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Vivaldi's chamber cantatas for solo voice, some forty in total, are steadily gaining in popularity: but because of their relatively small place in the oeuvre of a composer famed for his productivity, and also on account of the general scholarly neglect of their genre, they are little discussed in the literature. This book comprehensively explores their literary and musical background, their relation to the composer's biography, the chronology of their composition, and their musical qualities. Each cantata is discussed individually, but there is also a broader consideration of aspects concerning them collectively, such as performance practice, topical allusion, and the conventions of Italian verse. The author argues that while Vivalid's cantatas are not as innovative as his concertos and operas, he produced several masterpieces in the genre that rank with his best music. MICHAEL TALBOT is Emeritus Professor of Music at the University of Liverpool.
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THE CHAMBER CANTATAS OF ANTONIO VIVALDI
for Lowell Lindgren
THE CHAMBER CANTATAS OF ANTONIO VIVALDI
Michael Talbot
THE BOYDELL PRESS
© Michael Talbot 2006 All rights reserved. Except as permitted under current legislation no part of this work may be photocopied, stored in a retrieval system, published, performed in public, adapted, broadcast, transmitted, recorded or reproduced in any form or by any means, without the prior permission of the copyright owner The right of Michael Talbot to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 First published 2006 The Boydell Press, Woodbridge with the support of Fondazione Giorgio Cini Istituto Italiano Antonio Vivaldi Venezia ISBN 1 84383 201 1
The Boydell Press is an imprint of Boydell & Brewer Ltd PO Box 9 Woodbridge Suffolk IP12 3DF UK and of Boydell & Brewer Inc. 668 Mt Hope Avenue Rochester NY 14620 USA website: www.boydellandbrewer.com A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Typeset by Pru Harrison, Hacheston, Suffolk
Printed in Great Britain by Newton Printing Ltd, London, UK www.newtonprinting.com
Contents List of music examples
vii
List of tables Preface
ix xi
Conventions and abbreviations
xiv
1
1 1 11 20
The Rediscovery of Vivaldi’s Cantatas How contemporaries saw them How modern commentators have seen them Their modern revival
2
The Cantata Genre Its historical development Its literary nature Its musical nature
3
Vivaldi and the Voice The composer and the text Vivaldi as literary bricoleur The composer and the singer The composer and the accompaniment
4
The Mantuan Cantatas Vivaldi’s Mantuan episode The Mantuan court A mirror of court life Individual works
5
Cantatas of the Middle Years Vivaldi’s Blütezeit Cantatas for all occasions Individual works
6
The Dresden Cantatas Vivaldi and Dresden The cantatas of the Dresden compilation Individual works Postscript: The spurious works
25 32 33 44 61 61 66 75 84 89 89 91 94 102 120 120 124 137 164 164 170 173 182
7
Vivaldi’s Cantatas in Perspective The cantata within Vivaldi’s oeuvre Approaches to performance
188 188 192
Glossary List of Vivaldi’s cantatas published in the New Critical Edition
201 206
Spurious works
208
Bibliography
209
Index to musical works General index
217 223
List of Music Examples Ex. 2.1 Ex. 2.2 Ex. 2.3 Ex. 3.1a Ex. 3.1b Ex. 3.2 Ex. 3.3 Ex. 3.4 Ex. 3.5 Ex. 3.6 Ex. 4.1 Ex. 4.2 Ex. 4.3 Ex. 4.4 Ex. 4.5 Ex. 4.6 Ex. 4.7 Ex. 4.8 Ex. 4.9 Ex. 4.10 Ex. 4.11 Ex. 5.1
Vivaldi, Perfidi