AT Salzburg during May, 1773, Wolfgang composed a symphony (181 K.), a concertone for two violins (190 K.), and a mass (167 K.) in June.
In the summer of this year the Archbishop repaired to Vienna, and Leopold Mozart seized the opportunity of following him thither with Wolfgang. He looked forward only to a short absence, but when they presented themselves before the Archbishop in Vienna he gave them permission to extend their stay, as he intended himself to go into the mountains and to Gmünd.
Of the precise object of this tour we know nothing, only that L. Mozart hints mysteriously that he cannot tell his VISIT TO VIENNA, 1773 plans to every one, and that he must avoid anything that would excite attention either at Vienna or Salzburg, and cause obstacles to be thrown in their way. When the good people of Salzburg connected the illness of the kapellmeister Gassmann with his journey, he answered indignantly: "Herr Gassmann was ill, but is now better. I do not know what connection this may have with our journey to Vienna; but fools will be fools, all the world over."1 There can be no doubt, however, that he was anxious that Wolfgang should be permanently attached to the court, either at Vienna or elsewhere. The Empress, of whom they immediately sought an audience, was very gracious, but that was all. The Emperor only returned from Poland towards the end of their stay, and they do not appear to have spoken to him at all.
They arrived on the 18th of July, and went straight to their old lodgings, where they surprised old Frau Fischer at supper; she was delighted to see them, and to provide them once more with comfortable apartments. Many old friendships were renewed: L'Augier, Martinez, Novarre, honest old Bono, Stephanie and his lovely wife, Dr. Auerbrugger and his two daughters, Franziska and Mariane, "who played charmingly and were thorough musicians,"2 all welcomed the Mozarts eagerly; Wolfgang had grown so as never to be recognised unless his father were with him.
But their warmest welcome was from the Messmers, who only regretted that they had come without Frau Mozart and Marianne. Since the Mozarts' last visit, they had decorated their garden with statues, &c., and had built a theatre, an aviary, a dovecot, a summer-house looking over the Prater, and they were now turning their house into a comfortable winter residence. The whole family were together, including Fräulein Franzl, who was seriously ill, and Fräulein Sepperl, an inveterate match-maker, interesting herself in the love affairs even of the cook and the footman. Here they met their old friends Heufeld, Greiner, Steigentesch, WORKS IN GERMANY. Grill, Bono, &c.; and music was the invariable theme of conversation. Messmer had learned to play the harmonica from Miss Davis, and had an instrument made at a cost of 50 ducats, which was finer than that used by Miss Davis. He played it very well, and so did his little son, who showed considerable talent; Wolfgang tried the harmonica, and "wished he had one too." The Messmers soon after went farther into the country to Rothmühl, which interrupted this pleasant intercourse.
The great public event of the day during their stay in Vienna was the suppression of the order of Jesuits. L. Mozart, who followed their expulsion with great interest, thought that many good Christians would consider the Pope had only jurisdiction in matters of faith, and that the Jesuits would probably have been left unmolested if they had been as poor as the Capucines. In Rome the property of the Jesuits had been seized ad pias causas, which was easily done, since all that the Pope appropriated was ad pias causas; the Emperor thought differently, and had reserved to himself the right of dispensing the property of the Jesuits. Mozart thinks, too, that the millions taken from the Jesuits will awaken the appetite for more of such confiscations.3
Wolfgang had taken some work with him. A grand serenata for some fête in the family of their friend Andretter was sent from Vienna and performed at Salzburg in the beginning of August under Meissner's conductorship (145 K.). Then he set to work to write six quartets (168-173 K.), whether by order or not is uncertain; nothing more important, however, came to hand. The Jesuits performed the P. Dominicus Mass (66 K.) at court during the Octave of S. Ignatius' day; L. Mozart conducted, and the applause was great. The Theatin monks invited them to their service and banquet on the feast of S. Cajetan, and, the organ not being available, Wolfgang had the boldness to execute a concerto on a violin borrowed from his young friend Teyber. This made such an impression that in 1782 a lay brother, to whom Wolfgang COMPOSITIONS IN SALZBURG, 1773-74. remarked that he had eight years before played a violin concerto in the choir, at once addressed him by his name. Of money receipts during this visit to Vienna we hear little or nothing; on the contrary, L. Mozart writes to his wife that his body grows fat in proportion as his purse grows thin; and he consoles her for the fact that he has had to borrow money by declaring that it only proves his having need of money, but not of a doctor. Notwithstanding, he considered he had good reasons for remaining in Vienna. "Things must and will mend; take courage, God will help us!"
With the end of September they were again in Salzburg, and in December Wolfgang wrote a quintet for stringed instruments (174 K.) and a pianoforte Concerto in D major (175 K.), the first of the long list after his early attempts. Almost the whole of the year 1774 was passed quietly at home; Wolfgang wrote some important church music, two Masses in F and D major (192,194, K.), a great litany (195 K.), two psalms for a Vesper (193 K.), various symphonies (199-202 K.), two complete serenatas (203, 204, K.), and an interesting divertimento (205 K.). Then came a commission from Munich to write a comic opera for the Carnival of 1775. It is probable that the influence of the Prince Bishop of Chiemsee, Count Ferdinand von Zeil, an enthusiastic patron of Mozart, had been exerted on his behalf. The Elector Maximilian III. had also shown great interest in Mozart in former years, and on this account it was impossible for the Archbishop of Salzburg to refuse Wolfgang leave of absence. The Elector had a decided talent for music, which he had cultivated by study; he composed church music, and played the bass-viol, as Naumaun wrote to a friend, "divinely"; Burney declared he had heard no such bass-viol-player since the celebrated Abel. The Elector's sister also, the widowed Electress of Saxony Maria Antonia Walburga, known as a poetess, was then on a visit to Munich; she both composed and sang operas for which she had written the verses.4 It followed, therefore, WORKS IN GERMANY. that much was done in Munich for orchestra and singers both in the opera and the churches, although the performances fell short of those in Mannheim.5
On December 6 Wolfgang set out with his father for Munich, where they found a small but comfortable lodging with a Chanoine et grand custos de Notre Dame; this good man showed them honour and hospitality above their deserts, as they considered, and often sacrificed his own convenience to theirs from sheer friendliness. The intense cold of the journey had, in spite of precautions, brought on Wolfgang's habitual malady, severe toothache, and he was confined to his room with a swelled face for several days. As soon as possible they made the acquaintance of those with whom they were to be associated, and were well received everywhere.
The opera "La Finta Giardiniera" is very rich in airs, and Mozart, finding a wealth of resources in Munich ready to hand, went to work more seriously, both with the voices and the orchestra, than was customary with an opera buffa. It is impossible to ascertain how much of the opera he brought with him, or how much was altered or composed in Munich. The first rehearsal did not take place till near the end of December, and the performance was consequently postponed to January 5, 1775, so that the singers might be more sure of their parts than could have been the case had they played, as intended, on December 29.
"You must know," writes L. Mozart, "that the maestro Tozi, who is this year writing the opera seria ('Orfeo ed Euridice'), wrote last year at this time an opera buffa, and exerted himself to the utmost in order that it might surpass the opera seria of Sales (of Trier): he succeeded in quite eclipsing Maestro Sales' opera.6 Now it so turns out that Wolfgang's opera is ready just before Tozi's, and all those who heard the first rehearsal are saying that Tozi is paid back in his own coin, since Wolfgang's opera will "LA FINTA GIARDINIERA"—MUNICH, 1775. throw his quite into the shade.7 I do not like this sort of thing, and have tried all I can to put an end to the gossip; but the whole orchestra, and all who heard the rehearsal, declare that they never heard more beautiful music; all the songs are beautiful." The performance on January 13,1775, was a brilliant success; the court and the public overwhelmed the composer with applause and honours, as he himself informs his mother.
The Secretary of Legation, Unger, notes in his journal (January 15, 1775): "Vendredi L.A.R.E., assistèrent à la première représentation de Vopera buffa, 'La Finta Giardiniera'; la musique fut applaudie généralement; elle est du jeune Mozart de Saltzbourg qui se trouve actuellement ici. C'est le même qui à l'äge de huit ans a été en Angleterre et ailleurs pour se faire entendre sur le clavecin, qu'il touche supérieurement bien."8 And Schubart writes in the "Teutsche Chronik" (1775, p. 267): "I also heard an opera buffa by the wonderful genius Mozart; it is called "La Finta Giardiniera." Sparks of genius flash out here and there, but it is not yet the calm flame from the altar, rising to heaven in clouds of incense—a perfume meet for the gods. If Mozart does not turn out to be a hothouse-reared plant, he will undoubtedly be one of the greatest composers that has ever lived."
It was said of the performers that Rossi and Rosa Manservisi were specially suited for opera buffa. Rossi was as good as his brother in Stuttgart in merry, waggish parts; Manservisi was above the average of singers in voice, execution, and personal appearance.9
This time Wolfgang's sister enjoyed the pleasure of witnessing his triumph. During her visit to Munich she was placed under the care of a certain Frau v. Durst, a sensible well-educated widow, who provided Marianne with a room to herself and a piano, on which her father took care she should practise diligently. Other Salzburg friends arrived for the WORKS IN GERMANY. Carnival, Eberlin Waberl, Fräulein v. Schiedenhofen, And-retter, and young Molk, who went into such raptures over the opera seria, it was plain that he had heard nothing outside Salzburg and Inspruck.
Another involuntary witness of Mozart's triumph was the Archbishop of Salzburg. He had occasion to pay a visit to the Elector of Bavaria in January, 1775,10 and though he arrived in Munich after the representation of the opera, and had left before its repetition, he was forced, as L. Mozart remarks with satisfaction, to listen to the eulogies pronounced by the electoral suite and all the nobility, and to receive the congratulations which were poured on him. He was so taken aback that he could only answer by shaking his head and shrugging his shoulders. It was little likely that such a scene should have raised Mozart in the favour of a man like Hieronymus.
The repetition of the opera, which could only be given on Fridays, brought difficulties, inasmuch as the seconda donna, who was wretched even at her best, fell seriously ill, and the opera had to be considerably curtailed, in order to dispense with her. It took place on Wolfgang's birthday, and he thought it indispensable that he should be present at the performance, as otherwise his opera might not be recognised. The orchestra was in great confusion, since it was shamefully neglected by the director Tozi, who was at that time enacting the romance in real life with the Countess Törring-Seefeld, of which L. Mozart writes to his wife:—
Signor Tozi has gone. He had an old-standing love intrigue with the Countess v. Seefeld, in which her brother, Count Sedlizky, was implicated, as well as a certain tenor, Signor Guerrieri. The Countess left Munich six weeks ago on pretence of visiting her estates, but she has quite deserted her husband and children, and carried off money and jewels. The complicity of her brother and the two Italians was discovered by a letter; Count Sedlizky was placed under arrest, Guerrieri thrown into prison, and Tozi took refuge with the Theatin monks. The Elector sent him an assurance that he should not be imprisoned if he would submit to an examination. He issued from his hiding-place, but MUNICH, 1775. immediately took flight to Italy. Count Sedlizky confessed everything; Guerrieri denied everything, but to little avail, since the jewels were found in Guerrieri's lodgings, sewed up in an old cushion. It is suspected that the Countess is in Holland; there she sits forlorn, since her projected escort has not joined her.
L. Mozart writes to his wife to tell this story, "just to show people that Italians are rascals all the world over."11
The opera did not put a stop to Wolfgang's church music. His Grand Litany (125 K.) in B major was performed at the court chapel on New Year's day, as well as one of his father's; and later on two small Masses, no doubt those in F and D major (192, 194 K.). A few days before their departure, as Wolfgang writes to Padre Martini, the Elector expressed a wish to hear an offertory, contrapuntally worked out, which was to be composed, copied, and practised before the following Sunday. It was the "Misericordias Domini," to which Padre Martini accorded great praise.12 As a matter of course, Wolfgang made his mark also as a clavier-player; with this object he had taken his concerto with him, and his sister was to bring some of his sonatas and variations. Schubart writes in his "Teutsche Chronik" (1776, p. 267): "Only think, my friends, what a treat! Last winter, in Munich, I heard two of the greatest clavier-players, Herr Mozart and Herr v. Beecke. My host, Herr Albert, who is enthusiastic for all that is great and beautiful, has an excellent pianoforte in his house. So these two giants strove together. Mozart can play any difficulties, and whatever is laid before him at sight. But nevertheless, Beecke far surpasses him—winged speed, grace, melting sweetness, and a marvellous amount of taste, are weapons which none can wrest from the grasp of this Hercules."
The great and universal applause bestowed on Wolfgang inspired his father with the hope that he would be intrusted WORKS IN GERMANY. with the opera seria for the next year; why this was not the case we are not aware. The rumour current in Salzburg that Wolfgang was about to enter the Elector's service, L. Mozart ascribes to his enemies, and to those whose consciences told them what good cause he had for taking such a step; he was used to such childish folly, and did not allow it to trouble him in the least. Nevertheless, there is no doubt that nothing would have pleased him more; but, as a prudent man, he did not wish to cut himself adrift from Salzburg before having secured a safe anchorage at Munich.
After enjoying to their close the pleasures of the Carnival, which lasted too long for the father, they returned to Salzburg on March 7,1775. In April the Archbishop of Salzburg was honoured by a visit from the Archduke Maximilian, youngest son of Maria Theresa (b. 1749), afterwards Archbishop of Cologne; he had been spending the Carnival in Paris, where his want of tact had placed the Queen in considerable embarrassment,13 and had also paid a short visit to Munich. Court festivities were arranged, chiefly consisting of musical performances, for which the singer Consuoli and Becke, the flautist, were summoned from Munich. A serenata by Fischietti was performed on April 22, and on the following day Mozart's "Re Pastore," which had been very hurriedly composed. On April 24, according to the report of one of the Archduke's suite, "Music was the entertainment provided, as on the preceding days; at the conclusion of the performance, young Mozart placed himself at the piano and played various pieces from his head, with equal skill and grace." Whether he appeared as a violinist we do not know; he had, at any rate, composed his first violin concerto on April 14 (207 K.), and the fact that this was followed by four others in the same year (211, 216, 218, 219, K.) is a proof that he was applying himself energetically to the violin; possibly because it would be easier to find a good situation if he were an accomplished violin-player.
The next two years passed quietly and busily at Salzburg. Extracts from a diary kept by young Schiedenhofen show how CHURCH MUSIC—"HAFFNER-MUSIK," 1776. limited their circle of friendly intercourse was, and Wolfgang's authentically dated compositions afford proofs of his activity and progress.
The year 1776 was especially rich in church music; four masses (257, 258, 259,261, K.) fall in this year, three of them in its last quarter, while in March a Grand Litany in E flat major (243 K.) was written, besides an Offertory, "Venite populi," for two choirs (260 K.). To 1777 belong a Mass (275 K.), and a Graduale, "Sancta Maria" (273 K.). A series of organ sonatas were furnished for the services of the church, and for the court a number of divertimenti for wind instruments, probably as table music. In other respects, doubtless in consequence of the ill-will of the Archbishop, Wolfgang appears to have held aloof from the court concerts; no symphonies belong to this time. The serenatas were written for other occasions. On wedding-days, fête-days, or the like, these nocturnal pieces were usually performed in the street, not excepting the solos;14 they were introduced by a march, in which any of the company who could handle a bow might take part; the rest listened from the windows above. Such music was either ordered and paid for, or offered as a tribute of esteem.
On the wedding-day of the Salzburg citizen F. X. Spath with Elise Haffher, daughter of the worthy merchant and Bürgermeister Sigmund Haffner15 (July 22,1776), a serenata by Mozart was performed, afterwards known as the "Haffner-musik" (249, 250, K.). Another opportunity offered in the fête-day of the Countess Antonia Lodron, for whom in 1776 and 1777 Wolfgang wrote several specified nocturnes;16 Schiedenhofen was present at the rehearsal of one of them, and he tells us also that on July 25, 1777, there was a rehearsal of a serenata at the house of the grocer Gusetti, composed by Wolfgang for his sister's fête-day; it consisted of a symphony, a violin concerto played by himself, and a flute concerto played by Cosel. Probably the divertimento composed in July, 1776 (251 K.) was also intended for his sister's fête-day. A Finalmusik (185, 215, K.) produced on August 23, 1775, and a "Serenata Nottuma" (239 K.) in January, 1776, are both for unknown occasions.
The clavier compositions were also mainly written for pupils or amateurs; for example, the Concerto in C major (246 K.) for the Countess Litzow or Lützow, wife of the Commandant of Hohen-Salzburg; that in E flat major (271 K.) for a Madame Jenomy (January, 1777), whom Wolfgang had met in Paris; the Concerto for three pianofortes for the Countesses Antonie, Luise, and Josepha Lodron (242 K.), February, 1776. While the Mozarts were at Munich, in 1775, a landed proprietor, Buron Dümitz, had ordered some pianoforte sonatas, which were duly forwarded (279-284 K.); but he altogether forgot to send the promised payment in return. Two four-hand sonatas, mentioned by his father (December 8, 1777), were probably intended for Wolfgang and his sister; Schiedenhofen heard them play a duet on August 15, 1777.
Having taken this biograpical survey, it is now time to bestow a closer inspection on Wolfgang's compositions.
THE OPERA1 owes its rise to the attempt which was made in Florence at the beginning of the sixteenth century to discover the musical method of ancient tragedy and to reproduce it in conformity to the spirit of the Renaissance.2 GRADUAL RISE OF OPERA. In opposition to the predominant madrigal style of part-singing, worked out in counterpoint, there arose strivings after a method which should give freedom and independence to the solo singer, and which should render the poet's words comprehensible and sympathetic to the hearer. The conviction that this was accomplished to perfection in ancient tragedy led to a search after lost musical traditions, traces of which are observable in the opera seria, even in its latest development. First, recitative was introduced as a middle course between song and ordinary speech, distinguished by accent and rhythm, and sustained by a simple harmony, which emphasised the dialogue. Time and effort were needed to establish this compromise between song and speech, and to convert recitative into the pliable, expressive instrument of musical dialogue.
The first attempt to place an opera in this stilo rappresentativo on the stage was made by Jac. Peri with Ottavio Rinuccini's "Dafne," performed in 1594 at the Palazzo Corsi;3 the same poet's "Euridice" followed in 1600, publicly performed on the occasion of the marriage of Henry IV. with Marie de Medicis. The whole dialogue is rendered in a simply accompanied recitative, without the introduction of anything resembling an air; to this are added choruses, after the example of the old tragedies, not worked out in contrapuntal form like madrigals, as was already the custom with the intermedii of spoken tragedies, but in simple harmonies, and in a key corresponding to the recitatives.
A similar experiment was made in Rome in 1600 by Emilio de' Cavalieri with his oratorio "Dell' Anima e del Corpo," and in Florence the same year by Giulio Caccini with another, "Euridice," which displayed the art of the singers by its numerous embellishments and passages.
Musical language, however, could only attain its full effect when the more elevated sentiments received their due expression in an air, independent in character and OPERA SERIA. perfect in form. The development of solo singing released from its contrapuntal bondage, and made expressive by melody, was largely due to Caccini. The merit of connecting the air with the recitative in opera—for which a precedent was found in the monody of ancient tragedy—belongs to Claudio Monteverde, who also made use of the whole available instrumental wealth of the time. His operas of "Orfeo," composed in Mantua (1607), and "Arianna" (1608) were followed in Venice, where he was appointed kapellmeister (1613), by "Proserpina rapita" (1630), "Adone" (1639), &c. Here, then, were the elements of the opera seria. To follow its continuous development step by step would require such a searching study of details as has not yet been undertaken. The majority of existing accounts are made apparently at random, and without any idea of connection or dependence. A sketch of the leading points in the progress of this development will suffice for our purpose.4
Ancient tragedy being taken as a model, it followed that the stories of ancient mythology or history (they were always considered on the same level) were almost exclusively chosen, although treated for the most part in a widely different spirit.
Opera soon formed an important feature in court festivals, and it became customary to give the text a reference to the festival or person honoured by turning it into an allegory, in which poetical fancy vied with personal flattery.5 In imitation of ancient tragedy mimic dances were connected with the singing, but the union of the arts tended more to sensual enjoyment than to poetical effect. The naïve freedom with which the ancient myths were handled gave ample license for gaudy costumes, scenery, and decorations, and the same taste was carried into the fantastic outcome of these festival representations known as the German magic opera.
The courts of Italy and France vied with each other in DEVELOPMENT OF OPERA—SCARLATTI. the costly splendour lavished on the opera by scene-painters, decorators, and costumiers; and Vienna, Munich, Dresden, and Stuttgart were not slow to follow their example. The elegantly printed books of the words, adorned with careful copper-plate engravings, which were distributed for these performances, give some idea of the style in which they were put on the stage, and of the dazzle and glitter in the midst of which the music became a very secondary consideration.
Such operas as we have described could, on account of the expense, only be given at royal courts on special occasions; but the general public soon began to demand a share in the entertainment and a regular repetition of it. It became the established custom to make the opera the main festivity of the Carnival, and although generous patrons were not wanting, prepared to support the managers (impresarii), yet the latter, who naturally wished to make a profit by the opera, generally found it necessary to reduce the cost of the representations. The libretti, which sought to excite interest by showy scenery, and a mixture of pathetic and burlesque situations, without the least regard to consistency or psychological accuracy, were far from satisfactory to any cultivated taste. But the cultivation of the art of song exercised the highest of all influences on operatic music. It had reached a height from which it was able to govern the musical public, and to render the pleasure of the eye subservient to that of the ear. In proportion as the vocal art asserted its superiority, it exacted a simplification of all other means of attraction, and the universal striving after regularity was materially assisted by the necessity for clear and decided forms in vocal music.
This transformation of the opera, which took its final form from poet and composer under the quickening influence of great singers, is commonly ascribed to Alessandro Scarlatti (1659-1725). He was the disciple, although perhaps not the pupil, of the Roman kapellmeister, Giacomo Carissimi (who was nearly ninety in 1672), who did such good service to the development of recitative and dramatic solo singing, that he may be considered the founder of modern song.
Scarlatti, excellent alike from his thorough musical OPERA SERIA. knowledge, and from the wealth and grace of his invention, displayed astonishing fertility in the different departments of musical art. In the year 1715, according to his own account, he had composed 106 operas.6 At Naples, where he passed the greater part of his life, he founded the school from which (more especially under his successor Francesco Durante, 1693-1755) a long list of composers issued, who for the most part wrote admirable church music, but whose chief mission it was to maintain throughout the last century an uninterrupted succession of operatic music. If we glance down the long list of the more famous—Nic. Porpora (1685 or 1687-1767), Dom. Sarri (1688-1732), Leon. Vinci (1690-1734), Franc. Feo (1694-1740), Leon. Leo (1694-1756?), Ad. Hasse (1699-1783), Terradeglias (17...-1754), Nic. Logroscino (17...-1763), Pergolese (1707-1739), Pasq. Cafaro (1708-1787), Duni (1709-1775), Dav. Perez (1711-1778), Nic. Jomelli (1714-1774), Rinaldo da Capua (b. 1715), Tom. Traetta (1727-1779), Guglielmi (1727-1804), Nic. Piccinni (1728-1800), Sacchini (1735-1786), Pasq. Anfossi (1736-1797), Giac. Paisiello (1741-1816), Franc, de Majo (1745-1774), Dom. Cimarosa (1754-1801)—we shall be astonished to find that of the numerous members of the Neapolitan school only four were born out of the kingdom of Naples,7 viz., Hasse, Terradeglias, Pergolese, and Guglielmi. The rest of Italy was quite unable to compete with this wealth.
Venice, however, took an important place in the development of Italian opera, both by the splendour of the performances given in the theatre, which was erected in 1637,8 and by excellent institutions for musical education. The fame of the Venetian school was upheld by many celebrated composers, among them Carlo Pallavicini (16...-1688), Agost. Steffani (1655-1730). Franc. Gasparini (1665-1737), Ant. Lotti ITALIAN INFLUENCES ON OPERA. (1667-1740), Giov. Porta (16...-1740), Ant. Caldara (1678-1763), Buranello (1703-1785), Ferd. Bertoni (1725-1813).
Bologna too had its share in the history of the opera, maintaining a firm tradition of careful performances,9 and excellent schools for singing and composition; Giov. Buonon-cini (1672-1752) and Gius. Sarti (1729-1802) were trained here.
Rome was looked upon as the city where the keenest enthusiasm either of applause or adverse criticism was to be expected, consequently where artistic reputations were most often made or destroyed;10 but Rome was neither the birthplace nor the seminary of any famous operatic masters.
It is not necessary here to inquire into the details of the part taken by Scarlatti in the erection of Italian opera as it now exists. His operas are truly epitomes of the history of musical development, and his many imitators and successors pass before us like the shadows of the Homeric shades; but we have only to do with him or with them in so far as concerns the main features of that form of operatic composition which Mozart found ready to hand.11
The stability with which operatic development kept close to the path which had at first been marked out was due partly to circumstances and the influence of public opinion, partly to the character of the Italian people. Beauty, appealing immediately and directly to their lightly kindled imaginations, required that its sensual charm should be clearly and unreservedly expressed; and for this they were willing to sacrifice novelty and characterisation. Again, the art of music was developed in accordance with natural laws; and having once acquired forms indicative of its essential elements, it grasped these firmly, and refused to abandon them until they had become completely obsolete. It was the task of the great masters of the eighteenth century to OPERA SERIA. maintain this course of steady imperceptible progress, and, by raising to successive stages each hardly won step towards perfection, to establish in the end a new and more admirable whole.
The chief component parts of the opera were the recitative and the song, or aria.12 Recitative, intended for the rendering of conversation, approaches in rhythm and intervals as near as possible to ordinary speech, and leaves the singer ample scope for an animated and expressive delivery. This is assisted by a simple harmonious accompaniment, the basses giving the fundamental, the clavier the harmony. The simplicity of the musical treatment lends itself to characteristic declamation, and impressive situations are thrown into relief generally by sudden changes of harmony; numerous instances show the importance that was attached to this mode of delivery. But very soon it became the fashion to treat this recitativo secco as subordinate, and the composer strove to do away with it as far as possible. Certain turns, certain harmonic progressions and interrupted cadences, were as indispensable to recitative as many turns of speech are to social intercourse. As the course and development of the action of the piece depend almost entirely on the recitative, it follows that any neglect of the latter must affect one of the most important elements of the opera. The need for attaining the power of expressing a momentary passion or inspiration which would not admit of an elaborate representation led to the introduction of the so-called accompanied (obligate) recitative. For this the orchestra (at first only the whole body of stringed instruments) was made use of, and accompanied the alternations of emotion with corresponding musical phrases or interludes. Recitative, without abandoning its distinctive characteristics, became more strongly accentuated, and in process of time passed over into song. Such vocal melodies as seemed thus to be called forth by the emotions of the situations were called cavata or cavatina. At first they were RECITATIVE—THE ARIA. considered as an ingredient or embellishment of the recitative, but later on they were treated independently. Arioso in the recitative indicates an interpolated passage of vocal melody. A rapid alternation of varied or contending emotions in monologue or dialogue called for accompanied recitative, which generally passed into a song, where a definite emotion might find its due expression. It was here that singers and composers sought to accomplish the highest degree of dramatic expression, and although in the aria they might be tempted to an undue regard for musical display, to the neglect of dramatic effect, here at least they strove for a faithful portrayal of human sentiment.
The aria was the almost exclusive form given to regular artistic song. Choruses, which formerly concluded every act, were afterwards only exceptionally employed, generally when the occasion, being a court festivity, required additional outward show; they very seldom formed an integral part of the performance.13 Ballets, which were originally combined with the choruses, became by degrees quite distinct, and were given between the acts of the opera. Concerted vocal pieces were confined within limits more and more strictly defined, until the rule came to be that in every opera there should be a duet for the prima donna and the primo uomo, and a terzet in which the primo tenore also took part; even the places for these, at the end of the second and third acts, were appointed. Further restrictions were imposed on the character of these concerted pieces by the necessity of giving all possible effect to the voices. They do not pretend to represent a conflict of struggling passions, pressing onward to the catastrophe; rather does some definite mood, the natural result of the situations which have preceded it, find its fitting expression in their regular concerted form, which affords ample scope for the display of varieties in quality and style of the individual voices.
The aria, which gave expression to a fixed lyrical mood, was seldom the culminating point of a dramatic situation; its connection with the action of the piece was, for the most OPERA SERIA. part, only sufficient to give it a certain local colour. It was the task of both composer and singer to make the aria fit in to the drama; but the claims of the vocalist were paramount in its composition. As the canons of operatic construction became more and more strictly defined, distinctions arose between different kinds of arie, each having its own character and form; the aria cantabile was for sentimental declamation, di portamento for long drawn-out tones, di mezzo carattere for dramatic expression, aria parlante or agitata for the expression of passion, aria di bravura (agilità) for the display of artistic skill of every kind.14 The poet and composer had only to be careful to suit the arie to the performers, and so to distribute them through the opera that their variety should place the performances of each character in their most favourable light.15 But a certain fixed form served as a groundwork to all arie, and kept them within well-defined bounds. It is easy to trace the simple expressive phrase as it is extended and rounded into a well-formed melody, and then to follow the different subjects so obtained until, by progressions and interludes, they are welded into a whole. But this led to a petrifying formalism, and to a tedious lengthening of the aria, which sacrificed character to vocal display.
An aria regularly consists of two parts differing in key, time, and measure. An allegro in common time usually begins, introduced by a slower passage in triple time; but as to this there is no fixed rule, and free scope as to details is given to the composer. The first movement is broadly conceived, always with a view to the skill of the performer; he repeats one or more of the principal melodies in different positions, but without thematic elaboration, and inserts runs and passages.
In the second part the composer, granting some repose to the singer, made a display of his own art by selected harmonies, elaborate accompaniments, and so forth. It was THE ARIA. essential to the singer's reputation as an artist that he should be able to vary the modulation and embellishment of the melody each time it recurred, the composer supplying a mere outline, and leaving the execution of the cadenzas entirely to the discretion of the performer. This task became more difficult as the custom grew of repeating the whole of the first part at the close of the second, thus turning the latter into a middle movement; for no singer would be deterred from enhancing the interest of each repetition by a fresh mode of delivery. So that the public performers of that day displayed their taste and cultivation not only, as at present, by execution and declamation; they worked of necessity side by side with the composer, whose special glory it was to inspire his singers with a spark of his own creative genius.
The influence thus exerted by the executive artist could not fail to determine, to a great extent, the path of development in operatic composition. The great names of the more celebrated singers are to us indeed but names, for contemporary notices give us no clear idea of their performances,16 and the music written for them, deprived of the direct charm of their personal impression, affords a most imperfect standard of judgment.
From the middle of the last century the tendency to sacrifice all consideration to execution (bravura) became more and more marked; until at last, dramatic propriety, and the soul-inspiring calm of beautiful song, were alike buried beneath the weight of ornamentation and exaggerated flourishes,17 serving only to display the pretensions of the vocalist and the dexterity of the composer. In this way the dramatic element of the opera became more and more neglected, until at last it was regarded as a superfluous and disturbing adjunct to the vocalisation.18
The public too grew accustomed to confine their attention to the individual exploits of their favourites;19 and the composer, unwilling to waste his energy on thankless parts, followed the example, and devoted his whole powers to a few individuals.20
The enormous salary paid to celebrated singers, male and female, had the effect of limiting the number of principal parts to three or four, each distinguished as primo.21 The remaining parts were treated by both the poet and the composer as subordinate, not only on account of the mediocre powers available for their representation, but also and chiefly because it would have been against the interests of the great singers that secondary characters should attract notice or applause. They controlled all secondary parts, suppressing or appropriating any song which they considered too brilliant, and leaving the author to arrange the piece as best he might.22 There was a fixed code of etiquette in all stage arrangements. The prima donna, for instance, was entitled to have her train borne by one, or if a princess, by two pages; she took the place of honour at the right of the stage, being, as a rule, the most important personage of the piece. When Faustina Hasse played Dircea, in "Demofoonte" (1748), who is not recognised as a princess until late in the piece, she claimed precedence over the acknowledged Princess Creusa, and Metastasio himself was obliged to interfere in order to induce her to yield the point.23
Thus all influences combined to mould the opera seria into a narrow conventional form, in which all other considerations were sacrificed to executive effect, and the display of skill and sensibility in the rendering of the music.
We can form no clear conception whatever of the operatic INSTRUMENTATION—THE OVERTURE. orchestra in its earliest form; both the use and the effect of various instruments are very imperfectly known, and the instrumentation is consequently more or less incomprehensible. But here too development proceeded in the way of simplification, and at the time of Scarlatti the treatment of instrumental accompaniment and the disposal of the orchestra was determined as to essentials for all future times.
In the plain recitative of the dialogue, the fundamental note was given by the bass, and the chord was struck on the piano (at which the composer or kapellmeister conducted) and repeated as often as necessary. In the songs and ensembles the instruments came in as accompaniments, freed from the obligation of following a given melody step by step with a given bass, according to the rules of thoroughbass for filling up harmonies. Scarlatti and the earlier masters kept this accompaniment very simple, seldom introducing more than one part in addition to the bass and the voice. But, as practised contrapuntists, they could handle the accompanying parts broadly and freely, and could give animation by simple means. This art gradually decreased, and the accompaniment, although fuller, became more mechanical and dependent, Only here and there suggesting contrapuntal elaboration. The orchestra was used independently only in the symphonies which repeated the motifs of the songs, in the short interludes of accompanied recitative, and finally in the introductory overture or sinfonia.
Italian operatic composers began by making use of the form of overture which Lully had established in France, beginning with an adagio, followed by a quick movement, often in the form of a fugue, and passing again into an adagio, which concludes the overture. Later, the form was determined which has remained ever since, of three movements: an allegro, a slower, shorter movement contrasting in time, instrumentation, and expression, and a concluding allegro, animated and often noisy.
These main features were capable of rich and varied development, were it not that in Italy little importance was attached to the overture, which was commonly regarded as a OPERA SERIA. means of reducing the audience to silence and attention. The three movements, therefore, generally preserved their gradations without marked characteristics, and the attempt to express the effect of the first scene by means of the overture was soon abandoned.24
The grouping of Scarlatti's orchestra was in its main points identical with that of the present day. The stringed instruments, violins, tenors, and basses formed its main strength; but their application was very simple. The violon-celli go regularly with the double-basses, and the tenors serve generally only to strengthen the bass; where they are independent they are often divided, like the violins, which however frequently go together. The oboe has the chief part among the wind instruments, the flutes serving mainly for variety and special characteristics; the bassoons strengthen the bass, and are rarely used independently. Soon horns were employed, and drums and trumpets when special splendour was required; trombones were used in the churches, never in the opera.
In this manner even the largest orchestras were arranged down to the close of the last century; an example is afforded by the construction and arrangement of the Dresden orchestra by Hasse, which was considered as a model.25 [See Page Image] THE ORCHESTRA—INSTRUMENTALISTS. The well-appointed bass parts are the most striking, intended as a firm foundation for the vocal melody, which is not seldom strengthened by the violins and oboes or flutes. But to avoid any effect of poverty, it must not be forgotten that the accompanist at the piano filled in the harmony. To strengthen this, and to give variety to the intonation, was the task of the wind instruments. But when the orchestra was treated as a whole there was seldom any attempt to render lights and shades by alternations of the instruments; to attain this end, concerted solo instruments were employed.
Italy was, during the eighteenth century, at once the mother and the nurse of instrumental musicians. A succession of first-rate violinists—Arcang. Corelli (1653-1713), Franc. Geminiani (1680-1762), Ant. Vivaldi (16...-1743), Gius. Tartini (1692-1770), Pietro Nardini (1722-1793), Gaet. Pugnani (1727-1803), Ant. Lolli (1733-1802)—established the glory of violin-playing, and raised it to an extraordinary height of excellence; while as oboists the brothers Besozzi, Alessandro (1700-1775), Antonio (1707-1781), Gaetano (1727-1793) were performers of the first merit. Trumpets were at that time more especially considered as solo instruments.
Not until later could Germany compete successfully with Italy, as far as the orchestra was concerned; in France, although the precision of Parisian orchestras was always remarkable, the development of instrumental music was longest delayed. Scarlatti introduced instrumental soloists in the operatic orchestra, and the effect was the same as on the stage; it worked against the careful striving after a perfect whole, and the tendency of the instrumental artists to enter into competition with the vocalists led in no small degree to that treatment of the voice as a mere instrument which was so much to be deplored. Notably Farinelli in 1722 established his reputation in Rome by a contest with a wonderful trumpeter, whom he twice vanquished in the sustenance and artistic delivery of a long note, and in the execution of difficult passages.26
The first step towards simplifying opera seria in its new form was made in the diction and treatment of the plot. The subject-matter continued to be taken from the stories of mythology or ancient history; but effects of magic and show were abolished, and a connected well-developed plot was substituted, simple in action, and confined to a small number of personages. Next, the previous mixture of the tragic and comic elements was abolished, and everything approaching to burlesque strictly interdicted. The chief efforts in this direction were made by the Roman Silvio Stampiglia (d. 1722), to whom Apostolo Zeno awards more of genius and spirit than thorough cultivation,27 and whom Arteaga calls dry and unmusical.28 Apostolo Zeno himself (1688-1750) followed in the same path as court poet to Charles VI. He was a man of education and learning, and as such sought to model the opera on ancient tragedy in its best and most manly form, and strove for a naturally developed plot, correct delineation of character, and simplicity of language. He proved, said Metastasio,29 that the opera and good sense are not absolutely contradictory terms. The fact that his operas were often and successfully performed during the first half of the century bears testimony to the simplicity and earnestness of the musical taste of the time; later on, as the field of music extended its limits, his text was found pedantic.30 His indisputable merit31 was thrown into the shade by Metastasio's works;32 these denote in a remarkable degree the spirit of the time which produced them, a spirit that they themselves fostered and encouraged.
Metastasio (Pietro Trapassi, 1698-1782) distinguished himself as a boy by his talent for improvisation; he received a thorough learned education from the celebrated Roman METASTASIO. jurist Gravina, which led to his adoption of classical antiquity as his model; while his connection with the singer Marianna Bulgarini early gave him an insight into the technical requirements of the opera. He began his career as a librettist in 1724 with "Didone" at Naples; in 1730 he went to Vienna as court poet, where he lived on the best of terms with the Imperial family,33 and highly esteemed by the cultivated public. Following Apostolo Zeno, he sought to supply his operas with a true dramatic form, and he made it his chief aim to portray the effect of different characters and passions upon the development of the action. Metastasio had no large or powerful conceptions, nor could he grasp strong passions; his psychological vision is clear and cool, but limited, just as his sentiments are correct and good, but neither wide nor free. In his dramas, therefore, the representation of character and the plot are well-considered, suitable, and consistent, but with a certain mediocrity running through the whole; he chiefly concerns himself with the exemplification of principles and experiences, and individualises but little.34 He makes love the animating element of his drama, and the starting point of his psychological study of motives. His characters want neither life nor passion, but softness and veiled sensuality are the characteristic features of what he endeavoured to make an imitation of actual life. The public were gratified at recognising themselves and their love affairs glorified on the stage, and were grateful to Metastasio for allowing them to enjoy themselves in their own way, and not preaching moderation and self-control. They admired his language too, which is correct, and charmingly melodious and natural in expression, not more rhetorical than the Italian language and poetry demands, and never overlaid with conceits.
To these qualities of a dramatic poet, Metastasio joined that of an operatic composer; he was a musician. He had cultivated his musical talent by intercourse with singers and OPERA SERIA. composers, and had a ready perception of what was necessary to a work written for composition. He sang "come un serafino" (as he writes jokingly to Farinelli),35 played the clavier, and composed a little himself;36 he found it a pleasant incitement to poetical activity to seat himself at the clavier and improvise. He said himself he had never written a song without composing it himself, according to his own conception of its musical character.37
Metastasio confines the development of the plot as a rule to the recitative and the arie (or duet, or terzet), expressing at the close of each scene the sentiment which is the result of the previous action. This they always did so clearly and precisely that the composer had both incentive and scope for musical treatment.
The too numerous figures and metaphors (which he was fond of borrowing from the sea) express the taste of the time, and so far from troubling the musician, gave him opportunities for musical painting which was sure to be admired. The melodious language met the music half way, while the simple yet varied rhythm, the contrast of ideas, and the construction of the verse, aided the composer, without fettering him, in the musical phrasing of his work.
It was no wonder that Metastasio reigned supreme over the stage and its composers, and that he was the model of the later operatic poets; they succeeded best in imitating his defects, and gave Naumann occasion to say with justice, "The oldest of Metastasio's operas is more pleasing to me than any written by our present poets."
Metastasio was well aware that the poet only supplies a stem to the opera, which the composer clothes with foliage and blossom;38 but he was far from allowing the composer absolute dominion over the poet, and prided himself on the CONDITIONS OF LIBRETTO-WRITING. fact that his operas had been played with applause as tragedies without music both in France and Germany.39
He chose to consider the composer as the interpreter of the poet, and bound to follow his indications of character and style.40 This was in his opinion the chief merit of the old composers, and in his later years he was never weary of deploring the decline of music, which was the consequence of the license taken by vocalists, destroying alike truth and beauty of expression.41
The poet not less than the composer found himself hemmed in by conditions as well as by traditional formulas. He too performed his task to order, and was hampered by circumstances, and by the limited means at his command in his choice of subject and characters.
It was in no way favourable to Zeno and Metastasio that they received their commissions from the court;42 besides the direct influence of the taste of the somme padrone, the whole atmosphere tended to effeminacy and a uniform level in style. The impresarii chose the libretti for the composers they had engaged, partly according to the applause the subjects had already received, but more to suit the singers they had at command. They were altered to suit the occasion sometimes by the poet himself, but more often some local poet undertook the necessary curtailments and additions, whereby the work seldom profited.43
The absolute monarchy of Zeno and Metastasio, whom all other poets slavishly imitated, would alone suffice to explain the fact that in the course of the last century opera seria received the fixed and unalterable form it still retains; we have seen that the tendency was the same as regards the music. This makes it comprehensible that in reading the text or the scores in the present day we have so lively an impression that they are but copies of one original. In no art does the feeling for what is enduring pass so easily and quickly into the taste for what pleases the age as in music. What affords most delight to the present often expresses only a transitory mood with a momentary truth, and when the smoke and the fragrance which surrounded it have disappeared, only an empty form remains; just as a mask keeps the impression of the features without the play of the muscles, which alone give life and expression.