Certain episodes from the Bible have been the subject of compositions. One
of them is the lament of King David over his son Absalom whose revolt
against his father ended in his death. It was set to music by various
composers of the renaissance, for instance Nicolas Gombert, Josquin Desprez,
Thomas Weelkes and Thomas Tomkins. It is remarkable that the story was the
subject of very few oratorios. On the internet I found a site which mentions
an oratorio by Gregor Joseph Werner from 1743. In 2009 CPO released a
recording of the oratorio
Der liebreiche und geduldige David by
Johann Mattheson from 1724 which focuses on the role of David in the revolt
and ensuing civil war. Absalom himself doesn't figure in the piece.
Things are different in the oratorio
L'Assalone by Giovanni
Paolo Colonna.
Colonna is one of the lesser-known composers from 17th-century Italy; he
was born and died in Bologna. The son of an organ builder, he was educated
as such. He developed into an expert in organ construction. After initial
studies in Bologna he went to Rome where he became a pupil of Orazio
Benevoli and Giacomo Carissimi. After his return to Bologna he was active as
a composer and became second organist of the basilica of San Petronio. From
1662 until his death he was
maestro di cappella here. He held the
same position in two other churches for some years. His extant oeuvre is not
that large, compared to the output of some other composers of his time. The
genre which interests us here, the oratorio, is substantially represented in
his oeuvre. His work-list includes fourteen oratorios; eight of which have
survived. These are either about biblical figures or about the life of a
saint, such as St Anthony of Padua. Among the first category are oratorios
about Moses, Solomon and the prophet Elisha.
The majority of his oratorios were composed for Francesco II d'Este
in Ferrara between 1680 and 1694, and that includes
L'Assalone. Italian oratorios in the late 17th and early
18th centuries were often performed during Lent, and ended with a reference
to the Passion of Christ. The present oratorio falls into another category:
"[A] form of specifically-targeted political propaganda (...) and a
devout meditation on monarchy (institution illustrated and legitimized by
the King of Heaven)", as Francesco Lora writes in the liner-notes.
"In many oratorio librettos, the monarch and spectator (who was also
the patron and dedicatee) was actually confronted with the perils of his
role, the faults of his predecessors, the renunciation of his personal
freedom, and the momentousness of his office, over which God's will
and Christ's model loomed. So while operas were often an instrument
of applause, oratorios were often an instrument of admonition".
The choice of subject is especially interesting here as Francesco II
d'Este had a rather troublesome relationship with his mother. He
became Duke at the age of two, with his mother Laura Martinozzi as his
regent. However, when he was fourteen he took the reins and his mother
retreated to her native Rome. Lora characterises their relationship as one
of love and hate and adds that the similarity with the relationship between
Absalom and David was quite obvious. It is hard to believe that this would
have escaped Francesco. Even so, the oratorio was performed in 1684, at the
tenth anniversary of his seizure of power.
The scoring is for five voices and instruments. In this case the five
singers take six roles: the alto has two, Achitofel and Joab. The
instrumental ensemble is also in five parts. Whereas Colonna mostly writes
for two violins, two violas and bc, here the violas are omitted. The violone
has its own part, and Colonna also adds a trumpet. The latter is used in the
choruses at the beginning and end of the oratorio, and in one of the arias
by Absalom. The arias are different in texture. Seven of the fourteen are
strophic: the two stanzas are sung to the same music, and both are followed
by a ritornello. There are also some arias with a single stanza. Some
stanzas have an ABA form which points in the direction of the dacapo aria
which would become the standard towards the turn of the century. Three arias
are through-composed.
Two arias are especially interesting. After having heard that Absalom is
dead David sings his lament. He is supported by basso continuo alone,
without ritornelli from the strings. Several times he is interrupted by Joab
but then returns to the opening line, which has the role of a refrain:
"Caro figlio, amata prole, dove sei, chi tu rapi?" - Dear son,
beloved child, where are you, who has stolen you? Only a short while earlier
Absalom sang a boasting aria; after the second stanza the usual ritornello
is omitted in order to mark the moment his hair gets tangled in the
branches.
It is not that easy to asses the performance, as far as the dramatic
aspects are concerned. That is largely due to the fact that the lyrics which
can be downloaded from the Tactus site come without translations. However,
it is quite clear that Laura Antonaz perfectly exposes Absalom's
bragging, in the aria I just mentioned but also in the recitative at the
start of the second part. Mauro Borgioni seems to give a good account of the
role of David; his mournful aria is expressive but he doesn't make it
too tearful. Elena Biscuola takes the role of two different characters. I
have the impression she makes some distinction between them as Joab is more
outspoken than the more introverted Achitofel. Alberto Allegrezza has a nice
clear voice and gives a good account of the part of Consigliere. The Testo
has the role of telling the story, and Elena Bertuzzi does so rather well. I
am less impressed by her voice and her style of singing; she uses a little
too much vibrato. Fortunately that aspect is mostly absent from the other
voices. From a stylistic point of view this recording is pretty much
ideal.
Colonna's music is of excellent quality, and although I sorely
missed a translation of the text I very much enjoyed this oratorio. Colonna
is not well represented on disc, although Tactus has some recordings of his
works in its catalogue. I would like to mention two productions which are
well worth investigating: the oratorio
Il Transito di San Gioseppe
(TC 630391) and a collection of Vesper Psalms (TC 630390). The present
production is a valuable addition to the small Colonna discography.
Johan van Veen
www.musica-dei-donum.org
twitter.com/johanvanveen
