"Bach in Montecassino" is certainly an intriguing title for a
disc with organ music by Johann Sebastian Bach. Obviously his music is
played on many different organs - old and new - across the world. In most
cases there is no link between Bach and such organs, but here it is
different. There is no direct connection: Bach never left the central and
northern part of Germany. However, there is another, indirect link:
Bach's music was known in the convent of Montecassino thanks to the
visits of one of his greatest admirers and promotors, Friedrich Wilhelm
Rust.
Montecassino (or Monte Cassino) is a rocky hill about 130 kilometres
southeast of Rome. Here St. Benedict of Nursia established his first
monastery around 529. During its history it was destroyed several times and
then rebuilt. The last major rebuilding took place in the 14th century after
it had been destroyed once again, this time by an earthquake. In 1944 it was
again destroyed, when it was bombed by Allied forces. Some years before the
bombing many of its treasures had been transferred to a safer place.
In 1765/66 the above-mentioned Friedrich Wilhelm Rust visited Italy in the
retinue of Prince Leopold Friedrich Franz of Anhalt-Dessau. He was educated
as an organist, studied composition with Wilhelm Friedemann Bach and violin
with Franz Benda. From early in his career he was interested in
Bach's music; at the age of 16 he was able to play his
Well-tempered Clavier from memory. While visiting the Montecassino
monastery he played the organ and then left some manuscripts of
Bach's keyboard music there. Two years later the German architect
Christian Traugott Weinlig, brother of the composer Christian Ehregott
Weinlig, visited Montecassino and the monastery's organist played
music by Bach. It was Rust's grandson, Wilhelm, who was one of the
main editors of the first edition of Bach's oeuvre.
The pieces in the collection of Friedrich Wilhelm Rust are one of the two
sources for this recording. The second is the library of Padre Giovanni
Battista Martini (1706-1784), one of the most important theorists of his
time who stood in contact with numerous musicians and composers across
Europe. Among his pupils were Johann Christian Bach and Mozart. He had a
reputation for being rather conservative which came especially to the fore
in his preference for counterpoint. That must have been one of the reasons
that he admired the works of Bach. The booklet quotes a letter from 1750 in
which Martini states: "I will only say that I believe it would be
difficult to find a Master superior to him, as at the present time he can
rightly claim to be one of the very best in Europe". It would be
interesting to know how pieces like the
Musicalisches Opfer and the
Kunst der Fuge came to be part of his library. It is unlikely he
had direct contact with Bach, and one may assume it was through the wide
circle of Bach's students that he became acquainted with his
oeuvre.
Part of his collection was also the
Clavier-Übung III, extracts
from which are a major part of this disc. Luca Guglielmi selected pieces
which could have been played in Montecassino as they are not in conflict
with Catholic doctrines. The hymns are all in German, but in substance
identical with classical texts from the Mass: Kyrie - Christe - Kyrie,
Gloria and Credo. In addition we hear the Pater noster (
Vater unser im
Himmelreich) and the penitential psalm 129 (130), De profundis (
Aus
tiefer Not). Also included are the four duets which seem outsiders in
this collection, although several explanations for their inclusion have been
given. Some connect them to the appendix of Luther's Catechism, which
is the foundation of the
Clavier-Übung III. The
Fuga sopra il
Magnificat is based on the plainchant melody and therefore well suited
to a programme of music which could have been played in a Catholic
monastery.
We also hear several early versions of pieces which are quite familiar.
The
Preludio in C (BWV 870b) and the
Fuga in C (BWV 846,2)
have found their way into the second and first part of the
Well-tempered
Clavier respectively. The
Chromatic fantasy and fugue in d
minor is one of Bach's most famous keyboard works, always played
on the harpsichord. Guglielmi plays a version of the fantasy which has been
preserved in manuscript and is part of the collection of Rust's
brother Johann Ludwig Anton. The
Fantasia and fugue in a minor (BWV
904) is ranked among the harpsichord works in the catalogue of Bach's
works but, according to Guglielmi it "works even better when
transferred to the organ, for which it is more idiomatic".
This is Bach from a different angle than we are used to. Guglielmi
documents one neglected aspect of how Bach's music made its way in
the late 18th century. Bach was familiar with the music written in Italy and
in France but his music is generally thought to have been largely unknown
outside Germany until the 19th century. This disc shows things in a
different light.
It would have been very exciting to hear this programme on the organ of
Montecassino which Friedrich Wilhelm Rust has played. However, as we have
seen, the monastery was destroyed in 1944, and with it the organ. Guglielmi
plays the organ of the Chiesa di San Nicolao in Alice Castello. It was built
in 1749 by Michele Ramasco, extended by Giovanni and Giacinto Bruna in 1802
and restored in 1999/2000. As is the case with most Italian organs from
before the 19th century it has only one manual. It is divided into descant
and bass to which some stops are exclusively connected. This allows
contrasting registrations for the right and the left hand which is
especially important in chorale arrangements. The organ has a pull-down
pedalboard which means that it makes use of the stops connected to the
manual. Interestingly Guglielmi avoids the viola 4' and violoncello
16' in his registrations. It seems that these stops were absent from
German organs of Bach's time. That just shows that Guglielmi is an
intelligent player who is aware of what was common in Bach's time and
region and is willing to take the consequences. The only point of criticism
could be the change of registration in some pieces. In particular the
addition of stops in the closing section of
Aus tiefer Not is
something I find questionable. The
Chromatic fantasy is brilliantly
played, and its improvisatory features are perfectly conveyed. The
Magnificat-fugue and the
Duets are nicely articulated with
the latter's rather swift tempi are spot-on. The chorale arrangement
Wenn wir in höchsten Nöten sein receives a moving performance but
any sentimentality is rightly avoided.
This Italian organ is surprisingly well suited to Bach's music.
Guglielmi is a highly skilled and stylish interpreter, and this combination
of instrument and interpreter results in a splendid disc which no organ
aficionado should miss. I will certainly regularly return to it. I should
not forget to mention the useful and informative liner-notes by Guglielmi.
These are well translated into English and include details on organ
disposition and the registration of every single piece.
Johan van Veen
www.musica-dei-donum.org
twitter.com/johanvanveen
