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Welcome to Harmonia…I’m Angela Mariani. Soon after the sun rose in Lisbon on November 1, 1755 the earth trembled in a horrifying way. Waves crashed and buildings fell as a major earthquake and tsunami struck. Tens of thousands of people died—and being All Saint’s Day, candles lit in homes and churches were knocked over and caused catastrophic fires. The Royal Music Library was destroyed and, along with it, a substantial part of Portugal’s musical heritage. Fortunately, copyists, historians, and manuscripts kept elsewhere preserved at least part of the richness of music in Lisbon before the mid-eighteenth century—some of which we’ll hear this hour. Later, music from our featured release Flutes of a Feather: Telemann Duets for Two Flutes, Vol I.

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MUSIC TRACK
The Bad Tempered Consort: Portuguese Polyphony from the 17th Century
A Imagem da Melancolia
Challenge Classics 2009 / Naxos CC72321
Pedro de Araujo
Tr. 21 Batalha (arr. for recorder ensemble) (4:50)

“Batahla” by Pedro de Araujo performed by A Imagem da Melancolia recorder consort.

When brick-laying for the Lisbon Cathedral began in 1149, no one could have known that 600 years later much of it—and the city around it—would crumble to the ground in an 8.4 earthquake. In the centuries in between, music was central to Lisbon’s culture, worship, and entertainment. At both the Royal Chapel at Alcáçova Palace and the cathedral, professional music-making flourished. By the late sixteenth century, the royal chapel alone employed a music director, nearly 50 singers (half of them adults and half boys), and several instrumentalists who played dulcians, cornetto, and organ.

Portuguese composer Bartolomeo Trosylho worked both as music director at the cathedral and for the royal chapel. Let’s hear sacred music from Renaissance Lisbon including Trosylho’s setting of “Pro defunctis” as well as an anonymous setting of “Aquella voluntad que se a rendido” (“That will that has been surrendered”).

MUSIC TRACK
Mil suspiros dio Maria: Sacred and Secular Music From the Brazilian Renaissance
Continens Paradisi / dir. Dominuez Weber
Ricercar 2006 / Naxos RIC246
Bartolomeo Trosylho
Tr. 3 Aquella voluntad que se a rendido [MS 3391] (2:02)
Anon.
Tr. 6 Pro defunctis (1:19)

“Pro defunctis” by Bartolomeo Trosylho and the anonymous “Aquella voluntad que se a rendido,” with music from sixteenth-century Portugal. Continens Paradisi were led by Dominguez Weber.

Renaissance Europe was filled with cities that employed “waits”—or town bands—who played both for sacred and secular occasions. These often took the form of “alta”or “Loud Bands,” so-called because the bright sound of these instruments—usually four shawms and a sackbut-- carried a good distance, making them perfect for outdoor festivities. In Lisbon, many of the wind players in these local bands were of African descent, and they were often among the best paid professional musicians in town. We’ll hear two fantasias by Portuguese composer Antonio Carriera—music like this may have been performed by the Lisbon city waits. This is an arrangement for recorder ensemble.

MUSIC TRACK
The Bad Tempered Consort: Portuguese Polyphony from the 17th Century
A Imagem da Melancolia
Challenge Classics 2009 / Naxos CC72321
Antonio Carriera
Tr. 28 Fantasia a 4 (arr. for recorder ensemble) (2:21)
Tr. 30 Quartus Tonus, Fantasia a 4 (arr. for recorder ensemble) (1:44)

Two fantasias by Antonio Carriera arranged for recorder ensemble. A Imagem da Melancolia recorder consort performed on their 2009 release The Bad Tempered Consort: Portuguese Polyphony from the 17th Century.

Unfortunately, a lot of music from this time and place was lost when an earthquake on All Saint’s Day in 1755 devastated the port city of Lisbon. In addition to causing 60,000 deaths, the earthquake destroyed 12,000 homes, the main chapel of the Lisbon Cathedral, and the Royal Music Library. Among the works that survive are a few by seventeenth-century composer João Lourenço Rebelo. We’ll hear his “Lamentations,” written in Venetian poly-choral style.

MUSIC TRACK
Portuguese Vocal Masterpieces of the 16th and 17th Centuries, Vol. 1
Capella Duriensis / dir. Jonathan Ayerst
Challenge Classics 2009 / Naxos CC72321
Naxos 2015 / Naxos 9.70222
João Lourenço Rebelo
Tr. 12 Lamentations (transcribed by J.A. Alegria) (11:55)
 
Lamentations by João Lourenço Rebelo. Jonathan Ayerst led Capella Duriensis. 

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Theme Music Bed: Ensemble Alcatraz, Danse Royale, Elektra Nonesuch 79240-2 / B000005J0B, T.12: La Prime Estampie Royal

You can hear highlights from recent and archival concert recordings of early music on Harmonia Uncut -- our biweekly podcast, curated and hosted by Wendy Gillespie. Listen online at harmonia early music dot org and through iTunes.

You’re listening to Harmonia . . .  I’m Angela Mariani. 

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:59 Midpoint Break Music Bed:

Historic Organ 1765: São Vicente de Fora, Lisbon
João Vaz (organ)
IFO Classics 2014 / Naxos 4037102725223
Antonio Carreira
Excerpt of Tr. 1 Fantasia a 4 in D Major (excerpt of 1:38)

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We’re exploring early music from Lisbon this hour on Harmonia.

When we hear the name Scarlatti in the context of Italian Baroque music, we often associate Alessandro with opera and vocal music, and his son Domenico with keyboard repertoire. But the younger Scarlatti didn’t just write keyboard music – he also composed operas, and both sacred and secular cantatas. For awhile, Domenico Scarlatti also worked in Lisbon for the Portuguese royals, where his students included Princess Maria Magdalena Barbara, who brought Scarlatti with her to Spain when she married the Spanish crown prince.  Some information about Domenico’s musical tenure in Lisbon was lost as a result of the disastrous 1755 earthquake  – but we know that his Cantata Pastorale was first heard in the Lisbon royal palace in 1720.  Here’s the last recitative and aria from that work. 

MUSIC TRACK
Venere, Adone e Amore, Vol. 2
Chacona (Orchestra) / Rosalind Halton, cond.
ABC Classics 2016 / 00028948143146
Domenico Scarlatti
Tr. 26 Cantata Pastorale, E nato! alfin mi dice (1:11)
Tr. 27 Nacque, col Gran Messia la pace (7:19)

Music from from Domenico Scarlatti’s Cantata Pastorale. Rosalind Halton led the ensemble Chacona.

While in Lisbon, Scarlatti worked with Carlos de Seixas. Some have assumed that Scarlatti taught Seixas, but Scarlatti was known to say, (quote) “you are the one who should give me lessons.” Although Seixas began his career as organist at Coimbra Cathedral, he soon moved to Lisbon where he held the lucrative position of Royal Chapel composer. He was eventually knighted, and his output was massive—writing music for the church, as well as 700 keyboard toccatas. Most of his work was destroyed in the Great Lisbon earthquake. We’ll hear organ sonata in C Major by Carlos de Seixas.

MUSIC TRACK
Historic Organ 1765: São Vicente de Fora, Lisbon
João Vaz (organ)
IFO Classics 2014 / Naxos 4037102725223
Carlos de Seixas
Tr. 11 Organ Sonata in C Major, I. Moderato in tempo di siciliano (3:53)
Tr. 12 Organ Sonata in C Major, II. Minuet (1:18)

João Vaz performed Organ Sonata in C Major by Portuguese baroque composer Carlos de Seixas.

Our featured release is Flutes of a Feather: Telemann Duets for Two Flutes, Vol I. Telemann was probably best known in his day for being a giant on Hamburg’s musical scene—for his business savvy, and for his astoundingly prolific amount of work. He self-published much of his solo and chamber music in serial fashion, releasing one or two movements at a time. We’ll hear Telemann’s E Minor flute duet, TWV 40: 142, performed by Leighann Daihl Ragusa and Joshua Romatowski.

MUSIC TRACK
Flutes of a Feather: Telemann Duets for Two Flutes, Vol I
Leighann Daihl and Joshua Romatowski, flutes
Flutes of a Feather 2020 / Amazon B08PNMDBN7
Georg Philipp Telemann
Tr. 1 Sonata No. 2 in E-Moll TWV 40:142: I. Piacevole (2:00)
Tr. 2 Sonata No. 2 in E-Moll TWV 40:142: II. Andante (2:48)
Tr. 3 Sonata No. 2 in E-Moll TWV 40:142: III. Scherzando (2:25)

Music from Telemann’s flute duet no. 2 from the TWV 40 collection of duets, performed by Leighann Daihl Ragusa and Joshua Romatowski, from their recording Flutes of a Feather. 

These duets have a storied past. They were lost until 2002, when they were discovered in the collection of Sing Akademie zu Berlin, a choral society that has been around for over 200 years. This society’s large collection of eighteenth-century music had mysteriously gone missing during World War II, reappearing in late ‘nineties Kiev. Let’s finish the hour with the lively Presto from Telemann’s TWV 40 flute duet in G Major. 

MUSIC TRACK
Flutes of a Feather: Telemann Duets for Two Flutes, Vol I
Leighann Daihl and Joshua Romatowski, flutes
Flutes of a Feather 2020 / Amazon B08PNMDBN7
Georg Philipp Telemann
Tr. 6 Sonata No. 5 in G-Dur TWV 40:145: III. Presto (2:14)

We heard the Presto from Telemann’s flute duet in G major, TWV 40. Leighann Daihl Ragusa and Joshua Romatowski performing on traverso from their 2020 release Flutes of a Feather. 

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Harmonia is a production of WFIU. Support comes from Early Music America: a national organization that advocates and supports the historical performance of music of the past, the community of artists who create it, and the listeners whose lives are enriched by it. On the web at EarlyMusicAmerica-dot-org. 

Additional resources come from the William and Gayle Cook Music Library at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music.

We welcome your thoughts about any part of this program, or about early music in general. Contact us at harmonia early music dot org. And, you can follow our Facebook page and our updates on Twitter* by searching for Harmonia Early Music.

The writer for this edition of Harmonia was Sarah Schilling (or Sarah Huebsch Schilling).

Thanks to our studio engineer Michael Paskash, and our production team: LuAnn Johnson, Wendy Gillespie, Aaron Cain, and John Bailey. I’m Angela Mariani, inviting you to join us again for the next edition of Harmonia.

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