Ravinia 2019, Issue 7, Week 14

DOMENICO SCARLATTI (1685–1757) Keyboard Sonatas Domenico Scarlatti was a member of a large family of musicians almost as prolific as the Ger- man Bachs. He was the sixth of 10 children of Alessandro Scarlatti (1660–1725), the composer of many operas, cantatas, and oratorios. Dome- nico—an almost exact contemporary of Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750) and George Frideric Handel (1685–1759)—became the most famous of the Scarlatti children, especially for his more than 550 keyboard sonatas; he also composed operas, oratorios, cantatas, and other sacred vo- cal works. Alessandro guided his son’s early career. Do- menico received his first appointment in 1701 as organist and composer at the royal chapel in Naples, where Alessandro was the maestro di cappella . Domenico’s first compositions were operas written during his years in Naples. On his father’s insistence, he left Naples in 1705 to go to Venice, an important operatic center. Af- ter four years, Scarlatti moved to Rome and held several positions between 1709 and 1719. In 1719, Scarlatti left his native Italy to assume re- sponsibilities at the patriarchal chapel in Lisbon, Portugal. In addition, he was charged with the musical training of King John V’s children. The Infanta Maria Barbara was a particularly gifted keyboard player, and it was for her that Scarlatti wrote many sonatas. After Maria Barbara’s mar- riage to the Spanish Crown Prince Fernando in 1729, Scarlatti moved to the Spanish court in Ma- drid, remaining there for the rest of his life. Scarlatti’s keyboard sonatas are single-move- ment works in the binary, or two-part, form common to many Baroque dances. Each sonata places different technical demands on the play- er: rapid repeated notes, crossing of the hands, fugal writing, sweeping parallel lines, and fast arpeggios and scales, among others. Equally innovative is Scarlatti’s use of unusual harmo- nies, irregular phrases, and colorful, evoca- tive themes. The sonatas have been catalogued several times, most recently by American harp- sichordist and pianist Ralph Kirkpatrick, who published his chronological index in 1953. LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN (1770–1827) Piano Sonata no. 13 in E-flat major, op. 27, no. 1 The Viennese publisher Giovanni Cappi issued three of Beethoven’s piano sonatas in March 1802: No. 12 in A-flat major, op. 26, was released as a single work, but No. 13 in E-flat major and No. 14 in C-sharp minor appeared jointly as op. 27, nos. 1 and 2. The composer subtitled the last two pieces Sonata quasi una Fantasia (So- nata in the Style of a Fantasy), an indication of their unusual structure and expressive content, which deviate from typical sonata form. The first two sonatas were greatly overshadowed in their own day (as they are in this day) by the popularity of the third, the “Moonlight” Sonata. A review in the Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung (June 30, 1802) affirmed the overwhelming pref- erence for this work: “These are the three com- positions for pianoforte with which Herr v. B. has recently enriched the choice collections of cultured musicians and able pianists. They are indeed an enrichment and are among the few products of this year which are unlikely ever to age, and among which no. 3 in particular never can age.” The four movements of Sonata No. 13 in E-flat major are performed without interruption, cre- ating the effect of a multi-section fantasy—a musical montage of contrasting themes, tem- pos, and characters. The opening E-flat-major Andante establishes a tranquil atmosphere, in- terrupted momentarily by a rapid toccata-like allegro theme in C major. The second movement follows immediately with its brooding, two-part writing in C minor; a contrasting central theme is marked by a galloping rhythm. Affective me- lodic and harmonic dissonances enhance the lyricism of the Adagio con espressione . A caden- za-like flourish leads to the lively Allegro viva- ce finale, a movement combining contrapuntal textures with forceful changes in dynamic and vigorous accents. ROBERT SCHUMANN (1810–56) Kinderszenen ( Scenes from Childhood ), op. 15 The poet-musician Robert Schumann sharp- ened his unique gifts of piano characterization while courting Clara Wieck. His own alternating emotions at the time—the overwhelming rush of passion tempered by the constant separation from Clara at the instigation of her overprotec- tive father—provided vivid and immediate mod- els for his keyboard personalities. In the first months of 1838, during one of Clara’s extended absences while touring as a pianist, Schumann completed several important keyboard works, including two collections of small pieces ( Kinderszenen , op. 15, and Kreisleriana , op. 16) and his monumental Fantasy in C major, op. 17. Schumann described the genesis of Kinderszenen ( Scenes from Childhood ) in a letter to Clara in March 1838: “Whether it was an echo of what you said to me once, ‘that sometimes I seemed to you like a child,’ anyhow, I suddenly got an inspiration and knocked off about 30 quaint lit- tle things, from which I have selected 12 [actu- ally, 13] and called them Kinderszenen . They will amuse you, but of course you must not forget that you are a performer. … Well, they all ex- plain themselves and what’s more are as easy as possible.” Most of these 30 piano miniatures had been written during the previous month. Descriptive titles captured the expressive qual- ities of individual movements with such accu- racy that one must question Schumann’s asser- tion that he composed the music first and then added names after the fact. These works posed no serious technical challenges for the virtuoso Clara, having been designed with a developing technique in mind. Their interpretation, on the other hand, requires a seasoned viewpoint. Youth is portrayed not from a naive childlike perspective, but as the adult recollection of an idealized, yet irretrievable past. Domenico Scarlatti Ludwig van Beethoven by Christian Horneman (1803) Robert Schumann SEPTEMBER 3 – SEPTEMBER 15, 2019 | RAVINIA MAGAZINE 95