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Style ang interpretation (i)
In any discussion about style and interpretation several
aspects must be considered: the Science of music through
analysis and the study of historical evidence, and the Art
of music through our imagination and feelings. The rela-
tive weight or importance attached to each has always been
‘a matter of some controversy. On the one hand some argue
that an intense feeling coupled to an artistic imagination
‘will produce a totally convincing performance; on the
other hand others say that analytical probing allied to the
historical evidence of contemporary practice are the most
desirable means towards a musical performance. 1 think
that one must consider all these aspects to arrive at a
‘musical performance convincing on alf levels,
The closer music is to our own time and culture, the
more familiar we are with its idiom and its feelings — with
its intellectual and emotional core. But as the period of its
creation recedes from us into the last century and beyond,
so does our familiarity with it. We no longer share the
same or similar society with its many inter-weaving layers
‘of common experience. Just as in language the same words
acquire subtly different meanings with the passage of time,
so itis with music. The same succession of notes can sound
differently at different times. As an illustration, play
example 1a and 1b firstly in the style of a De Visée gigue
and then in the style of the Paganini Romance. Their
thythmic and melodic similarity make them almost inter-
changeable, although example 1a is the gigwe from De
Visée suite in D minor, and 1b is the Romance from
Paganini’s Grand Sonata. It is only our awareness of
period and style that makes us play the music in period and
style, and thus makes one sound quite different from the
other.
Musical phrases and ideas of another age have a signifi-
cance which we may often misunderstand rather like a
word which has changed its meaning, Here is where the
Science of music comes to the fore: analysis and contem-
porary accounts can and do illustrate the true sound and
‘meaning. It is the Art of music — our ability to understand
‘and project into performance through our feelings and
imagination the intangible depth of music's emotive
powers — which acts as an explosive catalyst upon the
science of music. Without it, music is no more than an
unlit pile of firewood.
It is because the music of Bach can sound either so dry
‘and monotonous without a realization of the spirit behind
the notes, or so ludicrous and artificial without an under:
standing of contemporary style and performance practice,
that it offers a fascinatingly vivid opportunity to grasp the
principles of style and interpretation through an under-
standing of the Art and Science of music. Consequently 1
will begin my discussion of style and interpretation by con:
centrating upon the music of Bach with particular refer-
tence to the lute works which are of special relevance to the
guitar.
Bach and the European style
The influence upon Bach's music can often be clearly
traced to various national traditions prevalent during
Bach’s life-time and in the several generations preceding it
‘The dotted rhythms in the courante of the Ist Lute Suite,
the gigue in the 2nd Lute Suite, and the allemande in the
3rd Lute Suite, are characteristic of these dance move-
‘ments in the French style. In contrast, the gigwes in the 4th
and Ist Lute Suites are quite different. They consist of
running passages in semi-quavers with no evidence of dot
ted, angular rhythms, and are composed quite clearly in
the style of the Italian dance movements. Bach mixes these
styles quite freely: the Ist Lute Suite mixes the French style
(prelude, and courante), with the Italian style in the gigue,
as well as a German style in the allemande.
It is worth noting that although Bach was very aware of
these styles, he was always capable of investing these dance
‘movements with a counterpoint, developmental skill, and
expressiveness which transcended the original models.
However, he took for granted certain conventions of
notation and performance which with the passage of time
wwe could easily overlook or forget. In the French style dot
ted notes are held longer than in any other style, even
though they are rarely noted in this way. The faster the
movement of the music, the more dotted it becomes. Fur
thermore, even an innocent looking succession of even
quavers was often played in a lilting rhythm. In the French
style, music does not sound the way it looks. In example 2a
Thave written out the courante from the Lute Suite No.1 as
it was notated in the original manuscript. In example 2b 1
have written it out again approximately as it sounds.
But why did Bach and others not notate their rhythms
accurately? Firstly, Ex.2b shows it takes much longer to
write out and is not easy on the eye. Secondly, since all
practising musicians were aware of the conventions, this
type of musical shorthand was perfectly understandable.
In this respect it is rather like today’s jazz or rock music,
which is never written out exactly as it sounds for similar
reasons to the French Baroque. Recordings now ensure
that a performing tradition cannot be lost. Prior to
recordings we have to refer to witness accounts, compo-
sers’ own writing and to the implication of the music itself
to discover or rediscover certain performing traditions.
Bach and Phrasing
‘A glance at many pages of Bach’s music suggests rather
repetitive and square rhythmic patterns. Rhythmic shapes
and accents, however, are not only determined by the main
beats and bar-lines, but by musical phrases, which are
often not ruled by the bar-line at all, Look at example 3
from the presto to the Lute Suite No.1. An accent on the
first beat in each bar sounds repetitive, heavy and arti-
ficial, In example 3 1 have phrased the passage, and sugges-
ted light accents to shape and underline the phrasing.
Notice that this phrasing is suggested by the repeating
melodic and rhythmic pattern of the fugato theme which
does not start on the bar-line, and spreads across 6 bars.
Example 4 is an extract from the bourrée to the same Lute
Suite as the presto. Here again, repetitive rhythmic pat
terns could invite square accents. Example 4 shows the ex-
tract phrased according to the melodic sequence in the
apart, The intervallic shape in the first two phrases is
similar, so a light accent as indicated underlines the sym-
metry of the phrasing and gives rhythmic vitality. Example
5 shows the same arpeggio pattern three times in two bars.
‘A light accent on the notes indicated, shapes the phrases in
the same way as the examples above
In my next article I will continue to discuss aspects of
style and interpretation in relation to the music of Bach
and other composers.
Example 1a. and b. (see text of paragraph 2)
Diop
oo
ee
Example 2a, Extract from the courante to Bach’s Lute
Suite no. 1 BWV 996
¥
Example 2b. The same extract written out approximately
asiit sounds
Pe a ne
Sea ease
:
Example 3. Extract from the presto to Bach's Lute Suite
no. 1 BWV 996
Example $. Extract from the allemande to Bach’s Lute
Suiteno. 1 BWV 996
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Style and interpretation
Bach : The quality of sound
‘Two fundamental aspects characterise the quality of sound
in Bach's music: clarity and continuity. Clarity is of para~
‘mount importance in contrapuntal music. In clear contra-
puntal playing, the ear of the listener can and should be
drawn to different lines at the will of the player by nuance
and emphasis, and yet at the same time the listener should
be able to sit back and listen to the music as a whole. It is
rather like being able to enjoy the facade of a splendid
aroque cathedral in all its majestic splendour, and at the
same time being able to appreciate the extraordinary
ornamental detail which characterises its stonework. To
effect this clarity on the guitar with reference to contra-
puntal playing: generally avoid a continuous use of lush
sounds for extended periods of time. Lush sounds (i.e.
‘over the sound-hole) produce more overtones and sympa-
thetic vibrations from unstruck strings which merely
compound the problem of clear contrapuntal sound. This
is not to say that you should always avoid the sound-hole
in contrapuntal playing. Far from it. The danger is that
you can (for the sake of clarity) end up having a rather
hard, brittle sound from an area | - 2 inches to the edge of
the soundhole. A continual use of this sound is tiring on
the ear and produces a rather static and heavy impression.
A static impression is a long way from suggesting a struc-
tural sense in the sound of the instrument, which is so
essential in Bach's music. A structural sense in music is
suggested by a forward movement in the playing, and
consequently in the quality of sound. A forward move-
ment in the playing is encouraged by a light sound, closer
to the edge of the soundhole, so that phrasing and accents
are more easily articulated. If chis becomes the basic
sound, contrasts to it from either side of this area of string
are both advisable and essential.
‘The other basic feature of the quality of sound in Bach's
‘music, which I referred to in my opening sentence, is con-
tinuity. By this I mean that seamless quality which comes
over in the best Bach playing. Difficulties with smooth
fingering, constantly varied phrasing and rhythmic
patterns, and the characteristic differences of sound
between strings, all these factors are absorbed and sub-
jugated to an apparently effortless cont
‘Two other matters related to the quality of sound are
also of some significance. In slow movements like sara-
bandes a cantabile sound, often over the soundhole for
whole sections, is very desirable. These slow movements
are not often contrapuntal, and usually very expressive
‘The other matter concerns vibrato: a fast vibrato especially
in the higher positions sounds out of style and faintly
ridiculous. This is not surprising: vibrato was used very
sparingly, and was considered a decorative embellishment
For the Romantics, vibrato was an expressive device and a
‘means of enhancing the tone of the instrument. This
accounts for its sheer frequency in Romantic music, and
for the confusion of styles if it is employed in this manner
in Baroque music.
Bach and tempo
The tempo of certain movements is obvious: a movement
marked allegro is played allegro. Unfortunately, there are
rot many movements like this in Bach’s lute works. Most
movements are dance movements, with the exception of,
preludes and fugues. None of these movements has any
tempo indication, whether they be taken from the earliest
manuscripts in Bach's own hand or in somebody else's.
Furthermore, many of these dances changed in tempo dur-
ing the space of several generations. In any case, there are
no precise (metronomic) indications as to tempo, only des-
criptions. Sarabandes and courantes were both fast dances
in the beginning of the 17th century but had slowed down
within a hundred years. Thus Thomas Mace in his list of
dances (c.1676) described the sarabande as ‘‘more toyish
and light than corantoes””. By the time Quantz (¢.1752)
was describing the sarabande he was able to write “one
counts for each crotchet one beat of the pulse”. The