Leonard Bernstein: Candide (1989 Scottish Opera … · Candide (1989 Scottish Opera Edition) ......

LeonardBernstein:Candide(1989ScottishOperaEdition)StudyScore.Boosey&HawkesHPS1180LeonardBernsteinworkedonthescoresofCandideandWestSideStorysimultaneously,settingthelatterasidetocompletetheformer,whichopenedonBroadwayin1956.Fromthatpointonthehistoryofthemusical(oroperetta,ifyouprefer)wasoneofendlesstweakingandrevision.Themusic,everyoneseemedtoconcede,wasaworkofgenius;thebookseemedintractable.Itwasn’tuntil1989thatBernsteinknockedthepieceintoitsfinalshape,recordingitforDeutscheGrammophonintheprocess.Thosearetheperformancespreservedinthisstudyscore,whichatonly$100forahandsome,clothboundvolumeisaprettygooddeal.Indeed,Boosey&HawkesisalsoofferingWestSideStoryforthesameprice,andanyonewhocaresabouttwoofthe20thcentury’sgreatestworksforthemusicaltheaterwillwantboth.ThescoreofCandideasprintedherehasbeenarrangedforamorestandardsymphonicorchestra,atleastascomparedtothatforWestSideStory,whichfeatureslimitedstrings,lotsofpercussion,anda“reed”sectionwithmultipledoublingofparts.ThatmakesCandidesuitablenotjustforoperahouseortheaterproductions,butalsoforthesortofhighlyenjoyableconcertperformancesthatweseeinBernstein’svideoofthecompletework‐‐withastellarcastincludingJerryHadley,JuneAnderson,AdolfGreen,ChristaLudwig,NicolaiGedda,andtheLondonSymphonyOrchestra.Thereweresomelossesinarrivingatthisdefinitiveversionofthepiece,includingsomeparticularlytartlyricsintheAuto‐da‐féscene,butonthewholetheworkremainsamiracleofmelodicappeal,wit,andsupremecraftsmanship.Inperusingthescore,however,onepassagestandsoutasparticularlyfascinatingforthelightthatitshedsonamajormusicalcontroversy:theextenttowhichpitchvibratowasusedinorchestralstringsectionsinearliertimes.Nowyoumaywellwonderwhatascorethatachieveditsfinalformonlyin1989hastosayaboutthisissue,buttheansweris,“Quitealot.”Vibratogivesinstrumentalmusicthatvocal,expressivequalitythatcomposershaveexpected,andassumedtobepresentwhethernotatedornot,essentiallysincethedawnofcivilization.Today’sschoolof“authentic”performancepracticeclaimsthatitwasnotusedinformerperiods,definingthese(accordingtohowdelusionalthetheory)asanywherefromtheearly18thcenturyrightthroughtheSecondWorldWar.Thereasonthesetheoriesareproliferatingissimple:musicianswhoclaimtobeexpertsinperiodperformancepracticeneedtomaketheirmusicsounddifferentfromtraditionalnorms,andwithholdingvibratooffersaconvenientwaytoaccomplishjustthat,albeitatthemusic’sexpense.Thereisnoevidencefromanyhistoricalsourcestosupportthenotionthatvibratowasnotusedinorchestralmusic.Indeed,allofthemostreputablesourcessayjusttheopposite(iftheysayanythingatallaboutit),butthatdoesn’tseemtomattertothoseconvincedthat

whatwasdoneinformertimesmustnecessarilybedifferentfromwhatwedotoday.AnditispreciselythispointthatBernstein’sCandideshowstobetotalnonsense.Considerthepassagebelow,fromCandide’ssong“ItMustBeSo.”Thewordsread,“Myworldisdustnow,andallIlovedisdead,”andtheaccompanyingstringsareallmarkedsemprevibrato(alwaysvibrato).

Thisisvaluableevidenceforthesimplereasonthatin1989,itisindisputableanduncontroversialthatalltraditionallytrainedstringplayersusewhatismistakenlycalled“continuousvibrato.”Thismeansthatvaryinglevelsofvibratowillbeemployedwherevertechnicallyfeasibleandemotionallyjustified.Infact,therearemanydifferentkindsofvibrato:slow,fast,wide,andnarrow,invariouscombinations.Stringplayerssensitivetothecomposer’snotationandtheexpressiveintensityofthemusicapplytheappropriatetypeinstinctively,andlikelytheyalwayshave.Evenso,vibratoisrarelycontinuousbecauseinquickmusic,orwhennotevaluesareveryshort,thereeitherisn’ttimeforit,oritwouldn’tbenoticeableinanycase.Bernstein’scallingforithere,whenhereallydoesn’tneedtospecifyitatallbecauseplayerswouldnaturallyuseitanyway,tellsussomethingcriticallyimportantaboutorchestralvibrato:namely,thatitspresenceasanatural,baselineexpressivetimbredoesnotprecludeitsbeingcalledforasaspecialeffect.Infact,inorchestralmusictheonlywayvibratocanbeuseddistinctlyisifthecomposerspecificallyasksalloftheplayerstouseaveryprominenttypeatthesametime.Thatiswhathappensintheabovepassage,anditexplainswhyBernsteincallsforsomethingthateveryonenormallywouldbedoinganyway:hewantstheplayerstoexaggerate.Soifitistruein1989thatacontinuousvibratotimbredoesn’tprecludecomposersaskingformoreofit,wasthisalsotruein1889,or1789?Infact,itprobablywas.Throughouthistory,theevidenceisindisputablethatcomposershaveaskedorchestralstringplayerstouseadditionalvibrato,particularlyinthoseareaswherecontemporarytreatisesunanimouslyrecommendit:onsustainednotes,orin

passionatepassages.Indeed,violinvirtuosoandfamedpedagogueFrancescoGeminianidescribedBernstein’suseofvibratoexactlyinhis1751treatiseTheArtofPlayingontheViolin,notingthatby“makingitshorter,lowerandsofter,itmaydenoteaffliction,fear,etc.”ThisisthespecifictypeofvibratothatBernsteinrequiresintheabovepassage,andwefinditusedconsistentlyinthismannerfromGeminiani’stimerightthroughtoBernstein’s.Butseeingisbelieving.Strauss(DerRosenkavalier(1911)DoverEdition)

Here’sapieceofmusicthatnotonlyrevealstheexactsamehandlingofadditionalvibratothatwefindinCandide,itcomesfromascorethatBernsteinknewextremelywell.HeconductedDerRosenkavalierinVienna,andrecordeditquitesplendidly(forSony).ThisisthemomentwheretheMarschallin,knowingthatherloverOctavianwillsoonleaveherforayoungerwoman,givesventtohersadnessandlongingandtellshimtogoawaywiththewords,“Nowbegood,anddoasIsay.”Rossini(LaDonnadelLago(1819)CriticalEdition)

Inthisexample,fromRossini’sLaDonnadelLago,composedsome170yearsbeforeCandideachieveditsfinalformandacenturypriortoDerRosenkavalier,onceagainweseesustainedstringchordsmarkedtobeplayedwithvibrato.Thetextcertainlyexpresses“afflictionandfear.”Thethreecharactersinvolved(vocalpartsomittedtosavespace)havejustexclaimed,“Oh,howunhappyIam!”“Whatafatefulmoment!”and“Nowmycrueldoubtiscertain.”Untilthe20thcentury,normalpitchvibratoonstringedinstrumentswasoften(butnotalways)called“tremolo,”asforexampleinLudwigSpohr’s1835ViolinSchool,wherehesays:“Inoldcompositionsthetremoloisindicatedby[arowof]dots(…..),orbythewordtremolo:innewcompositionsitisgenerallylefttotheperformer.”Ofcourse,inorchestralmusic,ifthecomposerwantslistenerstonoticethepresenceofextravibratoatallitcannotbelefttotheindividualperformer,howevermuchheorshemayuseitanyway,andmustbespecifiedentiresectionsatatime.ThatisexactlywhatRossinidoeshere,justasStraussandBernsteindid.Nowjumpbackanotherninetyyearsorso,tothehighBaroqueperiod,whencomposerssuchasBach,Handel,andVivaldiwereintheirprimes.ThemostfamousGermancomposerofItalianoperawasJohannAdolphHasse,whopresidedoverthegoldenageoforchestralperformanceattheDresdencourt.Hasse,likeRossini,frequentlynotatedvibratoinhisorchestralmusic,oftenusingoneofthemorecommonvibratosymbols: .However,inthecasebelowheemploystheidenticalmethodchosenbyBernstein,Strauss,andRossini.Overthesametextureofsustainedstringchordsthatwehavejustseenrepeatedly,andatextthatexpressestheheroine’slongingforherloverandincludessuchexclamationsas:“Everythingishorror,everythingispain,Icannolongerwithstandsuchtroubles,etc,”wefindthefollowingvibrato/tremoloindication:Hasse:(Cleofide(1731),CarusVerlagCriticalEdition,ActII)

Asyoucanplainlysee,similaremotionalcircumstancescallforthexactlythesamenotation,whichwouldproduceexactlythesameresponsefromtheplayers.Thisdoesn’tprovetheexistenceofacertainbaselinelevelofexpressivetimbreinorchestralmusichundredsofyearsold,buttheidentityofpracticeovermorethan

twoandhalfcenturies,culminatingintheexampleofCandide,isverysuggestive.Foriftherequesttouseensemblevibratoasaspecialeffectinheightenedemotionalcircumstancesisperfectlyconsistentwithorchestralplayersalsousingitatwillin1989,thenwhyshoulditbeanydifferentin1789?Wehavenoevidencethatshowsthatitwas—notashred.Therearesomesourcesthatnote(indeedcomplainabout)thefactthatorchestralplayersactuallyusedvibratointhe18thand19thcenturies,butnonethatcelebrateitsabsence.Norshouldweassumeforoneminutethattheuseofvibratoatanyoftheperiodscoveredbytheseexampleswaslimitedexclusivelytoaccompanimentsituationsinwhichinstrumentsarecalledontogiveemotionalweighttothefeelingsexpressedbyasungtext.Vibratotechniquesexistbecauseallinstruments,asWolfgangAmadeusMozartpointedout,attempttoimitatetheexpressivetimbreofthehumanvoice,andallvoiceshaveanaturallevelofpitchvariationthatincreasesintandemwithvolume,intensity,andpassion.Thisisascientificandaestheticfact.Inotherwords,vibratomostcommonlyoccursasanenhancementtotheprincipalmelodicline,beingdisplayedmostprominentlybywhatevervoiceorinstrumenthasthetune.Thefactthatwedofindvibratosofrequentlyelsewhereisatestamenttojusthowubiquitousitmusthavebeenthroughoutmuchofourmodernmusicalhistory(meaningfromroughlythe17thcenturyon).Itsusewasnotwithoutcontroversyandagooddealofmisunderstanding,notleastbecausescientificstudieshaveshownthatsomepeoplearefarmoresensitivetominutepitchvariationsthanothers,andsomeofthosemostbotheredwereinapositiontoexpresstheirgrievancesinwriting.Butthisdoesn’tmeanthattherestofmusicalhumanitywasn’tperfectlyhappywithahealthydoseofvibratomuchofthetime,particularlyintheinstrumentsthatplayedthemaintheme.Intheorchestraasoftenasnot,thatmeansthestrings‐‐andtheviolinsespecially.Consider,forexample,AlfredoCasella’s1909orchestralrhapsodyItalia,theopeningofwhichismarked“Lento,grave,tragico.Conmoltafantasia,”withallofthestringsurgedtoplay“appassionatissimovibrato.”Here,onceagain,wefindGeminiani’s“fearandaffliction”albeitofamoreabstractvariety.Still,theemotionsbeingexpressedcouldn’tbeclearer.

Finally,tocompletethestorybegunbyCandide,wedoinfacthavecompellingevidencefromthemid18thcenturyshowing,justaswesawinBernstein’swork,thatcomposerswerewellawareofthefactthatcontinuousvibratotexturesdonotprecludeusingevenmoreforexpressiveemphasis.Boccherini(StringQuintetOp.10No.2(1771),CriticalEditioned.Carmirelli)

Herewefindtwodifferenttypesofvibratonotation:ageneralespressivothatappliestotheentiremovementandconsequentlytoalloftheparts,andaspecificaccentintheformofthewavylinetoemphasizethemelodyinthefirstviolin.Again,thereisnosubstantivedifferencebetweenBoccherini’srequirementshereandtheexamplefromCandide,orindeedanypieceofmusicwhereadditionalvibratoisspecifiedbeyondwhatevertheplayersnormallywoulddo.Sothestoryhereisoneofcontinuityovertime,preciselytheoppositeofwhattoday’sschoolofauthenticitypreaches.Supersedinganyrecentlyconcoctedtheoretical“rules”ofperiodstyle,whattrulygovernstheuseofvibratoistheemotionalcontentofthemusic,andnotpedagogicaltreatisesorsometrendyintellectualappealtotheZeitgeistofanera.Thisdoesnotmeanthatnotationalhabitshaven’tchanged,orthatdifferentmusicalstylesdonotrequiredifferentapplicationsofcertainstandardtechniques.Vibrato,however,alwayshasbeendefinedasameansofenhancingthemusicalexpressionofhumanfeeling,andsolongasthisremainsthecomposer’sintentionthenperformersnaturallywillusevibratoinmuchthesameway.

Theseexamplesservetoillustrateanotherveryimportantpointaboutjusthowunmusicalandstylisticallymaladroitmuchofthehistoricallyinformedperformancemovementreallyis.Whenconfrontedwiththeaboveexamples,followersofthenewparadigmwillsay(andhavesaid,often,andinprint),“Wellyes,thatmaymeanvibrato,butit’snotthesameasmoderncontinuousvibrato.”Thisargumentisspecious.Theproblemwithsomanyoftoday’shistoricalperformancesisnotthattheyusevibratolessthancontinuously;there’sabsolutelynothingwrongwiththatsincevibratoisseldomcontinuousinthefirstplace,andsmallvariationsingrossquantityhardlymatter.Noindeed,therealissueisthathistoricallyinformedperformancesoftendon’tapplyvibratocorrectlyinpreciselythosecircumstanceswhereeverysingleauthoritythathaseveropinedonthesubjectagreesthatitabsolutelymustbeused:inexpressiveprincipalmelodies,lyricalpassagesinslowmovements,passionateepisodes,oronsustainednotessuchasoccurintheBernstein,Strauss,Rossini,andHasseextractsjustcited.Thus,Spohrcounsels:“Inplaceswherethetremoloisusedbythesinger,itmayalsoadvantageouslybeappliedtotheViolin.Thistremoloisthereforeproperlyusedinpassionatepassages,andinstronglymarkingallthefzor>tones.”LeopoldMozartsomeeightyyearspreviouslyobservedthat,“aclosingnoteoranyothersustainednotemaybedecoratedwithatremolo.”Soiftheuseofvibratoinearliertimeswasnot“continuous”inthemodernsense,itcertainlywasnotablypresent.Inpracticalterms,thismeansusingitfrequentlyenoughtomakeasubstantivedifferenceinthewayaparticularpassagefeelstothelistener.Otherwise,whatwouldbethepointinusingitatall?Ontheotherhand,omittingvibratooftenistheonlywayformodernplayerstoachieveanobviouslydifferent,“authentic”sound,evenifthisnaturallyresultsintheirignoringthebasicnotation,nottomentiontheemotionalcontentofthemusicitself.Unsurprisinglythistrendproducesinterpretationseitherexpressivelyneuteredandheartless,orperverselyunbalanced,astheartistsattempttocompensateforthelackoftimbralintensitybywreakinghavocwithtempo,dynamics,phrasing,andaccent.Ultimately,anyclaimthatorchestralmusiciansinearlierperiodsavoidedvibratointheirplayingdependsonaseriesofassumptionsthatareillogicalwheretheyaren’tsimplyridiculous.Amongthemistheideathatthemembersofstringsectionswereeitherunawareoftheexpressivepotentialofensemblevibrato,alacunainstantlyremediedafterabouttensecondsofrehearsal,orthattheyfounditdistasteful.Theexamplesjustciteddemonstratethatcomposers(andthusplayers)notonlywerefullycognizantofvibrato’susefulness,theyspecificallyprescribedmoreofit.Abroadersurveyofthescoresrevealsthattheydidsoquiteoften.BearinmindthatthisdiscussionofCandideonlyconcernsoneverynarrowlydefinedinstancewherevibratoisrequired.Therearedozensofothers,eachwhollytypical,accompaniedbyanequallylargenumberofnotationalconventions‐‐fromsymbols,toaccents,toverbaldirections—allcallingforvibratoinadditiontowhateverexpressiveemphasistheplayersthemselvesbringtothemusic.

Evenasupposedlyconservativesourceregardingtheuseofvibratoinsoloplaying,theJoachim/MoserViolinschuleof1905,singsitspraisesinensembles.“Vibratoappearsremarkablymysteriousandromanticwhenitisemployedsimultaneouslybymanyinstruments,particularlyinchords,”saytheauthors,goingontonotethat,“Vibratoalsoplayedarolein18thcenturyorchestralmusic.”Inshort,orchestralplayershadnocausetofearit,noreasontoavoidit,andeveryincentivetoapplyitwithgustoinappropriatecircumstances.Asaquestionoftaste,thesheerquantityofvibratomusthavebeen,asitremainstoday,apersonalchoiceforeachmusician,butintermsofperformancepracticeandbasictechniquevibrato’spresenceintheorchestrasafelycanbeassumedfromasearlyatimeaswecaretoimagine.Today’smusicologyencouragesthecreationofmicro‐specializations,bothinscholarshipandinperformance,resultingintheneedtoengineerextremedifferencesbetweenperiods,places,stylisticconventions,andthenexaggeratingtheirimportance.Inreality,twoorthreehundredyearsisn’taverylongtimeinhumanhistory;thatwearestillplayingandenjoyingmusiccomposedincenturiespastmeansthatneitheritsnotationnoritsexpressivemeaningisincomprehensibletous.Thefactthattherepresentationofemotionthroughmusichasremainedconsistentsincetimeimmemorialevisceratesanytheoryofwidelyfluctuatinglevelsoforchestralvibrato‐‐fromzeroagesago,toonehundredpercenttoday.ItissingularlysatisfyingthatalightheartedmusicalcomedybyLeonardBernsteinholdsoneofthekeysthatunlocksthisparticulartruth,andexposesthisparticularsham.Hesurelywouldhavebeenamused.DavidHurwitzJanuary,2010