Elements of Virtuosity Version II

Balint Karosi
MMA Seminar III
March 3, 2014

The concept of virtuosity in music has changed radically in the past four hundred years.
In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, theorists used the term virtuoso to describe
artists with superior practical and theoretical skills, which included improvisation,
performance, composition and theory. Our modern term usually refers to extreme
instrumental dexterity and speed, and often has a pejorative connotation when used as an
antonym for musical expression and depth. In the past three hundred years, musical
language evolved through the natural processes of diminution techniques,
ornamentation, and improvisation. Correspondence between vocal and instrumental
music resulted in heightened technical challenges and increased demands on instrumental
and vocal virtuosity. Concurrently, virtuosity has become associated with a heightened
sense of individuality in musical performance, as evidenced by the emergence of such
virtuoso performer-composers as Johann Sebastian Bach and Franz Liszt.

The Baroque concerto developed shortly after the virtuosic Italian opera bewildered
audiences across Europe in the late seventeenth century. Composers in both genres
focused on writing individual lines with fast moving passages that would win honor and
acclaim to the performer. Writers on music have two contrasting definitions for the
etymology of the word concerto. Some suggest that it comes from conserere, to consort
and others emphasize the word concertare to compete. 1 Also, in the classical and
medieval usage concerare has a second meaning: to act together or to to work hard

Michael Praetorius: Syntagma Musicum. (Wolfenbttel, 1619)

together for a common purpose.2 Johann Mattheson defines the concerto both as
competition and sounding together. 3

Concertos, broadly speaking are musical gatherings or collegia musica [i.e., what
we today call concerts] but in a strict manner of speaking this word often taken
to mean chamber music for both voices and instruments, and more strictly still,
pieces for strings, composed in such way that each part in turn comes into
prominence and vies as it were, with the other parts.

Both understandings of the word concerto were in play in vocal and instrumental music
from the first half of the eighteenth century. In a subsequent discussion of the vocal
concerto, Mattheson describes it with the notion of competing. There are examples of the
second definition in concertos by Albinoni, where the first violin is designated with
violino primo instead of violino de concerto, whereas the violin of the ensemble is designated
with violino de concerto (violin of the ensemble).4

Michael Marissen discusses J. S. Bachs six Brandenburg Concertos in view of these

contrasting definitions, concluding that Bachs six concerti are different versions of the
form, his opulent re-interpretations of the concerto genre. The first, the second and the
sixth concerti emphasize the consort definition of the concerto. The fifth, however,
especially the first movement, is more in line with the definition to compete. The genre
most commonly associated with the first movement of the fifth is the Italian concerto

See the summary in Hutchings, The Baroque Concerto p. 23-29; see also David Boyden When
Is a Concerto Not a Good concerto? Musical Quarterly 43 (1957) 220-223.
3
See Matthesons Das Neu-erffnete Orchester (Hamburg, 1713) p. 173-174; translated in
Michael Talbot, Vivaldi rev. ed (New York: Schirmer, 1993) p. 107.
4
Marissen, Michael: Social and Religious Designs of J. S. Bach's Brandenburg Concertos
(Princeton University Press, 1995) p. 100.

grosso, featuring the flute, violin and the harpsichord as the solo instruments. I will
demonstrate that the flute, violin, and harpsichord compete for individualistic dominance
over musical form, in addition to their competition with the ensemble as a whole.

In her article The Blasphemy of Talking Politics During Bach Year, Susan McClary
discusses the cultural and social significance of the surprising harpsichord cadenza in the
first movement of the fifth concerto.5 The prominent harpsichord part places the
harpsichord outside of its collaborative and accompanying role typically associated with
this instrument in concerto grosso models by Vivaldi, instead emphasizing its individual
character with the aid of virtuosic passagework. In McClarys interpretation, such
dramatic contrast between soloist and ensemble enacts the rise of the Bourgeoisie against
the oppressing forces of church and aristocracy, and also more directly represents Bachs
frustration with his current status as a conservative composer. I do not agree with
McClarys tendency of overemphasizing metaphors in this, or any other musical forms,
but she is right to point out a heightened sense of egocentrism in the harpsichord part.
She views this as a musical equivalent of social trends: the seventeenth century saw the
emergence of solo genres (sonata, cantata, opera) that celebrate individuality, virtuosity,
dissonance and extravagant dynamic motion.6 McClarys idea of individualism expressed
in music is evident in the emotional trajectory of the harpsichord part, associated
particularly with a descending harmonic and figural motion.7

The orchestra opens with a ritornello with an arpeggiated major triad, played by the
ripieno instruments in unison, followed by a descending scale. The opening motto thus

McClary, Suzan: The Blasphemy of Talking Politics During Bach Year. (Music and Society,
Cambridge University Press, p. 13, Cambridge, UK, 1985)

ibid. p. 23
ibid. p. 26

introduces two principal motivic elements of the piece: the ascending triad confined to
the orchestra, and the descending scale that is picked up in an augmented form in the
harpsichord. The opening arpeggiation with repeated sixteenth notes establish D Major
and the movements Italianate rhythm. Bach introduces the harpsichord as a solo
instrument in M 9 with its characteristic figure, a veritable leitmotiv that is assigned this
instrument throughout the movement. The figure is a descending scale fragment in a
violinistic, arpeggiated wedge:

In measures 15 and 19, the wedge, embellishes a +4/-5 sequence, a descending harmonic
motion that associate the harpsichord with the movement of falling.

Eric Chafe has explored the theological motives behind the concept of ascent and descent
in Bachs cantatas.8 He identifies these two motions as central to Bachs concepts in tonal
design, associated with Biblical and eschatological allegories. Chafes theological
metaphors are outside of the scope of this paper; however, we can observe the
omnipresence of ascending and descending motions in Bachs highly individualized
writing for the harpsichord. The opening wedge with the +4/-5 sequence outlines a
falling shape, whereas the orchestra is associated with ascending triads and harmonic
stability. The flute and the violin do not have a clear association with any particular
figures. Between M 17 and M 19, for example, the descending harpsichord shape is
counter-balanced by the cheerful, ascending triplet motions of the flute and violin.

Chafe, Eric: Analyzing Bach Cantatas (Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK 1998).

This section is followed by a succession of sequences alternating between the orchestral

ritornelli and solo tropes, in which the soloists, particularly the harpsichord, gradually
attain dominance over the orchestral ensemble. As the soloistic sections become longer
and orchestral ritornelli become shorter, there is a sense that the orchestra is progressively
losing momentum, yielding to the growing intensity of the soloists tropes. In M31, for
example, the orchestra plays only a portion of the ritornello. Concurrently, the solo tropes
increase in length: the first two are ten measures; while in M44-60 they take as long as
sixteen measures. Thus the solo instruments increasingly dominating the texture; in
M48-51, the harpsichord plays thirty-second note tirati that successfully draw the ears to
hear this quiet instrument.

Bach begins to prepare us for an explosion of virtuosity yet to come by relaxing the
harmonic rhythm and reducing the level of figuration. To these ears, the haunting
pianissimo section in M 62-71 is one of the most memorable musical moments of the
piece; the upward-reaching hesitant motions of the flute and the violin, and fixed
arpeggiated harmony in the harpsichord suspend the listeners perception of time.
Harmony and rhythm converge in a suspended timeless float; they flicker without a clear

goal as the harpsichord gradually begins to dominate the texture. The sound of this
passage will be evoked in a dominant-extending passage of the harpsichord cadenza
between M 207-212. The section between M 62-71 lingers between two remote key
areas, B and F# minor. Starting in M 84, the left hand of the harpsichord initiates a
stepwise descent, finally reaching a pedal point the dominant of the dominant. This
tonicization of E prepares a powerful orchestral entrance on the dominant in M 105. The
following section between M 105-157 is an inexact repeat of the opening: ritornelli
alternate with solo passages and recycle similar musical material from the first half of the
piece. Falling motives are omnipresent on the surface level (such as the wedge and the
tirati) and on the structural level (such as the +4/-5 sequence) of all soloistic sections.

The next structural unit between M 142-156 leads up to the harpsichord cadenza. Here
Bach uses virtuosic passagework to elevate the harpsichord above the other three solo
instruments: the harpsichords brilliant passagework literally outcompetes the violin and
the flute. We see again and again ascending and descending figures highlighted as in the
dramatic scalar figures in M 142-150 and descending +4/-5 sequences as their
underlying harmonic skeletons. Outdone by the lackey of the group,9 the flute and violin
peter out, making way for the full individualism of the harpsichord to come to the fore.
The cadenza opens with the wedge figure (M 157-166) and goes through a series of
descending figurations constructed out of the opposition of ascending and descending
motions. The wedge figure outlines a downward shape in a steady, sixteen-note rhythmic
context over the descending +4/-5 sequence between M 156-185. The following section
uses minimalistic arpeggiations over a scalar descent in the left hand in M 185-190. This
is followed by extremely fast tirati in thirty-second notes, resulting in a climactic

McClary, Suzan: The Blasphemy of Talking Politics During Bach Year. (Music and Society,
Cambridge University Press, p. 13, Cambridge, UK, 1985) p. 27.

chromatic descent and arrival on the dominant in M 203. The dominant here is extended
for an astonishing length of fifteen measures, with an evaded cadence in M 217. This
section gradually transitions back to a normalized sixteen-note pulse. The wedge figure
and the +5/-4 sequence prepare the awaited entrance of the final ritornello in M 212.

Virtuosic passagework in the fifth Brandenburg concerto is essential for the dramatic
juxtaposition of ascent and descent. Brilliant figuration leads the harpsichord to an
increasingly dominating structural importance, which thus transcends its accompaniment
role and become a highly individual instrument struggling with extra-musical meanings.
The harpsichord leitmotiv, with its descending figures, suggests an encounter with decay,
gravity, or mortality - the encounter with falling or death. This romantic, individualistic
notion contrasts dramatically with the vital ascending motion of the ritornello and the
other solo instruments. Rhythmic instability and harmonic expansion mark the
harpsichord cadenza as a structural counterpoint to the stable, upward motions of the
opening, almost as if the harpsichordist, through his virtuosic display, is breaking down
the barriers erected by the musical form in which he finds himself. Bachs individualized,
virtuosic writing for the harpsichord is an integral part of the movements dramatic
development that wrestles with profound philosophical questions.

Liszts fascination with death is reflected in the titles of pieces such as Totentanz, La
Lugubre Gondola, Pense des Morts, and Funrailles. One of his few compositions for piano
and orchestra, Totentanz is a set of virtuosic variations on the Gregorian plainchant
melody Dies Irae. Liszt statement that virtuosity is not an outgrowth, but an
indispensable element of music 10 is well represented in Totentanz.

10

(Gesammelte Schriften, iv, 18559)

Liszt attended the 1830 premiere of the Symphonie fantastique of Hector Berlioz, and he
was struck by its powerful originality. The last movement of the symphony, Songe d'une
nuit de sabbat, presents the Dies Irae chant in a grotesquely ironic musical context - a dance
of the dead. In contrast to Berliozs symphonic works, Liszts symphonic poems do not
offer a specific narrative; rather, they are poetic expressions of an artistic impression,
filtered through the imagination of their creator. Totentanz is a drama without words
between the soloist and the Dies Irae theme, where virtuosity is central to the dramatic
opposition between the piano, the orchestra and the chant. The piano part is defined by
its extraordinary virtuosity, sometimes even to the point of absurdity.

A sense of mockery is immediately obvious from the opening presentation of the theme in
the orchestra, followed by extremely fast arpeggios of the piano in M 11-15. The
opposition between death and the struggling individual is marked by the simple
juxtaposition of the opening funeral march and virtuosic passagework: a dramatic
dichotomy between the sepulchral Dies Irae theme and the upward striving of the piano.
The first variation is decidedly un-virtuosic, it is the simplest presentation of a March
Funebre, a schema readily associated with the chant. The orchestra introduces the the
march in a rigid 4/4 meter, taken up by the piano in M 55, hammering the theme in the
lowest register of the keyboard. The individualism here is presented by using the pianos
potential for dynamic and textural contrast: the ff sforzandi of the LH are in sharp
contrast of the regularity of the march. In variation two, starting at M 70, extremely fast
scales and glissandi in the piano counter the regularity of the march continuing in the
orchestra. The piano resorts to virtuosity, rapid arpeggiation and unmeasured glissandi to
break out of the strong metric and harmonic bonds of the death march. A particularly
memorable musical moment is the trumpet and horn entrance in M79 as to emphasize
the metric and harmonic bonds of the march, while the piano desperately opposes them
with its upward-reaching unmeasured glissandi covering almost the entire compass of the

piano. Variation three in M 112is the conclusion of the trilogy of funeral march
variations, with upward-reaching gestures in the orchestra and the piano reaching a
climactic conclusion and temporal agreement.

The fourth variation in M 91 is a solo variation in a simple, chorale-like texture. The

simple presentation of the theme in a canonic format evokes a stile antico genre that is
counterbalanced with a free cadenza in Liszts idiomatic pianistic style at M 136. The
cadenzas fast-moving, virtuosic lyricism is in sharp contrast with the chorale-like,
objective presentation of the chant. In variation five, the energy of theme is transformed
in quick repeated notes, in a section where the ironic velocity counterbalances the serious
character of the fugue. This variation is followed by a more extended version of the first
piano cadenza that recycles some of the lyrical virtuosity of the first cadenza. The
orchestra introduces the theme in the next variation in the low brass in a solemn, hymnlike texture. As a mocking contrast, the piano enters in a high register doubled with the
woodwinds the piccolo and the cymbal. The final variation gradually increases the length
of the solo piano sections, and presents it with extremely virtuosic passages such as in M
356. The full resources of the orchestra is reserved to the final presentation of the theme
in an overwhelming climax in the last twenty bars.

Liszt uses virtuosic passagework in Totentanz to create textural, harmonic and gestural
contrast to the simplicity of the chant theme and its associated genre, the funeral march.
In the first three variations of Totentanz, the rigid harmonic and rhythmic framework of
the funeral march is challenged by the pianos capricious gestures and by its extreme
dynamics. The expansion of the texture through virtuosic passagework in the last
variation demonstrates his aim to transubstantiate the piano into a poetic, transcendental
instrument capable of evoking a previously unattained range of emotions. Virtuosity for
Liszt was a poetic, rather than technical tool, essentially serving his artistic ideas of

communicating emotional and metaphysical messages.

One of the greatest twentieth century operas, Le Grand Macabre by Gyrgy Ligeti,
displays a similar sense of irony about death as Totentanz. One of its soprano arias for the
character Gepopo, published separately as Mysteries of the Macabre, pushes
virtuosity to its extremes in Ligetis ironic treatment of an inherently political message,
depicting the sick mindset of a secret police agent. Ligetis use of virtuosity is remarkably
Lisztian: it depicts individual emotions pushed to the extreme, resulting in an intense
visceral effect. In Mysteries of the Macabre, a secret police agent announces news of a
huge asteroid heading to destroy the earth. Gepopo is quite unable to articulate the news
intelligibly when she succumbs to a frantic excitement. The result is an Italianate concert
aria on steroids. Virtuosic components, however, are not simply decorative elements
that draw attention to the individualism of the soloist; rather, they become integrated
into the composition and produce a direct, physical sensation of insanity and confusion.
Pushed to these extremes, virtuosic elements become physical objects to dominate both
the performer and the audience in a battle with the insurmountable. Extreme emotions
control the relationship between the soloist and the orchestra: the soloists part contains
the rhythmic and pitch content of the piece, and the orchestra is ruled by the frantic
emotions of the vocalist. It is under arrest, as it were, its members are literary asked to
surrender to the soloists commanding emotions.

The molto vivo section opens with unpitched sound effects, reacting to the vocalists
unintelligible syllables. The instrumentalists respond with extended techniques such as
slap tongue and hitting the instruments, to set the stage for more surreal, shocking
effects. The following section from Molto vivace e ritmico at M 18 communicates Gepopos
confused messages in an asymmetrical 7/8 time signature. Ligeti sets short, staggered

sentences such as unlawful assemblies, and Communal insurrection with very wide
and fast intervals at a staggering tempo. The vocal line is extremely difficult at this point,
and throughout the piece. The singers struggle with her part is an important expressive
element of the piece that often asks for quick succession of large and fast
intervals. Gepopos individual struggle and confusion is literally translated into the
performers struggle with the technical demands of the vocal line.

At M 81, the intervals in the vocal line increase to two octaves in three notes under gogo-lash. In the final section, starting at M 161, dynamic and intervallic extremes become
even more present both in the vocal line and the orchestra. The sopranos frenetic state of
mind is reflected evident via occasional employment of regular patterns such as 3/8 to
articulate more understandable passages in the text such as he is getting in and irregular
meters such as 7/8 and 9/8 to support unintelligible syllables. Ligetis text painting has a
clear purpose: the performer has to physically experience the meaning of the words by
overcoming virtuosic obstacles, thus communicating real emotions with the audience.
Bach, Liszt, and Ligeti all used virtuosity to emphasize the individual character of a solo
instrument or voice. In the fifth Brandenburg concerto, the solo harpsichord emerges out
of its usual cooperative role through a radical textural transformation and comes to
dominate the second half of the piece with a remarkably virtuosic solo cadenza. In Liszts
Totentanz, the piano struggles to overcome death as symbolized by the orchestra's funeral
march and intonation of the Dies Irae with lethally difficult virtuoso passages. Extreme
virtuosity in Ligetis Mysteries of the Macabre creates irony, confusion, and senselessness,
characteristics inherently connected to Gepopos role.
Examining musical virtuosity in a socio-cultural context shows us just how much
composers such as Bach, Liszt, and Ligeti used technical brilliance for their expressive

goals. The development of virtuosity as a stylistic phenomenon enabled all three of these
composers to vividly depict individualistic struggle and drama, both through the
increased instrumental or vocal dominance of the performer and also by the ways in
which virtuosity enabled them to expand the expressive possibilities of the forms they
used. In this way, the use of virtuosity contributed both to the expressive goals of the
pieces examined here, and also to the continuing development of musical forms.