Italian Love Cantatas
Agostino STEFFANI (1654-1728)
Spezza, Amor, l'arco [15:45]
Antonio VIVALDI (1678-1741)
All'ombra di sospetto (RV 678) [10:22]
Antonio LOTTI (1667-1740)
Ti sento, o dio bendato [12:06]
Domenico SCARLATTI (1685-1757)
Di Fille vendicarmi [10:41]
Francesco MANCINI (1672-1737)
Quanto dolce è quell'ardore [11:09]
Antonio Maria BONONCINI (1677-1726)
Idol mio, mio bel tesoro [12:28]
Silvia Vajente (soprano)
Epoca Barocca (Marcello Gatti (transverse flute), Alessandro Piqué
(oboe), Veit Scholz (bassoon), Werner Matzke (cello), Matthias Spaeter (archlute),
Christoph Anselm Noll (harpsichord, organ))
rec. December 2007 and February 2008, chamber music room of Deutschlandfunk,
Cologne, Germany. DDD
CPO 777 583-2 [73:00]
The title of this disc suggests that we get a programme as we have seen so
many times on discs and in concert programmes: Italian chamber cantatas for
soprano and basso continuo. That is not quite the case: all but one cantatas
are scored for soprano, one or two obbligato instruments and bc. The inclusion
of obbligato instruments is unusual indeed: Alessandro Scarlatti, the most
prolific composer of chamber cantatas, composed 600 of them, and only 70 are
employing instruments. The cantatas on this disc are even more remarkable
because the instruments involved are the transverse flute and the oboe.
It is telling that Carlo Vitali starts his liner-notes by dwelling on the
subject of the role of these two instruments, and in particular the oboe,
in the early 18th century in Italy. In France the oboe had become a common
instrument in the 17th century. It was a standard part of the opera orchestra
under Lully, playing mostly colla parte with the violins. In Italy
the oboe made its first appearance in the orchestra of the San Marco in Venice
in 1698. Here it replaced the cornett, which is particularly interesting in
regard to the role it was going to play. The reason the cornett was in such
high demand in the 17th century was its ability to imitate the human voice.
This was exactly the quality which was attributed to the oboe. Vitali quotes
the German theorist Johann Mattheson: "The Hautbois, after the Flûte
allemande, is the closest there is to the human voice, when one treats
it in the correct manner and in accordance with the practices of singing (...)".
It is no wonder that the first teachers of the oboe were from France and Germany.
Some of them worked at the Ospedale della Pietà in Venice, and soon
various girls from this and other ospedali became skilled players of
the oboe. This can explain the relatively large number of compositions for
the oboe in the oeuvre of Antonio Vivaldi. He didn't use the instrument in
his cantatas, though. He composed nine cantatas with obbligato instruments,
but none of them has a part for the oboe. The transverse flute appears in
one cantata: All'ombra di sospetto, which is included on this disc.
The flute and the oboe disseminated across Italy pretty quickly. Vitali mentions
the fact that while staying in Rome and Naples Handel composed various pieces
with obbligato oboe parts. Apparently in both cities musicians were available
who were able to play them. Francesco Mancini was from Naples; his cantata
probably dates from between 1720 and 1725. Vitali also reminds us that several
composers in the programme were living and working for some time in German-speaking
lands, where they may have become acquainted with the flute and the oboe.
One of them is Antonio Lotti who was born in Hanover where his father Matteo
was Kapellmeister. He went to Venice to study with Legrenzi. He made
a career there as a singer and an organist in the San Marco. He was also active
as a composer of operas and wrote a large number of solo cantatas. In Ti
sento, o dio bendato he deviates from the standard structure of the chamber
cantata by including an arioso, which is the most remarkable part of this
cantata, as it is filled with Seufzer.
The disc begins with a cantata by Agostino Steffani who was born near Venice
but moved to Germany at the age of 13 and stayed there most of his life. He
made a major contribution to the development of opera in Germany. He has become
especially famous for his chamber duets. Spezza, Amor is one of a collection
of six Scherzi Musicali, almost the only pieces from his pen in the
genre of the chamber cantata. The opening aria is especially nice because
of the dialogue between the soprano and the oboe. In this cantata the bassoon
also has an obbligato part.
Antonio Maria Bononcini was the lesser-known brother of Giovanni; both worked
for a number of years at the imperial court in Vienna. Antonio Maria more
or less remained in the shadow of his more famous brother. Even so, he was
greatly appreciated and in 1710 he was appointed 'composer to the emperor',
with retrospective effect from 1707. When Joseph I died in 1711 he was succeeded
by his brother as Charles VI. Neither Giovanni nor Antonio Maria received
a new appointment at the court. For Antonio this was a blessing in disguise:
he developed into a composer of operas in his own right. He moved to Modena
in 1713, where he was appointed as maestro di cappella in 1721. Here
he stayed until his death. It is assumed that the cantata Idol mio, mio
bel tesoro dates from 1720 or a little earlier.
The last composer is Domenico Scarlatti whose cantata Di Fille vendicarmi
is probably the latest work on the programme, dating from c1730, when he worked
in Spain. It is the only cantata on this disc for solo voice and basso continuo,
without an obbligato instrumental part. It is quite remarkable for the many
pretty wide leaps in the two arias.
One may think that most cantatas have been recorded here for the first time.
That is not the case. In fact, only the Bononcini has never been recorded
before. Even so, this is certainly not standard repertoire, and the collection
of these five beautiful cantatas is definitely something to enjoy. That is
also thanks to the performances. I didn't know Silvia Vajente until recently
when I heard her in a recording of Cavalli's opera La Rosinda (Ludi
Musici LM 005; 2008). I liked her singing, and her qualities are confirmed
here. She has everything needed to explore the content of this repertoire:
a fine and agile voice, an excellent diction and articulation which results
in a perfect delivery, and the awareness that the text always comes first.
There is no wide vibrato here, she adds stylish ornaments and also takes the
necesary rhythmic freedom in the recitatives. It seems that Ms Vajente and
Epoca Barocca have found the right approach of this repertoire: these are
chamber cantatas and the rather intimate atmosphere suits these cantatas well.
The obbligato parts are nicely executed, in an effective dialogue with the
voice.
In short: this is a highly enjoyable release.
Johan van Veen
http://www.musica-dei-donum.org
https://twitter.com/johanvanveen
A highly enjoyable release.