesthatitshouldbekept‘straightandstiff’;
whiletheotherrecommendsthatthearmshouldbekept‘freeandloose’sothat
themotionofthewristcanbestrengthenedandassistedbythecomplianceor
‘yielding’oftheelbowjointuntoit(Simpson.1659:6).Forsmoothdivision
playing,Simpsonprefersastraighteningorstiffeningoftheelbowjoint,but
statesthatthe“skippingdivision”cannotbe“wellexpressedwithoutsome
29
consentoryieldingoftheelbowjointuntothemotionofthewrist”(Simpson.
1659:6).
“ThetechniqueofFrenchbaroqueplayingclearlybuildsonthatofthe17th
centuryEnglishmasters”(Brown.1990:69).TheFrenchwritersoftechnique
(J.B.A.Forqueray,Marais,Loulie)adviseusingthethirdfingeronthehairofthe
bowformoresubtlecontrolofinflections.Inallcases,muchemphasisisplaced
ontheflexibilityofthewristandthearm.Theprincipleoftheviolbowing
techniqueisanalmostinverseofthatoftheviolinfamily–“anatural
consequenceoftheunderhandgrip(Brown.1990:69).Theupbow(pushbow)is
naturallystrongerthanthedownbow(pullbow).
InChristopherHogwood’sinterview,WielandKuijken(abassviolplayer)
discussesthetechniqueandsignificanttreatisesofthisinstrument.Kuijken
explainsthemoretechnicalcomponentsofChristopherSimpson’sDivisionviol,
referringtoperformancemethodsofstartingwithstraightlongnotesbefore
creatingaswellinthemiddleofthestroke,ie.startingfromnothingandcoming
backtopiano(Simpson.1659:3,10).
Hsuemphasisestheimportancenotonlyoflearningthebowingpatternsofthe
viol,butalsoofunderstandingthetonalqualityandinflectionforwhichFrench
playersinthe17thand18thcenturiesstrove(Hsu.1978:256).Unlikethesmooth
bowstrokeoftheItalianviolinist,thebasicbowstrokeoftheFrenchviolplayer
wassimilarincharactertothepluckingoftheharpsichord(Hsu.1978:526).In
Defensedelabassedeviole(1740),HubertLeBlancstates,“Thesebowstrokes
aresimple,withthebowstrikingtheviolstringasthejackspluckthe
harpsichordstringsandnotcomplexlikethatoftheItalians,wherethebow,by
useofsmoothandwell‐connectedupanddownbowswhosechangesare
imperceptible,producingendlesschainsofnotes….”(Hsu.1978:526).3
Inhisdescriptionoftheup‐bowinMéthodepourapprendreájonerlaviole
(c.1700),EtienneLoulieadvises,“whenyouwanttobeginwithanupbow,the
wristshouldbebentsomewhatinwardpressingthestringwiththehairatthe
tipofthebowbyleaningthemiddlefingerratherheavilyonthehairasthough3TranslationbyJohnHsu.EarlyMusicvol.6,no.4.1978:526.
30
youwanttograteorscratchthestring.Assoonasthestringwantstosound,
relievethetensiononthehair,thatistosaydonotpress(themiddlefinger)as
heavily;atthesametimereversethewristmovementsothatitleansvery
slightlytowardstheright.Continuetheupbowdirectionandkeepthesame
wristposition.Therestofthearmfromthewristtotheelbowandfromthe
elbowtotheshoulder,shouldfollowthemovementinsuccession”(Hsu.
1978:526).4Whendescribingthetechniqueofthedownbow,hestates,“when
youwanttobeginwithadownbow,thewristshouldbebentsomewhatoutward
andturnedveryslightlytotheright.Pressthestringwiththehairofthebow
verynearthehandbyleaningthemiddlefingerratherheavilyonthehairas
thoughyouwanttoscratchthestring.Assoonasthestringbeginstosound,
relievethetensiononthehair,thatistosay,donotpress(themiddlefinger)as
heavily;atthesametimepushandstraightenthewristandevenleanitvery
slightlytotheleft.Continuethedownbowdirectionandkeepthesamewrist
position.Therestofthearm,fromthewristtotheshoulder,shouldfollowas
thoughitwereasinglepieceyetwithoutstiffening”(Hsu.1978:526).5
Thepercussiveorpluckingeffectofthesoundatthebeginningofeachstrokeis
achievedbytheactionofthemiddlefingerandflexiblemovementofthewrist.
Oneisabletovarytheeffectsofthepluckingandtoneproductionbychanging
theamountofpressureappliedtothestringandthespeedwithwhichthearm
drawsacrossthestring.JeanBaptisteForquerayagreesthatthethird(middle)
fingerisresponsibleforachievingexpressivenessandnuance,stating,“itisinthe
actionofthethirdfingerofthebowarmthatistheprimemoverofexpressive
playingandthatgivescharactertoallthemusic.Forthispurpose,thefirstjoint
ofthethirdfingershouldrestcrosswiseonthehairofthebowandalways
remaininthatposition.Thefingerpushesthehaironthestringinordertodraw
moreorlesssoundbyleaningorreleasingimperceptibly,whichresultsin
loudnessandsoftness”(Hsu.1978:526).
ThistechniqueischaracteristicofFrenchviolplayinganddiffersfromthat
describedbyGanassiinthe16thcenturyandfromthemorelyricalwayofplaying
4TranslationbyJohnHsu.Earlymusic.Vol.6,no.4.1978:526.5Sameasabove.
31
consortviolmusic.Dependingonthecharacterofthework,thesmoothbow
strokethatbeginswithanimperceptiblesilencewasalsousedincertainFrench
styles.
RESONANCE/SOUNDQUALITY
Theviolcontinuestoresonatelongafterthebowhasleftthestrings.Thefrets
andmanystringsareresponsibleforthisresonance.AccordingtoKuijken,one
shouldusethisqualitytoone’sadvantageinperformance.Forexample,when
playingachord,oneshouldleavethefingersonthestring.Thisensuresmore
resonanceasthenotesofthechord‐particularlythebassnotes‐ring.This
techniquehasbeendescribedinmostvioltutors(Kuijken.1987:6).Simpson
referstoitas“holds”(Simpson.1659:5)andtheFrench,LesTenuës(Demachy,
DanovilleandRousseau).
Woodfieldattributestheviol’sextremeresonancesandreadyresponsetothe
bowtoitslightbodyconstructionandrelativelylowtensiononitsstrings.“Its
toneisquietbuthasareedy,ratherdistinctivenasalqualityandthismakesitan
idealinstrumentforplayingpolyphony,inwhichclarityoftextureisofgreatest
importance”(Woodfield.grovemusiconline).
Theresonanceisalsoenhancedbythefrets.Thefingerpressesdownhardonthe
stringdirectlybehindthefretandthisproducesaneffectsimilartothatofan
openstring.Thefretsalsoensurestableintonation,thusallowingthelefthandto
assumeagreatervarietyofposturesthanwouldbepossibleonanunfretted
instrumentsuchastheviolinorcello.
ORNAMENTATION/BOW/VIBRATO
Itwastheopinionofmanyvioltutorsofthe17thcenturythatthebowwas
responsibleforthesoulofthemusic.Thebowwasusedtocreatecertain
inflectionstoprovokeparticulareffects.Acommonbowedornamentofthetime
includedtheenfle.Whendescribingtheenfle,Loulie(c.1700)states,“Itbegins
afterthepreparation–thatisafterthemomentofstillnesswhichprecedesthe
wristmovementatthebeginningofthestroke,thestringmustnotscratch,butit
mustbemadetosoundasquietlyaspossibleatfirst,andthenmoreandmore
stronglyastheupordownbowcontinues.”Maraisindicatesthesametechnique
32
byaneplacedaboveorafteranote.Itimpliesaswelltoemphasisenoteson
rhythmicallyweakbeats,thehighestnotesofphrasesandthelastportionof
suspendednotes.Itspurposeistocreatemusical“sighsandsobs”withinasingle
beat(Brown.1990:90).
Simpsonclassifiesgracenotesintotwo:bybowandbyfingers.Gracingwiththe
bowincludesplayingloudlyorsoftly,growingloudertowardsthemiddleor
endingandshakingortremblingwiththebow(liketheshakingstopofthe
organ).Finger‐gracingmaybeclassifiedaseithersmoothorshaked.Thesmooth
variantdescribestherisingandfalling(analogoustoaglissando);andthe
shakedakindofvibrato,whichcanbeeither‘closeoropen’(Simpson.1659:9).
UnlikehisFrenchcounterpartsDemachyandMarais,Simpsondidnotprioritise
ornaments(Kuijken.1978:5).Thereweretwotypesofvibrato‐piante,the
commonly‐usedonefingervibrato;andflatement,whichusestwofingersandis
onlyemployedinspecificinstances(Kuijken.1978:6).Simpsonreferredtothe
latteras‘close‐shake’(Simpson.1659:11).
InKuijken’sview,violornamentationshouldremainjustthatandshouldnot
becometooimportantinthemusic.Trills,forexample,shouldnotbeplayedtoo
loudly.“Ifyouuseforcewiththebowwhenyouareplayingatrillitisalways
terrible”(Kuijken.1978:9).Inhisopinion,itisimportantthusforalltrillsto
diminuendo.Vibratoshouldbesweetandsoft,especiallyinslowpiecesand
strongerwhenthemusicismorepassionate.Thecoutédedoigt,oftenusedin
Frenchviolmusic,isaglissandobetweensemitonesandmostlychromaticones
(Danoville.43,Rousseau.1687:101).
33
CHAPTERFOUR:THEEDITIONS
ThefollowingchapterwillexaminetheeditionsofthreepublicationsofJohann
SebastianBach’sThreeSonatasforVioladagambaandharpsichord,transcribed
forviola:BärenreiterKassel,publishedin1987,editedbyHansEppstein;G.
HenleVerlag,publishedin2000,editedbyErnst‐GünterHeinemann;and
BreitkopfandHärtel,publishedin1947,editedbyErnstNaumann.Eachedition
willbecomparedtotheoriginalvioladagambasonatasintheNeueBach
Ausgabe(NBA):Bärenreiter’scriticaledition,editedbyHansEppsteinand
publishedin1989.AnanalysisoftheNBAwillbeincludedalongwiththesources
thatwereconsultedduringtheeditorialprocess.Inorderforeachpublicationto
adaptthesonatasforviola,certainchangesandadditionswererequired.These
techniquesormethodsincludedtransposingthesectionsthatarenotplayableor
difficulttoexecuteontheviolatoamoresuitableregister;rearrangingchords;
andchangingoraddingslursfortechnicalconvenience.
Thethreesonatasforvioladagambaandharpsichordarebelievedtobe
arrangementsofworksoriginallyintendedforothercombinationsof
instruments.Thefirstofthese,BWV1027,isbasedonanearlierversionfortwo
flutesandbassocontinuo(BWV1039),whichinturnmaywellhavebeenan
arrangementofanearlierversion.
BWV1027istheonlyoneexistingsonatainautograph.Thus,itisaclearerand
morereliabledepictionofBach’swritingforvioladagambawithrespectto
articulationmarkings.Inthissonata,Bach’sattitudetowardsnotating
articulationdiffersfromhisothermanuscripts.Ingeneral,hetendedtomark
articulationonlyuntilthefirstappearanceofanewfiguration.Inthissonata,
however,almosteverymarkneededispresent.InJohnButt’sopinion,this
divergencefromthenormcouldhavebeenforinstrumentation;theslurringand
bowingisoffundamentalimportanceintheproductionofnotesontheviolada
gamba(Butt,J.1990:148).
34
BÄRENREITER’SNEUEBACHAUSGABE(NBA)EDITEDBYHANS
EPPSTEINWITHACRITICALREPORTThearticulationmarkingsinBach’smanuscriptswereoftenvolatileandhasty–a
featurethathascauseduncertaintyamongsteditorsovertheages.6However,it
wasnotBach’sintentionfortheslurstoberead“strictly”(Bach:NBAVI/4.
1989:14).Whencomposing,Bachconsideredmusicianswhowerewell‐versedin
thetraditionandstyleofperformanceandwerethusinapositiontounderstand
andinterprethisrecommendednotation.InEppstein’sspecialnotes,hestates
thattheNBAdoesnotlayclaimtoabsoluteauthority,ratherprovidingalternate
solutionsbylistingtheoriginalmarkingsfoundinBach’smanuscriptsand
copyist’sparts.
BWV1027:SONATANO.1
MOVEMENTI:ADAGIO/MOVEMENTII:ALLEGROMANONTANTO
Almostwithoutexception,aslurisusedovergroupsoftwotofournotesthat
representastep‐wisepattern.Pairedslurringisusedonintervalsnolargerthan
athird.Insuchcases,Bach’sintentionwasdirectedunequivocallytothe
articulationbetweenintervals.Ininstancesinwhichbowingarticulationwas
difficulttodecipher,theeditorwasforcedtointerpretthemusicusingthe
generalprincipalsalreadydiscussed.Anexamplecanbefoundinbars69,71,73
and75ofthesecondmovement,inwhichtheslurmayhaveendedonthe
penultimatenote.Theeditorchosetoendthesluronthelastnote.
MOVEMENTIII:ANDANTE
InBach’smanuscript,theslurringonthequadrupletsemiquavergroupsis
extremelyunclearandinconsistent.Eppsteindistinguishesthetwomain
articulationpatternsasfollows:a)asluroverallfoursemiquaversandb)paired
slursonnotes1‐2and3‐4.Asidefromthesetwomainpatterns,thereare
numerouspointsinthescoreinwhicha“strict”readingofthearticulationmay
leadtoanumberofdifferentandcontradictoryoutcomes.Eppsteindescribes
6JohannSebastianBach,NeueAusgabeSämtlicheWerke,SeriesVI,band4,ThreeSonatasforVioladagambaandharpsichord,CriticalreportofHansEppstein,BärenreiterKassel,London,1989,14.
35
threesuchoutcomes:c)aslurovernotes1‐3(onlyfoundintheharpsichord
right‐handinbars1,3and8),d)asluroverthelastthreenotes(alsoonlyfound
intheharpsichordright‐handinbars2,5and10)ande)aslurovernotes2‐3
(foundonthe1stbeatoftheharpsichordrighthand,onthe3rdbeatofbar4and
onthe1stbeatofbar10ofthevioladagamba).
a) b) c) d) e)
Attimesinthispiece,theboundariesoftheslursareunclear.Onesuchexample
canbefoundinbar10(2ndbeat)ofthevioladagamba.Theshortenedspellingof
theslurscouldalsobeattributedtothelackofspace,necessitatingclose
placementofnotesorlowbaselinesnearthebottomofthepage.Themost
peculiarvariationsofslurringcanbefoundintheharpsichordtreblepart.These
aremostlikelyrelatedtopatterna.
Thearticulationofthequadruplesemiquavergroupsinthevioladagambapart
isbasedprimarilyonpatternb.Inbars10and11thephrasingisslightly
differentandtheslursareobscured;thefirstbeatispatternewhilethesecond
beatispatternc.Whiletheslurringineachcasewaslikelyahastyversionofa,c
cannotbeentirelyruledout.7
MOVEMENTIV:ALLEGROMODERATO
Eppsteinfoundnodiscrepanciesintheautograph.
BWV1028:SONATANO.2
Themainsourcesconsultedforthesecondsonatawerethehandwrittenscore,
preparedin1753;andthegambapart,originatingapproximatelytwoyears
later.BothwereworksbyChristianFriedrichPenzel,8apupilatStThomas’sin
Liepzig.ItisclearthatPenzelaffordedhimselfcertainfreedoms,asslurs,
ornamentsandsimilarmarkingsareoftenomittedoradded.
7Bach,NBA,CriticalreportofHansEppstein,15.8ReferredtoassourceAbyEppsteininthecriticalreport.
36
MOVEMENTI:ADAGIO
ThemaininconsistencyinPenzel’svolatileandincompletemanuscriptwasthe
articulationofthefigureconsistingofaquaverfollowedbytwosemiquavers.
Theslurcaneitherbereadoverthetwosemiquavers,oroverallthreenotesof
thefigure.AccordingtoEppstein,thelatterreadingismorelikelyandis
thereforeusedintheedition.
MOVEMENTII:ALLEGRO
Itislikelythatallconsultedsourcesconcerningthismovementareunanimous,
asonlybar21ofthevioladagambaparthasadiscrepancy.Allsources,aside
fromtheOldBachGesamtausgabe(editedbyWilhelmRust)haveeight
semiquaversinbar21.Rustrepeatsthissequenceeverytwobars(startinginbar
16),byusingaquaveratthesecondhalfofthefirstbeatandtyingittothefirst
semiquaverofthesecondbeat.
Rust’sversionofbar21 Eppstein’sversionofbar21
MOVEMENTIII:ANDANTE
Astherewereonlyafewphrasingandarticulationmarkingsfoundin
movementsIandII,therewerenotmanyopportunitiesforuncertainty.The
same,however,cannotbesaidformovementsIIIandIVinwhichPenzel’ssloppy
andcarelessnotation,hascausedsignificantdoubt.Inthevioladagambapart,a
numberofinconsistencieswerefoundinthearticulationoftherecurringfive‐
notepattern.
37
Theseinclude:
DESCRIPTION: NOTATION: BAR(S):Slurovernotes1‐5
1,3,7,8,10,15(1sthalf),and23
Slurovernotes1‐4
28(1sthalf)
Slurovernotes1‐4with
eitheradotorvertical
lineonnote5
15(2ndhalf),16,19,20,26(2ndhalf),27,29
Sluronnotes2‐4with
verticallineonnote5
18(withouttheline),26(1sthalf)
Slurovernotes2‐5
28(2ndhalf)
Eppsteinfavourstheslurusedfromnotes2to4.Thisdecisionissupportedby
ananonymousmanuscript9,preparedintheearly1800s,inwhichaverticalline
isplacedonnotes1and5,withaslurfromnotes2to4.
MOVEMENTIV:ALLEGRO
InPenzel’svioladagambapart,thearticulationinbars99‐110isinconsistent
andoftenunclear.Fromatechnicalperspective,thisarticulationmayseem
illogical.Inbars99,101and103,thereisaslurlinkingthelastnoteofthefirst
semiquavergrouptothefirstnoteofthesecond.However,thereareadditional
slursinbar101withaslurovernotes1‐5and8‐11.
9ThesourceisreferredtoassourceDintheNBAandsourceCintheHenleedition.Itisaversionforviolinandharpsichord.
38
Eppstein’sversion:bar101 Penzel’sversion:bar101
TheseadditionalslursareunlikelytooriginateinBach’sworkanddonotappear
intheothersources.Thus,theyareomittedfromtheNBA.Yetmore
controversialistheimplementationofslurringusedontheseven‐notegroup:
semiquaver,twodemisemiquaversand4semiquavers
inbars100‐107.InPenzel’smanuscript,fivearticulationvariationsoccuronthis
figure.Theeditorhaschosentobindnotes2to4andthisremainsconsistent
throughoutthepassage.Thelargerfigures,consistingofseventoninenotes,
oftenhaveslursthataredistortedandunclear.Thisismostlikelyduetothe
compressionofthefigure.Asameansofresolvingtheseuncertaintiesand
inconsistencies,theeditorhaschosentoslurthepairofdemisemiquaverstothe
followingsemiquavereachtime(seebars108‐110).10
EPPSTEIN’SSOLUTIONTOTHESEVENTONINENOTEFIGURES:
Seven‐NoteGroup
Eight‐NoteGroup
Nine‐NoteGroup
10AdiagramofPenzel’sarticulationfrombars99‐110canbefoundinEppstein’sCriticalreport,28‐29.
39
BWV1029:SONATANO.3
Forthispublication,Eppsteindrawsonthreemajorsources:ChristianFriedrich
Penzel’shandwrittenharpsichordandgambaparts,dated1753;threedifferent
manuscriptsofaharpsichordandgambapartbyunknowncopyists,originating
inabout1800;andtheOldBachGesamtausgabe,editedbyWilhelmRustin1860.
AsRustwasfairlyliberalinhisadditionofarticulation11,hismarkingswereonly
usediftheywerecertifiedbyatleastoneothersource.(Acompletelistof
editorialnotesonthissonatacanbefoundinEppstein’scriticalreport.)
THEVIOLATRANSCRIPTIONS
BÄRENREITER,EDITEDBYHANSEPPSTEIN
Bärenreiter’stranscriptionforviolaistheUrtextoftheNewBachEdition(NBA).
ItpresentsthecriticaltextoftheNBA,withtheeditorialadditionsmarkedinthe
samewayastheNBA.Allletters,includingdynamicmarkings,areinitalics;ties
andslursaredottedlines;andothermarkingssuchasornamentsareinsmall
print.Thesectionsthatarenotplayableontheviolaaretransposedtoamore
appropriateregister.12
G.HENLEVERLAG,EDITEDBYERNST‐GÜNTERHEINEMANN
TheviolatranscriptionbyHeinemannisalmostidenticaltotheNBAwiththe
exceptionofbowinginstructionsandfingerings(whichareprovidedbyJürgen
Weber).Whenthegambaversionisnotreachableontheviola,theeditorchosea
registermorecompatiblewithitsrange.13Heinemannprovidesadetailed
discussionofthesources,editorialmethodsandalternativereadings.Incasesof
discrepanciesbetweentheoriginalmanuscriptandcopyists’parts,additionsand
changesaremadetothearticulationmarkings.
11Eppstein,Criticalreport,39.12JohannSebastianBach.ThreeSonatasforVioladagamba(Viola)andHarpsichord.BWV1027‐1029.UrtextoftheNewBachEdition.Bärenreiter.1987.HansEppstein.Preface‐Editorialnote.13Theviolaversionisplacedupanoctaveinsuchcasesandismarkedbyanasteriskeachtime.
40
BWV1027
Ineditingthissonata,HeinemanndrewheavilyonBach’sautographgambaand
harpsichordparts.Ingeneral,theautographscoreisdevoidofomissionsand
ambiguousness,andfewchangesandadditionsarethusrequired.Bach’s
omissionsofslursandprobableaccidentalsoftenaffectedornamentssuchas
appoggiaturasandtrills.HeinemannhasretainedmostofBach’soriginal
articulationmarkings,includingtheirinconsistencies.Onesuchexampleisinthe
secondmovement14,bar61,inwhichthelastfoursemiquaversareslurred;and
inbar108whenthelastfoursemiquaversaretransposeddownaperfectfifth,
areslurredinpairs.Onlybars25(3rdbeat)tobar28(1stbeat)inthismovement
aremarkedupanoctave.Unfortunately,JürgenWeberprovidesnocommentary
onthebowings.
BWV1027:Allegromanontanto
BWV1028
Anumberofsourceswereusedinthiseditorialprocess,includingahandwritten
gambapartandscorepreparedin1753byChristianFriedrichPenzel.Thethree
othersourcesbelongtoanonymouscopyistsoriginatingatthestartofthe19th
century.Oneoftheseanonymousworksisaversionforviolinandharpsichord
believedtobebasedonanauthenticearlierformofthegambaversion.The
othertwosourcesarecopiesofthisversion.
ThesignstakenfromPenzel’sgambapartareidentifiedbysquarebrackets,
whereasmarkings(whichwereunavoidablyaddedtoPenzel’smanuscripts)are
enclosedinparenthesis.TheeditorialadditionsmadetoslursintheNeueBach
Ausgabearemarkedwithdottedlines.Mostoftheslursmarkedwithdotted
linesintheNBAandtheslursinbracketsintheHenlecorrelatetooneanother.
However,thereareafewslursthatarenotpresentintheNBA,aslistedbelow:
14Allegromanontanto
41
MOVEMENT: BARS: ARTICULATION:7(2ndbeat) Firsttwosemiquaversare
slurred9(3rdbeat) Notes1‐2and3‐4are
slurred
MovementI
20(2ndbeat) Slurredtofirstnoteof3rdbeat
8,60,61,62,64,65,67 Sluronnotes1‐2,3‐4ofthe2ndbeat
MovementII
79 Sluronnotes1‐2,3‐4of1stbeat
1,7,10and18 Sluronnotes2‐3of4thbeat
2,11and22 Sluronnotes2‐3of1stbeat
3 Sluronnotes1‐2of1stbeat
4 Sluronnotes2‐3of3rdbeat
9 Sluronnotes2‐4of3rdbeat
12 Sluronnotesof2ndbeat17 Sluronnotes2‐4of1st
beatand2‐6of3rdbeat21 Sluronnotes2‐7of1st
beatand2‐6of3rdbeat24 Sluronnotes2‐4of2nd
beatand1‐2,3‐4and5‐6of3rdbeat
MovementIII
29 Sluronnotes2‐4of2ndbeat
11and121 Sluronnotes2‐4of1stbeat
24 Sluronnotes2‐4of2ndbeat
99and103 Sluronnotes2‐5and8‐11
MovementIV
100,102and104 Sluronnotes3‐4and5‐6of1stbeat
42
TheHenleeditionandNBAdifferinbars99‐104ofthelastmovement.TheNBA
rejectsPenzel’sslurringofnotes2‐5and8‐11inbar101,whileHenleretainsit
andaddsittobars99and103.
Thereareafewinstancesinwhichthegambapartisplacedanoctavehigherto
accommodatetheviolaregister.Theseincludebars72‐75intheAllegro(second
movement);bars1‐3andbar18intheAndante(thirdmovement);andbars81‐
92(1stbeat),bar95(2ndhalf)‐97(1stbeat)andbar106(2ndhalf)‐107intheAllegro
(finalmovement).
BWV1029
ForthissonataHeinemannconsultedthesamesourcesemployedbyEppsteinin
theNBAwheneditingtheHenleedition.
MOVEMENTI:VIVACE
Thesectionsplacedanoctavehigheroccurinbars9(2ndnote)‐10(3rdnote),bars
46(2ndnote)‐47(9thnote),bars95(2ndnote)‐97(1stnote)andbars107(2ndnote)‐
110.
Anoteismadeintheeditorialcommentarythattheaddedarticulationwasonly
includedifconfirmedbyatleastoneadditionalsource.Slursandother
articulationmarkingsthatwereaddedandthatdonotoccurintheNBAare
listedbelow.
BARS: ARTICULATION:3‐5 Sluronnotes1‐3
13,45 3rdbeat:sluronnotes3‐5
25 Turnon2ndbeat
32 3rdbeat:sluronnotes2‐5(not2‐4)
33 1stand3rdbeats:likebar32
52 4thbeat:mordentinsteadoftrill
76,77 3rdbeat:staccatodotonquaver
43
Thefinalchordofthemovementischangedfromatriple‐stoptoadouble‐stop,
thusmakingiteasiertobeplayontheviola.
Othersources Henle
MOVEMENTIII:ALLEGRO
Thesectionsplacedanoctavehigheroccurinbars10(2ndnote)‐19(1stbeat),bars
44(2ndbeat)‐61(1stbeat)andthefinalbar.
Theadditionalandmodifiedarticulationmarkingsarelistedbelow.
BARS: ARTICULATION:18 2ndbeat:trillondottedquaver24‐27,37‐43,104‐107 1stand2ndbeats:sluronnotes1‐4(not1‐6)
28 1stbeat:noslurs
50 1stand2ndbeats:sluronnotes2‐4(not2‐6)
51,89 2ndbeat:sluronnotes1‐3(not1‐6)
91 2ndbeat:sluronnotes1‐2
BREITKOPF&HÄRTEL,EDITEDBYERNSTNAUMANNNaumanndoesnotprovideanyeditorialcommentaryinthispublication.His
editionincludesanumberofadditionsandmodificationstoslurs,ornaments,
dynamics(nearlyineverybar)andarticulation.Therearealsoanumberof
instancesinwhichtheviolapartisplacedanoctaveup,eveniftheoriginal
gambamanuscriptiswithinviolarange(e.g.thelasteightbarsintheAllegroma
nontanto‐secondmovementofBWV1027).Nearlyeverybarisedited,giving
theworkanuntidyappearanceoverall.Thisextensivedirectionandinstruction
suggeststhattheeditionmayhavebeenintendedforstudents.Thesections
whichfollowprovideadescriptionofthechangesandadditionsmadetothe
NBA.
44
BWV1027
MOVEMENTI:ADAGIO
Alltrillsarefollowedbyaslurredwritten‐outlowermordent.Naumannmay
havechosentowritetheseoutforthepurposeofperformancepractice.These
occurinbars6,7,10,11,15,19,24and27.
Adagiobar6:Naumann Adagiobar6:NeueBachAusgabe
Theappoggiaturasfoundintheopeningtheme(bars2‐3),areaddedby
Naumannintherecapitulation(bars17‐18).ItmaynothavebeenBach’s
intentionthattheseberepeated.
Inmostcases,addedslursareintendedtoensurethatthedirectionofthebow
correlatestothestrengthofthebeat.Inbar1,thefirsttwosemiquaversofbeat4
areslurredsothattheupbeattothenextbarisplayedwithanup‐bow.Inbar3,
thefirsttwosemiquaversofbeat2areslurredinorderfortheproceeding
separatedsemiquaverstostartonadown‐bow.Whenasinglesemiquaver
occursinasextupletsemiquavergroup,withoutanyarticulation,Naumannslurs
itwiththeprecedingnote.Thisoccursinbar7(2ndbeat)wherethecsharpis
slurredtothebnatural,andinthe4thbeatwherethebnaturalisslurredtothea.
Otherinstancesarethe4thbeatofbars6,8,9,20and24;the2ndbeatofbar15;
andthe1stand3rdbeatofbars19and20.
Bar1
Bar3
Bar7
45
Everynotehassomeformofarticulationorornamentation,eg.tenuto,staccato,
slur,trill,mordent,appoggiatura,oracciaccatura.Theaddeddynamicscorrelate
tothephrasing,withcrescendosleadingtotheclimaxofthephraseand
decrescendosgoingdownthephrase.
MOVEMENTII:ALLEGROMANONTANTO
Wheretrillsonquaversexistinthemanuscript,Naumannreplacesthemwith
mordents.Thismayhavebeenhisattempttotaketheplayer’stechnicalability
intoconsideration,asplayingafulltrillinafasttempomaybechallengingfor
moststudents.Examplesofthismodificationarefoundinbars6,7,19,20,60,
61,65,66,79,80,97,98,107,and108.
Bar6:Eppstein Bar6:Naumann
Alltrills,includingthosefoundinthefirstmovement,haveamordentbefore
resolvingtotheproceedingnote(bars15,17,29,42,51and83).
Bar15:Eppstein Bar15:Naumann
Allsemiquaversarearticulatedwithslursorstaccatos.Theaddedslurs
accommodatebowdirection.Theadditionalslursensureeverybarlandsona
downstroke.Acommonarticulationoccursovertwoquadrupletsemiquaver
groupsinwhichthefirstsemiquaveristiedtotheprecedinggroupfollowedby3
slurredsemiquavers,andthenfourseparatedsemiquavers(bars25‐26,53‐56,
104‐105).
Bar25‐26:Eppstein Bar25‐26:Naumann
46
Passagesinwhichitisnecessaryfortheviolaparttobeplacedupanoctave
occurinbars18‐22(1stbeat),bars25‐28(1stbeat)andbars106‐113.Thereare
threesectionsthatareplacedanoctavehigherdespitetheiralreadybeingina
comfortablerangeforviola‐bars32‐33(1stbeat),bars39‐42andbars78‐
82(2ndbeat).
MOVEMENTIII:ANDANTE
Inthismovementeachgroupof4semiquaversisslurred,asopposedtothe
pairedslurringfoundintheNBA.Thequaverquadruplet(minor3rdup‐minor3rd
down‐major3rddown)alwayshasastaccatoonthefirstquaverandaslurover
thelastthreequavers(bars3,4,10and11).
Bar3:Eppstein Bar3:Naumann
Thequaverquadruplet(minor3rdup‐tonedown‐minor3rdup)isslurredin
pairs(bars5and7).Thepurposeoftheseadditionalslursmayhavebeento
createalegatofeelintheslowmovement.Bars12‐17(1stbeat)aremarkedup
anoctave.
MOVEMENTIV:ALLEGROMODERATO
Displacementanoctavehigheroccursinbars9‐20(1stbeat)andtheupbeatto
bars90‐98(1stbeat).Whilethiseditorialchangeisnotnecessaryto
accommodatetherangeoftheviola,itdoesshow‐offtheuniquecolourofthe
instrumentwhenplayedinthisregister.Asthisisafaster,moredance‐like
movement,Naumannaddsmorestaccatomarkings.Crotchetsarealways
markedwithstaccatosifnotunderaslur(bar9and26‐29).
CommonbowingsequencesadoptedbyNaumanninclude:a)aquaver
quadrupletgroupwiththefirsttwostaccatoquaversslurredandthelasttwo
quaversseparated(bars34‐36and131‐133)andb)threeslurredquavers
followedbyfiveseparatedstaccatoquavers(bars17,82,99,101‐2,125,137and
139).
47
a) b)
BWV1028
MOVEMENTI:ADAGIO
Asthisisaslowmovement,itcontainsmoreadditionalslursandtenutosthan
staccatos.Acommonarticulationforasemiquaverquadrupletgroupisaslur
overnotes1‐2andstaccatosonnotes3‐4(bars9,13and20).Thereisalso
addedoctavedisplacementinbars15‐22(1stbeat).
MOVEMENTII:ALLEGRO
Thismovementcontainsfarmorearticulationthantheprecedingworks.A
commonexample,foundinbars8,10,12,16,18,20,22,60,61,62,64,65,67,is
threesemiquaversunderaslurfollowedbyfivestaccatosemiquavers.
Notesaretuckedintoslursforbowingconvenience,asseeninbar42,wherethe
Dsemiquaverisslurredsothatthefollowingseparatesemiquaversareplayed
down‐bowonthestrongerpulses(bars45,46,73,74,75,25,26,27).
Bar42:Naumann
Thereisaddedoctavedisplacementinbars37‐40andbars72‐75.
ThereareanumberofnotediscrepanciesevidentinNaumann’seditionofthis
movement.Anexampleisthetiedf’sharpinbar21.IntheNBA,itappearsas
follows:d‐e‐fsharp‐d‐b‐d‐e‐fsharp(allsemiquavers);andintheNaumann
editionasd‐e‐fsharpquavertiedto‐fsharpsemiquaver‐d‐e‐fsharp.Thereis
particularmentionofthisbarinEppstein’scriticalreport.15Naumann’sversion
wasadaptedfromtheOldBachEditioneditedbyWilhelmRust.
15JohannSebastianBach,NeueAusgabeSämtlicheWerke,SeriesVI,band4,ThreeSonatasforVioladagambaandharpsichord,CriticalreportofHansEppstein,BärenreiterKassel,London,1989,26.
48
Bar21:Eppstein Bar21:Naumann/Rust
Followingthediscoveryofsuchdiscrepancies,anumberoffeaturessharedby
RustandNaumann’sedition‐whichdonotoccurintheNBA–werealsonoted.
SharedslurringbyRustandNaumannoccurinbars40and50.Thesecondbeat
ofbar26isane;whileintheNBAitisac.Thefirst‐timebarinbar32of
NaumanndiffersfromtheNBAasitconsistsofacrotchetfollowedbyaquaver
restandquaverupbeatinsteadofaminim.IntheNBA,thelastsemiquaverof
bar40isag,asopposedtothedthatappearsinNaumann’sedition.This
modificationmayhavebeenintendedforbettervoiceleading,asbar40in
Naumann’seditionisraisedanoctave.
Bar40:Eppstein Bar40:Naumann
Thelastquaverofbar79anditsresolutioninbar80isplacedanoctavehigher.
Thismayhavebeenintendedtocreateadramaticendingtothemovement.
MOVEMENTIII:ANDANTE
Inthismovement,theornamentsintheNaumanneditiondifferfromthoseinthe
NBA.Themostcommonexampleisthetrill.IntheNaumannedition,thisis
followedbyawrittenlowermordent(bars19and23andthroughoutthe
sonatas),whiletheNBAdoesnotincludethemordent.Further,allthe
appoggiaturasintheNaumanneditionarewrittenasacciaccaturas(bars4,3,
12).Whenamordent,actingasanup‐beat,isslurredtoanote(bars1,7,10,12,
18),Naumannwritestwograce‐notesemiquaversslurredtothenote.
49
BAR: EPPSTEIN NAUMANN1
4
(Appoggiatura)
(Acciaccatura)
19
(Trill)
(LowerMordent)
Therearethreesectionswhichareplacedupanoctave‐bars1‐3(firstbeat),bar
9andbar18withupbeat.Therearealsotwoinstancesinwhichdiscrepanciesin
therhythmoccur:inbar27oftheNBA,thethirdbeatisadottedquaver,
semiquaverandquaver,whileNaumannusesacrotchetfollowedbytwo
semiquavers.Thethirdbeatofbar17oftheNBAalsocontainsadottedquaver
followedbyfourdemisemiquaversandasemiquaver.Thisisincontrastto
Naumann’sedition,inwhichadottedquaverisfollowedbyasemiquaverand
thenfourdemisemiquavers.
ThefollowingtableshowsthesimilaritiesinarticulationbetweenRustand
Naumanninthismovement:
BARS: ARTICULATION:1,7,10,15,16,18,26,27 Sluronnotes1‐2of2ndbeat
2,11 Sluronnotes2‐3of1stbeat
9 Sluronnotes2‐4of3rdbeat
15,26 Sluronnotes2‐5of4thbeat
18 Sluronnotes2‐3of4thbeat
20 Sluronnotes2‐5of3rdbeat
21,27 Sluronnotes2‐7of1stbeat,notes2‐6ofthe3rdbeat
50
MOVEMENTIV:ALLEGRO
Thismovementischaracterisedbystaccatomarkingsoverallthesemiquaver
passages.Manyslursarealsoaddedfortheconvenienceofthebowing.Onesuch
exampleoccursinbar58onthesecondbeat,whenthefirstpairofsemiquavers
isslurred.Thesecondthemeinbars17and18alsocontainsanumberof
additionalslurs.Inthismovement,Naumannmakesfulluseofthehigher
registeroftheinstrumentandplacestheviolapartupanoctaveonnumerous
occasions,includingbars58(secondbeat)‐63(firstbeat),bars81‐92(firstbeat),
bars95(secondbeat)‐97(firstquaver),bars106(secondbeat)‐107,bar108and
bars111‐114.
BothRustandNaumanncopytheinconsistentarticulationinbars99‐110of
Penzel’shandwrittencopies,whichwasdisregardedbytheNBA.Theseinclude:
thefirstandsecondbeatsofbars99,101and103whichhaveaslurovernotes
2‐5;bars100,102,104whichhaveasluronnotes1‐4(not2‐4)andbar106
whichhasaslurovernotes2‐10(not2‐4and8‐10).
BWV1029
MOVEMENTI:VIVACE
Inthismovement,thepassagesthatareplacedupanoctaveoccurinbars9‐10,
up‐beattobar24‐25,bars35‐38,bars46‐47,bars95‐97(firstquaver),up‐beatto
bar101‐102andbars107‐110.Forthefirsttimeinthesonatas,Naumannplaces
apassageuptwooctaves‐bars91‐95(firstquaver).Thisconfirmshisintention
totakefulladvantageofthehigherregisteroftheviola.
Inthismovementalonetherearefiveslurringvariationsonagroupoffour
semiquavers.Thetwomainvariationsoverastep‐wiseorscale‐likegroupisa
sluroverallfoursemiquavers andasluroverthefirstthreenoteswith
astaccatodotonthelastnoteofthegroup .Theformervariation(a)can
befoundinbars3,4,5(1sthalf),41,42and43;whilethelatter(b)canbeseenin
bars2,6(1stbeat),10(3rdbeat),12(4thbeat),45(4thbeat),47(3rdbeat),toname
butafew.
51
(a)Bar3 (b)Bar2
Thenexttwobowingvariations(c)and(d)occurinagroupoffoursemiquavers
thatdonotmoveinastep‐wisepattern,butratherhaveleapsofintervalslarger
thanathird.Theseincludeasluronthefirsttwonotesfollowedbytwostaccato
notes ,foundinbar8(1sthalf),bar23(1sthalf),bar27(1sthalf)andbar40;
andpairedslurringonnotes1‐2and3‐4 inbars53‐55(2ndhalf),bar
69(4thbeat),bar86(2ndhalf),bar87(1sthalf),bars75‐76(2ndhalf).
(c)Bar8 (d)Bar54,beats3‐4
Thelastbowingvariation(e)ofagroupoffoursemiquaversoccursinbars48
and49inwhichthefirstnoteistiedtotheprecedingnotefollowedbyaslurover
thelastthreenotesofthegroup .
(e)Bar49
Thereisonefigureinwhichthebowingshouldberevised,asitmaycausesome
technicaldifficultytotheperformer.Thisfigureoccursinbars32(3rdbeat)‐
33(1stand3rdbeats)andrepeatedinbars84(1stand3rdbeats)‐85(firstbeat),and
comprisessixnotes:acrotchettiedtoasemiquaverfollowedbytwodemi‐
semiquaversfollowedbytwosemiquavers.Notes1to5areunderaslurandthe
sixthnoteisseparatedwithastaccatodot.Thisfigureisrepeatedthreetimesin
sequenceovertwobars.Bowingdifficultiesmayincurwiththeseparated
staccatosixthnoteofthefigure,asthebowwillbeatthetipafterthe5‐noteslur
anditmaybeawkwardtoplayaseparatedstaccatoatthetip.
52
SimilaritiesbetweenRustandNaumannoccurinthefollowingbars:
BARS: ARTICULATION:2,10,36,69,74,96 3rdBeat–SlursOverNotes1‐3
3,4 Slurovernotes1‐4and5‐8
5 Slurovernotes1‐4,5‐8,9‐11
6 Slurovernotes1‐3
12,45 3rdBeat–SlurOverNotes1‐2And3‐5
4thBeat–SlurOverNotes1‐3
41‐43 2ndBeat–SlurOverNotes1‐4
9,53‐55,75‐77 4thBeat–SlurOver1‐2And3‐4
Therearefourinstancesinwhichmordentsareusedinsteadoftrills:bar12(3rd
beat),bar45(3rdbeat),bar58(lastnote)andbar65(3rdbeat).Additionaltrills
havebeeninsertedintobars23(lastnote–withwrittenoutmordent),bar
25(2ndbeat),bar44andbar66.Atrillhasbeenomittedfromthelastnoteofbar
102.
TherearealsotwocasesinwhichaccidentalsaredifferenttotheNBA.Inthis
movement,thelastnoteofbar68hasasharp(fsharp),16thesecondisfoundin
movementII(describedbelow).
MOVEMENTII:ADAGIO
ComparedtotheNBA,Naumannusesacontrastingapproachtobowing
articulationintheslowmovements.Forexample,hisslursareextendedand
lengthened.IninstancesintheNBAinwhichminimbeatsareslurred,Naumann
extendstheslurovertwominimbeats(bars5‐6).Thismaycausesometechnical
difficulty,astheperformermayrunoutofbow.
Thesecondnoteinbar29isabinsteadofthegthatispresentintheNBA.17
16TheFsharpcanbefoundinthetranscriptsof:ChristianFriedrichPenzel(sourceA:NBAcriticalreport)andtheOldBachGesamtausgabebyWilhelmRust(source[G]:NBAcriticalreport).17ThebcanbefoundintheOldBachGesamtausgabebyRust.
53
MOVEMENTIII:ALLEGRO
TheborrowedmarkingsfromRust’sOldBachEditionareasfollowers.
MARKINGS: BARS: ARTICULATION:4,12,80,94 Slurovernotes5‐8 19,45,47 Slurovernotes2‐3 21
Slurovernotes3‐4
23 Slurovernotes4‐9
46,48,49 Slurovernotes1‐4,5‐6
66 Slurovernotes7‐8
72 Sluruptoandincludingthefirstnoteofbar73
91 Slurovernote6‐7
Slurring
108 Slurovernotes2‐6
28,30,55 Staccatodotonthe7thnoteArticulation
55,56 Staccatodotonthe1stnote
Ornaments 86,87
Twostep‐wisegrace‐notesbeforethe3rdnote(insteadofamordent)
DifferentNote 58 1stnoteisaGnotandC
Theoctavedisplacementsoccurinbars10‐27,44(2ndhalf)‐61(1sthalf),67(3rd
note)‐74(1stnote),94‐95(1stnote)and111.
TECHNIQUESOFTRANSCRIBINGFORVIOLACertaintechniqueswererequiredwhentranscribingtheSonatasforviola.These
includedtransposingtoamoreappropriateregisterandrearrangingchordsto
suittheviola;andaddingorchangingslursforpracticalconvenience(asalready
discussedunderSECTIONHEADER,above).
54
Table1:Adescriptionofthesectionsthathavebeentransposedanoctave
higher.
BarënreiterandHenle BreitkoptandHartel
BWV1027
MovementII Bars25(3rdbeat)to28(1stbeat) Bars18‐22(1stbeat),25‐28(1st
beat),106‐113,32‐33(1stbeat),
39‐42and78‐82(2ndbeat)
Movement
III
Bars12‐17(1stbeat)
Movement
IV
9‐20(1stbeat),upbeattobars
90‐98(1stbeat).
BWV1028
MovementI Bars15‐22(1stbeat).
MovementII Bars72‐75 Bars37‐40andbars72‐75,last
quaverofbar79andits
resolutioninbar80
Movement
III
Bars1‐3andbar18 Bars1‐3(firstbeat),bar9and
18withupbeat.
Movement
IV
Bars81‐92(1stbeat),95(2nd
half)‐97(1stbeat)and106(2nd
half)‐107
Bars58(secondbeat)‐63(first
beat),81‐92(firstbeat),
95(secondbeat)‐97(first
quaver),106(secondbeat)‐
107,108and111‐114.
BWV1029
MovementI Bars9(2ndnote)‐10(3rdnote),
46(2ndnote)‐47(9thnote),
95(2ndnote)‐97(1stnote)and
107(2ndnote)‐110.
Bars9‐10,up‐beattobars24‐
25,35‐38,46‐47,95‐97(first
quaver),up‐beattobar101‐
102andbars107‐110.Forthe
firsttimeinthesonata,
Naumannplacesapassageup
twooctaves:bars91‐95(first
quaver).
55
Movement
III
10(2ndnote)‐19(1stbeat),44(2nd
beat)‐61(1stbeat)andthefinal
bar.
Bars10‐27,44(2ndhalf)‐61(1st
half),67(3rdnote)‐74(1stnote),
94‐95(1stnote)andbar111.
Table2:Therearrangementofchords:
NBA Barënreiter Henle Breitkopf
BWV1028
MovementII:
Finalchord
D,Fsharp,A,
D
D,Fsharp,A,
D
Fsharp,A,D D,A,Fsharp,
D18
MovementIII:
Finalchord
D,Fsharp,B B B B
MovementIV:
Finalchord
D,Fsharp,A,
D
D,D D D
BWV1029
MovementI:
Finalchord
G,D,G G,G G,G G,G
MovementIII:
bar44(1st
beat)
F,A,C,F F,A F,A F,A
Bar93
(notes2‐6)
Dbelow
middleC
Dabove
middleC
Dabove
middleC
Dabove
middleC
18Thisrearrangingofthechord,comparedtotheothers,isbettersuitedtotheviola
56
CONCLUSIONWhencomparedtotheBärenreiterandHenleeditions,theBreitkopfandHärtel
editionincludesmoresignificantmodificationstotheNBA.Theadditional
articulationanddirectiongivenbytheeditorsuggestthathehasconsideredthe
uniqueattributesandtechniqueoftheviola.Theseincludeitsqualityofsound,
bowingarticulationanddirection,andfingering.WhileNaumannmayhavebeen
over‐inclusiveinhismodification,hehasnonethelessconsideredthelimitations
oftheviola.
57
CHAPTERFIVE:THEVIOLA
Thischapterwillprovidethereaderwiththetoolsrequiredtoexecutethe
Baroquestyleonthemodernviola.Thereareanumberofwaystoachievea
historically‐informedperformanceonamodernviola.Theseincludetechnical
factors,physicalaspectsandstylisticadaptations.Technicalfactorsthatmaybe
employedareholdingtheinstrumentinaparticularway,fingering,bowhold
andarticulation.Thephysicalaspectsincludethepitch,thetypeofbowand
stringsthatareused,andalternatetunings.Stylisticfactorsofnoteinclude
vibrato,dynamicsandarticulationincommonbaroquerhythmsandstyles.In
thepursuitofahistorically‐informedperformance,allthreefactorsshouldbe
borneinmind.
TREATISESTheviolatreatisesoriginatinginlate17thandearly18thcenturyGermanyoffer
limitedadviceonplayingtechnique.Treatisesintendedspecificallyfortheviola
firstappearedinFrancetowardstheendofthe18thcenturyandwerewrittenby
MichelCorrette(1773),MichelWoldemar(c.1800)andFrançoisCupis(1803).
Thesewerethenreplacedby“moresubstantialandslightlymoresophisticated
methods”byAntonioBartolomeoBruni(Méthodepourl’altoviola;Paris,c.1820),
JacobMartinn(Méthoded’alto;Paris,c.1820)andMichelGebauer(Méthode
d’alto,Paris,c.1800)(Stowell.2001:24).InStowell’sopinion,themostadvanced
late‐19thcenturypublicationsbelongtoLéonFirket(Méthodepratique;Brussels,
1873)andBrähmig(PraktischeBratschenschule;Leipzig,c.1885)(Stowell.
2001:24).
TECHNICALFACTORS
HOLDINGTHEVIOLA
Itwasnotuntiltheearly19thcenturythattherewasconsensusonthebestway
toholdtheinstrument.Beforethen,18thcenturytreatisesemphasizedthe
importanceofa“comfortable,freeandnaturalposture”(Stowell.2001:52).
AccordingtoStowell,19thcenturyplayers“soughtanobleandrelaxedbearing,
58
withheadupright,feetnormallyinlinebutslightlyapartandwiththebody
weightdistributedtowardstheleftside”(Stowell.2001:52).19
Positionsvariedandincludedonthebreast,onthecollarboneandattheneck.
Thechoiceofpositionwaslargelydependentonthetypeofmusicbeingplayed.
Formorevirtuosomusic,thecollarboneandneckpositionsweremore
appropriateasthechinprovidedextragripandsupportoneithersideofthe
tailpieceandensuredmorefreedomofthelefthandwhileshifting.Thebreast
positionwasmoreappropriatefordance‐likemusicinwhichpositionworkno
higherthanthirdpositionwasrequired.
LeopoldMozartrecommendsthe‘chin‐off’methodwiththeinstrumentresting
onthecollarboneandtheneckoftheinstrumentsupportedbythelefthand
withoutallowingittocomeintocontactwith“theskinthatjoinsthethumband
indexfinger”(Mozart.1756:57).Stowellstatesthatalthoughthispositionwas
conducivetoplayinginlowerpositions,itwaslessadequateforhigher‐position
work(Stowell.2001:54).Thereareanumberofdifferingopinionsregardingthe
placementofthechin.Sometheoristsrecommendrestingthechinontheright
sideofthetailpiecewhileothers,likeL’Abbélefils(1761)andCupis,optfor
restingthechinontheleftsidetostabilisetheinstrumentduringshifts.Thechin
positionwasnotimmediatelyacceptedascommonpractice.NotuntilSpohr’s
inventionofthechinrest(c.1820)didtheplacementofthechinbecomemore
standardised.
Thechinrest“allowedoptimumfreedomofleft‐handmovementandflexibilityof
bowing”(Stowell.2001:54).Italsoenhancedposturebyenablingtheplayerto
holdtheinstrumentupright,almosthorizontallytothefloor.Cupisstatesthat
theviolawasheldinalmostthesamewayastheviolin,althoughthescrollwas
positionedlowertoaccommodateitsgreatersizeandweight.Thesizealso
demandedwiderstretchesbetweenthefingersandmorepressureappliedby
thefingersontothestring(Cupis.Méthode:10).Baillotwasoneofthefirst
1919thcenturypostureandviolin/violaholdisillustratedinBaillot’sL’artduviolon:nouvelleméthode(Paris,1853).
59
theoriststoadvocatetheshoulderrest/pad.Thisensuredenhancedsecurityand
comfortandpreventedshoulderraising(Baillot.L’art:16).
Nowadays,Baroqueviolinistsandviolistshaveanumberofwaysofmanaging
thesetechnicalchallenges.Someplacethechinrestontherightsideofthe
tailpiece,whileothersabandonitaltogetherandholdtheviolin/violaagainstthe
chest.SomeBaroqueviolin/violaplayerstodayemployashoulderrest,thus
mimickingthebulkierclothingoftheir18thcenturycounterparts.
Thewaytheinstrumentwasheldhadaneffectonanumberoftechnicalfactors.
Theseincludethefingeringused,theuseofopenstrings,thepositionofthebow
onthestringsandtheheightanduseofthebowarm.
FINGERING
InBaroquerepertory,unnecessaryfingeractivitywasoftenavoided.Mostofthe
violarepertoryrequiredlowerpositionsandtheinstrumentplayedasomewhat
subservientroleintheensemblerepertory(Stowell.2001:57).Accordingto
LeopoldMozart,necessity,convenienceandeleganceweretheonlyreasonsfor
usingpositionsotherthanthefirst(Mozart.1756:148).Untilthe18thcentury,
shiftswereemployedtoenhancethepunctuationofthemusic.Ingeneral,these
weremadeonthebeatoronrepeatednotes;bythephraseinsequence;afteran
openstring;onarestorpausebetweenstaccatonotes;orafteradottedfigure
playedwithaliftedbowstroke(Stowell.2001:57).
RULEFORHOLDINGDOWNTHEFINGERS
Alackofmechanicalsupport(chinandshoulderrest)invariablyleadsto
creepingaroundthefingerboardinsecondandhalfposition.Asitisnearly
impossibletoholdtheinstrumentwithoutthehand,thethumbandfingercannot
movetogetherwhenshiftingandthushavetomoveseparately.
Asageneralrule,lowerpositionsweremostlyutilised.Exceptionsoccurred
whenitwasnecessarytoplayhigh.AccordingtoTarling,themostimportant
motivatorforretainingthelowerpositionsistoincreasethestringlengthand,
byimplication,theresonanceoftheinstruments(Tarling.2001:72).Sheadvises
60
thatitisnotnecessarytoplayinhigherpositionstoavoidopenstrings,andthat
secondpositionisoftenusefulwhenavoidingawkwardstringcrossings.
OPENSTRINGS
OpenstringsareencouragedinBaroquemusic,providedtheyareintune.Open
stringsinchordsandarpeggiatedpassagesprovideagreaterringorresonance
tothechordandthusalsototheharmony.
CHANGINGPOSITION
Tarlinglistsanumberofinstancesinwhichitissuitabletochangeposition
(Tarling.2001:76).Theseinclude:
1. Whileanopenstringisbeingplayed.
2. Ataconvenientpointofarticulationeg.Adottedrhythm
3. Atthestartofapatternthatisbeingrepeatedinasequence
4. Betweentwonotesofthesamepitch.
5. Betweenslurs
BOWHOLD
Overthecenturies,therehasbeenadramaticchangeintheamountofpressure
appliedtothestringsbythebow.InBaroqueplaying,themainsourceof
pressurewastheindexfinger,withtheelbowseparatedfromthebodythe
distanceofanextendedthumbfromtheindexfinger(JoséHerrando.1756:2).In
comparisontomorerecenttechniques,theelbowwaspositionedfarcloserto
thebody.Thisresultedina‘high,supplewrist’whenplayingatthefrog.Today,
thetrendistopositiontheelbowhigher,thusallowingthewristtoflattenatthe
frog.
DuringtheearlyBaroqueperiod,theFrenchusedthethumb‐on‐hairgripwith
the“threefingersplacedontopofthestickandthelittlefingercommonlybraced
inthebackofthestick”(Stowell.2001:75).ThisgripwascommoninFranceuntil
the18thcenturyandwasparticularlysuitedtotheheavyaccentsindancemusic
(Stowell.2001:75).TheItalians,however,wereinfavourofthethumb‐on‐stick
gripwithfourfingersonthetopofthebowstickandthethumbplacedonits
61
underside.Thegreaterfreedomandsubtletiesoftoneproductionofferedbythis
methodultimatelyledtothedemiseoftheFrenchgrip.
AccordingtoBaillot,thegripshouldbekeptsecure,butwithoutstiffnessinthe
hand,fingersandwrist;andbendingofthethumbshouldbeavoided.This
techniquedivergesfromlate19thand20thcenturypractices,inwhichthethumb
wasbentandkeptflexible.StowellsuggeststhatBaillot’sinstructionshouldnot
alwaysbetakenliterally,astheultimateaimshouldbesubtletyandflexibilityof
thefingers(Stowell.2001:76).
Thepositionofthethumbonthebowhasalsobeenthesubjectofmuchdebate.
Mostcommonly,itwaspositionedoppositethesecondfingerbutbetweenthe
indexandsecondfingers(L’abbélefils.Principes:1).Apositionbetweenthe
secondandthirdfingerswasalsoused(JeanBaptisteCartier.L’artduviolon.
Paris.1798:1;Baillot:12).
Therehavealsobeendiscrepanciesinthepointofcontactoftheindexfingeron
thebow.The‘German’gripinvolvesacontactpointofthefirstjointoftheindex
finger;whileinthe‘Franco‐Belgian’grip,thecontactpointisbetweenthefirst
andsecondfingers,butclosertothesecondwiththethumbpositionedopposite
thesecondandthird(Stowell.2001:76).
Untiltheendofthe16thcentury,playerstendedtoseparatetheindexfingerfrom
therestofthefingersto‘controlvolume’byapplyingandreleasingpressure
(Stowell.2001:76).Thesecondandthirdfingersrestedonthestickina‘curled‐
over’position,whilethepinkie,restingonitstip,aidedbalancewhenbowingin
thelowerhalf.
The‘French’bowholdwasusedpredominantlyin17th‐centuryEngland.
Primarily,itemployedaveryshortbowwiththehairatquiteahightensionto
taketheheavyaccentedstrokes.Withtheintroductionofalongerbow,a
transitiontothe‘Italian’bowholdoccurred,ie.thethumbwasplacedonthe
stick.Whentheviolin/violaisplacedontheshoulderwhileusingthe‘French”
bowhold,theplayer’sarmmayfeelquiterestricted.Thismayaccountforthe
positioningoftheviolinlowerdownonthechest,atechniquepopularisedbythe
dancemastersofthe17thcentury(Tarling.2001:84).Toliftthebowanywhere
62
exceptneartheheelischallenging,asitresultsinashorterstrokeclosertothe
heelinthemoreenergeticdancemovements.
Overtime,managementofthebowandthetypeofstrokeusedhaveevolved,
oftenalignedwithbowtypeandgrip.AccordingtoStowell,thepre‐Tourtebow
suitedastyleofplayingcomprisingclearlydividedphrasesandsub‐phrases,as
opposedtosweepingmelodiclines.Asthisbowcreatedunequalstressesonthe
downandupstrokes,the‘ruleofthedown‐bow’wasemployed(Stowell.
2001:77).Today,BaroquemusicwiththeTourtebowisbestplayedwiththe
thumbplacedonthestick.
THERULEOFTHEDOWNBOW
“Notethattherearestrongandweakbeatsinmusic.Inthemeasurewith
fourbeats,thefirstandthirdbeatsarestrong,thesecondandfourth
beatsareweak.Inameasurewithtwobeats,thefirstisstrongandthe
secondisweak.Inameasureofthreebeats,allthebeatsareequal;if
desired,thesecondandthirdcanbeweak,butthefirstisalwayslong”
(Cessac.1995:398).
Inthisextract,Charpentier(1692)advisesthatthehierarchyofthebeatsofthe
barshouldbematchedtotheinequalityofthedownandupstrokes.
Muffat’srulesforthebowremainthemodelformostbasicBaroquebow
practices.Further,hisnomenclatureforthedownbow(nobile)andtheupbow
(vile)maywellhaveinformedthesigns(nandv)thatareusedtoday(Snyder.
1987:386).Muffat’sgeneralbowingrules(1698)includethefollowingitems:(1)
Everybarstartswithadownbowifthereisnorest(2)Incommontime,beats1,
3,5aredownbowandevennotes2,4,6areupbow.Thisrulealsoappliesto
tripletime(3)Thedoubledownbowisusedintripletimeinslowmovements
wherethelastdownbowofeverybarretakesforthenextbar(nvn|nvn)(4)
Alternativelydoubleupbowsareusedinfastermovementsintripletime(nvv)
(5)Thedoubleupbowisalsousedtoaccommodatetheruleofthedownbow(6)
Ashortnoteafteradottednoteisusuallytuckedinandhardlyeverplayedona
separatebow(Tarling.2001:89).
63
Theharmonymayalsoeffectthebowdirection.InBaroquemusicitisimportant
toemphasisethedissonancewithinthebar.
ARTICULATION
Articulationistherelationshipbetweennotesorphrases,theirbeginningsand
endingsandhowtheseareconnectedorseparated(Tarling.2001:11).Themain
articulationmarkingsinBaroquemusicareslurs,dotsanddashes.Dotsoften
indicatethatnotesshouldbeplayedequallyandshouldbeseparatedwithout
slurs.Noteswithdashesareusuallydetachedbyaliftedstrokeinthelowerhalf
ofthebow.
ARTICULATIONINALLEGROMOVEMENTS
CantabileandAllegropassagesshouldbedistinguishedbymeansofarticulation
(Tarling.2001:134).Theformershouldbesmoothwithnogaps,whilethelatter
shouldbeslightlyseparated.Todeterminewhetherapassageiscantabileor
Allegro,Tartiniadvisesthatstepwisemelodiesshouldbeplayedcantabile
(legatowithslursaddedifdesired),whilemelodieswithleapsshouldbeplayed
inamoredetached(separated)style(Tartini.1771:55).
Tarlingdescribestheshortstaccatostrokeasdiggingintothestringwithabite
beforereleasing.Shesuggestsusingverylittlebowforthe‘bite’,ensuringthat
pressureisfromthehand(mainlythefirstfinger).Thebowshouldthencometo
restbetweenstrokes,beforepressingthenext‘bite’(Tarling.2001:136).When
appliedonanearlybow,theplayershouldkeepthebowclosetothestringand
therighthandshouldmaintainpressurethroughoutthefastpassagetoensure
thebowdoesnotbounceandratherremainsclosetothestring.AstheTourte
bowismorelikelytobounce,careshouldbetakentoensurethatitremainsclose
tothestringbetweeneachstroke.
PriortotheinventionoftheTourtebow,theterm‘spiccato,’wasusedtodenote
a“short,individually‐controlledbowstrokewelldefinedfromneighbours”
(Tarling.2001:136).Withitscombinationofweightandbounce,theTourtebow
canproduceshort,‘bite’strokeseasily.Inpre‐Tourteterms,“detached”was
takentomeanseparated.Itdidnotrefertothetypeofbowstrokenowmost
64
commonlyassociatedwiththeTourtebow–détachéandmartelé–whichare
executedintheupperhalf.
PLAYINGCONTINUOUSFASTNOTES
Whenconfrontedwithcontinuousfastnotes,theplayershouldavoidaseamless
successionofnoteswithequalemphasisoneachnote.Patterns,sequencesand
theharmonicstructureshouldbeconsideredandemphasized.Accentsorlonger
strokesshouldbeusedtoemphasizethebeginningofasequenceorpattern.
Nuancesinthemelodymayalsobeemphasizedwithdynamicchanges.Cadences
shouldbeweak,leaninginonimportantharmoniesandlengtheningimportant
notesinthepassage(Tarling.2001:137).
THESLUR
Duringthe18thcentury,theslurwasalsoregardedasadiminuendowiththe
secondnoteundertheslurbeingplayedmoresoftlythanthefirst.Mozart(1756)
andQuantz(1752)emphasizedthisruleintheirtutors(Tarling.2001:142).A
slurhadmanyfunctions‐itwasabowinginstructionandforpurposesof
phrasingandarticulation.Mozartadvisedthatnotesatcloseintervalsshouldbe
slurred,butthatthosefarapartshouldbeplayedwithseparatestrokes.Further,
passagesshouldbearrangedtogiveapleasantvarietyofslursandseparate
strokes(Tarling.2001:142).Shiftingandstring‐crossingshouldbeavoided
undertheslur,asthiswouldinterruptthesmoothness.
Inthelate17thandearly18thcenturies,theslurwasconsideredanornamentand
couldbeaddedtothemusicatthediscretionoftheperformer.However,
composerssuchasCouperinandJ.S.Bachusedtheslurinaverypreciseway.
Tarlingadvisesthatcautionshouldbeexercisedwhenaddingslurstothemusic
ofthesecomposers(Tarling.2001:143).Shealsostatesthat,“breakingslursfor
theconvenienceofwhathappensnextinthemusicisnotgoodpractise.Tryto
keeptheslursintactfortheireffect,andre‐arrangethebowingbytuckinginthe
upbow,orretakeanotherdownbowascloseaspossiblebeforethemost
importantpointforthebowdirection”(Tarling.2001:144).
65
Tarlingsummarisestheuseoftheslurintheperformanceasfollows(Tarling.
2001:148):
1. Thefirstnoteoftheslurshouldbeemphasizedorlengthenedsomewhat
2. Dependingonthehierarchyofthebarandtheharmony,notallslurs
shouldbethesame
3. Articulationshouldoccuratthebeginningandendoftheslur
4. Mostslursarediminuendos
5. Theslurshouldbeassmoothaspossible.Thus,stringcrossingsand
shiftsshouldbeavoidedundertheslur
6. Slursmaybeaddedtoconjunctnotes
PHYSICALFACTORS
PRE‐TOURTEVERSUSTOURTEBOW
ThemaindifferencebetweentheBaroque(pre‐Tourte)andTourtebowing
techniquesistherelationshipbetweenspeedandpressure.Theearlybowhas
significantlylesspressureatthetip.Thus,mostofthenuanceandexpressionis
executedinthemiddletolowerpartofthebow.Fasterbowspeeds,particularly
onlongernotes,willhaveaweakertonewhenusingtheshorter,lighterBaroque
bow.TheaddedweightatthetipandheeloftheTourtebowmakelongerstrokes
farmoreeven,evenatfastspeeds.Messadivoce,withitssoftstartandend,may
bechallengingtoexecuteontheTourtebow.Theendsoftheboware
considerablyheavierthanthebaroquebowandfarmorecontrolwouldbe
required.
Thenaturalstrokeofthepre‐Tourtebowwasarticulatedandnon‐legato.Players
couldcreateandvarynuancesbymodifyingthearticulationandadjustingthe
length,speedandpointofcontact(pressure)ofthebow.Shortbowstrokes
requiredtheforearmandaflexiblewrist.Occasionally,theupperarmwasused
toplaylongstrokes.Alowelbowwasessentialasithelpedtocreateasmooth,
evenarticulation(Stowell.2001:77).Thepre‐Tourtebowwasnot,however,
well‐suitedtoaccentedbowstrokessuchasmarteléandsforzando.Asbowing
66
instructionsinthe18thcenturydeveloped,sotoodidthedemandsonthebow
increase.Thus,theTourtebowwasadaptedtocreateamoresonorouscantabile
sound,andwasmorecapableofanimmediateattack(comparedtothemore
delayedresponseoftheconcavebow),ofsforzandoeffectsandofaccented
strokes.
TheworkofBaillotwaskeytothedevelopmentofmodernbowarticulationand
handling.AccordingtoStowell,Baillot’ssurveyofviolinbowingsremainsthe
mostextensivecatalogueofthefirsthalfofthe19thcentury.Inthiswork,he
subdividedthebowingsintotwobasiccategories:slowandfast.Thefaststrokes
werethedétachés.Thesecouldbe‘muted’(mats),ie.onthestringand
articulatedbythewrist(détaché,martélé,staccato);‘elastic’(élastiques),ie.
mostlyoffthestringusingtheresilienceofthestick(détachéléger,perlé,sautillé,
flyingstaccato);and‘dragged’(traînés),ie.compositeonthestring.
GUTVERSUSSTEELSTRINGS
Gutstringsmaybeusedasameansofsimulatinganauthenticsound.When
comparedtonylon,thesoundandqualityoftoneofgutstringsaremore
interestingandlively.AbbottandSegermanattributethistothefactthatgutisa
naturalmaterial.Althoughtheringingedgeofthehigherstringsoftheviolislost
whennylonisreplacedwithgut,someplayerspreferthewarmthoftheguttone.
JeanRousseau,authorofTraitesdelaviol,objectedtotheeffectofthemetal
stringsonthebowingandtoitsshrilltone(Rousseau.1687:22).However,this
viewwasdisputedbyMichaelPraetorius,whodescribedtheoverspunstring
soundassmoothandbeautifullyresonant(Praetorius.1619.48).Modernmetal
stringsmaybeatahighertensionthanwerethoseinthe17thcenturyandare
thusmorelikelytobeplayedforcefully.
Inordertoretain18th‐centuryauthenticity,onemaychoosetoreplacethe
overspunmetalstringswiththemoreappropriategutstrings.However,thismay
resultina‘thickerorduller’tone,asthehigherharmonicscreatedbythe
overspunstringsarelostonthegutstringsandintonationproblemsbeginto
appearonthefrettedinstruments.AccordingtoAbbot(Abbott.1976:430),
67
mixingstringscanbecomerather“irksome”andmaycausetuningandbalancing
problems.
Asgutisanaturalmaterialitisaffectedbyforcesofnature.Forexample,gut
tendstoswellinmoistconditionsaswaterisabsorbedbetweenthefibres.The
swellingcausesthelengthtoshorten,thusincreasingthetensionandraisingthe
pitch.Themoretwistonthestring,thegreatertheeffect.Theincreasein
moisturealsoaddsweight,thusloweringthepitch.Withaslightincreasein
moisture,thepitchsharpens.However,withalargeincreaseinmoisture,the
increaseinweightsupersedestensionandthepitchislowered.Dryconditions
exertasimilareffect,ie.asthemoistureinthestringdries,thepitchislowered.
Whenstrivingforanauthentic“gutsound”,itisimportanttonotethatthetone
ofastringisdependentonitselasticity,onitsmassperunitlengthandonits
sound‐absorptionproperties(Abbott.1976:435).Plaingutstringshave
considerablymoreabsorptionwhencomparedtometalstrings.Abbottand
Segermansummarisethedisadvantagesofusinggutstringsasfollows‐“…(gut
strings)donotlastaslong,[are]troubletokeepintune,[are]inherentlymore
outoftune,[have]lessbrillianttoneandthesounddiesawayquickerafterbeing
plucked,[are]hardertostartsoundwithabow(especiallynearthebridge)and
itemitsahisssoundduringbowing…Ifaplayeragreestocopewithallthese
disadvantages,hewillberewardedbyadevelopingrelationshipwithhis
instrumentwhichparallelsthatoftheearlyplayers,withtheconsequent
impetustodiscoverauthenticcomponentsoftechniqueandtoneproduction
whichhewouldotherwiseneverhavepredicted,andwhichwillofcourse,addto
therediscoveryofthelifeofthemusicitself”(Abbott.1976:437).
PITCHANDALTERNATETUNINGS
Pitchhasbeensomewhatstandardisedtoaccommodatecertainperformance
practices.ForBaroquepieces,a”istunedto415Hz;Classicalto430Hzandpost
c.1830tobetween435/440Hz.Thisstandardisationcreatesuniformityamongst
playersandclarityconcerningintonation.
Today,themostcommonlyusedtuningforearlymusicisa=415.Conveniently,
thispitchliesasemitonelowerthanthemodernstandardisedtuningpitch
68
(a=440).Werethestringstobetunedasemitonelower,aBaroque‐typesound
maybeattainable,asthestringswouldbeatalowertension.
STYLISTICFACTORS
VIBRATO
DuringtheBaroqueera,vibratowasusedprimarilyasaselectiveornament.It
wasoftenaddedfreelybytheplayer,usuallyonalongsustainednoteoronthe
finalnotesinaphrase.Itwasalsoemployedforexpressivepurposes,toenhance
theimportantnotesinaphrase.Spohr(Violinschule:175)associatedvibrato
withaccentednotes.BaroqueandClassical‐eraplayersusedavibratooffar
shorterwidththanperformersoftoday.Atthattime,vibratowasexecutedby
thefingersandwrist,ratherthanbythearm.Thismayhavebeenduetothe
holdatthetime,whichdidnotofferadequatemobilityofthearm.Leopald
Mozartdescribestheeffectofvibrato20tothe“wave‐likeundulation”created
afterstrikingabellorslackstringsharply(Mozart.1756:203).Headvisesusing
theornamenttoaddemphasistoanote,onalongnoteattheendofapassage
andtodecorateasustainednote.
Withthegradualintroductionofthechin‐bracedgriptowardstheendofthe18th
century,thearmwasfreedtocultivateamorefluidvibratomovement(Stowell.
2001:65).AccordingtoStowell,thevibratoasexecutedontheviolaisless
intensethanontheviolin.BaillotandSpohragreethatthevibratomovement
shouldbeslightandthatadeviationfromthenoteshouldscarcelybeheard
(Spohr.Violinschule:175‐176).
Thedevelopmentofvibratoasa“constituentofapleasingtone”ratherthanan
embellishment,maybeattributedtothecontinuousvibratoemployedby
KreislerandHeifetz(Stowell.2001:65).
DYNAMICS
WrittendynamicmarkingswererarelyincludedbytheBaroquecomposer.Thus,
dynamicsthatmayberequiredinperformanceincludedroppingdownbeforea
risingsequenceandmakingadiminuendoasthemusicdescendstoalower
20Thetermtremolowasusedtodescribevibrato.
69
registerInthecaseofastrongerbottommelody,acrescendoshouldbeused
instead(Tarling.2001:137).
COMMONBAROQUERHYTHMS
SYNCOPATION
Bowdirectionisdeterminedbythehierarchyofthebar.Thestrongestbeat(first
beat)isusuallyplayedwithadownbow,unlessastrongharmonyorrhythmical
interruption(syncopation)mayequalthestrongdownbeat.Itisimportantto
notetheharmonywithinthesyncopation.Ifthesecondnotewithinthe
syncopationbelongstothesameharmonyasdoesthefirstnote,itshouldnotbe
playedmorestrongly.Often,thetendencyistoplaythesecondmorestrongly,
withanaccenteddownbow,particularlyifitishigherthanthefirst.Inthis
instance,oneshouldbearinmindtheroleofhierarchywithintheharmonic
frameworkofthebar(Tarling.2001:94).
THEDACTYL
ThedactylisarhythmcommonlyfoundinBaroquemusic,includingBach’sViola
dagambasonatas.Thedactylconsistsofalongnote(quaver)followedbytwo
shorternotes(semiquaver).Thedactylcouldfallontheupbeatoronastrong
beatofthebar.Thelongnotemaybeliftedonanupboworemphasizedona
downbowfollowedbytwoalternatebowsontheshorternotes,dependingonits
rolewithinthehierarchyofthebar.Thesecondnoteofthedactylmaybea
double‐downifthenoteremainsthesamepitch(Tarling.2001:94).
SonataBWV1027,secondmovement(Allegromanontanto),bar59,isan
instanceinwhichtheruleofthedactylshouldbeappliedHenlemanipulatedthe
bowingsintheprecedingbarsothatthefirstdactylinbar59beginswithanup
bow.However,thiswasnotinaccordancewiththerulethatthestrongerbeat
shouldstartwithadownbow.Henleneglectedthisruleinorderto
accommodatethedirectionofsemiquaversthatfollow.Thebarendswitha
staccatoquaverwhich,asaresultofHenle’sbowings,isadownbow.Thisdoes
notsuitthecharacterofthepieceandshouldbeplayedwithaliftedupbow
instead.
70
DOTTEDRHYTHMS
Tocompensatefortheshorternotewithinadottedrhythm,thebowisoften
lifted.Itisnotnecessarytousethesameamountofbowonthedottednoteand
lift,asnotwosuccessivedottednoteswillbeofequalimportance.Toavoidequal
accentsaftertheretake,theplayermayvarythesizeoftheretake.Tarling
suggestssmallerretakesbeforeweakerbeatsandlargeronesbeforestronger
beats(Tarling.2001:95).
BAROQUEBOWTECHNIQUES
INÉGALETECHNIQUE
Notesinégale(Fr:unequalnotes)referstoaperformancepracticefromthe
BaroqueandClassicalerainwhichnoteswithequalwrittentimevaluesare
performedwithunequaldurations–usuallyalternatinglongandshort.
AccordingtoTarling,themainconsiderationwhenperformingnotesinégalesis
the“weightofthearmbringingthebowdownintothestringonthestronger
longernote,andliftingtheweightontheup‐bow”(Tarling.2001:169).Thebow
speedonthelongernoteshouldbeslowerandheaviertoachieveagreater
contrasttothelighterup‐bow.
SLOWBOW
Inthe18thcentury,thelongstrokewasoftendescribedashavingasoft
beginning,evenwhenplayedloudly.Theattackatthebeginningofthestroke
becamemorecommonwiththeTourtebow,whichhasmoretensionattheheel.
“Everytone,eventhestrongestattack,hasasmall,evenifbarelyaudible,
softnessatthebeginningofthestroke;foritwouldotherwisebenotone
butonlyanunpleasantandunintelligiblenoise.Thesamesoftnessmust
beheardalsoattheendofeachstroke(L.Mozart.1756).”
Itiskeytounderstandtherelationshipbetweenthepressure(exertedbythe
fingersofthebow)andthespeedofthebow.Theaimistobeginthenotewithan
imperceptibleattack,beforeincreasingthepressureandspeedtowardsthe
middle,andfinallydecreasingthepressureandspeedtowardstheheelsothata
softendingisachieved.
71
MESSADIVOCE
MessadivoceistheItaliantermusedtodescribetheswellingoflongstrokes.It
iscommonlyusedinslowmovementsinwhichlongnotesfrequentlyoccur.
Tartinidescribesthestrokeas“beginningwiththemostminutesoftness,
increasingthetonetoitsloudestdegreeanddiminishingittothesamepointof
softnesswithwhichyoubegan”(Tartini.1771:133).Geminianiportraysthe
executionas“pressingthebowuponthestringswiththefore‐finger.”Mozart
describesthecombinationofpressureanddistancefromthebridgeasfollows:
“Thefingerofthelefthandwhichisplacedonthestringshould,inthesoft
tone,relaxthepressuresomewhat,andthatthebowshouldbeplaceda
littlefartherfromthebridge;whereasinloudtonethefingersoftheleft
handshouldbepresseddownstronglyandthebowbeplacednearerto
thebridge”(Mozart.1756:97).
TheunderstandingofthisrelationshipisintegraltotheexecutionofBaroque
music.Strongerbeatsshouldbeplayedclosertothebridgewithmorepressure
withaslowerbowstroke,whiletheweakerbeatsshouldbeplayedwithlighter
strokes,afasterbowandfurtherfromthebridge.Tarlingsummarisesthemost
commonandeffectiveusesofmessadivoceasfollows(Tarling.2001:127):
1. Anysuspensionortieontoadissonance
2. Dissonancesonorduringlongnotesingeneral.
3. Alineofsuspensionsorothersequencesincorporatinglongnotes,which
maybeplayedalternatelyswelledandnotswelled.
4. Alongnoteattheendofamovementorsection
5. Alongintroductorynoteatthestartofamovement.
PERFORMANCEPRACTICEInordertoachieveaperiodinstrumentsoundonthemodernviola,asound
understandingofitsmechanicsandtechniquesshouldbeacquired.InDavid
Dalton’sPlayingtheViola,heinterviewsWilliamPrimrose,apioneerintheartof
virtuoso(solo)violaplaying.Primrosetranscribedandadaptedmanypre‐
72
Brahmsworksfortheviola.OnesuchtranscriptionishiseditionofBach’ssuites
forsolocello.Thisworkmaybeakeyresourceininforminghistorically‐
appropriateBaroqueperformancestoday.WhenaskedbyDaltonhowto
approachthesuitesontheviola,Primroserespondedthus:
“IhavebeengivenbytheauthoritiesthatintheBaroqueperiodamuch
moreattachedstylewasusedthanwepractisetoday,i.e.separate
bowings.Consequently,Iamquiteshyofputtingtoomanylegato
markingsintothefastermovementslikethepreludesandsomeofthe
correnteandgiguemovements(Dalton.1988:189)…Ialsoadvocateuse
ofthelowerpositionswhenplayingthecellosuites.TheseIconsidertobe
brighterinsoundwhenperformedontheviolaasopposedtothecello
(Dalton.1988:190).”
Inhisview,theviolaplayercannotachievethesame“profundityandweight”as
acellistcanonhisinstrument.Thus,thesuitesshouldbeplayedina
considerablydifferent“spirit”ontheviola.Headvisesthattheperformershould
notattempttoimitatethecelloperformance,butshouldrather“developatype
ofperformancestyleofourownwhichisofalighterquality,generallyquickerin
tempo,perhapsalittlegayerallthewaythroughwithlessgrumblingand
bemoaning”(Dalton.1988:190).Primrosedrawsheavilyontheworksofauthors
suchasTartini,DolmetschandBoydenwhenformulatinghisviewson
performancepractices.This,hefeels,willensuremoreinformed‐decision
makingwhenapproachingmusicthatwasoriginallyplayedtwoorthree
hundredyearsago.
PrimrosealsoconsultedtheworkofRobertDonington21toinformhisexecution
ofornamentation.Forexample,abaroquetrillstartedslowlyfromtheupper
noteandthenspedup(Dalton:1988:191).Priortotheintroductionofthe
Tourtebow,themannerofbowingwasmoredetachedandarticulate,anda
more‘Romantic’melodiclinewithmorefrequentslurringwasfavoured(Dalton.
1988:192).
21RobertDonington.TheInterpretationofEarlyMusic.revisedversion.FaberandFaber.London,.1974.
73
“Sonorityandcolourareessentialinrescuingourinstrumentfromthe
chargeofdullness,dinginess,drearyandlack‐lustresoundthatissooften
laidagainsttheviola–Primrose(Dalton.1988:68).”
Primrosedisputestheuseofthedown‐bowrule,inwhicheverystrongbeatis
playedwithadown‐bow.ThisisinlinewithearlyworkbyFrancescoGeminiani,
whostated22(Dalton.1988:107)
“Imaintainthatthebeautyofviolatoneresidesintheopenstrings,witha
freeuseofopenharmonicsandalotofbariolage…(thestringcrossings)
lendspungencytothetone”(Geminiani.1751).
Primroseadvisesthatfirstpositionsshouldberetaineduntiltheperformerif
obligedtoascendtotheupperrange,asthemediumregionsoftheDandG
stringscanbeadullsectionoftheviola(Dalton.1988:114).
InlieuofafinalconclusionChaptersixwillapplytheBaroqueperformance
practicetechniquesdiscussedinthischaptertotheexecutionofBWV1027on
themodernviola.
22FrancescoGeminiani.TheArtofViolinPlaying.Facsimileedition,editedwithanintroductionbyDavidD.Boyden.OxfordUniversityPress.London.1751.
74
CHAPTERSIX:HOWTOPERFORMBWV1027ONAMODERN
VIOLA
Inthisbodyofwork,IhaveanalysedBärenreiter’s,HenleandBreitkopfand
Härtel’seditionsofBach’ssonatasforvioladagambatranscribedforviola.In
termsofadditionalperformancedirection,Bärenreiterdoesnotincludeany;
Henleincludesfingeringandbowing;andBreitkopfincludesfingering,bowing,
dynamicsandaddedslurs,dotsandlines.
Inordertoachieveahistorically‐informedperformance,theplayershould
adherecloselytoBach’soriginalarticulationmarkings(slursanddots),which
themselveswereverythorougheventhoughnotalwaysclear(refertop.34).
DuetoitssignificantdivergencefromBach’soriginalwork,Ihavechosento
disregardtheBreitkopfeditionbyNaumann,andtofocussolelyontheHenle
edition.ThemotivationforNaumann’sextensiveadditionofarticulation
markingsisunclear.Hemayhaveintendedtoassistthemodernplayerin
executingBach’swork.Whiletheaddeddotsmayhavebeenincludedasa
remindertotheperformertoplaymorelightly;theslursareunjustifiableasthey
changethephrasingandarticulationofamelodyentirely.Onesuchexamplecan
befoundinbars57and58intheAllegromanontanto(secondmovement),in
whichthesecondsemiquaverofbeat2isslurredtotheprevioustiewithnodot
indicatingthatitshouldbere‐articulated.Thispatterncontinuesthroughout
bothbars.IntheNaumannedition,thesemiquaveristuckedinwiththetiefor
bowingconvenience,completelychangingthearticulationfromseparatedto
legato.Bachintendedthesemiquavertobeseparatedandthusliftedand
articulated,notslurredandlegato.
Anotherexamplecanbefoundintheopeningthemeofthesecondmovement.
Naumannslursthetwosemiquaversofbeat4inbar5,sothatthefirstbeatof
bar6canstartdown‐bow.Again,thismodificationchangesBach’sintended
articulationentirely,simplyforthesakeofconvenience.Thereareanumberof
similarexamplesintheAllegromoderato(fourthmovement),inwhichNaumann
changesthearticulationbyaddingslurstoaccommodatethedirectionofthe
bow.
75
Althoughitissometimesnecessarytoadaptthebowingstoaccommodatethe
emphasisofabeatorharmony,thiscanbedonewithoutchangingthe
articulation.Forexample,inbar5ofthesecondmovement,startingup‐bowon
thefirstquaverofbar5wouldresultinanup‐bowinthenextbar.Toavoidthe
up‐bowonthestrongbeatofbar6,adoubledown‐bowmaybetakenonthefirst
quaverofbar6.Thistechniquemayberepeatedinthenextbar.Infact,thereare
anumberofinstancesinwhichthedirectionofthebowmaybeadaptedtosuit
boththearticulationandtheemphasisofbeatandharmony.
TheeditionbyHenledoesnotaddslurs,butdoesadaptthebowingdirectionfor
practicalconvenience.Mostoftheseadaptationsarenotinlinewiththe“rules”
ofbowingoftheBaroqueera.Thus,theirimplementationwillbeassessedand
revisedinthechaptertosuitamorehistorically‐informedperformancestyle.
Henle’ssuggestedfingeringswillalsobediscussed.Ratherthanusingthesecond
position,thiseditoroftenjumpstothirdposition(acommontrendin
performancestoday).Onlongsustainednotesthatcouldbeplayedwiththeopen
string,Henlesuggestsplayingthemstoppedinordertousevibrato‐another
elementdiscordantwiththebaroquestyle.Further,headvisesthatopenstrings
shouldbeusedwheneverpossibletocreatemoreresonance.
Intheanalysistofollow,thebowingsandfingeringsofeachmovementofBWV
1027willberevisedtosuitamorehistorically‐informedperformance.
MOVEMENTI:ADAGIO
BOWING
Thelastquaverofbeat4inbar3,suggestedbyHenle,ismarkedП. Theprecedingfoursemiquaversareslurredonanup‐bow,resultinginthelast
quaverofthebarstartingquitelowinthebow.Itisthenfollowedbyalongnote
ofsixcountsinbar4and5.Inordertohaveenoughbowforthelongnote,the
lastquaverofbar3shouldbeplayedwithafullbow.Thismay,however,cause
thisnoteto‘stickout’,whenitshouldactuallybethesoftestnoteofthephrase.
Thus,thisquavershouldbe“tuckedin”totheup‐bowslurredsemiquaversthat
precedeit.Thiswouldresultinthebowbeingattheheeltostartthelongnotein
bars4and5.
76
Henleaddsanumberoftuckeddown‐bows,anothertechniqueuncharacteristic
oftheBaroquestyle,duringwhichup‐bowsweremoreoftentucked.Henle’s
tuckeddown‐bowscanbefoundinthefollowingbars:
BARS: TUCKEDDOWN‐BOWS:(HENLE)6 Secondsemiquaverofbeat47 Secondsemiquaverofbeat2andbeat48 Secondsemiquaverofbeat410 Secondcrotchetofbeat419 Secondsemiquaverofbeat120 Secondsemiquaverofbeatandbeat323 Secondquaverofbeat224 Secondsemiquaverofbeat4
Inalltheabovecases,anup‐bowisrecommended.
Further,theuseofdoubleup‐bowsisadvisedinthefollowingbars:
BARS: DOUBLEUP‐BOWS:(REVISED)10 Lastquaverbeatslurred15 Lastsemiquaverpairinbeat416 Lastsemiquaverpairinbeat3
AdditionalalternativestoHenle’sbowdirectioninclude:
BARS: REVISEDBOWING:18 Inplaceofanup‐bowonthefirstquaverofthelastbeat,adown‐
bowisadvisedtoavoidaccentingthepreviouscrotchet.Theharmonyremainsthesamewithinthebeatanditisgenerallynotadvisabletoplaceanaccenteddown‐bowmidwayinthebeat(Tarling.2001:94).
23 Theuseofadown‐bow(ratherthananupbow)onbeat3isadvisedasthenotefallsonastrongbeatofthebar.Adoubleup‐bowisthennecessaryfortheupbeattobar24.
FINGERING
BAR: HENLE: REVISED:2 4thfingeronthelastnoteofthebarto
avoidstringcrossingundertheslur4 2ndfingerinthirdposition OpenAstringondottedsemibreve6 OpenAonsecondquaverofbeat2,
openDonbeat3,2ndfingeronCsharpforconvenienceofthetrill
77
Secondposition:fifthsemiquaverofbeat2tofirstquaverofbeat3
7
Thirdpositiononthelastquaverofbeat4tothelastquaverofbeat1inbar8
Itisadvisedthatfirstpositionismaintained
18,19 Henlesuggestsshiftingtosecondpositiononthefirstcrotchetofbar18beforemovingtothirdpositiononthebeat2ofbar19.
Stayinginfirstpositionisrecommended
20 Remaininfirstpositionforbeat1,movetosecondpositiononthethirdsemiquaverofbeat3toavoidthestringcrossingundertheslur,andprepareforthetrillinbeat4
24 Secondpositiononthefirsttwosemiquaversofbeat2,openGonthethirdsemiquaverofbeat2
USEOFDOTS
Inthissonata,thedothasthreedifferentfunctions:1)itmaybeassociatedwith
aspecificmotivicfigure;2)itmayservetolightentheendsofsmallnotegroups
orsmall‐groupphrases;and3)itmaycomplementslurredpatterns(Butt.
1990:162).
Anexampleoffunction(1)isevidentinbar1ofthefirstmovement(Adagio),in
whichthesecondandthirdquaversofthebararedotted.Wheneverthistheme
recurs,thedotsarepresent.Asimilarexampleoccursinthemainthemeofthe
secondmovement,inwhichtwosemiquaversandaquaver(withadot)are
present.Thesesemiquaversshouldbeaccentedwiththequaverplayedmore
lightly.Thesecondfunctionofthedotoccursattheendofbar3inthefirst
movement.Thelastquaverhasadot,thuspreventinganaccentandallowingthe
playerenoughtimetocrosstotheAstring.Thedot’sthirdfunctionisevidentin
thesecondmovementinbars30‐32,inwhichthreequaversareunderaslurand
thefourthquaverisseparatedwithadot.AccordingtoButt,thistypeoffigureis
anintegralelementoftherhythmandmelody(Butt.1990:163).
78
MOVEMENTII:ALLEGROMANONTANTO
BOWING
InButt’sopinion,onlyminimaladjustmenttothebowingdirectionsisrequired
inthismovement.Ifplayedasis‐startingdownonthefirstquaver‐the
semiquaverstringpassageinbar12is“comfortable”,withanup‐bowinthe
melodynote(thefirstnoteofeachpair).Inthecaseoftheviola,inwhichthe
down‐bowisthestrongerstroke,theoppositebowingwouldneedtobe
executed.ItseemsthatBachpaidparticularattentiontothearticulation
markingsinhissonatas,alwaysbearinginmindtheinstrumentforwhichhewas
composing(Butt.1990:160).
Adoubledown‐bowisrecommendedintheopeningthemeandshouldbeused
throughoutthemovement,evenwhenitisdisplacedinthebar.Otherinstances
inwhichthedoubledown‐bowshouldbeusedinclude:
BARS: DOUBLEDOWN‐BOWS:(REVISED)90‐92 Thesemiquaverafterthetieddottedcrotchet100‐101 Downbowonthequaverofbeat1anddoubledonthefollowing
semiquaver
Again,Henle’suseofthetuckeddown‐bowisunnecessary–up‐bowsshouldbe
utilisedinsteadasfollows:
BARS: UP‐BOWS:(REVISED)13 Lastsemiquaverofbeat315 Secondsemiquaverofbeat129 Secondsemiquaverofbeat132 Lastsemiquaverofbeat347 Secondsemiquaverofbeat257 Allsemiquaverafterthetieshouldbeplayedupbow63 Lastsemiquaverofbeat283 Secondsemiquaverofbeat1112 Lastsemiquaverofbeat2
BAR: ADDITIONAL:(REVISED)37 HenlemarksthelastquaverП.Itisadvisabletoplayitup,thus
resultinginadown‐bowonthedescendingslurredsemiquavers
79
onbeat2and3.Thisdown‐bowwillcreateanaturaldiminuendoonthedescendingline.
FINGERING
Firstpositionshouldbemaintainedformostofthemovement.Openstrings
shouldbeusedwhentheystandontheirown.
BARS: OPENSTRINGS:(REVISED)9 Beat314 Wholebar
Ifalternativefingeringisrequired,theplayershouldshifttotheclosestpossible
position.Thisisnecessaryinbars29,32and61,inwhichthetrillshouldbe
playedinsecondposition.Creepingisadvisedinbars65and66,ie.shiftingto
secondpositiononthelastbeatofbar65andthirdpositiononthebeat1ofbar
65.Tocreatemoreresonance,theuseofopenstringsisrecommendedinbars85
and86.
MOVEMENTIII:ANDANTE
BOWING
Mostofthemovementconsistsoftwo‐andfour‐noteslurs.Duringthe
eighteenthcentury,theslurwasregardedasadiminuendo,withthesecondnote
undertheslurbeingplayedmoresoftlythanthefirst(Tarling.2001:142).Inthis
movement,thesluremphasisesthephrasing‐leaningonthefirstnoteand
fadingonthesecond.Shiftingandstring‐crossingshouldbeavoidedunderthe
slursoasnottobreakthesound.
RecommendedmodificationstoHenle’sbowingsareasfollows:
BARS: 7 Henlesuggestsasecondup‐bowonbeat2anddoublesthedown
onthesemiquaverofbeat3.Forpracticalpurposes,thisbowingisfartoocomplicated.Thus,itispreferabletoplaythebar‘asitcomes’,tuckingthefirstsemiquaverup.
12 Henletucksthesemiquaverofbeat3down.Again,thisbarshouldinsteadbeplayed‘asitcomes.’
80
FINGERING
Shiftingandstring‐crossingundertheslurshouldbeavoided.
BARS: FINGERING:(REVISED)2 4thfingeronainthesecondandfourthsemiquaverpair3 Beat3:firstpairofsemiquaversinhalfposition,secondpairin
secondpositionBeat4:playinthirdposition(creepingmethod)
Insomecases,itmaybeincreasinglydifficulttoavoidshiftsandstringcrossings
undertheslur.Intheseinstances(eg.bars6,4,11),thelowestpossibleposition
possibleshouldbemaintained.
MOVEMENTIV:ALLEGROMODERATO
BOWING
Inthismovement,theuseofdoubledown‐bowsisrecommendedtoavoid
awkwardup‐bowsinquaverpassages.Thebarsconsistingofacrotchet,four
quaversandacrotchetshouldbeplayedwiththefollowingbowing:
П ПⅤПⅤ П│П
Thespacebetweenthedoubledownbowscreatesalightnessandlift,thusaiding
the“spirit”ofthefastmovement.
Alldottedcrotchetsshouldbeplayeddown,followedbyanup‐bowonthe
quaver–notuckeddown‐bowsshouldbeusedonthequaverafterthesedotted
crotchets.
FINGERING
Thesamefingeringrulesappliedtotheprecedingmovementsmaybeusedhere.
Thetrillsshouldbeplayedinthelowestpossibleposition(mostlysecond
position)inbars10,25,48and65.Wheneverpossible,openstringsshouldbe
played,particularlywhenthesenotesarestandingalone,eg.bar9(beat3)and
bar48(beat1).Thirdpositionshouldbeavoided,excepttopreventastring
crossingunderaslur,asisthecaseinbar112.
81
FIRST‐HANDEXPERIENCEAspartofmyprogram,IattendedaHIPcourseattheSouthAfricanCollegeof
Music,coordinatedbyProfessorRebekkaSandmeier.Thecoursewasan
introductiontoHIP,providingalinkbetweentheacademicandpracticalaspects
ofmusic.AsaperformerIfoundthiscourseextremelybeneficialwithregardsto
arrivingtoaninformedwayofinterpretingmusic.Wewereshownhowtouse
periodevidencesuchasmusic(manuscriptsandearlyprints)anditseditions,
treatisesonmusictheoryandperformanceaswellastheinstrumentsand
instrumentation.
ThepracticalaspectofthecourseinvolvedreceivinglessonsbyAntoinette
Lohmannonthebaroqueversionofone’sinstrument.Thiswasextremely
challengingforme,asIhadneverplayedabaroqueviola.IsoondiscoveredIhad
toabandonallIknewaboutplayingtheviolainordertosuccessfullylearnthe
basicsofsoundproductionandbowarticulationonthebaroqueviola.Because
thepre‐TourtebowisconsiderablylighterthantheTourtebow,itisnecessaryto
playwithalowerelbowtocreatemoreweightandultimatelymorebitein
articulationonthegutstrings.Aswellasbeinglighter,thepre‐Tourtebowisalso
shorter,soonehastocompensatebyusinglessbow.Itsconcaveshapealso
makesplayinginthelowerhalfeasiertocontrolcomparedtothemiddleand
upper‐halfofthebow.Holdingtheinstrumentisalsoachallengeasthereisno
chinrestorshoulderrestforaddedsupport.Thismakesarmvibratonearly
impossiblelimitingmetohandandfingervibrato.Ialsoavoidedshiftingand
usedmostlyfirstandsecondposition.
Thefinalpresentationrequiredmetoplayanearlypieceofmusicinamore
historicallyinformedwayonthebaroqueinstrumentwehadreceivedlessons
on.OfcourseIchoseBach’svioladagambasonataBWV1027,transcribedfor
viola.Sincemythesisisaimedatarrivingtoamoreinformedwayofplayingthis
sonataonamodernviola,Idecidedtotreatmypresentationasanexperiment
withthesameobjective.Theexperimentinvolvedplayingthesonataonthe
Baroqueviolawithapre‐Tourtebowandharpsichordaccompanimentusingthe
techniquesIhadreceivedfromthelessons;playingthesonataonthemodern
violawithTourtebowandpianoaccompanimentdisregardingHIP;andfinally
82
playingthesonataonthemodernviolawithTourtebowwithharpsichordina
moreinformedway.
IfounditextremelydifficulttoperformthissonataignoringtheknowledgeIhad
acquiredduringthecourse.ItriedtoperformitinamoreRomanticwayusing
legatostrokesandcontinuousvibrato.Itfeltveryuncomfortable,asitdidnot
suitthestyleofmusic.
WithabetterunderstandingofplayingthesonataonthebaroqueviolaIwas
betterequippedtoplayinamoreinformedwayonmymodernviola.Someof
theseadaptationsincludeplayingwithalightertouch,playingwithmore
separate(nonlegato)bowstrokesespeciallyinthefasterpassages,usingless
bowandvibrato,andstayingpredominantlyinfirstandsecondposition.
83
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Abbott,DjildaandSegerman,Ephraim.“GutStrings,”EarlyMusic4/4(Oct,1976).
430‐437.http://www.jstor.org/stable/3126157.Accessed:26/09/2013.
Agricola,M.Musicainstrumentalisdeudsh.Wittenberg,1529.Trans.byW.
Hettrick,1994.
Boyden,DavidDandWoodward,Ann,“Viola”,GroveMusicOnline.
http://www.grovemusiconline.com
Brown,HowardMayer.“PerformancePractise”,GroveMusicOnline.
http://www.grovemusiconline.com.
Brown,HowardMayer.“NotesontheviolintheTwentiethcentury”,EarlyMusic
6/1(1978):47‐55.
Brown,HowardMayerandSadie,Stanley,ed.PerformancePractise:Musicafter
1600.(London:TheMacmillanPress,1989).
Burstyn,Shai.“AuthenticityinInterpretation,”EarlyMusic23/4(1995):721‐
723.
Butt,John.“Authenticity”,GroveMusicOnline.
http://www.grovemusiconline.com
_____.BachInterpretation:ArticulationMarksinPimarySourcesofJ.S.Bach.
(Cambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress,1990).
_____.PlayingwithHistory:TheHistoricalApproachtoMusicalPerformance.
(Cambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress,2002).
CollinLawsonandRobinStowell.TheHistoricalPerformanceofMusic:An
Introduction.(Cambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress,1999).
Cupis,Francois.Méthoded’Alto(Paris:1803).
Dalton,David.Playingtheviola:ConverstaionswithWilliamPrimrose.(NewYork:
OxfordUniversityPress,1988).
84
Danoville,LeSieur.L’artdetoucherledessusetbessedeviole.(Paris:1687).
Daulhaus,Carl.FoundationsofMusicHistory.(Cambridge:CambridgeUniversity
Press,1983).
Emery,Walter.Bach’sornaments.(London:Novello,1953).
Fabian,Dorottya.Bachperformancepractice19451975:Acomprehensivereview
ofsoundrecordingsandliterature.(Ashgate:2003)
Franklin,DonO.BachStudies.(Cambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress,1989).
Ganassi,Sylvestro.RegolaRubertina:Amanualofplayingthevioladagambaand
ofplayingthelute.(Venice:HildemariePeter,1542/43).Englishtranslationfrom
theGermanedtion,1972,byDaphneandStephenSilvester).
Goehr,Lydia.TheImaginarymuseumofmusicalworks:Anessayinthephilosophy
ofmusic.(Oxford:OxfordUniversityPress,1992).
Haskell,Harry.“EarlyMusic.”NG2(2001).
Haynes,Bruce.TheEndofEarlymusic.(NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress,2007).
Heron‐Alen,E.Violinmakingasitwas,andis.(1885)213.
Hsu,John.“TheuseofthebowinFrenchsoloviolplayingofthe17thand18th
centuries.”Earlymusic.6/4(Oct.1978):526‐527,529.
http://www.jstor.org/stable/3125742.
Jones,Richard.“TranscribedBach”,EarlyMusic26/2(1998):363‐364.
JoséHerrando.Arteypunctualexplicacióndelmododetocarelviolin.
(Paris:1756).
Kenyon,Nicholas.AuthenticityandEarlyMusic:ASymposium.NewYork:Oxford
UniversityPress,1988).
Kuijken,WielandandHogwood,Christopher.“WielandKuijkenandChristopher
Hogwoodontheviol.”Earlymusic6/1(Jan,19878):4‐11.
http://www.jstor.org/stable/3125449.
85
Lee,Joong‐Oh.AcomparisonofselectededitionsofJohannSebastianBach’s
unaccompaniedcellosuitenumbersixinDmajorBWV1012transcribedforthe
viola.(D.M.A.,UniversityofMiami,2004).
Martens,Peter.InspiredbythePast.(M.Musthesis,UniversityofCapeTown,
2007).
McCarty,Patricia.“UserfriendlyBaroqueornamentation:fiveleadingbaroque
performersclarifyviolaliterature.”AmericanStringteacher,47/1(1997):43‐52.
Mellers,Wilfrid.PresentandPast:IntermediariesandtheInterpreters.Inthe
Companiontocontemporarymusicalthought,ed.J.Paynteretal.Routledge
(1992).
Morris,RalphE.AperformanceeditionofBach’sviolincellosuitestranscribedfor
viola.(D.M.A.,ArizonaStateUniversity,1991).
Mozart,Leopald.ATreatise(VersucheinergründlichenViolinschule).(Augsburg:
1756).
Otterstedt,Annette.TheViol:HistoryofanInstrument.TransbyHansReiners
(Kassel:Bärenreiter,2002).
Paul,LeslieD.1953.“BachasTranscriber”,MusicandLetters34/4(1953):306–
313.
Pond,Celia.“Ornamentalstyleandthevirtuoso:SolobassviolmusicinFrancec.
1680‐1740.”EarlyMusic.6/4(Oct,1978):512‐518.
http://www.jstor.org/stable/3125740.
Praetorius,Michael.SyntagmaMusicumII.DeOrganographia.(1619)48.
Riley,Maurice.TheHistoryoftheViola(1991).
Rosen,Charles.TheBenefitsofAuthenticity,CriticalEntertainments.(Harvard
UniversityPress,2000).
Rousseau,Jean.TraitesdelaViol.1687.
86
Rutledge,John.“Howdidthevioladagambasound”,EarlyMusic7/1(1979):59‐
69.
_____.“Late19thcenturyviolrevivals”,EarlyMusic19/3(1991):409‐418.
Small,Christopher.Musicking.TheMeaningsofperformingandlistening.Wesleyan
UniversityPress:1998.
Stowell,Robin.Theearlyviolinandviola:apracticalguide.(Cambridge:
CambridgeUniversityPress,2001).
Tarling,Judy.BaroqueStringPlayingforIngeniousLearners.(UnitedKingdom:
CordsMusicPublications,2001).
Taruskin,Richard.TextandAct:EssaysonMusicandPerformances.Oxford
UniversityPress,1995.
Walls,Peter.History,imagination,andtheperformanceofmusic.Boydelland
Brewer,2003.
Wolff,Christian.Bach:Essaysonhislifeandmusic.(Cambridge:Harvard
UniversityPress,1991).
Woodfield,Ian.“Violplayingtechniquesinthemid‐16thcentury:Asurveyof
Ganassi’sfingeringinstrucions.”Earlymusic.6/4(Oct:1978):544‐549.
http://www.jstor.org/stable/3125952.
Woodfield,IanandRobinson,Lucy.Viol.GroveMusicOnline.OxfordMusic
Online.OxfordUniversityPress.Accessed3October2013.
http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/subscriber/article/grove/music/29435.
Woodfield,Ian&Robinson,Lucy,“Viol”,GroveMusicOnline.OxfordMusicOnline.
http://www.grovemusiconline.com