這套Prothimia Suavissima(最甜蜜的樂趣)，是1672年Bertali過逝之後才出版的奏鳴曲集。它共分兩部，各十二首奏鳴曲，而這張CD收錄的是第二部(parte seconda)。有趣的是，在一年前，作曲家Capricornus(也在上述的Partiturbuch的專輯裡)(1628–1665)的作品也在他死後六年被出版。裡面前六首奏鳴曲和Bertali這第二部的六首幾乎完全吻合。所以，到底誰是原作，惹來一些爭議。一方面，Capricornus承認Bertali的奏鳴曲是他的創作典範。另一方面，Bertali名氣較大，以他的名義出版，可得到更多的重視。今天，這六首有時被歸類成Bertali的作品，有時為Capricornus。
不僅這樣，好巧不巧在寫這篇的同時，正在聽Schmelzer的奏鳴曲集，發現第七首奏鳴曲和Schmelzer其中一首也是一模一樣。不禁開始讓我懷疑，哪一首奏鳴曲是真的出自Bertali之手？
無論如何，這些奏鳴曲的風格為早期義大利多聲部的音樂，經由Buonamente，Bertali，Marini，和Farina等義大利作曲家，傳到德奧。義大利的器樂曲朝三重奏鳴曲發展之際，德奧國家，仍繼續保留了多聲部器樂曲的寫作方式。這從Schmelzer和Biber的器樂曲中，很明顯地看得出來。
Prothimia Suavissima的十二首奏鳴曲，為三或四聲部的曲子，不過和晚期巴洛克曲子不同的是，數字低音不算在其中聲部之一。Bertali本身是位傑出的小提琴家，但在這些奏鳴曲裡，他不會去刻意突顯小提琴的部份。他做的是「顧全大局」的方式，達到各聲部的和諧。Bertali音樂的重點放在兩個高音部和低音部之間的交錯和融合。聲部之間的對位手法，則以模仿式(imitative)為主，而且因為低音部扮演的角色一樣重要，所以所有聲部同時在演奏時，製造出來的是飽滿的聲音與美麗的和聲。
雖說重點不是放在獨奏樂器的個人秀，但有些奏鳴曲仍有將舞台交給單一樂器的時候。這些部份，總是離開不了Stylus Fantasticus的那種仿即興式的自由風格，有些樂句甚至會使人聯想起Bertali在奧地利的晚輩，Biber大師。再者，奏鳴曲不分樂章，但仍分段落。性質不同的段落，對比越大，驚喜也就越大，像是在洗個情緒上的三溫暖。這些奏鳴曲慢的部份比較短，有效地將有張力，較快的部份串在一塊兒，高潮迭起而不鬆散。
Gunar Letzbor領軍的Ars Antiqua Austria，專門挑奧地利的古樂曲目下手。除了Biber之外，當然還有更鮮為人知的音樂，是古樂迷的福氣。Letzbor在早期，曾是Musica Antiqua Koln的成員，對陽剛式的古樂演奏方式完全不陌生。在成立了Ars Antiqua Austria之後，他也將這種理念繼續傳承下去，有時甚至超越Musica Antiqua Koln。
Ars Antiqua Austria選擇的錄音地點在教堂裡，不過他們離麥克風也近，使音樂更具親密感，而且古中提琴的聲音清晰，和小提琴幾乎是可平起平坐。再者，他們伴奏群豐富，有風琴，大鍵琴，archlute，以及低音提琴，基本上囊括了各樂器種類。Ars Antiqua Austria在快的地方可是毫無保留地釋放能量，Hoffman在archlute上的強力撥絃，甚至讓人意想不到。Ars Antiqua Austria在各段落裡的演奏都很專注，很有目標地將音樂持續邁進，並在恰當的地方做出轉折。這好比一波波海浪都打在沙灘上，而不是未到岸邊就先行垮下了。另外，在別的錄音中Ars Antiqua Austria有時數字低音的樂器選擇和演奏方式過於突兀，讓我不能完全接受。這張專輯中，我感覺不到有這個毛病，又是加分的地方。
Bertali甜美的奏鳴曲，加上Ars Antiqua Austria流暢的演出，使這CD變成不可多得的好錄音。
Antonio Bertali is mainly seen as minor one-hit wonder in early music, with his sumptuous Chaconne as a well-recorded piece these days. Therefore, this disc being one of the few devoted entirely to Bertali caught my eye from the start. Furthermore, this disc represents the only disc that has recorded a complete opus, or part of a complete opus. The set of sonatas titled Prothimia Suavissima were published posthumously in 1672, comprising of 2 sets of 12 sonatas. This disc has the entire second part recorded.
We are told that the authenticity of these works has been doubted, because a year before in 1671, a lesser-known composer Samuel Capricornus also had some of his works published posthumously. Believe it or not, 6 of those sonatas coincide completely with the first 6 sonatas on this disc. Capricornus did admit that he modeled many of his instrumental works on Bertali, but on the other hand Bertali being the more famous composer, having the pieces listed as written by the Kapellmeister
must have given it wider circulation. Before the scholars get to the bottom of this, these pieces are attributed to both composers equally.
Not only that, at the time of this writing, I happened to be listening to a newly acquired Schmelzer disc, and one of the sonatas is identical to the 7th sonata on this disc. Consider this something of a complete coincidence, I must now seriously doubt if any of these works in fact come from Bertali at all?
Either way, these sonatas are written in the early Italian sonata models, which evolved out of the polyphonal canzonas. These Italian musical forms were carried across the Alps from the many Italian composers that worked at the German and Austrian courts, such as Buonamente, Marini, Farini, and of course Bertali. While the Italian sonata quickly evolved into the trio sonata, the German-speaking countries were slower to adopt that, retaining the tradition of writing sonatas for many parts.
Even though we are told that Bertali was an outstanding violinist in his own right, these sonatas do not seem to emphasize individual violin playing, as many of his other Italian contemporaries or predecessors did. There are still passages for individual instruments that occasionally evoke those Stylus Fantasticus strokes of Biber, but these sonatas tend to stress the balance of harmony of the parts. The sonatas of Prothimia Suavissima (Sweetest Pleasures) are either written for 3 or 4 parts, with the bass continuo not counted explicitly as one of the parts, which is in tune with the convention of the early Baroque.
The parts blend seamlessly together in the ensemble writing, creating a beautifully rich texture, given the viola da gamba parts to be independent from the continuo, standing as equals among the upper violin parts. Counterpoint sections comes very much in terms of imitative writing, the fast motifs juggled between all the parts. As these sonatas did not have the music broken down into explicit movements, there were multiple sections of contrasting character, allowing musicians to create very different affects in each. I found these Bertali's slower sections to be shorter than most average sonatas
of the same period. Rather than standing on their own, they seemed to be more like interludes to stitch together the faster and more lively sections. I confess that some of the slow sections in early sonatas aren't always as interesting or ear-catching, and my mind can easily wander off.....
Gunar Letzbor, the leader of Ars Antiqua Austria, has a long resume of playing early music, starting with Musica Antiqua Koln in the mid 80s, where he participated in their recording of Bach's orchestral suites and some Telemann concertos. He also played in the Clemencic Consort and Wiener Akademie before he founded Ars Antiqua Austria. In many ways, he has carried on the masculine-sounding approach, sometimes even going beyond that in terms of excitement. One thing for sure, he has a more varied and prominent continuo group, where the archlute can surprise the listeners with some unexpected emphatic chords. The continuo's role sometimes can stand out too much and get too "creative," and I'm not sure I like it quite so much. Good thing is that, I don't find that on this Bertali disc.
Overall, the tempi are taken at a good pace, and the contrasts between sections are not done to an excess. True to their word, Ars Antiqua Austria's playing does strike a nice balance between the parts, both the music and instruments. The miking is close, creating an intimate sound, but more importantly the gamba part is clear and balanced. Solo passages do not turn into individual bravura, but is rather grounded in an ensemble feel. Lastly, their playing struck me as being extremely focused, as there was a clear sense of directing the music and keeping the momentum alive until the resolving into the next section. The aforementioned short slow passages also had me anticipating for their next twist and turn in the music.
Ars Antiqua Austria may not always deliver, as Biberfan has been telling me as of late, and I have a few that are less than spectacular, either due to their choice of music or playing. However, this recording is one that I have enjoyed immensely and would not hesitate to recommend.
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