Baroque Period

Osvaldo Golijov’s “Tenebrae”: Melismatic Echoes of Couperin

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In Western Christianity, Tenebrae occurs in the final days of the Holy Week, and commemorates the sufferings and death of Christ. It involves the gradual extinguishing of candles, leading to a void of darkness. Metaphorical darkness, light, and space formed the inspiration for Tenebrae, a 2002 chamber work by Argentine composer, Osvaldo Golijov (b. 1960). (The piece was originally scored for soprano, clarinet, and string quartet, and later adapted for strings alone). …

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Handel’s “Stille Amare”: The “Poison” Aria from “Tolomeo”

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Handel’s opera, Tolomeo, HWV 25, was first performed at the King’s Theatre in London on April 30, 1728, and featured a spectacular and renowned cast, which the composer imported from Italy. Set in 108 BC, its plot is ripe for high drama: The story of Tolomeo is set in Ancient Egypt and follows Tolomeo, the son of a deposed king, who is forced to marry Seleuce, who is already married to his …

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Handel’s “Esther,” “Tune Your Harps”: Cheerful Pizzicato Strains

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Handel’s 1732 oratorio, Esther, tells the story of a Jewish orphan who becomes Queen of Persia. When the villainous Haman becomes enraged by a personal slight and, in retaliation, orders the extermination of all Jews throughout the Persian Empire, Esther saves her people from massacre. The work originated in 1718 as a semi-staged masque, performed for the Duke of Chandos, who employed Handel as resident composer for two years. Later, Handel expanded it …

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Bach’s Sinfonia from Cantata, BWV 21 (“Ich hatte viel Bekümmernis”): A Portrait of Greif

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J.S. Bach composed the Cantata, Ich hatte viel Bekümmernis, BWV 21 (“I had much grief”) in 1713 during his tenure as director of music at the court of Weimar. It was first performed a year later on the third Sunday after Trinity. Themes of suffering, grief, and mourning dominate the opening section of the Cantata, which, as conductor John Eliot Gardiner observes, is “set almost obsessively in C minor.” It is a …

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Bach’s “Herr Jesu Christ, dich zu uns wend”: Five Settings of a Lutheran Hymn

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First published in 1648, the Lutheran hymn, Herr Jesu Christ, dich zu uns wend (“Lord Jesus Christ, be present now!”), provided a fertile source for J.S. Bach. Bach created at least five wildly contrasting settings of the melody, each of which relates to a specific aspect of the text. The melody is by an anonymous composer. (It has been erroneously attributed to Wilhelm, Duke of Saxe-Weimar). Beginning with an ascending triad, the hymn …

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Shunske Sato Plays Vivaldi: “Summer” from “The Four Seasons”

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Antonio Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons (Le quattro stagioni) is one of the earliest and most iconic examples of programmatic music. Vivaldi composed the collection of four violin concerti, each depicting a season of the year, during his tenure as music director at the court chapel of Mantua. Together with eight additional concerti, the works were published in Amsterdam in 1725 under the enticing title, Il cimento dell’armonia e dell’inventione (“The Contest Between Harmony and …

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Handel’s Sonata in D Major, HWV 371: Music Ripe for Reuse

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After 300 years, the music of Handel continues to draw us in with richly expressive melodies and a vivid sense of drama. Both are apparent in the Sonata in D Major, HWV 371 for violin and basso continuo. In the opening of the first movement (Affettuoso), the violin line appears to outline an ascending D major triad, only to arrive on an E, one pitch too far. The next phrase extends even …

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