Agostino Steffani (1654-1728)
Psalmodia Vespertina, Stabat Mater
Kerstin Dietl (soprano), Franz Vitzthum (alto), Daniel Schreiber (tenor), Thilo Dahlmann (bass)
Collegium Vocale Hannover, la festa musicale/Florian Lohmann
rec. live, 25 February 2023, Neustädter Hof- und Stadtkirche St. Johannis, Hanover
Texts included; translations only of Stabat Mater
Reviewed as download
Arcantus ARC24055 [72]
Some composers have made a name for themselves by just one work or by their contributions to one particular genre. In the case of Agostino Steffani, it is his duets that have given him fame. They were treated as models by composers of later generations, such as George Frideric Handel, in whose oeuvre the duet also takes a special place. Steffani was more than his duets, though. His life and career were remarkable and quite unusual.
Steffani was educated as a singer and performed at an early age as a treble. He went to Munich at the age of thirteen, where he received keyboard lessons from Johann Caspar Kerll. He then went to Rome and studied composition with Ercole Bernabei. It is possible that there he already started to compose chamber duets. When Bernabei was appointed Kapellmeister in Munich, Steffani returned with him. Under the Elector Maximilian II Emanuel his career quickly took off. He composed his first opera which shows the influence of Lully; it was followed by other operas, some on librettos by his brother. In Munich, he started his activities in the diplomatic sphere.
In 1688, he entered the service of Duke Ernst August of Hanover. There he spent the next fifteen years, first mainly as a composer, then especially as a diplomat. The Duke built a splendid opera house and founded an opera company. Hanover developed into an internationally renowned centre of opera. The orchestra included musicians from France and Italy. In 1703 Steffani entered the service of the Elector Palatine, Johann Wilhelm, in Düsseldorf. At that time, he had almost given up composing and concentrated on political activities.
He had been ordained a priest in 1688 and since then had made a career in the church as well. In 1709 he was appointed Apostolic Vicar in northern Germany, with the duty of bringing the protestant parts of Germany back to the Church of Rome. He chose Hanover as his seat where he remained until his death. In the 1720s, he turned his interest to music again. He composed various works, among them a Stabat mater which he considered his best composition.
The latter is part of the present disc, which covers Steffani’s entire life, as the other part of the programme is devoted to Vesper Psalms, which he composed during his time in Rome; they were printed in 1674 and dedicated to the electors of Bavaria. These psalms are the fruit of his studies with Bernabei. They are written in the stile antico, as so many Roman works for the liturgy, like masses. This reflects the influence of the ecclesiastical authorities which were rather critical of the contemporary style of composing, which they considered too ‘operatic’.
However, like his contemporary Alessandro Scarlatti, Steffani incorporated elements of the style of his time in these works. They may be homophonic and scored for voices and basso continuo, but that did not prevent Steffani from illustrating elements in the text. He does so in different ways: with musical figures, differentiation in tempo and meter and in his use of the technique of cori spezzati as all these psalms are for eight voices in two choirs.
Dixit Dominus comprises some dramatic verses which composers never failed to emphasize, and that is the case here too. In Beatus vir the last line – “the desire of the wicked shall perish” – is followed by a pause, before the doxology starts. That is all the more notable as mostly the doxology follows the last verse of the psalm without interruption. That is a general pattern which partly explains that these psalms are relatively short: the second choir enters before the first has finished. In some cases, Steffani singles out a particular verse by deviating from this pattern: both choirs fall silent and then one of them sings or both sing that verse.
In Laudate pueri the words “in coelo” (in heaven) and “in terra” (on earth) are scored for high and low voices respectively, and the last word, “laetantem” (joyful), is singled out. In In exitu Israel Steffani graphically illustrates the contrast between two phrases: “The dead praise not the Lord” – “But we will bless the Lord”. In Credidi he gives optimum weight to the verse “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints”. To mention a last example, in Nisi Dominus, the words “panem doloris” (bread of pain) are spun out in a slow tempo with strong harmonic tension. In the closing Magnificat, Steffani also does not miss the opportunities to give weight to the most dramatic verses, those about the poor versus the powerful.
Regarding the liturgical use of these psalms, that which is generally known as ‘Vespers’ is a collective term for the evening prayer. “The liturgy of vespers – as Steffani must have known it – is part of the Tridentine Rite laid down by the 1568 Breviarium Romanum, which defines texts and hymns for
all canonical hours of the year. The Breviarium sets down, for example, a weekly structure containing all 150 psalms. There are 35 vespertine psalms per week, five per day, starting with Psalm 109 on Sunday, continuing until Psalm 147 on Saturday.” (booklet) However, which psalms are sung depends on the feast of the day. Always one of the Psalms 109 to 113 is sung and sometimes several; and to them Psalms are added which are connected to a particular feast. For instance, on feasts of the Apostles or Evangelists, Sunday psalms 109 and 112 are complemented by the Psalmi apostolorum (115, 125, 138). This explains the division of the programme as indicated in the list of contents below.
Rather than placing the Stabat mater at the end of the programme, it is inserted between the Psalmi confessorum (for feasts of Confessors) and the Psalmi virginum (for feasts of the Blessed Virgin Mary). It is Steffani’s last work, dating from January 1728, the year of his death, and was published posthumously. It is scored for six voices, strings and basso continuo. It is divided into verses, set alternatively for solo voices and tutti. It opens with an instrumental introduction. A returning device is the use of a descending tetrachord, which reflects the character of mourning of the text. The verse ‘Quis est homo, qui non fleret’ is a harmonically wrenching solo for alto – one of the most incisive sections of this work. The lashes in the next section (“et flagellis subditum”) are graphically depicted. In ‘Vidit suum dulcem natum’ the loneliness of Jesus is illustrated by the scoring for bass solo and a slow tempo. In ‘Virgo virginum’ Steffani dwells on the word “plangere” (mourn), and the descending tetrachord is again, more clearly than elsewhere, applied in the last section, ‘Quando corpus morietur’, closing with the “Amen”.
Steffani considered this work his best, and it is rightly considered one of his masterworks. It certainly has to be reckoned among the most expressive of the Baroque era. It closes the circle of his life and career, as his Vesper Psalms are also models of text expression with very different means. Therefore, despite the difference in time of composition, it makes much sense to bring them together in one recording.
This release is a live recording which makes the level of the performances all the more impressive. This is one of the best recordings I have heard recently in the field of sacred baroque music. That is due to Steffani, but also to the performers, who have fully explored the expressive features of these works. The Collegium Vocale Hannover is probably not that well-known, at least not outside Germany, but that does not mean anything. It is shown here to be a first-class ensemble, very alert to the requirements of these scores. Some episodes are sung solo by members of the choir, and they do so admirably. In the Stabat mater the four excellent vocal soloists show how a text should be treated. In the Vesper psalms the instruments mostly play colla voce, but here and there they also replace some voices.
To conclude: Steffani’s expressive powers are displayed here in full glory. This disc deserves a special recommendation.
Johan van Veen
www.musica-dei-donum.org
twitter.com/johanvanveen
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Contents
Psalmi Dominicales
Psalmus 109: Dixit Dominus
Psalmus 110: Confitebor tibi, Domine
Psalmus 111: Beatus vir
Psalmus 112: Laudate pueri
Psalmus 113: In exitu Israel
Psalmi apostolorum
Psalmus 115: Credidi
Psalmus 125: In convertendo
Psalmus 138: Domine, probasti me
Psalmi confessorum
Psalmus 116: Laudate Dominum
Psalmus 131: Memento, Domine, David
Stabat Mater
Psalmi virginum
Psalmus 121: Lætatus sum
Psalmus 126: Nisi dominus
Psalmus 147: Lauda Jerusalem
Magnificat
