© Michel Cardin
The London Manuscript
Solo Sonata 20 in D Major
(Smith-Crawford 26)
The complete and updated version of 'London unveiled' by Michel Cardin can be downloaded as pdf files: 'London unveiled'
The seven first movements of this sonata are unique to the London Manuscript. The eighth can be found in the Warsaw ms (two copies), in that of Buenos Aires, under the titles Bourée and boure, and also the Haslemere ms where it is titled Capricio Pichler . Could this last have been a composition by Pichler, whose name appears occasionally in other manuscripts of lute music, or was it possibly a dedicated work? Judging by the spirit and the writing style, it would seem to have been composed by Weiss. ''Power'', ''brilliance'' and, curiously enough ''delicateness in calm moments'' are attributes of D major, according to Mattheson. These descriptions are particularly apt in the case of this sonata which is best characterised as an exercise in unrestrained joy set in a context of strong thematic unity.
Only the Prelude (which has no title) is written in the hand of the composer. It appears to be the result of a spontaneous burst of inspiration, seemingly completely improvised. Weiss's autograph, by the way, is very eloquent, replete with long undulating lines; in short, a handwriting that is strong and passionately vital. It stands in marked contrast to the modest, functional calligraphy of his copyist, who penned the subsequent movements. In attempting to render justice to this improvisatory spirit, it is quite normal for the performer to make use of ample fluctuations of rhythm and accent. To do otherwise would seem to go against the intentions of the composer who deliberately omitted rhythmic indications for a large part of the score and to touch up in it some surprising modulatory junctions.
One hears in the Marche the peculiar sound of 'bass chimes' which occur in both sections. The sound of three bells, each with a different delivery can be heard as in the following example:
The trill indications are very precisely notated and one should, I think, scrupulously adhere to them. When listening to this music it is not hard to imagine a procession headed by Augustus the Strong in the gardens of his castle on the riverbanks of the Elbe at Dresden, with the stately progress accompanied by the resounding chimes of the neighbouring cathedral.
The Gavotte, described as a dance of 'small hops', does indeed jump in a lively fashion to the accompaniment of syncopated basses rebounding to cross-rhythms. This leaping effect is strongly accentuated near the end of the work if we engage the basses in a rhythmic displacement made by the ornamentation of the repetitions. Curiously, the tonic chord in root position has been avoided in the beginning portion of the piece. The maintenance of a full sound throughout the work, written in continuous three-voice texture, represents a significant challenge for the performer. The gavotte is not a quick piece and certain slurrings tend to prove that the tempo, in actual practice, was quite moderate. The subsequent Aria, a beautiful work subtitled adagio contains the kind of sublime moments often yearned for; a state of complete grace. The technique employed involves an harmonic progression appearing in both sections wherein the two upper voices slide tenderly in step-wise motion creating a musical ecstasy that is further enhanced through the addition of trills in the repeats. Other musical phrases present us with an exhilarating range of expression of symphonic grandeur. The harmonies used in at least three measures of the aria have been heard previously in the prelude. As observed in other movements, cadences are sometimes prolonged in the manner: V-VI, V-VI, V-I. This further aspect of thematic unity is certainly presented in the same spirit of dynamic play that was discussed with reference to the sonata no 18.
The Menuet uses accentuation in a manner similar to that of the gavotte. The music proceeds in units of two measures by two measures, the first of each pair being resolute - the other weak. The resulting music is particularly elegant, the lightness of the atmosphere leaving no hint of the dramatic sequence that will arise in the second section. Having established that the repetition of the first section was written, it remains to be explained that this is because of a repetition of the two last measures the second time through, a petite reprise indicated in advance, as it were. Nevertheless, a repeat marking is given at the double bar, an indication that could be deemed superfluous since this necessitates four presentations of the theme. The Musette, with its omnipresent pedal brings to mind a certain hybrid orchestral-bagpipe sound colour. The first attack, an idiomatic motif that will be repeated throughout, contains five simultaneous D's (distributed through three courses) that are supposed to sound like bugles. The piece would certainly seem undernourished were it not for these octave and unison doublings. It would be a good idea to intensify the bagpipe aspect by using double mordents and the Baroque chute effect. (See Appendix 2).The performance also involves an investigation of expression through the use of dynamic effects, in particular the markings f and p .
Exceptional in its construction, the Rondeau en Echo follows an A-B-A-C-A with indications of adagio and allegro for, respectively the B and C sections, with A being implicitly on the quick side as well. The echo is realised through the use of f and p markings. The melody is light and is obscured by a second, sudden, section - another example of studied contrast.
The eighth piece in this large sonata, entitled Comment Sçavez Vous? is a perfect finale number with an especially joyful ritornello. It has all the inflections of an angloise (the angloise in D of the sonata no 13 is quite similar) even though it is listed as a Bourrée in two other manuscripts, as noted previously. While the Warsaw versions are quite close to that of the London ms, the Haslemere variant is somewhat different, though nonetheless attractive. The Buenos Aires version, on the other hand, appears to have been quickly transcribed, possibly in a careless manner, or, equally plausibly, from memory. (There are some basses not indicated, for example.) With its charming whistling melody, this concluding movement is quite a delightful gem, not unlike Couperin’s Les baricades mistérieuses, which uses also an antecedent/consequent thematic construction. A small mystery is only elucidated when the piece is actually played. Whilst trying to account for the apparent absurdity of the title, I became aware that there was a hidden theme in the bass line - most particularly the melody of Frere Jacques ! (already present, noticeably, in the ‘bells section’ of the Marche). As an added bonus, the upper voice is evocative of the 'ringing morning bells'. This explains my decision to use this celebrated nursery melody to make a bridge before a full repeat, the logic of this choice being justified by the resultant similarity of the melodies. It is amusing to speculate that Weiss may have anticipated this discovery by his future listening audience who might well ask him "This tune, it reminds me of something, could it be Frere Jacques?" to which he might conceivably respond "Comment savez-vous?" (How do you know?).
Copyright © 1998-2006 Laurent
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