|
|
 |
|
 |
||
|
|
 |
|
 |
|
Two works reflecting the dramatic events of the
crucifixion and death of Jesus in Mary’s passion document the exceptional
quality of a young composer whose creativity was highly regarded throughout
Europe around 1800.
DDD 139.18 Recorded at Asam Kirche "Maria de Victoria" Ingolstadt on 07, 09 and 10 April 2001 La Passione was composed in 1794; it dates from the early ‘Venetian years’ of Mayr’s creative life. The oratorio shows mastery of a form, with music of intensity especially when performed with the counter-reformation religious feeling of popular devotion for which it was conceived. The theatrical baroque churches of Venice or the Rococo churches of Bavaria admirably set the scene and help us to understand the context of the emotional and excessive Marian devotion implicit in the words. The text when considered as a whole reflects the tradition of St John Eudes (1609? – 1680) and his devotional teachings relating to Mary’s wounded heart. He considered the hearts of Jesus and Mary to be mystically one, thus becoming the focal point of love’s divine radiant source for our own human hearts. It may be of interest to the reader that Donizetti, Mayr’s most famous pupil, was influenced by such mystical thought. By 1794 Mayr was already thirty-one years old and had only begun to compose on a large scale from about 1791. Before that he was known as a talented keyboard player and as a composer of songs. He received little formal teaching in composition except for lessons from Lenzi of Bergamo and Bertoni of Venice. He tells us in his writings that he learnt more from studying the works of other composers than from his teachers, and thus he may be considered in many respects as a self-taught composer, a fact that helps to explain the idiosyncratic style of his work. Prior to this, he had been singled out as a childhood protégé and was educated by the monks of Weltenburg and the Jesuits of Ingolstadt in Bavaria. Like C. P. E. Bach he received a legal training at University whilst continuing his musical studies on his own and playing the organ to supplement his keep. After this he was employed as a ‘music maker’ to the household of Baron Tommaso Maria v. Bassus (1742-1815). The Baron had lands at Sandersdorf, Bavaria, near to Mendorf, where Mayr was born in 1763, and also at Poschiavo in the Grisons, Switzerland. Von Bassus was a reforming and leading member of the Bavarian Illuminati. He undertook to bring social enlightenment to Northern Italy, particularly Milan and Venice. Mayr was undoubtedly involved with v. Bassus’s press at Poschiavo where books on education and social tolerance were published, including the first Italian translation of Goethe’s influential, The sufferings of young Werther. (Goethe was likewise an initiate of the Illuminati.) Whilst in Venice both v. Bassus and Mayr were noted by the inquisitorial Ten as reformers, men to be wary of and no doubt in favour of the social change about to sweep across Europe with the French Revolution. In this context it may come as a surprise to learn that Mayr, a composer famous for his operas, was a devout catholic, founding a music school closely linked to the Basilica of S. Maria Maggiore, Bergamo, and was consequently the composer of sacred music for all occasions. He came to settle in Italy with three ideals in mind: to reform Italian opera, to found a school to aid such a reform, and to reform Italian church music that too often during his generation had sunk to the level of mere operatic tunes. He certainly succeeded with the first two of his ideals. We have only to think of Donizetti and his influence, and remember that Bergamo still has a music conservatorio to recognise this fact. Moreover Mayr’s educational ideas were to become basic to the reform and development of musical education throughout the Peninsular. However the mood of the times was against him for his third ideal. Nevertheless he was instrumental in bringing about the first Italian vernacular hymnbook with its emphasis on two cantors leading a congregation. For the Divine Service in general he wished to return to a combination of early chant and polyphonic sacred music. He was a forerunner of the Cecilian Movement and did much to rescue Palestrina from oblivion. He composed sacred music until his death in 1845. La Passione, however, dates from before Mayr had founded his school or had even begun to evolve his reforming ideas concerning religious music. 1794, the year of its composition, also saw performed with great success his first opera, Saffo ossia i riti d’Apollo Leucadio, at La Fenice, Venice. He was immediately recognised as the new voice in Italian opera, breaking with the world of Cimarosa, Paisiello and Salieri through introducing to Italian music concepts taken from Viennese Classicism, especially those to be found expressed in the music of Haydn and Mozart. La Passione is one of six early oratorios conceived in the Venetian tradition. Mayr was associated with the Ospedale dei Mendicanti, one of the four music conservatori in Venice concerned with the orphans of that city, in particular the lot of girls. The first oratorio by an unknown composer had been performed at the Mendicanti in 1667 and here was Mayr at the end of the eighteenth century composing virtually the last oratorios for that institution which would soon be abolished by Napoleon in 1797. Mayr composed four oratorios for the Mendicanti. La Passione and Il sacrifizio di Jefte on the other hand were composed for a church or institution at Forlì. This immediately gave Mayr greater scope, for he was no longer limited to girls’ voices, and this enabled him to introduce greater dramatic colour. La PassioneThe libretto is typical of a now outmoded, popular devotion of the day and is by an unknown poet who has drawn on quotations from Metastasio’s Passione. The text is divided into two parts and these may be called ‘On the way to Calvary’ and ‘At the foot of the Cross’. The first part concludes with Mary, the Mother of God, and Mary Magdalene resolving to go to Calvary, whilst the second has, following the death of Christ, a dramatic scene for Joseph of Arimathea as he prophesies the fall of Jerusalem. After this St John exalts listeners to mark well the significance of what they have heard sung; this leads to the final chorus. It will be immediately clear that Mayr’s Passione has nothing to do with the Lutheran Passions of J. S. Bach which are closely based on Scripture, but comes from the original Oratorian tradition instigated by St Philip Neri in Rome during the Counter-Reformation. The oratorio consists of a series of meditations on a sacred event, ideal for performance during Lent, in particular Passion or Holy Week. In keeping with Catholic devotion La Passione is centred on the Virgin’s response to her Son’s sufferings and her consequent agony as a mother. Mayr took the composition of his piece seriously and late in life he wrote a history of Oratorio, a text which makes fascinating reading. Part oneThe orchestral forces are typical of Italian sacred music of the period: horns, oboes, bassoon and strings, with organ or cembalo. Mayr typically divides the violas giving a more sonorous quality to the string playing, a quality to be found in much of his church music, also in Donizetti’s. The opening sinfonia (E flat major – maestoso-allegro) is played con brio emphasising victory over death rather than defeat. The choir sings (C minor - largo) its prayer to God the Father asking for strength to be given to his Son. This leads to a trio section for the soloists (soprano, contralto and bass-baritone) that comments on Christ’s incarnation and consequent sharing in mortality in order to redeem us from our ‘foolish error’. The choir now returns with its prayer. Up to this point the strings have been muted, the sordini are removed for the second trio (soprano, tenor, baritone) and this comments on Christ’s sufferings. The music builds up around the words la barbara catena. The woodwind echo suitable ‘wounds’. The sordini are now replaced as the choir again returns with its prayer. Mary (soprano) interrupts and makes quite clear to listeners that we are on the way to Calvary. There is orchestral ‘painting’ at phrases such as: a rei flagelli; di spine il coronò; figlio mio sen muore. The choir returns once more with its prayer and all the soloists sing a prayer for Christ at the hands of his tormentors and his consequent sufferings after which the choir’s prayer concludes the sequence. St John’s (tenor) first aria (B flat major – allegro moderato), Ah! non cercar pietosa characterises the optimistic mood of the arias in the first part. It is scored with great skill. The phrase tutto m’ingombra il cor, and the words tremo and gelo are ‘painted’ with typical Mayrian scoring. The composer is emphatic in his notebooks, that the art of orchestration is to ‘colour’, ‘paint’ the words being sung. In the following arioso sequence, Magdalene’s words Questi è Gesù Nazaren, Re dei Giudei lead onto her aria (F major – larghetto-allegro moderato) Ecco come il giusto muore and are further examples of Mayr’s attention to detail. The words per l’altrui are doubled by the bassoon, the instrument that he defined as the ‘most communicative’ of an orchestra’s tonal sound. The score throughout is full of examples of the bassoon drawing attention to keywords of a devotional significance. The larghetto section moves on to an agitated allegro moderato full of instrumental colour as the text introduces the sentiment, che farai in tanti affani. The following arioso section portrays Mary’s agony of heart and the image of the sword piercing her own heart as prophesied at her Son’s circumcision. The disciples attempt to keep her away from the horrors of Calvary but they are unable to reverse her decision, there is no wavering, al Calvario si vada. Joseph of Arimathea (bass-baritone) relates in one of the Oratorio’s most moving sequences how he has seen Christ carrying his cross up the hill on his way to be crucified. The text makes obvious reference to Isaiah’s ‘man of sorrows’ prophecy. The drama is heightened as the horns make a raucous sound, the signal for the crucifixion to begin. Joseph’s aria, words by Metastasio (D major – allegro-andantino-allegro-largo-allegro), underlines his prophetic role in the libretto’s context. The allegro come in vista di pene summons the faithful to defend and save their Christ but such thought is soon contrasted to the andantino (F major) Ah v’intendo! La mente infinita in which Joseph comprehends God’s infinite wisdom that to the world appears as foolishness. The words la mente, infinita, impedita, error, dell’uomo are all ‘shaded’ suitably by the first oboe. This drawing of attention to words, phrases or concepts in an unobtrusive way is a quality to be found in the scores of Mayr’s student, Donizetti. The next arioso sequence leads to Mary’s moving aria (E flat major - allegro) Nell’aspro mio tormento. Mayr realised this as a passionate allegro and not as an introspective romantic adagio. Her emphasis thus is on the effort demanded by standing at the foot of the cross. The concluding arioso passage to the first part again refers to the wounding of Mary’s heart and leads into the duet (G major – andantino-allegro) for Mary and Magdalene, Nel veder trafitto il Figlio. The mood has been acceptance and resolve. Part twoWe are now at the foot of the cross. The scene is set with a beautiful largo (G minor) of intense economy of composition. Towards the conclusion there are two bars of sincere pathos as the first violins descend in G minor to ascend in A major. The opening chorus is in E flat (major – larghetto). Here the choir (representing the Church Militant) comments on the cost of humanity’s salvation, Quanta costa il tuo delitto/ Sconsigliata umanità. The opening passage is scored for woodwind emphasising through instrumental symbolism the ‘dionysian’ nature of Christ’s death. A trio of voices (soprano, tenor, bass-baritone) enters, this time with the accompaniment of muted strings proclaiming the ‘apollonian’ words of realisation and these are by Metastasio: All’idea di quelle pene/ Che il tuo Dio per te sostiene/ Tutto geme il mondo afflitto/ Sola tu non hai pietà. Instrumental symbolism was important to Mayr and his example had much influence over Donizetti. The choir and full orchestra now combine in the final restatement of the chorus’s opening words. The vocal line of Magdalene’s aria (C major – allegro non tanto) is closely knit to the orchestral accompaniment. An exposed bassoon line weaves around her thoughts as she, a repentant courtesan, confesses that only in Christ has she recognised man’s true image. John’s aria (A major - allegro) has equal grace as he sympathises with Mary at the foot of the Cross. The words of the aria have a poetic quality which suggest they too could be by Metastasio but so far no source has been identified. Mary’s aria (E major – andantino - larghetto) Fra l’orror de’ mali miei is masterly. It is her own desperate outcry, ‘My God, my God, why has thou forsaken me’. Her soul is heavy and filled with horror and for a moment she has lost her resolve. Is it realistic to hope for compassion? The sky has become overcast. The end is near. Her Son speaks from the cross. He is accompanied majestically by horns. Mary is given John as a new son, but Jesus has not addressed her as ‘Mother’ but as ‘Woman’. She too must now renounce all attachments, even her motherhood in order to find the greater motherhood as a figurehead of the Church. And so in her last aria (G major - andantino) she accepts God’s rigour as complimentary to His mercy and love. This is, according to the libretto, Mary’s great moment of intuition and Mayr breathes strength and a new found confidence into her words. Thus the old is overthrown by the new, by the trampling down of death and the bestowing of life. Joseph in his fine aria (E flat major) Qual terribil vendetta foretells the fall of Jerusalem (Mark 13). His words are from Metastasio’s Passione. In a vision he sees the city’s towers collapse, the temple in ruins and the priests in flight. In that day wives and virgins will be clothed in rags; cries of fear will rise from the streets as fire grips the city. Fear will bring about the loss of friendship, hunger will encourage a breakdown in society and children will be given to their mothers as food! A lento section asks why men do not consider the consequences of their sins and this leads on to the allegro in which Joseph clearly foresees the fall of Jerusalem (here to be taken on both historical and apocalyptic levels of interpretation). The oratorio is now brought to a conclusion with John’s exaltation and prayer and the fugal chorus (adagio-moderato) with the words Tu guida al gaudio santo/ chi lagrimò con te La Passione was first revived in modern times during Passion Week, 2nd April, 1974, at St John’s Smith Square, London, and was subsequently broadcast on BBC Radio London. The performance was made from edited copies of the original manuscript material to be found in the Fondo Mayr at the Biblioteca Civica ‘A. Mai’, Bergamo. The oratorio had a further four performances at Como, Bergamo, Milan and Leeds before being revived in Ingolstadt (March, 2002) using a modern critical edition made by Martin Sokoll. STABAT MATER c minor A mystery surrounds Mayr’s Stabat Mater no 5. It is the earliest example of the Good Friday hymn in the Fondo Mayr, Biblioteca Civica, Bergamo, where most of the composer’s religious music is to be found. It is certainly not the fifth setting of the hymn in order of composition when compared to the other pieces available in that collection; it is the earliest. The listener will immediately recognise that stylistically this Stabat Mater comes from the same period of inspiration as La Passione (1794). Another three settings may be made up from the material to be found in Bergamo, but all these come from a later period and are more ‘operatic’ in feel. Mayr records in his autobiographical notes that he indeed did compose three settings of the hymn but this still leaves us with several settings of separate verses, and manuscripts to be studied in other libraries, as well as ‘No 5’. Thus, ‘no 5’ could mean that Mayr had already composed four lost settings whilst in Venice. Some of these manuscripts may still be languishing and gathering dust in libraries there. Perhaps the number was added later with no intention whatsoever of indicating an order in the sequence of composition. One fact however may be established. The set of manuscript parts for both La Passione and this work are by the same copyist. Thus it is fair to say that ‘No 5’ relates to the composer’s early period and most likely was composed whilst he was still in Venice. But then it could well have been an offering for Bergamo made before his appointment as Kapellmeister in 1802 to Santa Maria Maggiore. By then Mayr was already the composer of twenty-seven operas and his musical style had changed. In those days Good Friday was certainly celebrated with much solemnity in the basilica. A model of the Holy Sepulchre was erected in the nave and this was venerated during the singing of the Stabat Mater. The ceremony took about twenty minutes and the duration of our piece is circa twenty-five minutes. The material to be found in Bergamo indicates that Mayr used the work on more than one occasion, with and without a chorus, the soloists singing the three choral sections ‘a quattro’, as a quartet. The suggestion that there might well be early religious compositions gathering dust in Venetian libraries is not so far fetched. Mayr was financially able to go to Venice in order to study with Ferdinando Bertoni (1725-1813) through the generosity of Count Canon Pesenti who wanted the composer to dedicate his life to the composition of religious music. It was only with Pesenti’s death that Mayr was forced to compose for the theatre in order to make a living. 1794, the year of his first opera and of La Passione, therefore becomes crucial in Mayr’s creative life. However prior to 1794 he was already composing sacred music, as the catalogue of known compositions shows. Mayr’s intention had been to keep his promise made to Count Pesenti. During these important ‘Venetian’ years Mayr made friends with the composers and musicians who were in time to become teachers at his school in Bergamo. An important influence among these must have been Antonio Capuzzi (1755-1818) who had studied with Tartini (1692-1770) and who was an exponent of that influential composer’s ideas and method. Mayr made a close study of Tartini’s writings. The violin obbligato accompanying the soprano in section IV, Eja Mater, could well reflect the influence of Capuzzi and is a foretaste of the many radiant violin obbligato passages that grace both Mayr’s sacred and operatic scores. Mayr would have had examples of many settings of the Stabat Mater available to him in Venice. However it is difficult to establish whether he knew those of Pergolesi, Boccherini or Tartini. Haydn’s Stabat Mater dating from 1767 could have been a possible influence. The feeling of Mayr’s setting is traditional, but spiced here and there with new ideas as he begins to discover his own musical language; for example, the fugal Amen with its suggestion of peeling bells anticipating Easter. The Stabat was composed for a ‘picciola’ orchestra, a small group of church musicians, typical of the times: two oboes, two horns, strings and organ. The text of the hymn comes from the thirteenth century and reflects the spirituality of the followers of St Francis. Tradition maintains that it is the work of the Franciscan poet and mystic, Jacopone da Todi (1228-1306). 1) Stabat Mater
– C minor, Largo, quartet (chorus), v. 1 and 2. Stabat Mater No 5 received its first performance in modern times at Rugby in 1988, this and two further performances in Portsmouth (1992) and London (1995) were set into a liturgical setting. It was also performed in Bergamo in 1995. The edition used (except in 1988 when the original parts were used) as with this recording was the work of Ian Schofield and Ian Caddy. Page revised 26.06.03 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
