Michelangelo Rossi is one of those composers who have become known largely
through one composition. In this case it is the
Toccata VII, part
of the collection of toccatas and correntes which is the subject of this
disc. The reason for its popularity is the remarkable harmonic progressions
which are only fully conveyed if played on an instrument in meantone
temperament. The Dutch organist and harpsichordist Ton Koopman, who has
always been very interested in the connection between repertoire and
temperament, included this piece in his debut recording of 1973. It has been
recorded often since then as the use of other tunings than the modern equal
temperament has become quite common.
Rossi was born in Genoa and was educated in playing the violin and the
keyboard. As he was known as Michelangelo del Violino we may assume that
playing the violin was his main profession. It is likely that he received
his musical education in his birthplace but we don't know for sure
who his teachers were. Information about his life and career is scarce
anyway, and there are several gaps in his biography. It is known that he
spent three different periods of his life in Rome.
During the first period he probably composed his madrigals. He was a
member of the court of Cardinal Maurizio of Savoy; one of his colleagues was
the madrigal composer Sigismondo d'India who had a notable influence
on Rossi's style of composing. That also comes to the fore in his
keyboard works. These may have been written during Rossi's second
period in Rome, from 1630 to 1633. It is this part of his oeuvre which has
become best-known.
The collection includes ten toccatas and ten correnti. The toccatas are
the most remarkable part. They comprise several sections of contrasting
character. Sections in which the various voices quietly move forward are
alternated by sections with chromaticism and strong dissonances. The most
striking example is the abovementioned
Toccata VII. It is not quite
clear what drove Rossi to compose such a piece. Dissonances were part of
musical discourse at the time, and used to express
affetti. This
toccata is different from all the others in that it ends with a section
which is an extended sequence of chromatic figures and strongly dissonant
chords. It seems possible that it was a token of the harmonic
experimentation which was very much part of the
seconda
prattica.
Another feature of these toccatas is their capriciousness: one idea
follows the other without any clear connection. This shows the influence of
the madrigal, not only Rossi's own but also d'India's.
In his liner-notes Riccardo Castagnetti also refers to the madrigals of
Carlo Gesualdo da Venosa. "Rossi's frequent use of unexpected
harmonic turns, expressive chromaticism, dissonances with unusual
resolutions, and abrupt changes of texture, is an evident sign of
Gesualdo's influence on his musical language". The influence of
the madrigal is also reflected by the declamatory nature of various
passages.
The
correnti are much more conventional, as it were. That is
largely due to the fact that this is a clearly-structured dance with a fixed
form which allows the composer far less freedom than the improvisational
toccata.
These toccatas and correnti have no pedal part and can be played on any
keyboard instrument. Castagnetti decided to play some on a copy of a
harpsichord built in 1697 by Carlo Grimaldi and others on the organ by
Graziadio Antegnati of 1565 in the Basilica di Santa Barbara in Mantua. Two
pieces are played on both instruments to demonstrate the difference in
interpretation on different instruments. The programme follows strictly the
printed edition which means that we move constantly between different
acoustics: the spacious acoustic of the basilica and the rather dry acoustic
of the venue in Parma - not specified - where the harpsichord pieces have
been recorded. That is a little unfortunate; I would have preferred the
first half of the disc to have been devoted to the organ items and the
second to the harpsichord pieces or
vice versa. That way the ears
could have become accustomed to the acoustical circumstances. It is
certainly right to create a kind of intimacy in the harpsichord pieces, but
the miking was probably a bit too close.
Castagnetti is a fine interpreter and has done lovers of Italian
17th-century music a great service with what seems to be the first complete
recording of this set, on two different instruments of superior quality. I
like his interpretations, especially on the organ. In the harpsichord pieces
I found his playing sometimes a little awkward, for instance in the opening
of the
Toccata I. It is especially his articulation which is now
and then a shade too rigid, although that is partly due to the close miking.
However, this is a minor issue. In the end this is an impressive disc which
fully reveals the brilliance of Michelangelo Rossi.
Johan van Veen
www.musica-dei-donum.org
twitter.com/johanvanveen
