On September 10, 1751, the violinist and composer Bartolomeo Campagnoli was born in Cento. MyCello remembers him by proposing a music video and the score of his 6 Quartette.
Dear Erik Friedlander, Hello, and thank you for agreeing to answer our questions.
How was your passion for the cello born? Do you come from a family in which there were musicians or music lovers? Your father, if I’m not mistaken, is an important photographer, even in the music world.
I started with guitar at age 5 and then at age 8 I was offered a cello at the local public school. I’ve been playing since. My father loves music and listens to all kinds of music while he works in the darkroom, mainly from mix tapes he would record using 90-minute cassette tapes. I was exposed to all genres of music played loudly in our living room, and in our pickup truck when we would travel around the USA.
What can you tell us about your training as a musician: where did you study and with whom?
I went to the Aspen Music Festival and discovered to my horror that when compared to players my age, I was way behind in terms of my development. I needed to tear down my technical approach and remake myself if I were to be a working musician. I spent much of my early 20s doing just that. I studied with Harvey Shapiro, Ron Leonard, Zara Nelsova, Robert Gardner, and many others. I lived in New York City and there are many great players and teachers.
What cello do you use? I have seen in your videos that you often also use a carbon cello, in addition to a traditional wooden instrument, and why do you alternate them in your concerts?
I used the carbon fiber to tour but I grew dissatisfied with the sound. It saved me a lot of money because I would put it into the baggage under the plane, like a suitcase! In time I felt the cello lost its sound. So, now I tour with my regular cello (Vidoudez 1922).
You live in NY: Did “The Big Apple” influence your artistic choices as a musician, not only with his music but with all his forms of art and expression?
There is a community of musicians in NYC that is quite large and talented. It’s this constant source of inspiration to hear what people are doing. It’s a push to creativity!
In 2018 your album Artemisia was released: what can you tell us about this work and how much did it mean for you? What Artemisia is inspired by? What is its musical character?
The Artemisia project was inspired by a trip to the MoMA here in NYC. A Picasso show in which they had as part of the show 6 absinthe glasses. The glasses were pretty… kind of innocent at first glance, but as I looked more closely, I found a dangerous side. The front of each glass is exposed – torn away to show its insides. It seemed like Picasso was saying this is what happens to you when you drink absinthe. This viewing spurred me into an exploration of absinthe’s mysterious history: beneath a glamorous veneer in 19th-century Paris lurked accusations of hallucinatory properties and elusive effects that created an atmosphere of addiction and demise.
Throw a Glass Project: a marked jazz project for a quartet with important musicians collaboration and, above all, with Uri Caine. Can you tell us about this experience and what kind of music has this ensemble expressed?
Everyone in this band is exceptional. It’s a pleasure to perform with Uri (Caine) as well as Mark (Elias) and Ches (Smith). Their interpretations of my music are a pleasure to be a part of and inspiring to me.
If I’m not mistaken, the Throw a Glass tour also touched Italy. What is your relationship with the music of our country, what do you love about the Italian musical tradition?
We all love to come to Italy because there are big fans of jazz there and the food is spectacular. We have performed in Padova, Palermo, Piacenza, Ferrara, San Vito Tagliamento, and Firenze in the last couple of years.
You have produced more than twenty CDs: do you want to remind us of the main ones, the most significant ones? Do you think they represent a journey through time that your figure as a musician and cellist has matured?
All my releases are significant to me. Certainly, you can use sales to answer this question and in that case “Block Ice & Propane” is my best-selling CD. I like the CD I dedicated to my first wife who had died of breast cancer, “Claws & Wings.” The Broken Arm Trio recording is strong as are Oscalypso and Bonebridge.
I follow my curiosity and my intuition. I let the music talk to me, telling me what to write and who to write it for.
With which other musicians have you collaborated and in which projects? Tell us at least about the most significant ones.
Dave Douglas – Parallel Worlds
Marty Ehrlich – The Dark Woods
John Zortn – Bar Kohkba, The Circle Maker, Volac, among others
Dream Song: in this song, in my opinion, there are influences of a US guitar tradition, even plugged, linked to certain musicians such as Ry Cooder, border music from the south of the USA. Can this be true? What can you tell me about it?
Indeed that was my inspiration for the recording. I wanted to take the folk music finger-picking techniques I had learned as a 5-year-old and bring them to the cello. Ry Cooder’s soundtrack to “Paris Texas” was especially influential.
The Romanoffs: tell us about this movie and your choices as a composer for this soundtrack.
I love doing Soundtrack work. I grew up with photographs and music in my life. The meeting of music to picture is part of my psyche. I think I have a good feel for it and would love to do more scoring.
I used the santour, piano, cello, and electronics to shape the score for “The Romanoffs.” It was an intimate score for this story of a couple visiting Russia to complete the adoption of a baby.
You composed the soundtrack for the film “Oh Lucy”, presented at Cannes. What were the choices you made in composing the music for this film?
“Oh, Lucy” needed a light touch. I used cello, and electronics, just to bring out the humor and warmth of the film. It was a difficult film to work on because it is a mix of emotions going from humorous to sweet and then disturbing.
Oscalypso: a CD that recalls an extraordinary jazz player: Oscar Pettiford. Do you want to tell us about this musician and why he was so important to you?
Oscalypso is a celebration of the music of bassist Oscar Pettiford who was innovative on the cello too. When I look to history for a role model, it’s Pettiford. He was the first to lead a band from behind the cello. And he wrote original tunes, some of which are now classics. Pettiford had a special feel for the instrument — he even named his son Cello! He’s always been a hero of mine.
What will your next commitments be, what have you written down on the next pages of your agenda?. Are you in the recording studios for a new album?
I’m putting out a new CD called ” Sentinel” with Ava Mendoza (guitar) and Diego Espinosa, perc. This new trio is “Sentinel” was recorded in late 2019, when I invited guitarist Ava Mendoza and percussionist Diego Espinosa into the studio. The group had never played together, let alone rehearse, so my compositions were picked up and worked out on the spot. I found out Diego was coming to NYC for a performance, so I booked the studio and we recorded on Diego’s days off, It was a tricky recording, but we had fun and a lot of the first-day takes made it onto the record. The recording has an almost live feel. It’s like a garage band for 2020.
Erik Friedlander, thank you for your kind availability. To you every best wish for your profession as a musician but also for every other aspect of your life.
On August 22, 1862, the pianist and composer Claude Debussy was born in Saint-Germain-en-Laye. MyCello remembers him by proposing a music video and the score of his String Quartet in G minor, Op.10.
Martino Olivero recently won the Loiacono Competition and gladly agrees to answer some of our questions.
Can you explain to our readers what compositions you have decided to propose for the competition and what is the peculiarity of this competition?
Of course, the peculiarity of this competition is that, in addition to having to play, competitors must face a composition test. For the occasion, I composed a sonatina and recorded it together with the three tempos of the Third Suite of J.S. Bach (Prelude, Sarabande, and Giga). The “extra” test I believe changes from year to year, in fact, last year an essay was written, in addition to the more ordinary part of the execution.
What are the characteristics of the sonatina that you have decided to compose for this competition, and what musical language have you chosen to use?
The sonatina that I composed for the competition is in two movements, the first slow and relaxed and the second more marked and rhythmic. For the language I was inspired by John Coltrane and the cellist Stephan Braun, also I added a quote to the Prelude to the Fourth Suite of J.S. Bach.
What was the course of study that allowed you to reach this goal?
As for the cello study path, I did the classic path in the Conservatory, with the old Italian system; later I also took the second level degree in the same instrument. As for composition, I am self-taught, but I am going to start studying it seriously.
Which teachers and what experiences, in your opinion, have had the greatest influence on your training?
What a difficult question! I am really afraid of not being able to thank all those teachers who, between schools and the Conservatory, have helped me to grow with many small teachings; it is very difficult if not impossible to reconstruct the causal line that led me to learn and integrate certain notions and techniques. In general, I feel very influenced by Enrico Bronzi (whom I met at the master classes of the Portogruaro festival in Veneto), a complete musician, who taught me to consider the compositions in their entirety. Then Damiano Scarpa (with whom I prepared for this competition) played a very important role, and followed me in the years after the Conservatory. Finally, I thank the teachers who followed me to the Conservatory, professors Andrea Scacchi and Massimo Macrì.
Who is the author you love most? What are the compositions that you played with more pleasure? And which ones do you plan to play in the future?
The composer I love most (and who I would play all my life) is Sostakovic, although, unfortunately, I have played little. The composition that I played with the most pleasure is the Sextet op. 36 by Brahms, which I was lucky enough to play with Bruno Giuranna at the Giuseppe Verdi Conservatory in Turin. An experience that led me to love chamber music. In the future, I intend to explore new repertoires, also different from the classical ones, such as jazz and improvisation in general.
Do you prefer to play as a soloist, in chamber music groups, or in an orchestra?
Personally, I prefer chamber music, for the dialogue that is created with other voices. Although, in reality, I always feel like a chamber musician, both in the orchestra (even if in a row), and also when I play solo since most of the cello repertoire only needs the piano, another instrument, or even an orchestra that “accompanies”. When I find myself playing alone, I love the freedom of not having to adapt to someone else and being able to manage the speech independently, however, I always feel the lack of a “confrontation” with someone else.
If you have to do a concert in a primary school, to make her instrument known to children, what would you play?
I would look for short pieces with a simple structure, to keep the attention alive, such as the First Caprice of Dall’Abaco, and other classic pieces, such as times taken from Bach’s Suites. Then, it is always difficult to guess what compositions might or may not be liked: each child is an individual in himself, with his own tastes and attention span. Once, I happened to play the first movement of Hindemith’s sonata in front of a class, a very harsh piece like harmony. I remember that I expected indifference, distraction, and … the most complete mess by the children. Instead, they were all very careful and the piece was highly appreciated. I don’t know if it was a coincidence, but it led me to think that we could be more courageous with the repertoire choices for the younger audience. Obviously, I don’t want to say that only Lutoslawski and Xenakis should be heard, but that perhaps the horizons of the climbers can be widened a little and hope, by the law of large numbers, that one out of twenty might be interested…
And if you had the opportunity to play as a soloist with a large orchestra, which concert would you choose?
One of Sostakovic’s concerts of course, but … I don’t know which one to choose between the two! I heard them both as a kid and they remained deeply impressed on me.
What cello do you play and what is your relationship with your instrument? Your cello is always okay for you or, sometimes, it does not respond to your requests?
My instrument is a Sante Allegri of 1978, a lutist who lived in Glorie, in the province of Ravenna. It is a direct and powerful voice instrument and it is very reliable, you don’t need too much effort to bring out a penetrating sound, but, at the same time, it doesn’t suffer if you want to go more towards the bridge to dig the sound.
What are your next projects and your dreams for the future?
For the moment I am engaged in the wheels of the newly graduated musician: I teach in some private school, I play with some orchestras and I try to build professionalism in this not-easy environment (especially in these times of COVID). Even just being able to have a more stable life, and doing what I like for me at the moment are the main goals, and these days it will be even more difficult than normal.
And we hope that stability will come soon, in the life of all of us … thank you very much for your availability, and good luck with your future!
“Both Schumann (1810-56) and Piatti (1822-1901) played an important role in the development of the cello, and in raising expectations of what it could achieve as a solo instrument. That there is a more tangible link between Schumann and Piatti is not so well known. During my research for the new edition of the Schumann Concerto, published by Edition Peters and based on the Kraków autograph, I discovered among leaves from the original manuscript held in the Bergamo, Biblioteca Civica Angelo Mai, Italy, a message from Clara Schumann, dated October 1881, in which she offers Piatti her husband’s concerto: “To Mr. Piatti, with fond memories, Clara Schumann.” It is possible that she was even present when Piatti gave the British premiere of the Schumann Concerto, at the Crystal Palace, London in 1866. I am delighted that these three nineteenth-century masterpieces can now be celebrated on this disc.”
In these words, Josephine Knight sums up the choice of combining in a single CD Schumann’s Concerto for cello and orchestra with the Concertino op.18 and the Concerto op.26 by Alfredo Piatti. The streets of Clara Schumann and Alfredo Piatti crossed several times on the English stages, starting from 1856 a deep mutual esteem bound the two great interpreters together. Certainly, Clara made her husband’s compositions known and appreciated by Piatti. After playing for the first time with Clara, on May 13, 1856, at the Musical Union, Piatti began to systematically include Schumann’s compositions in his concert programs, while before that date he had never performed Schumann’s compositions. And therefore it appears natural that Piatti had been entrusted with the first London performance of Schumann’s Concerto.
Schumann’s Concert is very well known today. Josephine Knight offers an excellent interpretation of it highlighting the emotional tension without losing the interpretative balance and demonstrating his ability to dialogue well with the Royal Northern Symphony that supports her under the expert guidance of Martin Yates. The two pieces by Piatti, certainly less well known, are worthy of entering fully into the cellist repertoire. To perform them, it is necessary to possess a complete technical mastery of the cello and a deep sensitivity necessary to make the instrument authentically sing. Josephine Knight passes the test with flying colors, grace, balance, and decision, proving herself the worthy heir of Alfredo Piatti at the Royal Academy of Music.
In the CD booklet, interesting historical information allows a contextualized listening of the three pieces proposed.
– ROBERT SCHUMANN, Cello Concerto in A minor, Op. 129: Nicht zu schnell – Langsam – Etwas lebhafter
– ALFREDO PIATTI, Concertino for Cello & Orchestra, Op. 18:
– ALFREDO PIATTI, Cello Concerto No. 2 in D minor, Op. 26: Maestoso – Poco più moderato – Cadenza – Più moderato – Andante lento – Allegro vivo
Performers: Josephine Knight, cello – Royal Northern Sinfonia (dir. Martin Yates)
Label: Dutton
Released: March 20, 2020
With their second CD, the cellist Adrian Bradbury and the pianist Oliver Davies, conclude their precious work of reconstruction of the 12 fantasies on opera arias composed by Alfredo Piatti, the great Italian cellist known by cellists all over the world for his 12 Capricci.
“Piatti, a native Italian, became England’s – especially Queen Victoria’s – favorite cellist”.
Born a stone’s throw from the home of Gaetano Donizetti, into a family of musicians, Alfredo Piatti grew up immersed in the magical musical atmosphere of the golden age of Italian opera. From the early years of his life, sitting in the orchestra next to his teacher, playing a viola da gamba transformed into a small cello, he was able to listen to the great singers of his time and to store, in a hidden corner of his heart, a treasure of wonderful melodies, the same melodies that the audience, who then crowded the opera houses, hummed returning home after the show, the sad, sweet, cheerful, and passionate melodies that give shape and color to the variegated kaleidoscope of human emotions.
It, therefore, seems quite natural that fragments of those melodies recompose themselves, almost alone, under his nimble fingers, like memories that recompose themselves in a wonderful dream, giving life to his fantasies, that allowed the interpreter to demonstrate his creativity and his exceptional technique, and to the public the pleasant sensation of listening to something known, but at the same time new. Because the line of a simple melody, decomposed, and recomposed in a rich game of variations, offers the listener the pleasure of continuous discovery.
Of course, the modern interpreter who deals with these fantasies, and does it starting from manuscripts, shows a lot of courage, and if he does not limit himself to one of the fantasies, but faces all twelve of them, he also shows a lot of tenacity. But Adrian Bradbury and Oliver Davies faced the challenge with the necessary tenacity but also with great seriousness and passion. Among them there is a perfect harmony of intent, which took shape in the careful philological study of the manuscripts first and then in the extraordinary ability to always put in the foreground an elegant and refined cantabilità, especially in the hardest passages, where it would have been more easy to fall into the temptation to flaunt one’s technical mastery, losing sight of the melodic line and attention to sound quality.
A challenge thus overcome, which also takes on the special value of a musical will. Unfortunately, a few days after the release of the second CD, Oliver Davies abandoned the beloved keyboard of his Bechstein forever, leaving unfinished the plan to devote himself to the many other fantasies included in the compositions of Alfredo Piatti. These CDs, therefore, retain forever the precious memory of him and of his way of playing: precise, decisive, refined, and gentle.
VOL.1
– Souvenir de Beatrice di Tenda*
– Souvenir de La Sonnambula, Op.5*
– Souvenir des Puritani, Op.9*
– Capriccio sopra un tema della Niobe, Op.22
– Fantasia sopra alcuni motivi della Gemma di Vergy
– Impromptu on an air by Purcell in the Indian Queen*
VOL.2
– Introduction et Variations sur un thème de Lucia di Lammermoor, Op.2
– Rondò sulla Favorita*
– Souvenir de l’opéra Linda di Chamounix, Op.13
– Parafrasi sulla Barcarola del Marin Faliero*
– Rimembranze del Trovatore, Op.21
– Capriccio sur des Airs de Balfe*
Performers: Adrian Bradbury, cello – Oliver Davies, piano
Label: Meridian
Released: June 18, 2020
A young cellist and composer, an Italian but resident in London, kindly answers our questions. How and when did you meet the cello in your life?
I started studying cello at the age of 9, after attending a concert lesson held in my city by a professor at the Conservatorio di Udine. I had already approached music, first with the study of the piano, and flute, and then participating in the courses of musical propaedeutics. The cello was an instrument already present in the house; my father, in fact, had taken some lessons, after being inspired by a memorable concert by cellist Alain Meunier held in Portogruaro in 1985. The spark for the instrument struck in me, however, only at the age of 16, after meeting the famous cellist Teodora Campagnaro. The passion, the determination, the tenacity of this person made me discover a vital tool full of “sacred fire”. Shortly thereafter I should have joined his class in the conservatory, but unfortunately, she passed away following a serious illness.
Can you briefly tell us about the most significant stages of your studies?
My training began with Professor Federico Ricardi di Netro in the Conservatorio di Udine, a fundamental figure. After graduating in Venice, I continued my studies with Giovanni Sollima at the Accademia di Santa Cecilia in Rome, my idol along with Mario Brunello. Later I moved to London to study with Melissa Phelps, a student of Jaqueline Du Prè, at the Royal College of Music. Melissa was a very decisive and very generous teacher, to whom I owe a lot.
What are your most important interpreting experiences? Do you prefer to perform as a soloist or in chamber ensembles?
I like to perform both as a soloist and as a chamber musician. As a soloist, I played with Claudio Scimone and I Solisti Veneti, a truly unforgettable experience. I happen to play in many solo cello recitals, with a repertoire including classical composers, and my compositions, that are often supported by electronics. I am a member of the Trio Klein, a London-based string trio, and I am about to debut a new project in the formation of a trio with piano. Certainly, my most important performances include the concerts in quartet formation with Mario Brunello, the 100 Cellos experience with Giovanni Sollima, my recital at the Royal Albert Hall, and my compositions performed at the Southbank Center.
How important is it for you to choose the place where a concert takes place? What are the characteristics of the places where you love to perform?
The venue is important to me. In general, I always look for a place that predisposes everyone to listening. The theater is certainly my favorite, but I also feel very comfortable performing in unconventional places for the inspiration I usually get. For example, outdoor places, such as mountains, old castles, rivers, lakes, and also photographic studios, or old industrial buildings. They all are able to convey people’s stories in music.
How important is the choice of instrument? His, what cello is it?
I play an instrument built in 2014 by the master luthier from Cremona, Edgar Russ. The choice of instrument for me is very important, it is a part of my being, something that fits perfectly on an intimate level. In the beginning, like everyone else, I was looking for an ancient instrument. I wanted some nice names from the early twentieth century, but when I met Maestro Russ and played the instrument I own today, I felt in perfect symbiosis with the cello I had in my hands.
Which record labels have you collaborated with and for which projects?
I collaborated with the Velut Luna, and Concerto labels and I hope soon to be able to make a solo album with Limen and Orpheus. The lockdown has unfortunately postponed many projects and I hope to be able to resume them soon.
How did you approach the composition and what are the composers you consider as its main models?
I approached composition at age 18, after my eighth-year exam. I wanted to understand how composers managed to write their music. Counterpoint in particular fascinated me very much and I wanted to master it. I was good at harmony and I was very passionate about Daniele Zanettovich’s books on which I studied. I started privately with Maestro Mario Pagotto who immediately encouraged me. Afterward, I continued my studies with Battista Pradal until my admission at the Conservatory of Trieste under the guidance of Fabio Nieder. Last September I signed a contract with Piero Ostali for his Sonzogno Music Publisher in Milan. I am inspired by composers from all eras and styles, such as Bach, Beethoven, Schumann, Strauss, Pink Floyd, Giovanni Sollima, and Ennio Morricone.
What are the expressive possibilities offered by electronics? How do the sounds generated by the fingers, wood, and strings of a traditional instrument interact with each other with a “synthetic” sound, conceptual like mathematics, born from a “non-instrument” designed by the mind?
Electronic music allows us to greatly expand performing possibilities in a very creative way. You can create polyphonies, harmonies, sound spaces, and colors very effectively. The contrast between the material nature of a classical instrument and the algorithm of digital software is a source of great inspiration for me. I think this is also a synthesis of our contemporaneity. I always try to find a good balance between the act of live playing and digital effects in order to avoid the feeling of something too artificial.
On the occasion of dramatic events, such as those that we have recently experienced during the pandemic, music must, according to her, constitute an escape from a reality of suffering, or must entice the listener to reflect on the value and on the meaning of life?
Music, like all arts, is Beauty and we need it every day, especially in moments of despair and confusion like what we have recently experienced. Art, in general, played an essential role during this lockdown, there are countless initiatives and online participation in cultural events of every kind. Personally, I was the promoter of the very first live online music festival called “#AndràTuttoBene Online Music Festival”. An initiative that began on March 14 that offered every day a 15-minute-long performance; an almost desperate act to respond to the silence created by the cancellation of all cultural activities. Today it seems that things are starting again and perhaps we have rediscovered the emotion of the live concert again.
What will be the next commitments pinned on your agenda? What are your dreams and plans for the future?
I will return to London in late August and in the meantime I will have several dates with a repertoire for solo cello, soloist with orchestra, and a project dedicated to cellist Josè Bragato, Friulian like me, conceived by my piano collaborator, Andrea Boscutti. My dream is to be able to play a lot of music, in many places, and meet people to collaborate with.
Thank you so much for your availability and good luck with your next dreams!
On June 16, 1853, the composer Emil Sjögren was born in Stockholm. MyCello remembers him by proposing a music video and the score of his Cello Sonata, Op.58.
On the occasion of the bicentenary of the death of Jean-Louis Duport, Claudio Ronco and Emanuela Vozza enter the garden of his compositions, guiding the listener and inviting him to discover a thousand faces of his Sonatas and Duos from every possible point of view.
Period instruments, notes written on yellowed paper over time, gut strings manufactured with rigorous historical criteria by Mimmo Peruffo, careful historical research on the genesis of the compositions, meticulous care in research on execution practice. For Claudio and Emanuela, making a CD is always the point of arrival of a long journey. But there is also a deep emotional involvement between the fruit of their work. The soul of a musician can never feed only on study and technique. It needs colors, flavors, and smells. The clear sky at dawn, the enchantment of a sunset, the gentle murmur of the water of a stream, the intense green of the meadows and woods, the scent of flowers, and the intense taste of the fruits of the earth.
And then there are the silences, ready to welcome the notes that, under the agile fingers of the interpreters, wake up from a long sleep. The medieval church of Monferrer and the large hall of Mas Vilalte, an imposing eighteenth-century manor house, near Corsavy. Stone buildings, inside which suggestive acoustic effects are created, are cleverly exploited by the interpreters to give the sound the desired color. For the first and last of the Sonatas and the duets, the intimate and intimate atmosphere of the church. For the second and fifth Sonatas the hall. And, finally, the different position of the microphones allows the listener to put himself in the shoes of who is playing. A sound that expands freely in ancient environments. A sound that meets the ancient stones on its way and reaches us loaded with the life that used to take place among those stones for centuries.
Thus, track after track, an elegant and refined dialogue between the two instruments resumes life. Sometimes a close and lively dialogue is heard, and sometimes a peaceful sharing of dreams. And those who listen are amazed that such a fascinating musical heritage has stayed for a long time sleeping among the pages of the scores, on the shelves of libraries.
A wonderful CD, to listen to and listen to again, imagining that you are next to Claudio and Emanuela, in the enchanted landscape of the French Pyrenees.
JEAN-LOUIS DUPORT, Six SONATES / pour Violoncelle et Baße / Dediés / A Sa Majesté / Frederic Guillaume II / Roy de Prusse / Œuvre IV, publ. Sieber, Paris 1789.
– Sonata n.1 in D major: Allegro – Adagio – Rondeau Gratioso
– Sonata n.2 in G major: Allegro Moderato – Adagio – Allegro Assai
– Sonata n.5 in F major: Allegro Moderato – Adagio Cantabile (in E flat major) – Tempo di Minuetto con variazioni
– Sonata n.6 in D major: Allegro – Adagio – Allegro Assai
JEAN-LOUIS DUPORT, Trois DUOS / pour Deux Violoncelles /Composés par / L. Duport / Œuvre…, publ. Sieber, Paris ca. 1781/82
– Duo n.2 in D minor: Allegro molto – Rondeau
– Duo n.3 in G major: Adagio – Presto – Rondeau Gracioso
Performers: Claudio Ronco – Emanuela Vozza, cellos
Label: Urania
Released: April17, 2020
“The ‘Prete Rosso’ whimsical violinist, and extravagant concert composer, is well anchored in the collective imagination of today’s listeners; his vocal music, as sacred as profane, is now increasingly known; specific studies have long explored its contributions to other acute instruments. The time has then come to turn our attention downwards; it is necessary to explore deeply that other Vivaldi who for many years was a teacher of cello, double bass, and viola da gamba and who gave the evolution of the low strings a decisive contribution”
Often those who find in their hands a document of musical subject of the ‘700 has the feeling of getting lost among the terms used to indicate the instruments of the string family: violone, violone da braccio, violone piccolo, viola, viola da braccio, viola da spalla, basso viola / basso di viola, viola bassa, basso viola da braccio / basso da braccio, violoncino, violoncello, bassetto di viola / bassetto viola, violoncello da spalla, violone, violone grande, violone grosso, violone doppio, violone basso, basso, viola contrabasso, violone contrabasso, contrabasso. But is it possible to establish unequivocally what were the characteristics of the instruments indicated with these terms?
When can you start talking about cell music? And who were the first composers of music for cello and the first cellists (or cellists?) Of the European musical context in general, but above all of the Venetian context within which Vivaldi gave shape to his musical ideas? And what is your direct knowledge of the cello?
How much did the executive contexts interfere with the way you play the musical instruments, or with the choice of instruments of different sizes? In what position were the instruments kept? What are we able to reconstruct in relation to the movement of the hands of the interpreters (for example on the fingerings, or on the use of the nut, or on the handling of the bow)?
What were the differences in shape, use, and playing technique, between cello and ‘bassi d’arco’?
And finally, what are Vivaldi’s compositions dedicated to arc bass? What information do we have available to reconstruct the context of their genesis and to know how Vivaldi wanted it to be performed?
It seems incredible that in a single book, even if it is almost 600 pages long, it is possible to face all these questions in an in-depth and punctually documented way, instead, it is so.
Bettina Hoffmann succeeds in the arduous enterprise of organizing a world that, at first sight, appears confused and undefined. It presents and examines the sources with acute scientific rigor, highlights the information that can be obtained from it, but does not pretend to give certainties, where these certainties cannot be based on solid foundations. He speculates and above all provides a very rich, well organized, and structured material for those who want to approach the Vivaldian repertoire in a non-superficial way.
Particularly fascinating, for any type of reader”, the “female” window wide open on the world circumscribed by the walls of the Hospital of the Pietà (second chapter).
More technical, but still always very pleasant to read, the other chapters of the volume that, page after page, reconstruct a world of men, instruments, and sounds. A world of experimentation, often daring, that comes out alive from the pages of ancient documents. Men (and women) who learn to play for a living and who make their life of music, in the continuous search for novelties. Fingers that slide nimbly on the strings in search of increasingly high-pitched sounds, soundboards that stretch, widen, shorten. Bows that are always looking for new ways to get the desired sounds from the strings.
A book to read, read again, consult. A book that cannot miss in the library of those who study the history of music, of those who want to play Vivaldi, but which can be very interesting also for those who, even without playing, love to listen to Vivaldi’s compositions.
Bettina Hoffmann, born in Düsseldorf Düsseldorf, lives in Florence where she carries out a lively activity as a leg violist, baroque cellist, and expert of the history of her instruments. As a soloist and with Modo Antiquo, an ensemble appreciated in particular for Vivaldi’s interpretations, he is present in the major European festivals and theaters. Among his record production are the recordings dedicated to Marais, Ortiz, Ganassi, Schenck, and Gabrielli. On the musicological side, we point out his Catalogo della musica per viola da gamba and the volume La viola da gamba, published in Italian, German and English. He teaches at the Vicenza Conservatory and at the Music School of Fiesole.
BETTINA HOFFMANN
I bassi d’arco di Antonio Vivaldi
Fondazione Giorgio Cini – Studi di musica veneta. Quaderni vivaldiani, vol.19
Olschki Editore, 2020
pp.XVI-596
ISBN: 978-8822266903
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