The Art of Gustav Leonhardt

[Leo K.]

You know, later he stopped playing Händel-  and asked why, he answered: Why should I play Händel, when I can play the best?

So he harboured strong - and sometimes provocative - opinions.

Interesting comment there!

[Marc]

About Händel, Leonhardt once said in an interview with Dutch music magazine Luister:

"IMO, the man is extremely overrated as a composer. He could set up a nice facade but completely lacked the ability to build the cathedral behind it. External effect, métier, nothing more."

(I disagree, btw. I think this 'opinion' is extremely exaggerated. Leonhardt, despite his modesty about his own abilities, had more of those, and not only concerning music.)

[Mandryka]

Actually I feel much the same about Handel's keyboard writing -- though that doesn't stop me enjoying some more imaginative and colourful performances.

You get a glimpse of a strongly opinionated personality at the end of the Nouvel Obs interview where he talks about vulgarity. People I know who knew him say he was difficult: a cold fish.

But returning to music, this bit of that interview is interesting:


G. Leonhardt. - . . .  c'est Alfred Deller, le contre-ténor anglais, qui m'a appris le plus, et sans qu'il en sache rien. Les minuscules nuances rythmiques, et surtout qu'il faille accorder plus d'importance au mot qu'au son. Ce qu'il faisait était parfois laid, mais avec raison. Formidable ! Et la musique instrumentale contient souvent un texte latent. Ou du moins, il y a l'idée qu'un texte pourrait être dessous. Je peux dire que c'est lui qui m'a appris l'éloquence au clavecin et à l'orgue



And my own extremely rough and ready translation:


G. Leonhardt. - . . .  It's Alfred Deller, the British countertenor, who taught me the most. Miniscule musical nuances, and above all that it's necessary to give more importance to the word than to the sound (son). What he did was sometimes ugly, but rightly so. Wonderful! And instrumental music often has a latent text. Or at least, the idea of a text can underlie it. [pourrait être dessous]  I  can say that it's he [Deller] who taught me about the eloquence of the harpsichord and the organ.


I myself have always been more attracted to recitative than aria, as it were. More attracted to Monteverdi than to Verdi. Maybe this explains why I like what I hear from Leonhardt.

[Marc]

Actually I feel much the same about Handel's keyboard writing -- though that doesn't stop me enjoying some more imaginative and colourful performances.

You get a glimpse of a strongly opinionated personality at the end of the Nouvel Obs interview where he talks about vulgarity. People I know who knew him say he was difficult: a cold fish.

But returning to music, this bit of that interview is interesting:

[....]
G. Leonhardt. - . . .  It's Alfred Deller, the British countertenor, who taught me the most. Miniscule musical muances, and above all that it's necessary to give more importance to the word than to the sound (son). What he does is sometimes ugly, but rightly so. Wonderful! And instrumental music often has a latent text. Or at least, the idea of a text can underlie it. [pourrait être dessous]  I  can say that it's he [Deller] who taught me about the eloquence of the harpsichord and the organ.


I myself have always been more attracted to recitative than aria, as it were. More attracted to Monteverdi than to Verdi. Maybe this explains why I like what I hear from Leonhardt.

For a substantial part, these principles and ideas are written down here (by Harnoncourt):

http://www.amazon.com/Baroque-Music-Today-Speech-Understanding/dp/0931340918

[prémont]

Actually I feel much the same about Handel's keyboard writing -- though that doesn't stop me enjoying some more imaginative and colourful performances.

In the baroque age the performer of almost all kinds of music was expected to use his imagination and to add improvised elements (f.i. diminutions, passing notes, ornaments, fuller harmonies) to the music. Without these additions much of Händels music dies. Perhaps Händels music did not stimulate Leonhardt´s imagination, but this was rather his loss. When I think about it, Leonhardt didn´t add much of these kind of elements to other baroque music either, not even in repeats - and he probably didn´t like to do it - note his tendency to skip repeats.

[prémont]

For a substantial part, these principles and ideas are written down here (by Harnoncourt):

http://www.amazon.com/Baroque-Music-Today-Speech-Understanding/dp/0931340918

Strongly recommended to those, who haven´t read it already.

[Mandryka]

I just thought that it was interesting that he said that he thought that instrumental music often has a latent text. Do you think he means in Art of Fugue, or WTC, or a Froberger Toccata or a Scarlatti sonata or a Boehm suite?  Is he thinking of encoded thoughts?

The idea of latent text goes further than just advocating a speech like articulation:the sort of articulation I think is so interesting in his third recording of the Goldbergs.

[prémont]

I just thought that it was interesting that he said that he thought that instrumental music often has a latent text. Do you think he means in Art of Fugue, or WTC, or a Froberger Toccata or a Scarlatti sonata or a Boehm suite?  Is he thinking of encoded thoughts?

I think this is to be taken litterally so to say, like Harnoncourt who (as an example) invented a fictive text to the ritornello of the first movement of the fifth Brandenburg concerto (he wrote about this in the notes to his second recording of the concerto on the LP cover). This fictive text is meant to decide the articulation and the affect of the music - of course it is the other way round.

[Mandryka]

I think this is to be taken litterally so to say, like Harnoncourt who (as an example) invented a fictive text to the ritornello of the first movement of the fifth Brandenburg concerto (he wrote about this in the notes to his second recording of the concerto on the LP cover). This fictive text is meant to decide the articulation and the affect of the music - of course it is the other way round.

The bit in bold made me smile.

For some time now you've been keen to make me understand that Bach's music is permeated by symbolism, even Art of Fugue. Or is the text  the free  creative response of the performer?  The time has come for me to explore this a bit more. I still haven't read Schweitzer, I'm afraid to say. But I did study this, which you once put me on to:

http://www.mtio.com/articles/bissboo7.htm

Unfortunately I don't have Harnoncourt's text for the ritornello, but I do have a copy of Baroque Music Today.

[prémont]

The bit in bold made me smile.

Me too.

For some time now you've been keen to make me understand that Bach's music is permeated by symbolism, even Art of Fugue. Or is the text  the free  creative response of the performer?  The time has come for me to explore this a bit more.

I think I answered this already:
Quote Premont  ((Beethoven piano sonatas thread reply 1019) :  Bach´s  music is so to say universal, permeated by musical symbolism and describing common human affects, and I think it it adequate to say, that the meaning is in the music, and that the performers task is to find and express that meaning,

Unfortunately I don't have Harnoncourt's text for the ritornello, but I do have a copy of Baroque Music Today.

Nor have I, as I parted with the LPs long time ago. However I think I saw his words quoted somewhere recently. Do not know if I can find it again.

[Mandryka]

Is this live?



(Suites by JS, CPE and WF Bach)

Has this ever been on CD?


(1988 recording for Philips of the E and F Suites)

[JaapT]

It is true that Gustav Leonhardt had sometimes peculiar thoughts on many things. But I don't think describing him as a cold fish does do him justice. I have heard now many radio interviews with close collaborators, and all describe him as a man with a great sense of humor. Somebody like Philip Herreweghe adored Leonhardt, and praised his sense of humor.

His opinions were rather conservative, and he phrased them in rather absolute terms. He was a very Christian person, who never allowed people to applaud after life performances of the religious works of Bach. He also would never direct the St Matthew Passion after Good Friday. However, given the many different styles of his pupils he seems to have been rather tolerant to different ideas among his pupils, as long as they were faithful to HIP.

He appalled professional musicians who would play Bach on the piano (he didn't object to amateurs), since as a professional player you had to perform be subservient to the composer, who after all composed for the harpsichord and not the piano. Although a friend of Harnoncourt (he delivered a laudatio when Harnoncourt got the Bach prize in Leipzig  a few years ago), you can sense in interviews he didn't like at all that Harnoncourt was conducting modern orchestras and wondering off into the romantic repertoire. On the other hand, he didn't find it absolutely necessary for the Dutch Bach Society to completely switch to Baroque instruments, undoubtedly keeping in mind that the Society then would have to let go of many musicians who couldn't make the switch.

Another quirk I found out from the radio interviews: he didn't heat his house according to Lucy van Dael, telling her that you cannot think properly if it is too warm.

To get a sense of the personality and his command of the music the Dutch television interview a decade ago is revealing: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jp4n17HxutU. See here the very revealing analysis of a french suite, starting around 22:00.

[Mandryka]

http://www.mediafire.com/?5np36z898s13y

Gustav Leonhardt
Organ of Finnish St.Maria church, St.Petersburg (Martti Porthan, 2010)
Live recording, 15 September 2011

01 J.P.Sweelinck, Praeludium
02 Anonymous (Holland, ca.1625), "Windeken"
03 F.Correa de Arauxo, Tiento 54 (1626)
04 J.C.Kerll, Toccata di durezze e ligature
05 F.Couperin, Tierce en taille
06 A. van den Kerkhoven, Fantasia 131
07 A. van den Kerkhoven, Fantasia 132
08 J.A.Reinken, Toccata in g minor
09-11 J.Pachelbel, Three fugues
12 J.Pachelbel, Aria Sebaldina with variations (1699)
13 G.Boehm, "Christ lag in Todesbanden"
14 H.Purcell, "Crown the altar", ground
15 G.Muffat, Toccata 5 (1690)
16 --bis--

Unpublished recording -- hence, I suppose, OK to post here. Courtesy of a Russian pirate.

[Opus106]

Thank you, yet again, Mandryka.

[DieNacht]

Inspired by Leonhardt having received GMG official recognition - his own thread  - I got these LPs today and they both seem very attractive, with a splendid, warm and spacious sound:

....
Englische Virginal Musik: William Byrd, John Bull, Giles Farnaby, Thomas Tomkins, Peter Philips ... (1968) DHM
....
Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck: Works for Organ (1972) DHM
...

The Sweelinck has a moving "Fantasie 4" which almost seems to belong to the late-Romantic repertoire - long, chromatic musical phrases and grandiose sound here.

The English recital (BASF-DHM) includes the "Walsingham Variations" by Byrd etc.

Both are very fine also for those who (like me) have a relatively superficial knowledge of that period.

[Mandryka]

Here's some evidence that he was  quite a card, this Leonhardt.

N. O. - Et qu'avez-vous comme instruments, ici ?

G. Leonhardt. - Beaucoup moins qu'autrefois. J'en avais trop, et je ne les jouais pas. J'en ai encore trop. Ce merveilleux clavecin, ici, je ne le touche qu'une fois par mois, et encore. J'en ai un en bas, pour tous les jours, en quelque sorte, mon work horse...

N. O. - Celui-ci, ce n'est pas le Lefebvre ?
G. Leonhardt. - Ah vous êtes au courant... Le facteur de clavecins Martin Skowronek et moi voulions voir jusqu'où l'on pouvait aller dans la réplique d'ancien. Il avait des bois d'époque, et il a fait un faux ancien, où tout, jusque dans le plus petit détail, semblait authentique. Et qui s'est révélé sonner admirablement, beaucoup mieux que ses autres clavecins, qui sont pourtant tous des copies exactes. Il ne comprend pas pourquoi, d'ailleurs. Nous avons monté un petit canular, inventé qu'un facteur d'orgue et de clavecins de Rouen, Lefebvre, avait fait cet instrument.

And my rough translation of the essentials


G. Leonhardt. - . . .  This wonderful instrument here -- I only play it once a month if that . . . 

N. O. - That one - isn't it  the Lefebvre ?

G. Leonhardt. - Ah, you're aware of that ... The harpsichchord maker  Martin Skowronek wanted to see just how far you could go in making a replica. . . . And what resulted sounds admirable. Much better than his other harpsichords which are exact copies. What's more he [Skowronek ] doesn't understand why. We put on a little hoax, made up that a harpsichord and organ maker in Rouen, Lefebvre, had made the instrument .



Is it on record anywhere, this wonderful LEFEBVRE? It's a good story and I wanna hear it.

[prémont]

Is it on record anywhere, this wonderful LEFEBVRE? It's a good story and I wanna hear it.

From the top of my head: The EMI Partitas and English suites and some of his harpsichord arrangements of violin/cello solo music.

[prémont]

Thanks, Mandryka, for the Leonhardt live. A most moving listen. Most of all the Pachelbel Aria Sebaldina, which always to me has expressed the loneliness of the dying - much like the Sarabande from Bach´s 5th cellosuite.

[Herman]

Another quirk I found out from the radio interviews: he didn't heat his house according to Lucy van Dael, telling her that you cannot think properly if it is too warm.

And it's a lot cheaper, too.

[Geo Dude]

Surely there's an interview someone is familiar with where he explains his point of view on (not) taking repeats?  I think it would be an interesting viewpoint to know given that a tendency to not take repeats is certainly rare among HIP-oriented musicians.