La Famiglia Scarlatti: Cantatas & Sonatas / Musica Alta Ripa

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A. SCARLATTI Cantatas: Perchè tacete; Bella dama di nome Santa. Sonatas: in a; in F. D. SCARLATTI Cantata: Doppo lungo servire. F. SCARLATTI Cantata: O come in un’istante • Kai Wessel (ct); Danya Segal (rcr); Musica Alta Ripa (period instruments) • MDG 30906322 (76:51)


There is no doubt that the Scarlatti family was prolific and extremely musical, providing composers for several generations. Today, one mostly hears only of Alessandro Scarlatti and his son Domenico, both of whom have certainly earned their places in music history. There were, however, a number of others, including Alessandro’s brother Francesco (c.1666–1742), who is represented on this disc by one of his cantatas. Francesco, it seems, had a checkered career, first as a violinist in Naples and then as maestro di capella in Palermo, the Scarlatti family hometown. Apparently this did not work out, and towards the end of his life he appears to have migrated to Dublin, which is just about as far away from Italy as one can get, where at a ripe old age he was reduced to a bedridden and impoverished state. All three of these men whose works appear on this disc of chamber cantatas—interspersed with a couple of recorder sonatas by Alessandro—wrote large numbers of compositions, with the last named being known as one of the main proponents of the solo cantata, having written over 200 of them.


What strikes me most about this disc is that it presents a good selection of works that gives a nice taste of the talent of all three men. Generally, the eldest Scarlatti’s cantatas are the most expansive, the first of which has no fewer than four arias, each preceded by a recitative and an introductory Sinfonia to boot. The second reduces the sung numbers in half, but prefaces it with a nicely pastoral Lento alla francese , a lilting movement in which the solo recorder sounds at times like an organ stop. It is a rather nice effect, though one may note that it seems to imply bucolic simplicity rather than a complex and dramatic tale. This is emphasized in the first aria, “Dal nome tuo credei,” in which the opening recorder line is supported by the violin acting as a bass line. As the voice enters, the thin texture is maintained, resulting in quite an intimate sound. In the aria “Alla mano che dotta” of the first cantata, Perchè tacete , the lines are crisp and precise, almost at a marching tempo with the voice and bass in lock step, while the violins add discrete ritornellos at various intervals. The second aria is a lively triple meter dance, and in the Finale, “Deh pensieri,” the voice and strings scurry about in a virtuoso fashion; here we finally get to the vocal fireworks one usually associates with Scarlatti’s operas. In contrast, Domenico’s cantata seems rather tame, even old-fashioned. The second aria, for instance, “Io lò sò che una pena tiranna,” features voice and continuo, moving about each other in a slow and mysterious dance, while the last aria has a gentle rocking motion beginning with the first word “Cara” suspended in space. Francesco’s Cantata could have been written by Francesco Cavalli, with expansive lines that move about in rather nicely compact sequences. The final aria, “Contento all’or sarò,” is wonderfully expressive, even though it too is a spare continuo aria.


The two sonatas are varied in terms of content and tone. The first, in A Minor, is clearly from Alessandro’s earlier years, with an opening movement that is reminiscent of Henry Purcell’s “Wondrous Machine” in its tick-tock accompaniment. The middle of the five movements is a somewhat intricate fugue based upon an ascending chromatic line, and it is here that I would suspect a use for the church. The second sonata is busy and quite virtuoso, with scurrying lines bandied about between the violin and recorder. It would not be out of place in Georg Philipp Telemann’s oeuvre , for it seems more north German than Italian in style.


Countertenor Kai Wessel performs the cantatas with a nice sense of phrasing and moves through the parts with decided ease. He knows how to blend with his instruments and yet bring out the text clearly and expressively. The accompaniment of the Musica Alta Ripa, particularly recorder player Danya Segal, blends well together, with a nice choice of ornamentation and a precision that makes each and every line clear. The violins are wonderfully discrete, as noted earlier, meaning that they know how to support and not compete with the voice.


The booklet features a rather nice musicological essay by Wessel, which is both scholarly and readable. Unfortunately, even though the cover states that texts are enclosed, my copy had no texts or translations of the works, which can be annoying (and forces one to try and find them on the web site without any indications therein). If one can overlook this faux pas , then one will have at hand a delightful hour and a bit of nice, intimate chamber music from the Scarlatti family, performed in a highly musical manner. One could perhaps not ask for more. No one will be disappointed with this disc in their collection.


FANFARE: Bertil van Boer


Product Description:

  • Release Date: January 01, 1996


  • Catalog Number: 3090632-2


  • UPC: 760623063225


  • Label: MDG


  • Number of Discs: 1


  • Composer: Alessandro Scarlatti, Domenico Scarlatti, Francesco Scarlatti


  • Orchestra/Ensemble: Musica Alta Ripa


  • Performer: Kai Wessel