jwilzewske: scarlatti

Sunday, September 2, 2007

Hantaï and Harpsichord: Declamatory Leonhardtism

S tart the tone spontaneously by impulse through correct action; in doing so, think and feel as though the tone placed and reflected at the same instant, forward against the roof of the mouth and on the chest—as though the contact or impingement of the tone were felt at both places simultaneously. Of course the high forward placing in mouth and face is the true placing, and the sensation on the chest is the action or reflection of the true placing. This can be done through flexible vitalized action alone. With a tight throat or local muscular effort it is impossible. This is perfect attack, and in this way all force and push are avoided. In this way freedom and inflation are secured, that condition which unites head and chest resonance.”
— Edmund Myer, Renaissance of the Vocal Art, 1902.

DSM: This year’s Utrecht Festival included a remarkable performance of Scarlatti sonatas by Pierre Hantaï. In 1985 Hantaï founded the chamber group Le Concert Français with his brothers Marc Hantaï and Jérome Hantaï and violinist François Fernandez. He’s also performed extensively with conductors Philippe Herreweghe and his former teacher Gustav Leonhardt.

CMT: Today Hantaï mostly performs as a soloist. He often appears as a guest with Jordi Savall.

DSM: Hantaï’s recordings of works of J.S. Bach have won him critical acclaim, in particular his two recordings of the Goldberg Variations (BWV 988), made in 1992 and 2002, respectively. His performance of one of these Variations as an encore at the Geertekerk in Utrecht the other night was truly inspired.

CMT: Scarlatti, a contemporary of Bach and Handel, around age 35 moved himself from Italy to Portugal. He went there to teach harpsichord to Princess Maria Barbara and, when she married the future King of Spain, Scarlatti followed her to Spain, where he lived the rest of his life. There are particular guitaristic sounds in his harpsichord sonatas from this period, and Hantaï renders these nicely. Scarlatti wrote an astonishing 555 sonatas for harpsichord. With such prolific composing one might anticipate a formulaic quality...

DSM: The term sonata for Scarlatti is not at all like the later, classical definition. Scarlatti’s sonatas are brief, most just a few minutes long. They have intense rhythms; they are all based on dance movements, as were most baroque harpsichord pieces, and Scarlatti rarely composed introspective music, slow sonatas that gave time to think. Scarlatti is Mr. Energy, Mr. Unremitting Verve and Liveliness.

CMT: Hantaï’s phrasing is wonderful. His legato is superb. He imparts balance to the voices in each hand. He provided inflected tempo and rhythm to these sonatas, fully humanizing them.

DSM: I think this performance surpassed even Horowitz’s famous interpretations. The music at the Geertekerk in Utrecht unfolded as a totally fresh experience. Hantaï made every moment meaningful, and every moment convincing.

CMT: ‘Anything goes’ was the order of the evening. And it all arose directly and naturally out of the Scarlatti musical scores—nothing seemed contrived. It sounds as if Hantaï’s having a great time. From his facial gestures, it looks as if he’s having a great time. Without doubt, he is having a great time.

DSM: This declamatory approach suits him—and it also seemed a good fit for the Scarlatti. I suppose there may be some who assert that the approach is not necessarily historically proper, not sufficiently dry and objective—but who’s to say?

CMT: I think we can deduce the effects of Leonhardt in Hantaï’s Scarlatti performance. The breakthrough was Leonhardt’s transformation of harpsichord technique from undifferentiated, monotonous dynamics—to colorful, delicate, rich, differentiated dynamics. He really transformed harpsichord tone, refined ornaments, redefined chord technique, and so on. Through his students, the ‘Leonhardt style’ continues to make headway against its competitors.

DSM: Leonhardt’s analytical way of playing—sensitive to detail, mindful of the musical and formal perspective of the music’s historical origins, but flexible to variant interpretations—has brought about a revival of harpsichord performance art.

CMT: The large Franco-Flemish harpsichord (about 93 x 37 inches, with Swiss Pine soundboard and lime wood case) that Hantaï played was also conducive to the effectiveness of his performance. In the candle-lit church sanctuary, the tone he achieved was confessional, highly personal.

Aligned & Unaligned Harpsichord Keyboards

DSM: You know, after more than 100 years ‘Tone Placement’ is still a controversial concept. In singing pedagogy, it refers to the arrangement of facial and pharyngeal and other anatomical structures so as to project a musically pleasing and effective tone. But it’s a concept that’s meaningful in instrumental performance practice, too. Learning the facts about tone placement and resonance makes a huge difference in the abilities of a singer and in the abilities of an instrumentalist. In simple terms, a singer has various body cavities (nasal cavity, chest cavity, etc.) and conductors (bones, ligaments, etc.) that each have acoustic spectral properties—resonances and impedances. Focusing the vocal tone through favorable resonating chamber(s) with proper support is important with regard to controlling and developing your tone as a singer. The instrumentalist does the same, but with an eye toward the acoustic spectral properties of the anatomy of the instrument, not the anatomy of the body. The keyboardist knows the particular acoustic qualities of the soundboard in various registers; knows the acoustic spectrum of the strings under different conditions of attack velocity and force; knows the timbres of the instrument throughout its range. The keyboardist knows how to manage tone placement through touch—finger and pedal technique—to achieve the desired tone. Hantaï does this as though by second nature. Superb.

I n searching for tone quality—the second most difficult factor in playing—it is helpful to think of the instruments of the orchestra... if one thinks of the quality or the sonority of the various instruments, one is helped to play more beautifully.”
— Vladimir Horowitz, Technic: The Outgrowth of Musical Thought, Etude, MAR-1932.

Belder: On Fingermusik and Mere Virtuosity

T he star turn in [Scarlatti’s] Sonata in A major is no sort of theme or recognizable piece of invention but owes its genesis to the sheer joy of playing. It corresponds to a common strain in the literature according to which Scarlatti thought through his fingers, and his inspiration through the symbiosis of hands and keyboard... Digital freedom is not a ‘given’ here but is subject to a process of argumentation. It is juxtaposed with some standard Baroque diction, the purpose of which seems to be to suppress the ‘unthinking’ virtuosity.”
— Dean Sutcliffe, 2003, p. 276.

DSM: There is a physical immediacy in Scarlatti. There’s compositional respectability, but it seems subordinated to the joy of ‘fingermusik’, as Roberto Pagano termed it. There is intense textured voice-leading and harmonic action...

CMT: This performance received a standing ovation, in the Ottone in Utrecht. You have to remember: Pieter-Jan Belder is now 41—he has ample experience under his belt. Twenty years ago, he studied recorder with Ricardo Kanji at the Royal Conservatory at the Hague, and harpsichord with Robert van Asperen at the Sweelinck Conservatory in Amsterdam, where he graduated in 1990 and subsequently joined the faculty. His physical power makes him a good match for these Scarlatti sonatas. He positions himself relatively high with respect to the keyboard of the instrument. His arms are in extension, elbows extended so the forearms are a few degrees below horizontal. His physical strength enables him to tackle these pieces without breaking a sweat... It makes one envious.

DSM: Belder clearly lets his fingers do the talking—well, his arms and body, too. His account of Scarlatti’s Klaviersonates in Utrecht last week was an historically accurate, empathetic performance.

CMT: But Scarlatti’s musical ‘subject’ seems unconcerned with the listeners: it proceeds, full steam ahead, regardless of anything else.

DSM: Well, yes. That is, I think, what makes it historically accurate. It’s entirely possible you may not like Scarlatti’s Sonatas as music. They may sound too much like etudes—like virtuosic finger exercises. But they are what they are, and Belder took no liberties with them. He didn’t make them into things that they’re not.

CMT: Belder’s performances of Bach are rich and very beautiful—the Goldberg Variations especially so. Very different from the Scarlatti; very different in meaning and intent. So, yes, it’s clear that Belder has both chops and soul—and it’s clear too that he has an historical fastidiousness, in this case an historically correct Scarlatti.

DSM: Haynes new book provides insights into Scarlatti’s compositional techniques and hints that Scarlatti’s probable intentions were to push the instrument makers to change their designs. Haynes conjectures that Scarlatti’s intent was not merely to showcase virtuosic keyboard technique but also to deliberately and shockingly reveal the limitations of the then-current instruments and, in so doing, force the instrument makers to undertake improvements.

CMT: Belder has made an illustrious career as a harpsichordist, clavichordist, organist, recorder player, fortepianist, and conductor. He plays solo recitals but is also much in demand as a continuo player with such ensembles as Amsterdam Bachsolisten, the Nederlandse Bachvereniging, and his own ensemble, Musica Amphion.

T here is a pianist who is an excellent musician and a master of his art, but I have one objection to make to his playing: the finger elevation and velocity are exaggerated [and therefore his fingers’ potential energy and kinetic energy are excessive and unmusical].”
— Heinrich Neuhaus: ‘The Art of Piano Playing’

DSM: He’s recorded for the Erasmus label, notably Das Musikalishes Opfer and Das Wohltemperierte Clavier. He’s done a 10-CD project recording Bach’s Goldberg Variations (BWV 988), the Six Partitas, the sonatas for violin and harpsichord and the Inventionen & Sinfonien (BWV 772-801). He’s also completed recordings of all the keyboard works of the Dutch composer Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck. His large CD project (36 CDs planned) recording all the harpsichord sonatas by Domenico Scarlatti will occupy him through 2007, the 250th memorial year of Scarlatti’s death (1685-1757). Last week’s performances at the Oude Muziek Festival in Utrecht were a welcome opportunity to experience the expressive range of which Mr. Belder is capable.