Expressive properties of embellishment in vocal music the first half
of the 18th-century

Kruglova Elena ORCID: 0000-0001-6565-2083 PhD in Art History Professor, The State Musical Pedagogical Institute named after M. M. Ippolitov-Ivanov 109147, Russia, Moscow, 36 Marxistskaya str. elenakruglowa@mail.ru Other publications by this author

In the history of vocal art, the Baroque era is characterized by the flourishing of the bel canto school, which means "beautiful singing" in Italian. At the beginning of the XVIII century. along with cantilevered singing, filled with pathos and expressiveness, coloratura, virtuoso technique prevailed.

The performance of the music of the time in question provided the performers with sufficient freedom to demonstrate their coloratura skills. However, today, at this stage, singers often face certain difficulties. How to understand which ornament is most suitable in a particular fragment of a melody and whether it is worth including it at all? The answer to all these questions will be an understanding of the music of the period in question in the context of the mutual influence of the affect of the work and the ornament.

Among the sources devoted to the study of this problem, one can single out treatises and manuals by ancient masters ^{[6, 9, 14, 15, 16]}, which often pointed to the connection between affect and ornament. Foreign authors ^{[7, 8, 10, 11, 13]} They note the importance of ornamentation in the embodiment of affects, consider the concept of the doctrine of affects used by musicians and theorists in the Baroque era, and define the role of music as "conveying feelings to listeners." In modern Russian musicology, this topic has not received its coverage.

Since the 17th century, the main function of the aria has been to show human feelings and passions. This was directly related to the attitude towards the poetic text and had a huge impact on all types of ornaments. At the same time, at the beginning of the XVIII century. the previous interpretation of the doctrine of affects comes into conflict with performance practice, which is why it is criticized by a number of scientists and practitioners. The desire for greater expressiveness of musical material dictated the need for new solutions.

With the development of the aria during the XVIII century, in which the expression of affects became increasingly important, the combination of the declamatory beginning with the musical proper became important. This led to the creation of a specific musical expression based on the poetic image. The formal explanation of the former doctrine of affects did not correspond to the performing culture of that time and required rethinking, making it necessary not only to classify the types of affects, but also to consider ways of their embodiment. The result of overcoming all the conventions was the differentiation of the main affect into side effects that change within it ^{[3, p. 22]}. 

As the researchers P. Lutsker and I. Susidko point out: "Only since the heroic Venetian opera of the 1700s can we talk about affect in the aria" ^{[4, p. 288]}. The consequence of this was the formation of a new tradition of melodic ornamentation associated with the emotional transmission of the state of the performed hero.  The dominant connection in the 17th century with rhetoric and its peculiar techniques is weakening. Vocal decorations now serve not only to depict the word, but also create great emotional elation, acquiring the most important aesthetic and semantic meaning ^{[5, p. 19]}. The great importance of the vast field of jewelry is pointed out by researcher D. Glucksam, defining the role of ornament as an invariable source of a better understanding of Baroque music based on affects ^{[10, p. 29]}.

In the arias of the beginning of the XVIII century, the energy and pathos of expression are enhanced. Virtuosity is becoming widely used (from heroic to lyrical arias), while manifesting itself in both vocal and orchestral parts. In these conditions, the singer is required to possess the entire arsenal of technical means from the impeccable evenness of cantilevered sound science to coloratura fluency, considered as an artistic means of expression in dramatic, climactic fragments of the opera to reveal the emotional state of the hero. The virtuoso art of the soloist solved the important task of enhancing expressiveness in order to arouse various affects in the audience.

Given the natural talent and technical capabilities of specific singers, composers dedicated their arias to them, as a result of which the author and performer became co-creators. At this time, the scope of ornamentation was even more concretized; the number of melisms written out in ordinary notation or symbols increased.

The ability to think and be reasonable is a requirement for musicians of that time. It is no coincidence that the translator of the most authoritative treatise by P. F. Tozi into German, organist and singing teacher I. F. Agricola points to the reasonable use of ornaments. Considering the options for the performance of foreshocks, he quite clearly formulates the idea of the importance of "trusting the feeling of the performer or composer" without offending good taste, "so that the performer is least in danger of acting contrary to the composer's intention" ^{[1, p. 80]}.

Thus, the choice of jewelry and the way they are performed should be based on an understanding of the music and performed in such a way as to reflect the affect that it expresses. This becomes the most important requirement of the musicians of the time in question.

In vocal performance during this period, expressive "warmed" singing acquires special importance. In his treatise, the castrato singer, composer and singing teacher P. F. Tozi constantly writes about the importance of "singing to the heart" ("cantare al cuore") ^[16]. His thought is continued by the castrato singer and singing teacher J. Mancini, also using in his treatise the expression "to sing from the heart" ("chanter au coeur") ^[12]. It is no coincidence that the outstanding Italian violinist F. Geminiani noted that "good music not only pleases the ear, but also expresses the movement of the soul, amazes the imagination, affects the mind and controls emotions" ^{[9, p. 2]}. 

The very titles of the treatises of vocal masters emphasize the great importance of figurative singing in the XVIII century. So, P. F. Tozi, and subsequently J. Mancini uses the term "canto figurato" in the titles of his works. In them, the authors consider mainly the technical aspects of the vocal art of their time. And this is not accidental. On the one hand, at the turn of the XVII-XVIII centuries, a major reform was taking place in solo singing, associated with the transition from a single-register manner of vocalization to a two-register one, which led to the need to align registers with minimal stress of the vocal apparatus. The main task was to work on the "singability" of the voice. Under these conditions, register evenness was achieved more easily in fast coloratura than in slow melodious arias. Composers and performers set higher goals for their art than just entertaining listeners. They wanted to deeply excite them through the transmission of various affects by voice.

The German virtuoso flutist, composer and music theorist I. I. Kvantz played a significant role in affirming the importance of the artistically expressive side of jewelry performance. His recommendations in the treatise "The experience of instruction in playing the Traverso flute" ("Versuch einer Anweisung die Fl?te traversiere zu spielen", 1752) draw the attention of musicians, including singers, to the importance of using jewelry in order to faithfully reproduce the affects of the composition. So, he writes that jewelry can improve or worsen the composition. And further: "<...> relying on the basic affect, (the performer) will maintain moderation and will never turn one passion into another" ^{[14, p. 83]}.

Thus, the essence of the ornament contributed to the expression of a certain state of mind. According to the German composer, harpsichordist and musicologist K. F. E. Bach, the decorations are aimed at revealing the content, whether it is sad or cheerful ^{[6, p. 51]}. Therefore, the ornament must be completely subordinated to the expression of affect.

As for the Italian tradition of performance, a significant contribution to the understanding of the expressiveness of jewelry in it was made by the greatest virtuoso violinist of the XVIII century, J. Tartini, who, focusing the attention of both instrumentalists and singers on the performance of ornamentation at that time, opens his treatise on ornaments ("Treatise on Ornamentation", 1771) with an epigraph: "Including the performance of the appoggiature, its meaning and place of application, as well as a variety of trills, vibrato and mordent, ways of using them, natural ornaments, endless ornate ornaments, and ways of composing cadences" ^[15].

Tartini was opposed to ornamentation as a purely decorative technique unrelated to the inner nature of the music itself. Noting the great importance of virtuoso art, he paid great attention to the depth of expression of human feelings. He correlated the choice of jewelry, their number and the nature of performance, first of all, with the content of the music. It is worth noting here that the tradition of reproducing the affect of the composition can also be traced back to the end of the XVIII century. This is indicated by the words of the German organist, composer, music theorist D. G. Turk, recorded in the "Clavier School" ("Clavierschule", 1789): "performance is an expression of affect" ^{[2, p. 75]}.

It is noteworthy that with such attention to the relationship between jewelry and affects in performance, practitioners in the Baroque era did not develop a unified system in which the belonging of a particular melism to a particular affect would be determined.

The musicians of that time realized the importance of the aesthetic function of jewelry, which implies not so much technical equipment in music making, as their application in accordance with the character, affect of the work. In an effort to embody affect, performers often interpreted this connection in a straightforward way, linking a certain melism with a specific affect. This is due to the fixation of a historically formed method of its execution for one or another affect with the possible use of a characteristic ornament.

Trill. The error in using passages and trills in Sicilian (a dance representing the affect of sadness) is indicated by Tozi ^{[1, p. 131]}. Kwantz agrees with his opinion, excluding the use of trills and passages in expressing the affect of sadness, whereas in the affect of joy and love their application is possible ^{[14, pp. 282-283]}.

In the embodiment of the affect of love, Tozi considers the use of trills possible, pointing out that "in pleasant and gentle pieces, a good singer can rightfully refrain from trills, but this should not happen too often" ^{[1, p. 185]}.

Tartini's progressive views on the performance of jewelry clarify the dependence of the embodiment of the affect of the composition on various ways of performing trills. "Slow trill," he writes, –is (used) in serious, pathetic and melancholic pieces, melodic – in restrained cheerful ones, and fast – in lively, mobile (compositions)" ^{[15, pp. 10-11]}.

Mordent. To embody the affects of joy and love, the mordent belonging to the trill group is more suitable. Tartini argues that mordent is better "suited for mobile and light music, but only (with the character of) melodious Andante and Allegro," for expressing fervor and passion" ^{[15, p. 17]}. And immediately warns performers against using it in serious and sad melodies ^{[15, p. 17]}.

However, we find a different view on the interpretation of mordent in Geminiani, according to whom it is suitable for representing various affects depending on the way it is performed: "He (mordent) It is appropriate to express excited passions, so if it is performed with force and for a long time, it expresses rage, anger, determination, etc. If played the other way around (less strongly and shorter), it expresses joy, satisfaction, etc. But if you play it quite softly and inflating the note, it can mean horror, fear, grief, crying, etc. By making it shorter and softly filling the note, you can express affect and pleasure" ^{[9, pp. 7-8]}.

Tartini divides the appoggiatures (forschlags) of the downward movement into two types: short or "passing" and long or "prolonged", which are closely related to the embodiment of a particular affect. Thus, in expressing the affect of joy and love, a short "passing" foreshock is used, whereas a long foreshock, according to the virtuoso, helps to convey a sad and pathetic mood ^{[15, p. 9]}. 

The characteristic of the values of the foreshocks in Geminiani is almost similar. Long foreshocks are designed to embody the affect of love, pleasure and their performance takes more than half the duration of the note to which they relate. Short foreshocks express a "pleasant effect" ^{[9, p. 7]}.

K.F. E. Bach writes about gruppetto (doppelschlags) as "a light decoration that makes singing both pleasant and brilliant" ^{[6, p. 85]}.

A similar interpretation of simple doppelschlags (gruppetto) is found in Agricola. According to his characterization, they will enliven the melody and create a cheerful mood ^{[1, p. 121]}. But the plumes in singing, according to his own instructions, are performed slowly, and, therefore, correspond to the affect of sadness.

It becomes obvious that a huge area of jewelry creates space for artistic expression in Baroque music. Hence the understanding of why musicians, with rare exceptions, wrote out melisms. Thus, it is important to consider any recommendations of ancient musicians as a parting word, but not as dogmatic rules. 

When performing jewelry, it is important for the singer to understand which ornament will match the affect more vividly. The flautist, composer I. G. Tromlitz, drew the attention of the performers to this: "If someone wants to vary a figure or passage, one should carefully consider which ornament is best suited to it and expresses the main mood of the composer; or it will have the best effect of playing by the rules; since each individual figure has a different effect in each variations" ^{[17, p. 185]}.

The musical theory of the Baroque era was based on the idea of transmitting various human passions. And if in the XVII century such passions were accompanied by certain emotional states, then in the XVIII century. they were interpreted in their broader sense as strong emotional disturbances, with which the entire field of expressive performance was interconnected. Raising questions about the relationship between ornamentation and affect of the composition, Quantz writes: "A good performance should be expressive and correspond to the passions (of the composition). <...> One should carefully select decorations and melisms with which (the performer) wants to enhance the impression of a song or a simple melody. Decorations, written out or loose, should never contradict the main affect of the melody" ^{[14, p. 107]}.

Any decoration in ancient arias must be applied to the canvas of the melodic line only after determining the main affect and in order to emphasize it. The decorative function of an ornament should be considered as a means of giving expression to a work, helping to convey ideas and character to listeners. Realizing this, performers today should make every effort to correctly identify the affect and correctly recreate it in singing. Hence the variations of the same melism in its different performance readings: from slow to fast, depending on the understanding of the essence of the transmitted affect presented in a particular work.

The correct execution of jewelry, corresponding to the affect laid down by the composer, will help the singer to more fully reveal the content of the composition and create his own individual, vivid interpretation of it.

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