Trio for Baritone

Haydn began writing music for the baritone trio in 1765 . C 1761 Haydn worked for the house of Esterhazy , from 1762 with Prince Nicholas . Earlier, the prince played the viola da gamba , but in 1765 he bought a baritone ^[1] . In the same year, Haydn received an official reprimand from the prince for not fulfilling his official duties. In the appendix to the reprimand, it was stated that Haydn should spend more time writing plays for a new instrument of his highness:

And, finally, this bandmaster Haydn is urgently required to start composing works with a greater diligence than before, especially to write such compositions for performance on the gamba (that is, baritone), of which we have so far seen very little, and in order to make sure of the seven, he must send us without delay the first copy, carefully and cleanly written, of each such work ^[2] .

Haydn got down to business with energy, and soon his efforts received the approval of the prince. On January 4, 1766, Esterhazy wrote to his manager:

At the moment, I got three works by Hayden (sic!), Which I was very satisfied. You must, accordingly, pay to him on my behalf the twelve ducats from my treasury and tell him, at the same time, that he must write six more plays, similar to those sent to me, together with two solos delivered to me as soon as possible ^{[ 3]} .

Similar gratitude continued further ^[4] .

Over the next decade, Haydn wrote "almost 200" ^{[5] of} various ensembles with the participation of baritone. Most of them are for the trio. When Haydn finished 24 plays, "he richly intertwined them in leather and gold." The resulting volumes are dated 1766 , 1767 , 1768 , 1771 and 1778 ^[6] . The last volume was intertwined after the prince abandoned baritone classes in favor of another hobby, also with the participation of Haydn - staging operas in his palace. According to the baritone player John Hsu , the last trio dates from 1775 . ^[7]

Form

The trio was intended mainly for amateur performance. They are shorter and less ambitious than Haydn. In most cases, they are three-part ^[8] . The first part is usually at a slow pace, the next at a fast pace. The first part can also be at a fast pace ( sonata form ) or represent a set of variations ^[9] . The trio always has a minuet : either as the middle part, or as the finale ^[10] . Non-minuet finals are always at a fast pace.

The first and last part is usually in the main key, the middle in the close. ^[11] . Only two trios are written in minor ^[12] .

Three Tool Roles

Xu suggests that the prince himself played the baritone during the trio, the part of the viola was Haydn, and any court cellist played the cello part ^[7] . Trios are usually written so that the baritone belongs to the performance of the melody . writes that the trio “are not chamber music in the usual sense of the word, but a solo with accompaniment. Prince Nikolai was not a democrat and was not going to share his merits with professional musicians who helped him. ” However, Strank notes that in many parts "the three parties are almost equally interesting." ^[13]

None of the three instruments fall into the soprano range, which gives the trio a dark timbre , unusual for chamber music. Sedi and Pamplin note that “the texture of the trio for baritone - baritone, viola and cello - was created specifically for Prince Nicholas, and, born of pure necessity, was brilliant. The “bowed” baritone strings blend well with viola and cello, while the “stringed” strings give a contrasting timbre. The overtones of a large number of baritone strings compensate for the lack of an instrument of high order ... The general effect puzzles the listener, since individual instruments are sometimes difficult to distinguish ” ^[14] . This interweaving of voices leads to another observation by Strank: Haydn often writes for a lower cello higher than for a baritone, or for a higher viola - lower.

Style Evolution

Jones observes that the trio's style has changed over time. This is partly explained by the increase in the skill of the prince, for whom at first baritone was a new instrument. In the early trios, the main key was A Major - the simplest key for playing an instrument; later works are written in more keys ^[15] . By the third volume, the prince was able to play with a bow and a pinch at the same time (the skill necessary for trios No. 60 and No. 66) and quickly switch between these ways of playing (for example, No. 69) ^[16] .

The time of writing the trio (1765-1775) was an important period in the evolution of Haydn’s style, the period of Sturm und Drang , which included works such as The Farewell Symphony and piano sonata in C minor in 1772 . At the same time, Haydn worked intensively on a series of string quartets (opp. 9, 17 and ), which established him as the founder and master of the genre. The trio for baritone, although smaller in scale, reflect the stylistic evolution of a given period, increasing over time in sophistication and complexity.

Musical borrowing

Trios sometimes borrow material from earlier works, usually Haydn himself.

• The first part of Trio No. 5 is based on the aria "Che farò senza Euridice," from the opera by Gluck Orpheus and Eurydice ^[17]
• The first part of Trio No. 29 is based on the first aria “Ce visino delicato” from the opera Haydn ^[17]
• The first part of Trio No. 37 is a transcription of the clavier sonata H. XVI: 3 Haydn ^[18]
• Trio No. 52 borrows the minuet alla zoppa from . The key is transposed up to a third ^[19]
• Trio No. 64 uses the Easter Gregorian choral , the same as in the early ^[19]
• Trio No. 102 uses material from the early clavier trio H. XV: 2 in F Major ^[20]
• Trio No. 110 uses material from the early divertissement in C Major for clavier, two violins and cello H. XIV: 8 ^[20]

Material from the trio also appears in Haydn's later works:

• The theme of variations from Trio No. 38 in a different way appears in Variations for clavier four hands “Il maestro e lo scolare” H. XVIIa: I. ^[21] .

gives a relatively negative assessment of the works: “[they] could have been written by an autopilot, sometimes capable of a creative computer error” ^[22] . Commenting on Prince Esterhazy’s order to compose a trio for baritone, Jones says: “Very few people played baritone, and this order of the prince can be considered as one of the most striking cases of indulging your desires in the history of musical protection” ^[23] . Other Haydn’s researchers are more positive: while noting the limited scope and inspiration of the works, they acknowledge Haydn’s composing skills. For example, writes: “the trio for baritone ... are carefully crafted works that are as rewarding in their kind as the simple expressionism of the Sturm und Drang movement” ^[24] ; : “There are several excellent examples in this collection that prove that Haydn tried to do the best, although he did not expect them to be performed outside his prince’s court” ^[25] ; Lucy Robinson: “Despite the limitations of composition, Haydn’s genius is evident in the kaleidoscopic spectrum of melodic and textual ideas and the witty interaction of instruments” ^[26] .

John Xu wrote (1986): “Intimacy is felt in the trio. This is the most private chamber music, written specifically in response to the wishes of one person. It is easy to imagine the satisfaction and inspiration that the prince received during the performance of these trios. ”

• Gartrell, Carol (2003) Towards an inventory of antique barytons. Galpin Society Journal 56: 116-131.
• Geiringer, Karl (1982) Haydn: A creative life in music . Berkeley: University of California Press.
• Hsu, John (1986) Recording program for the baritone player and professor at Cornell University , performed by trio No. 97, 111 87, and 101 with viola player David Miller and cellist Fortunato Arico. ASV Label (GAU 104, 1986).
• Jones, David Wyn (2009) Baryton music. In David Wyn Jones, ed., Oxford composer companions: Haydn , pp. 14-17. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Pamplin, Terence (2000) The influence of the bandora on the origin of the baroque baryton. The Galpin Society Journal 53: 221-232.
• Lucy Robinson's evaluation appeared in The Musical Times (1981), p. 540. (available on JSTOR )
• Sadie, Julie Anne and Terence M. Pamplin "Baryton", at Oxford Music Online .
• Sisman, Elaine (1993) Haydn and the classical variation . Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
• Strunk, Oliver (1932) Haydn's divertimenti for baryton, viola, and bass (after manuscripts in the Library of Congress). The Musical Quarterly 18: 216–251.
• Webster, James (1976) Violoncello and double bass in the chamber music of Haydn and his Viennese contemporaries. Journal of the American Musicological Society 29: 413-438.
• Webster, James (2003) The New Grove: Haydn . Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Webster, James (2005) Haydn's Aesthetics. In Caryl Clark, ed. Cambridge Companions to Music . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.