early baroque opera

7/24/2019 Early Baroque Opera

1/19

Introduction

to

Ba

Art

and

Music

M,rrt.

historians

agree,

with

unusual

unanimity,

that

Baroque

music

first

appeared

in

northern Italy in

the early

seventeenth century. To be

sure,

around

1600,

certain

qualities of

the Italian

madrigal-virtuosic

solo

singing,

for

ex-

ample-came

to

be

emphasized

in

a

way

that

created

an

entirely

new

sound.

The

older

equal-voiced

choral

polyphony of

the

Renaissance

receded

in impor-

tance

as

a new,

more

flamboyant

style

gained

in

popularity Eventually,

the

new

style

was

given

a

new

name:

Baroque.

Baroque

is the

term

used

to

describe

the

arts

generally during

the

period

1600-1750.k

is

taken

from

the

Portuguese

wordbarroco,

meaning

a

pearl

of

irregular

shape

then

used

in

jewelry

and

fine

decorations.

Critics

applied

the

term

"Baroque"

to

indicate

excessive

ornamentation

in the

visual

arts and a

rough,

bold

instrumental

sound

in

music.

Thus,

origin

ally,Baroque

had

a

nega-

tive

connotation:

it signified

distortion,

excess,

and extravagance.

Only

during

the twentieth

century,

with

a

new-found appreciation of the

painting of

Peter

Paul

Rubens

(1577-1640)

and

the music

of

Antonio

Vivaldi

(1678-1741)

and

J

S

Bach

(1685-1750),

among

others,

has

the

termBaroQue

come

to

assume

a

positive meaning

in Western

cultural

history

BAROQUE

ARCHITECTURE

AND

MUSIC

Whar

strikes

us

most-

when

standing

before

a

monument

o[

Baroque

design,

such

as

the basilica

of

Saint

Peter

in Rome

or

the

palace

of

Versailles

outside

of

Paris,

is

that

everything

is

constructed

on

the

grandest scale.

The

plazas,

buildings,

colonnades,

gardens,

and

fountains

are all

massive

Look

at

the

ninety-foot-high

altar canopy inside Saint

Peter's,

designed

by Cian

Lorenzo

Bernini

(1598-1680),

and

imagine

how

it

dwarfs

the

priest

below

(Fig.

10-1).

FIGURES

1O-1

AND

1O-2

(left)

The high

altar

at Saint

Peter's

Basil-

ica, Rome,

with

baldachin

by

Gian

Lorenzo

Bernini. Standing

more than

ninety

feet

high, this

canopy

is marked

by twisted

columns

and curving

shapes,

color, and

movement,

all typical

of

Baroque

art.

(right)

Saint

Peter's

Square, designed

by

Bernini in

the mid-seventeenth

century,

The

expanse

is so

colossal it

seems [o

swallow

people,

cars,

and

buses.

z

t

e


2/19

outside the

basilica,

a circle

of colonnades

forms

a courtyard

large

enough

to

encompass

several

football

fields

(Fig.

10-2).

Or

consider

the

French king's

palace

of

Versailles, constructed

during

the reign

of Louis XIV

(1

643-17

l5),

so monumental

in scope

that

it formed

a

small independent

city, home

to

sev-

eral thousand

court

Functionaries

(see

Fig tZ-Z)

The music

composed

for

performance

in such

vast expanses

could

also be

grandiose.

While

at ftrst

the

Baroque orchestra

was

small,

under

King

Louis

XIV

it

sometimes

swelled

to

more than

eighty

players.

Similarly,

choral

works

for Baroque

churches

sometimes

required

twenty-four,

forty-eight,

or even

fifty-three

separate

lines

or

parts

These

compositions

for massive

choral

forces

epitomize

the

grand

or

"colossal"

Baroque

Once

the exteriors

of the

large

Baroque

palaces

and

churches were

built,

the artists

of

the

time

rushed

in to

fill

these expanses

with

abundant,

perhaps

even excessive,

decoration

It

was

as

if the architect

had created

a

large

vac-

uum, and

into

it

energetically

raced

the

painter,

sculptor,

and carver to

fill the

void. Examine

again

the

interior

of Saint Peter's

(Fig.

t0-1),

and notice

the

ornamentation

on the

ceiling,

as

well

as

the

elaborate

twists and

turns

of

Bernini's

canopy.

Or

consider

the

Austrian monastery

of

Saint

Florian

(Fig

10-3)i

there

are massive

columns,

yet the

frieze

connecting

them

is

richly

decorated,

as is

the

ceiling

above.

Here elaborate

scrolls

and

floral

capitals

add

warmth and humanity

to

what would

otherwise be

a

vast,

cold

space

Similarly,

when expressed

in

the music

of

the

Baroque

era, this

love of en-

ergetic detail

within

large-scale

compositions

took the

form

of

a

highly

orna-

mental

melody

set upon

a solid

chordal foundation

Sometimes the

decora-

tion almost

seems

to

overrun

the fundamental

harmonic

structure of the

piece

Notice

in Figure

10-4 the

abundance

oF

melodic

flourishes

in

just

a few

mea-

sures

of music

for

violin

by

Arcangelo

Corelli

(1653-1713).

Such ornaments

were equally

popular

with the

singers

of

the

early

Baroque

period,

when the

cult

of the

vocal virtuoso

first

emerged

FIGURE

1O-3

Church

of the

monastery

of Saint

Florian, Austria

(1686-1708)

The

powerful pillars

and

arches

set a

strong

structural

framework,

while

the

painted

ceiling

and

heavily foliated

capitals

provide

decoration

and

warmth,

Introduction

to

BaroQue Art

and M'"tsic

.

c

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A

p

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10

1O3

palaces

and

chr,rcbes

oJ

greal

size

flkd

witb decoration

musical

decoration abooe

a

sohd support

FIGURE

1O-4

Arcangelo

Corelli's sonata

for violin

and basso confinuo,

Opus 5,

No 1,

The bass

provides

the structural support,

while

the

violin

adds elaborate

decoration above,

5,rn,,,^{

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3/19

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'lO4

pARr

III

'

TbeBaroQuePeriod,'1600

47so

FIGURE

,IO-5

Rubens's

The

Horrors

of War

(1638)

is a

reaction

to the

Thirty Years'

War

(1618-1648) that

ravaged

Europe

at this

time

Here

Mars, the

god

of war

(center,

wearing

a military

helmet), is

pulled

to the

right

by Fury

and

to the left

by a mostly

naked

Venus,

goddess

of

love. Beneath

these flgures,

the

populace

suffers

FIGURE

10-6

Judith

Beheading

Holofernes

(c'1

61 5)

by

Artemisia

Gentileschi

The

grisly

scene

of Judith

slaying

the tyrant

general

was

painted

several

times

by Gentileschi,

perhaps

as a

vivid

way of demonstrating

her

abhorrence

of

aggressive male

domination.

I

BAROQUE

PAINTING

AND

MUSIC

Many

of

the

principles

at work

in

Baroque

architecture

are

also

found

i

Baroque

painting and

music.

Baroque

canvases

are

usually

large

and

colorfu

Most

important,

they

are

overtly

dramatic

Drama

in

painting is

created

b

means

of contrast,

bold

colors

are

pitted

against

one

another,

bright

hght

set

against darkness;

andlines

are

placed atright

angles

to

one

another,

whlc

suggests

tension

and

energetic

movement

Figure

10-5

shows

Peter

Pa

Rubens's

TbeHorrors

oJ War

The

large canvas

swirls

with

a

chaotic

scene

that

extravagant

yet

sensual,

typical

qualities

of

Baroque

art.

Barely

vis

ible

in the

right

lower

foreground

is

a

woman

with

a

broken

lute

which

symbolizes

that

harmony

(music)

cannot

exist

beside

the

di

cord

of

war

Figure

10-6

paints

an

even more horriftC

sce

fl:

Judi

visiting

retribution

upon the

Assyrian

general Holofernes,

as

d

picted

by

Artemisia

Centileschi

(1593-1652).

Here

the

play

of

hg

and

dark

cre

ates

a

dramatic

effect,

the

stark

blue

and

red colors

ad

intensity,

while

the

head of

the

victim,

set

at

a

right

angle

to

his

bod

suggests

an unnatural

motion

Baroque

art

sometimes

delights

in

th

pure

shock

value

of

presenting

grLlesome events

from

history

or

my

in

a dramatic

way.

Music

of

the

Baroque is

also

highly

dramatic

We

observed

in

th

music

of

the

Renaissa

nce

(1475

1600)

a

growing awareness

of

the

c

pacity

oI

this

art

to sway, or

affect,

the emotions.

This

led in

the

ea

seventeenth

century

to

an aesthetic

theory

called

the

Doctrine

Affections

The

Doctrine

of Affections

held

that

different

music

moods

could

and

shor-rld

be

used

to

influence

the emotions,

or

affe

tions,

of

the listener

A musical

setting

should

reinforce

the

intend

"affection" of

the

text

Yet

each

work of

Baroque

art

in

general

co

fines

itself

to one

speci

fic

emotion,

keeping

each

unit of

space

a

expression

separate

and

distinct

from

the next.

There

is

a unity

mood

in

each

work

of

art So,

too,

writers

about

music

spoke

ol

t

need

to dramatize

the text

yet

maintain

a

single

affection-be

it

rag

revenge,

sorrow

Joy,

o(

lsvs-f1em

beginning

to

end

of

a

piece

N

-

j

E

E

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4/19

surprisingly,

the

single most important

new

genre

to

emerge

in the

Baroque

periodwas

opera

Here

the

drama

of the stage

joinedwith

music to form a

powerful

new

affective

medium

CHARACTERISTICS

OF BAROQUE MUSIC

Perhaps

more than any

period

in

the

history of

music, the

Baroque

(

I

600-

I

750)

gave

rise

to a

variely of musical

styles,

beginning with

the

expressive monody

of Claudio

Monteverdi

(1567-1643)

and

ending

with

the complex

polyphony

ofJ

S Bach

(1685-1750).

It

also

saw the introduction of many new musical

genres-opera,

cantata,

orator'io, sonata,

concerto,

znd

5u;1q-gach of

which

is

discussed in the

following

chapters.

Yet

despite the

quick

stylistic changes

and

all the new

rypes

of

music created,

two

elements remain

constant

through-

out

the Baroque

period,

an expressive melody and

a

strong supporting

bass

Expressive Melody

Renaissance

music, as

we saw in

Chapter

9,

was

dominated

by

polyphonic

texture

in which

the voices spin

out

a

web of imitative

counterpoint

The

na-

ture

and

importance of

each of the lines is about equal, as

the following

graphic

suggests:

S

A

-,/--\//-\_,/-\_,/--\

T

B

-/-\-,/--\-./-\

In early Baroque music,

however, the

voices

are

no longer equal Rathel

a

po-

larity develops

in which the musical

emphasis

gravitates

toward the top

and

bottom

lines'

Introduction

to

BaroQue Art

and

Music

r

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A

p

T E

R 10

1O5

Renaissance had equal uoice

rmttalion

S

A

T

R

Baroque

empbasizes top

and

bottom

Renaissance

vocal music

was mostly ensemble

music-motels, Masses, and

madrigals for

groups

of vocalists,

even

if

there was

only

one

singer on

a

part.

In

the

early Baroque, however,

the musical focus shifts from

vocal ensemble to

accompanied

solo

song A choir might

be

a usefr-Ll

medium

to convey the ab-

stract religious

thoughts of the

multitudes, but

to

communicate raw human

emotions,

direct

appeal

by

an

individual

soloist now seemed more appropri-

ate

The new

kind

of solo singing

was

at first called monody

(from

Greek

terms

meaning

"to

sing alone").

A

single singer stepped

forward,

accompa-

nied

by

a

very

few

supporting

instruments,

to

project

a

highly

charged

text.

Vithin

the medium of monody, the

vocal virtuoso would soon

emerge,

the

star

of the court theater and the

operatic

stage.

The

Basso

Contiuuo

Monody

emphasizes

a solo melody, but one supported

by

chords springing

up

vertically

from

the bass. ]n

simple terms, the soprano carries the melody while

the

bass

provides

a strong harmonic

support

Jn

between, the middle voices

do

llttle

more than fi11

out

the

texture

lf Renaissance music was conceived

importance of

accompanied

solo sotrg


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BaroQue

Period,

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FIGURE

1O-7

A

Lady

with Theorbo

(c'1670) by John

Michael

Wright. The

bass strings

are

at

the top of

the instrument

and

off the flnger-

board. The

theorbo

was often

used to

play

the basso

continuo

in

the

seventeenth

century,

FIGURE

1O_8

Basso continuo

and

violin, This

continuo

consists

of

a harpsrchord

and

a large

string instrument,

the vioia da

gamba,

or

bass viol. The

viol

has slx

strings and

frets

(as

on

a

guitar),

and

produces

a slightly

darker, less brilliant

sound

than

members

of the violin family

The

gambist

playing

here is Eva Linfleld

E

E

E

to-

polyphonically

and

horizontally,

line

by line,

that

of

the

early

Baroque

period

is organized

homophonically

and

vertically,

chord

by

chord

The bass-driven,

chordal

support

in Baroque

music

is

called

the

basso

continuo,

and it is

played

by

one

or

more

instruments.

Figure

10-7

shows

a

\Moman

singing

to

the

accompaniment

of

a

large plucked

string

instrument

called

the theorbo.

This

instrument

has

more

low

strings

than

its close

cousin

the lute,

which

allows

it

to

not

only strum

chords

but

also

play

low

bass

notes.

In

the early

seventeenth

century,

a

theorbo

or

some

other

kind of

bass

lute often

played

the

basso

contrnuo.

Figure

10-8

shows

a solo

violinist

accompanied

by

two

instruments,

a

cello-like

instrument

called

the

oiola

da

gamba,which

plays

the

bass

line,

and

a

harpsichord,

which

improvises

chords

built

above

that

bass

line

The

violin

performs an expressive

melody

while

the other

two

instruments

provide

thebasso

continuo

Harpsichord

and

low

string

instrument

formed the

most

common

basso

contlnuo

tn

the

Baroque

period Indeed, it

is the

continual

tinkling of

the

harpsi-

chord,

in

step with

low

sounds

of

a cello

or uiola

da

gamba,

that

signals

the

listener

that

the music

being

played

comes

from

the

Baroque

Coincidentally,

the

top-bottom

structure

of

monodic singing

in

Baroque

music

is

not

concep-

tually

different

from

the straight-ahead

rock'n'

roll music

of

today

with

electric

bass;

in

both

styles,

an expressive

soloist

sings

above

a

rock-solid

bass,

while

a keyboardist,

buildlng

upon

the

bass

1ine,

improvises

chords

in

the

middle

of

the texture.

Vhat

chords

did

the

Baroque

harpsichordist

play?

These

were

suggested

to

the

performer

by

means

of

figured

Sass-3

numerical

shorthand

placed

below the

bass

line

A

player familiar

with

chord

formations

would look

at

the bass

line

such

as that

given

in Example

I 0- 1a and

improvise

chords

along

the lines

of

those

given

in

Example

10-1b.

These

improvised

chords,

gener-

ated

from

the bass

according

to

the numerical

code,

support

a

melody

above

Here,

too, there

is a

modern

paraliel.

Figured

bass

is similar

in intent

to

the

numerical

code

found

in

"fake

books"

used by

jazz

pianists today

that

suggest

which

chords

to

play

beneath

the written

melody


6/19

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Art

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exuberant

qualiy

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BaroQue musrc

lon4,

luxuriant

oocal

lines

so ha

se

in short, symmetrical units,

but

over

long

musical

phrases.

lb 6 166

il

(b)55

1)

6 i bod

(a)

)

)

Cenerally,

Baroque

expands

luxuriantly,

melody

does

not

unfold

and

often unpredictably,

ELEMENTS

OF

BAROQUE

MUSIC

Baroque

music, as we

have

seen,

is marked by

grandeur,

by

passionate

expres-

sion,

and

by drama. It

is

held together

by

a

chordal

framework and a strong

bass

line

,

both supplied

by

the

basso

continuo

These

qualities

can be

heard

in

all

three

chronological

subdivisions

of Baroque music: early Baroque

(1600-1660),

middle

Baroque

(1660-1710),

and late Baroque

(1710-1750).

In

the music

of

the early Baroque in

particular,

the

artistic

expression of the voice and

the

richness of the harmony were

especially intense. ]n the late

Baroque,

some

o{

the

excessively

exuberant qualities

ol

early

Baroque music

would

be

smoothed

out

and regularized

by Bach and

Handel

(see

Chapters

13

and 1

)

The

fol-

lowing elements, however, are

common to all

periods

of Baroque music

Melody

In the

Renaissance, melody

was

more

or

less

all

of

one

type

It

was a

direct,

uncomplicated line that

could

be

performed

by either a voice or an instru-

ment But in

early Baroque

music, beginning about 1600,

two

different

melodic

styles begin

to

develop,

a dramatic, virtuosic

style

in

singing and a

more mechanical

style, fulI

of figural repetitions,

in

instrumental

music

Vocal

melody

in

the Baroque

is

marked

by

quick

shifts from long notes to very

short

ones,

which

creates

an

excited, exuberant

sound

From time

to time,

the voice

will

luxuriate

in

a

long

flourish as it

projects

a

single syllable in long melisma*

(Ex

10-2) Below

are

two melodies,

one from Monteverdi's

opera

OrJeo atthe

beginning

oI the Baroque, and

the other from Handel's

oratorio

Messiab

from

the end

of the

period.

ExavpLr i o-2

Tan

-

ta 6el

- lezza il pa-radi

(Wherever

so

much beauty resides contains paradise.)

Exlvple

t

o-3

fEvery

valleyl

shall be


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cbord

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homo

ph

o

nic Iex

ture

Harmony

Baroque

harmonies

are

chordally

conceived

and

tightly

bound

to

the

basso

continuo

Composers

in

the early

seventeenth

century sometimes

placed their

chords

in

an

order

that sounds

arbitrary

to our

modern

ears

But

as

the

cen-

tury

progressed,

harmonies

unfold

more

and

more

in

familiar

patterns,

and

standard

harmonic

progressions emergei

in other

words,

chord

progressions*

as

we

know

them come

into

being.

The

shortest

and

most frequent of

these

is

the

V-l

(dominant-tonic) cadence

(see

page

34)

The

advent

ol standard

har-

monic

progressions like

the V-l

cadence

gives

added

direction

and

cohesion

to

the

music

Attending

this

development

is

the

growing importance-and

eventual

tota

domination-of

the

major

and

minor

keys

These

two

scale

patterns,

majo

and

minor,

replaced

the

dozen

or so

scales

(or

"modes,"

as

they were

called

employed

during

the

Renaissance

and

before.

Moreover,

as

music

was

re

duced

to

just

two

qualities

of

sound,

the composer

could

play

the

dark

mino

off

against

the

bright

major,

just

as

a

painter might

contrast

light

and

dark

(see

Fig

10-6),

for

particular

effect.

Rhythm

Rhythm

in

Baroque

music

is

characterize

d by

uniformity

Just

as

a

single

mood

or

affect,

is carried

from

the beginning

to

the

end

of

a

piece

of

Baroque

music

so

the

rhythmic

patterns heard

at the

beginning

will

surface

again

and

again

right

to

the end.

Moreover,

in

Baroque

music-esPecially

instrumsnl3l

mu5iq

u ,,.ong

recurring

beat

is

usually

clearly

audible,

which

pushes the

music

for

ward

This tendency

toward

rhythmic

uniformify,

clarity,

and

drive

become

more

and

more

pronounced

as lhe

Baroque

period

proceeds It

culminates

i

the

rhythmically

propulsive music

of

Vivaldi

and

Bach

Texture

ished,

however.

In

the

late

Baroque,

composers

such

as

Bach

and

Handel

re

turned

to

contrapuntal

writing,

in

part

to

add

richness

to

the

middle

range

the standard

top-bottom

(soprano-bass)

dominated

texture

Dynamics

the

one

thing

prized

above

all

others

in Baroque

art,

drama'

sudden

contrasts

oJ dynamics


8/19

5 The Elements of Opera

141

The

Elements of

Opera

The baroqr-ie era

witnessed the development

of

a major

innovation

in

mustc-

opera,

or drama that is sung

to

orchestral

accompaniment. This unique

fusion

of

music,

acting,

poetry,

dance, scenery,

and costumes

is

a

theatrical

experience

offering

overwhelming

excitement and emotion.

Since

its

beginnings in

italy

around

1600,

opera

has

spread

to

many countries, and even

today

it

remains

a

powerful

form of

musical

theater.

In

Section 6,

we'll look

closely

at

opera in

the

baroque period; but

first, a

general

discussion

of

opera is in order.

In

an

opera,

characters and

plot

are revealed

through

song,

rather

than

the

speech

used

in

ordinary

drama. Once we accept

this

convention,

opera

pro-

vides great pleasure;

its music

both

delights

the

ear and herghtens

the emo-

tionai

effect of

the

words

and

story.

Music makes even an

unlikely

plot

believable

by depicting mood, character,

and dramatic action. The

flow of

the

music

carries the

plot forward.

In

opera,

the

music

ls the drama.

Opera

demands

performers

who can sing

and act

simuitaneously.

On

stage

are star solo singers, secondary

soioists, a chorus,

and

sometimes

dancers-ail

in

costume.

Besides

the chorus of professional

singers, there

may be "supers"

(supernumeraries, or

"extras"),

who don't

sing

but

who

carry spears,

fill

out

chord

scene

from

a

productron

of Aida

(l8lI),

by Giuseppe Verdi,

at the Th6itre Antique

in Orange,

France


9/19

142 lV

The

Baroque

Period

crowds, drink

wine,

or

do

other things that

add to the

effect. Scenery,

lighting,

and

stage machinery are intricate

and

are used to

create the illusion of fires,

floods,

storms, and

supernatural effects. In the

orchestra

pit

are

the

instrumen-

talists

and

the

conductor,

whose awesome

responsibility

it is to hold everything

together. The

persorrrel for a large

opera-from

conductor to

stage

director

and

assorted

vocal

coaches, rehearsal accompanists,

technicians, and

stagehands-

may

reach

a

startling total

of several

hundred

people.

The capacity

of

this

combined force to

create

spectacle

and

pageantry

ac-

counts for

much of

opera's appeal.

Historically,

opera has

been

associated

with

high

social status. It

originated in the

courts

of

kings

and

princes

(who

could

af-

ford it) and

long continued

as

a

form

of

aristocratic

entertainment. But

as

opera

became

more

concerned

with "teal"

people and

less

with

royal figures,

it

at-

tracted

popular

audiences. Today, radio

and television

broadcasts, videos,

and

recordings

have changed

opera's

image

as

an

exotic and expensive diversion

for

the

very rich. Millions

of people from

every economic

background

know

opera

for what

it is: a

powerful

and

pieasurable emotional

experience.

The

creation of an

opera

involves

the

joint

efforts

of

a

composer

and a drama-

tist.

The

libretto,

or

text,

of

the

opera is usually

written

by the librcttist,

or

dramatist, and

set to music by the

composer. But

composers

often collaborate

with

dramatists

to

ensure

that

the texts meet

their

musical

needs.

W

H.

Auden

once

said

that

a

good

libretto

"offers

as

many

opportunities

as

possible

for

the

characters

to be swept

off

their

feet by

placing them in

situations which

are

too

tragic

or

too

fantastic

for words. No

good opera

plot

can be sensible, for people

do

not sing

when they are feeling

sensible." And that

is

true-opera

characters

are

people

overwhelmed by

love,

Iust, hatred, and

revenge. They wear fantastic

disguises

and

commit extraordinary

acts of violence.

Yet the music makes them

human

and real. It

evokes the haughtiness

of

a

countess

or

the simplicity

of a

peasant

girl.

It

creates

a dramatic

entrance

for

an outraged father,

depicts

the

tension behind

sword thrusts

in a duel, and

portrays

the

bleakness

of

a

winter

dawn. A

great opera

composer is a master

of musical timing and

characteriza-

tion and has

a keen

sense

of

theater,

knowing

just

when

to

have

a

character sing

a

simple phrase

or

a soaring melody,

when to

provide a stirring

chorus

or a

graceful dance.

Through the music,

the composer

paces the drama,

controlling

the

speed of gestures,

entrances, exits, and

stage movements.

Some

operas

are

serious, some comic,

some both.

Operas may contain spo-

ken dialogue,

but most

are entirely

sung.

(Spoken

dialogue is

used

mainly

in

comic

opera, where

stage action must

be

performed quickly for the most hu-

morous

effect.)

Since singing normally

takes longer

than

speaking

words, the

text

of

a

3-hour

opera is

shorter

than

that

of

a

3-hour

play.

The librettist allows

time

for the

composer's musical

elaboration.

The range

of characters found

in

opera

is

broad and varied;

gods, empresses,

dukes, servants,

priests,

prostitutes,

peasants, clowns, and

cowboys all

make

appearances.

Opera soloists

must create all

these characters

and so need

acting

skill

as

well

as

vocal artistry. During

rehearsals,

the

stage director coaches

the

singers

to

move

well,

gesture

meaningfully,

and

identify

with

their

characters.

The basic

voice ranges

(soprano,

alto, tenor,

bass) are divided more finely

in

opera. Some of the aoice categoiles

of opera

are

as

follows:

ColoraturcL soprano

Very

high

range; can execute

rapid scales and trills

Lyric soprano

Rather light

voice; sings roles

calling for

grace

and

charm


10/19

af-

at-

ol

in

it

Dramatic soprano

Lyric tenor

Dramntic tenor

Basso

buffo

Basso

profundo

5 The

Elements

of Opera 143

Full,

powerful voice; is capable

of passionate

intensity

Relatively

light, bright voice

Powerful

voice; is capable

of heroic expresslon

Takes

comic roles;

can smg very

rapidly

Very low range,

powerful voice; takes roles calling

for

great

dignity

Like a

play,

an

opera has from one to five

acts subdivided into scenes.

A

sin-

gle

act

presents a variety of vocal and

orchestral contrasts. For example,

a

tenor

solo

might be

foliowed by a duet for

soprano and bass, and then by a chorus or

an

orchestral interlude. A section may end definitely-and

provide

an

opportu-

nity for

applause-or it

may be linked

with the next

section to

form

a

continu-

ous

flow of music

within

the

act.

The

main attraction for many opera fans

is

tl:.e aria,

a

song

for

solo

voice

with

orchestral accompaniment. It's an

outpouring of melody that expresses an emo-

tional

state. In an aria, I looe you might

be sung ten times to accommodate the ex-

pansion

of

the idea.

Often

the

action stops while the

character's

feelings are

revealed through

music.

An aria usually

lasts

several minutes.

It

is a

complete

piece with

a

definite beginning, high

point, and end.

If

the performance of

an

aria

is

brilliant,

the

audience responds

with

an ovation

at

its

conclusion.

This

breaks the dramatic

flow but

allows

the audience

to release

its feelings through

appiause and

shouts ofbraao or braaa

Opera

composers

often

lead into

an

aria with a recitatioe, a vocal

line

that

imitates the rhythms and

pitch fluctuations of speech. In a recitative

(from

the

Italian

word

for

recite), words are sung

quickly

and

clearly, often on

repeated

tones. There is usually

only

one

note

to

each

syllable-as

opposed

to

an aria,

where

one syllable may be stretched

over

many notes. Recitative is used

for

monologues

and dialogues

that

connect the more

melodic

sections of

the opera.

It carries the action forward and

presents routine inJormation quickly.

Besides arias, the

soloists

in

an

opera will sing compositions for two or

more

singers: duets

(for

two

singers),

trios

(for

three), quartets

(for

four), quintets

(for

five),

and sextets

(for

six). When three

or

more

singers

are involved, the compo-

sition

is

called

an ensemble.

In

a

duet

or

ensemble,

the

performers

either

face

the

audience or move

through

action

that develops the

plot.

Each character

ex-

presses

his

or her own feelings. ConJlicting emotions like

grief,

happiness,

and

anger

can

be

projected simultaneously when different

melodies

are

combined.

This special blend

of

feelings is the

glory of opera

and

is possible only

through

music; it cannot

be

duplicated in

spoken drama.

An

opera

chorus

generates

atmosphere

and makes comments on

the action.

Its members

might

be courtiers, sailors,

peasants, prisoners,

ballroom

guests,

and

so

on. Their

sound

creates

a

kind

of

tonal backgrould for the soloists.

Rising

just

over

the

edge of

center

stage,

near the footlights, is the prompter's

box. In this

cramped space,

invisible to the audience, is llne ptompter, who gives

cues and

reminds the

singers of words or pitches

if they momentarily forget.

Occasional

memory

lapses are

inevitable

with

so

much actilrity

on stage.

Dance

in

opera

is

generally

incidental. It

provides

an

ornamental

interlude

that contrasts

with

and relaxes

the

thrust of the plot. By and

large, dance is

used

as

part

of the

setting-in

a ballroom, at

a

country fair, in

a

pagan

court-while

the soloists,

downstage, advance the action of the

plot

and work out

their

destinies.


11/19

/

144 lV The

Baroque Period

The nerve

center of

an

opera in performance

is the

orchestra pit-a sunken

area directly in front

of the

stage.

An opera

orchestra has the

same

instruments

as a full symphony

orchestra,

but

usually it has

a smaller

string section.

Cov-

ered lights attached to the

players' music

stands leave the

orchestra

in

a deep

shadow

that doesn't

interfere wiih the audience's

view

of

the

stage.

The

or-

chestra

not

only supports the

singers

but

depicts mood

and

atmosphere and

comments on the stage action. During

the

performance, the conductor

shapes

the entire

work. He

or

she sets tempos,

cues

in

singers, and indicates subtle

dynamic gradations.

Most operas

open

with a

purely orchestral composition

called art or:erture or

a prelude. Since the

eighteenth century, the music

for

an

overture has

been

drawn from

material heard later in the

opera. The overture is thus a short

musical

statement that involves the audience

in

the overall

dramatic mood.

Orchestral introductions to acts in

the opera other than the first are always

called

preludes.

We've

already discussed

one

of

these,

the Prelude

to

Act

III

of Lohengrin where

Wagner

anticipates

the wedding

of the hero

and heroine.

Because overtures and

preludes, like arias, are complete

compositions,

they fre-

quently

appear

on symphony orchestra

programs.

Should opera

be translated?

This

question has long aroused controversy, and

the

battle

contjnues.

Most of

the best-loved

operas are

in

Italian,

German,

or

French. Champions of translations into

English argue that

an

audience

should

be able to

understand

the

plot

as

it

develops. Why tell

jokes

in a comic opera

if

they can't be understood?

On

the

other hand, a

composer takes pains to make

a

special

fusion

of pitch and

the

original words. This

results in tonal color

that

seems

absolutely

right. But

no

matter how

well

a

singer articulates,

some

words

are bound to be lost,

whatever the language. For

example,

a

sung melody

can

stretch one

vowel

over many notesi

it

takes

a while

to

get

to the end of a word.

If the melody is

placed in

a

soprano's

highest

range, the listener is

really

aware

only of

the

silvery vowel and not

of

the

word as a whole.

Some operas seem

to

work well in

translation;

others

don't.

Much

depends

on

the

style of

the opera

and

on

the

sensitivity

of

the translator,

In many recent

opera

productions,

a

translation

of the libretto is projected

above the

stage.

This

device-called

supertitles-has

also

been

a

source

of

con-

troversy. Its advocates

say that it

provides the best

of

both worlds,

since

it al-

lows an

opera to be sr.mg in the

original language while the

audience is enabled

to

understand the words. But its

opponents feel that it detracts

from the

music

and the

action

on

stage.

Before

you

attend a

live

opera performance, in any language

and

with or

without supertitles,

it's a

good idea to read the

libretto

or

a

slmopsis of the plot.

Even better,

watih

a video or listen to a

recording while following the libretto.

This way, you

will be freer at the

performance

to appreciate

the quality of pro-

duction and interpretation.

Basic Terrns

opera

(page

141)

libretto

(142)

librettist

(142)

voice categories

of

opera(142)

aria

(143)

recitative

(143)

ensemble

(143)

chorus

(143)

prompter

(143)

overture

(prelude) (144)


12/19

110

pARr

III

'TbeBaroQuePeriod,

1'600-47so

FIGURE

11-2

Portrait

of Claudio

Monteverdi

by Bernardo

Strozzi (1581-1644).

Strozzi

also

painted

the

singer and composer

Barbara Strozzi

(see

page

11

5).

FIGURE

11-3

Piazza

San Marco

painted

by Gentile

Bellini, c1500.

Saint Mark's

was the focal

point

of all

religious

and

civic

activities

in

Venice,

ln the 1630s,

Venice became

home

to the flrst

public

opera

houses

$cc;i,-9J4yrb

f-1,'-

^'lv


13/19

Monteverdi's

first opera-and

the first

important

opera in the

history

of

Vestern

music-ris

his

orJeo Because

the aim

of early

opera

was

to

reproduce

elements

of ancient

Greek

drama,

it

was

only natural

that the

libretto for

OrJeo

drew

from a tale

found

in classical

Greek mythology

The

leadlng

character

is

Orfeo

(Orpheus),

the

son

of Apollo,

the

Greek

god

of the

sun and

of

music.

(lndeed,

the very

wordmusic

comes

from the

artistic

muses

who attended

Apollo

)

Orfeo, himself

a

demigod,

finds

love in the

form

of

the

beautiful

Eu-

ridice,

a

mortal No

sooner

are they

married

than

she is

killed

by a

poisonous

snake and

carried

off to

Hades

(the

ancient

world's

version

of

Hell)

orfeo

vows to

descend

into

the

Underworld

to

rescue

his

beloved

This

he nearly

accomplishes

by means

of his

divine

musical

powers,

for

Orfeo

can make

trees

sway,

calm savage

beasts, and

overcome

demonic

forces

with the

beauty

of his

song alone The

theme

of Odeo then,

is the

divine

power

of

music

Monteverdi

advances

the drama

in

OrJeo mainly

through monody

(expres-

sive solo singing

to

simple accompaniment),

a

medium

thought

to

have

ap-

proximated

the singing

of

the

ancient

Creek theater

The

simplest type

of

monody

was

recitative

Recitative,

from

the [tal ian

wordrecitatiuo

("some-

thing recited"),

is

musically

heightened

speech,

through

which the

plot

of

the

opera is

communicated

to

the

audience

Because

recitative

attempts to

mirror

the

natural

stresses

of everyday

speech,

it

is

often made

up of rapidly

repeating

notes

followed

by

one or two

long notes

at the

ends

of

phrases,

as

in the following

recitative

lrom

ActII

of

Orfeo

Exlvple

t

1-t

(At

the

bitter

news

the

unhappy

one resembled a

mute stone)

Recitative

in Baroque

opera is

accompanied

only by the

basso coutinuo,

whlch

consists,

as we

have

seen,

of

a bass

line and accompanying

chords

(Fig

1 1-a)

Such sparsely

accompanied recitative

is

called

simple

recitative

(recitatioo

sem,

plice

in Italian).

(ln

the

nineteenth

century, recitative

accompanied

by the

full

orchestra,

called

recitatioo

accompaluato,

would

become

the norm

)

A

good

ex-

ample

of simple

recitative

can be

heard at the

beginning

of

the

vocal

excerpt

from

Act

Il

of

Ort'eo discussed

later

in

the

Listen-

ing

Cuide

EarlyBaroque

Vocal

Music

r

c H

A

p

r E

R 11 1il

aimed to reoioe

Greek

drama

empb

as

ize d exp

res sio

e

s olo

sin in

FIGURE

11-4

The

beginning

of the

third act of Monte-

verdl's

Orfeo

(1607)

from

the original

print

oftheopera

Thevocal

part

of

Orfeoison

the staff

above;

the slower-moving

bass

line of

the basso

continuo is below

48

n addition

to recitative,

Monteverdi

made

use

of a

more lyrical

type

of

monody

called aria

An

aria,

Italian

for

"song"

or"ayre,"

is more

passion-

ate,

more

expansive,

and

more

tuneful than

a

re-

citative.

It also

tends to

have

a clear

meter and

more

regular

rhythms

If

a recitative

tells

what

is

happening

on

stage, an aria

conveys

what

the

character

Jeels

about those

events

Similarly,

whereas

a

recitative

advances

the

plot,

an aria

usually

brings

the

action

to a

halt

so

as

to

focus

a

spotlight

on the

emotional

state

of

the

singer

Finally,

whereas

a recitative

olten involves

a

rapid-

fire

delivery

of text,

an

aria

will

work

through text

at

a

more

leisurely

pace;

words are

repeated to

heighten

their

dramatic

effect,

and

importanl

ATTO T"ERZO

ORFEO.

rd3 +*

I

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14/19

,---\112

PAR

w

T

III

'

The

BaroQue

Period,

4600-47

so

vowels

are

extended

by

means

of

vocal

in

Orfeo's

aria

"Powerlul sPirit'"

Ex.qvplg

t

t-z

melismas*,

as

can

be

seen,

for

example,

FIGURE

11-5

Orfeo

charms

the

guardlans

of

Hades

with

his

voice

and

lyre.

A

detail

from

a

painting

by

Nicolas

Poussin

(1594-1665).

au instrumental

curlain

raiser

S

An

aria

is an

important,

self-contained

unit'

both

textually

and

musically

E

Vhereas

recitative

is

normally

written

in

blank

verse,

an

aria

is

usually

com-

?

;:;;d

;;.iu*r*

r,.es

organized

in

stanzas

(strophes).

The

text

of

orfeo's

'{

aria

"Powerful

spirit"

.on'i"'

of

three

three-line

stanzas'

each

with

a

rhyme

*

;.h.-.

"a-b-a."

Moreover,

the

music

for

each

stanza

begins

and

ends

in

the

$

,.-.

key

(G

minor).

Finally,

operatic

arias

are

nea

fi

not

merely

by

the

basso

contrnuo

but

also

by

all

or

part

verdi

gives special

prominence

to

the

violins'

cornet

ful

spirit"

to

give

added

weight

to

the

aria,

as

well

a

charm

even

the

guards of

Heli

(Fig'

t

t-s)'

Recitative

and

aria

are

the

two

main

styles

of

singing

in

Baroque

opera,

andinoperaingenerallnaddition,thereisathirdstylecalledariosoArioso

is

a

manner

of

singing

halFway

between

aria

and

recitative

It

is

more

declam-

utory

thun

an

aria

L.r,i.,

a

less-rapid-fire

delivery

than

a

recitative'

The

lament

that

orfeo

sings

on

learning

of

ih.

death

of

Euridice,

"Thou

art

dead"

(see

Listening

Guide

below),

is

a

classic

example

of

arioso

style

Likealloperas/orfeobeginswithapurelyinstrumentalworkthatservesaS

a

curtain

raiser.

Suciinstrumental

introductions

are

usually

called

overtures'

preludes,orsinfonias,butMonteverdicalledhismusicalpreambleatoccata.

The

term

toccata

(literally,

,,a

touched

thing,,)

refers

to an

instrumental

piece,

for

keyboard

or

other

instruments,

requiring

great

technical

dexterity

of

the

performers.Itis,inotherwords,aninstrumentalshowpiece.Herethetrumpet

races

up

and

down

the

scale

while

many

of

the

lower

parts

rapidly

articulate

repeating

pitches.

Monteverdi

instructs

that

the

toccata

be

sounded

three

times.

Brief

though

it

may

be,

this

toccata

is

suffrciently

long

to

suggest

the

richness

and

varief

of

inrt*,,'.ntal

sounds

available

to

a

composer

in

the

early

Baroque

period.

lts

theatrical

function,

of

course,

is

to

call

the

audience

to

at-

tention,

to

signal

that

the

action

is

about

to

begin'

audio

Monteverdi

(

1 607)

1111

0,00

ffi

Tilmpet

highlights

highest

part

e*{

O:

31

RePeat

of

toccata

W

I

;o2-Repeat

o[

toccata

Use

a

downloadable,

cross-platform

animated

Active

Listenlng

Guide'

available

at www.thomsonedu.com/music/

wright'

(Powe{ul

spirit

and

tormidable

god)


15/19

Eaily BaroqueVocal

Music

r

C H A

p

r

E

R

1

1

Although Monteverdi

divlded

his

Odeo

into

five

short

acts,

this ninety-

minute

opera

was originally

performed

at

Mantua

without

intermission. The

first

dramatic

high

point

occurs midway through

Act Il,

when the hero learns

that

his new

bride, Euridice,

has

been

claimed

by the Underworld

In

a

heart-

lelt

arioso,

"Thou

art dead,"

Orfeo laments his

loss andvows

to enter Hades

to

reclaim his beloved.

Listen especially

to the

poignant

conclusion

in which

Orfeo,

by means of an ascending

chromatic vocal

line,

bids farewell to

earth,

sky, and sun, and thus

begins his

lourney

to

the land of

the

dead

i,,.

Claudio

Monteverdi

'illr,t'orJeo

(1607)

"

Ta

un

Fiorilo

pr4

t.'oD

D4

l;

lr

*

r:

qo

Mention

oi

descent

into

helI

accompanied

by

fall

in

vocal

line

Vsion ol

Eurjdice climbing to

heaven causes

flourish

in

high

Crowi ng conviction

portrayed

by

chromatic

ascent

in vocal

line

Use a downloadable,

cross-platform

animated Active Listening Guide, available

al www.thomsonedu.com/music/wright.

Having

descended to the

shores of Hades, Orfeo now invokes all

his

musi-

cal

powers

to

gain

entry In

the

aria

"Powerful

spirit," he addresses Charon,

the

spirit that

controls access to

the kingdom of the dead,

Orfeo's elaborate,

florid

vocal

style, aided

by

an

exotic instrumental accompaniment,

soon dis-

arms

the

frightful

guard.


16/19

ll4

pARr

III

.

TheBaroQuePeriod,t6oo-4750

Claudio

Monteverdi

OrJeo

(.1607)

Act Ill, Aria,

"Powerful

spirit"

(strophes

I and 2

only)

Characters,

Orfeo

and

Cbarc,n

Situation: Orfeo

pleads

through

his music

that Charon

grant

passage

into

Hades

ARIA

(Strophe

1)

Orfeo

b< ffi

Florid singing,

joined

by

Possente spirto

e

formidabil

nume,

Powerful spirit

and

formidable

god,

"

violin

flourishes,

above

Senza

cui

far

passaggio

a

l'altra

riva without whom

no soul,

deprived

of body,

basso

coutinuo

Alma

da corpo

sciolta

in van

presume

may

presume

to

pass

to Hades'shore

1t13

ftrct

",r"."iTh...

T:*J-:.

r,^

1)l{

lnstrumental

postlude

played

by basso

coutinuo

and two

solo

violins

e'?(iffii".;)

AR'A

(srrophe

zr

r,r:l

#c

.t"

ff;:1::lt'"'.T:H::

il,?:Jj;':il:

:i:J.?i ;

;lJ;:J:

a6ove bnsso

continuo

E senza

cor

com'esser

pud

ch'io viva2

'TrucV

t2-iwr"rzlto

(6r,,o1t')

Orfeo

I live

no

longer,

since

now my

dear

spouse

is deprived of li[e, I have

no

heart

within

me, and

without

a

heart

how

can

I

still

be

alive:

TnstrrLmental

postlude

played

by basso

cautinuo

and

two

solo

cornettos

Use a

downloadable, cross-platform animated Actlve Listening Guide, available

at www.thomsonedu.com/music/wright.

Ventce, a

worldly

city

In the original

Creek

myth,

Pluto, the lord of Hades, releases

Euridice

to

Orfeo with

one

condition:

He is to

have

faith that

she

is following

behlnd

him, and he must not look

back

before

reaching earth's surface

Vhen

Orfeo

yields

to

the temptation to look back and embrace

Euridice,

she

is reclaimed

by

Pluto forevermore

ln his

opera OrJeo,

Monteverdi altered

this

tragic con-

clusion,

Apollo

intervenes, transforming his son

Orfeo

into

a

constellation

that

radiates eternal spiritual

harmony with the beloved

Euridice. In so

doing,

Monteverdi established

what was

to

become

a

convention

for seventeenth-

and eighte

enth-century operd:

the lieto

fne,

or

"happy

ending."

CHAMBER CANTAIA

In

16\Claudio

MonteverdileFt his unrewarding

job

in M

to

become

di-

rector oflnusic

at the

basilica

oI

Saint

Mark in

Yenicerl6ly Not only

was

his

new

position-pqrhaps

the

most

presLigious

post

atn6sician could

then obtain,

but Venice,

a

cehr{al

port for

trade

with

rhep6st,

was

a

remarkably

cosmo-

politan

city

Said En

traveler Thomas

at(c1577-161 7) in

1605,

''Here

you

see

Poles,

Slavs,

PeXrns, Greeks,

Wks,Jews,

Christians

of al1 the

famous

religions of

Christendom,\d

eac\Aation distinguished

from another

by

its

proper

and

peculiar

habits."

A

h

Monteverdi

composed

religious

music

in

Venice,

in

this

very

worl

en

ent

he also wrote opera,

as well

as

a

arly seventeenth-century Venice,

the

ew

musical genre

that

emerged

i

chamber cantata

Vhereas

operaw/ the

dominant torm of

t

I music during

the

Baroque

period, the

cantay'became

the

primary

genre

of

chamber

music

imusic

for soloists

p d

in

ihe home or a small

auditorilm)

The word

cantata

literally

meTts

"something

sung,"

as opposed

to

sonata,

thing sounded"

(played

96

amusical instrument)

Because

it

was usually

ed

before

a

select/roup

of

listeners

in a

private

residence,

this

genre

is called

t\chamber

.unfrtu

Like opera,

the

seventeenth-century

chamber

cantata emp\ized

musrc

Jor

a

priuate

audtence

ompanied

solo singing,

and the subject matter

usually concerned

unreq


17/19

the

in

com-

com-

was

grand

popu-

of

')

Int

of

the Commonwealth

at midcentury

(16a9-60)'

stage

plays

were

forbidden

the

Puritans

regarded

the theater

as

an invention

of

the

as"

that

plaY

set

to

musrc'

,

could

be

passed

off

as

a

"concert."

The

"

fl

ourlshed

were

essentiallY

ith a liberal

mixture

of

fs,

ensembles,

and

choral

numbers

interspersed

with

i

ntal

ni

Ithough

the dramatic

tra-

dition

in

England

was

much stronger

th

tic,

John

BIow

(1649-1708)

fohn

Blow

took

an

important

step

towarpoPe(d

with

his

Venus

a

which

was sung

throughout;

this

wo 9av6d

the way

for

the

first

great

English

Dido

and

AerLeas,

bY

Henry

Purcell:

His

Life

and

Music

'As

Poetry

is

the

harmony

of

Words,

so Musick

is

that

ol Notes;

anclasPoetry

is

a

Rise

aboveProse

andOratory,

so is

Mttsicl

early baroque opera

Documents