Passacaglia

A passacaglia is a short, usually slow, and often grave musical work in any metre. The musical form originated in early seventeenth-century Spain.

Origins and features

The term "passacaglia" ( _es. pasacalle; French: passacaille; Italian: passacaglia, passacaglio, passagallo, passacagli, passacaglie) derives from the Spanish "pasar" (to walk) and "calle" (street). It originated as a "rasgueado" (strummed) interlude between instrumentally accompanied dances or songs, first found in an Italian source dated 1606. [Hudson 1971, 364] In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the word came to mean a set of ground-bass or ostinato variations, usually of a serious character. [Silbiger 2001] The melodic pattern—usually four, six or eight bars long—repeats without change through the duration of the piece, while the upper lines are varied freely, over the bass pattern serving as a harmonic anchor. The passacaglia is closely related to the chaconne, except that the former (in eighteenth-century French practice) leans more strongly to the melodic basso ostinato, while the chaconne, "in a reversal of the [seventeenth-century] Italian practice, in various respects undergoes a freer treatment". [Fischer 1968, 34] The seventeenth-century chaconne, as found paradigmatically in Frescobaldi's music, more often than not is in a major key, while the passacaglia is usually in a minor key. [Silbiger 1996, §6] Late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century theorists attempted to formally differentiate the chaconne and passacaglia, but often came to opposite conclusions. For example, Percy Goetschius held that the chaconne is usually based on a harmonic sequence with a recurring soprano melody, and the passacaglia was formed over a ground bass pattern, [Goetschius 1915, 29 and 40] whereas Clarence Lucas defined the two forms in precisely the opposite way. [Lucas 1908, 203] By the middle of the twentieth century, it was generally recognized that "composers often used the terms chaconne and passacaglia indiscriminately and modern attempts to arrive at a clear distinction are arbitrary and historically unfounded". [Bukofzer 1947, 42] More recently, some progress has been made toward making a useful distinction for the usage of the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries, where some composers (notably Frescobaldi and François Couperin) deliberately mix the two genres in the same composition. [Silbiger 1996]

In modern music, the term "passacaglia" is often used to denote a piece that does not necessarily conform to the baroque ideal of the form, but which has a more or less fixed bass pattern (ground bass) or chord progression, sometimes both, that is repeated consecutively throughout most or all of the piece. Sometimes it departs entirely from the form, but retains its essentially grave character, as do, for example, the passacaglias of Shostakovich.

Composers

One of the best known examples of the passacaglia in Western classical music is the Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor, BWV 582 for organ by Johann Sebastian Bach. The French clavecinists, especially Louis Couperin and his nephew François Couperin, were noted for their use of the "passecaille" form, even though they tended to deviate from the passacaglia form, often assuming a form of recurring episodes in rondo. Other examples are the organ passacaglias of Dieterich Buxtehude, Johann Pachelbel, Sigfrid Karg-Elert, Johann Kaspar Kerll, Daniel Gregory Mason, Georg Muffat, Gottlieb Muffat, Johann Kuhnau, Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, Juan Cabanilles, Bernardo Pasquini, Max Reger, and Ralph Vaughan Williams.

The central episode of Claudio Monteverdi's madrigal "Lamento della Ninfa" is a passacaglia on a descending tetrachord. The first two movements of the fourth sonata from Johann Heinrich Schmelzer's "Sonatæ unarum fidium" are passacaglias on a descending tetrachord, but in uncharacteristic major.

The fourth movement of Luigi Boccherini's Quintettino No. 6, Op. 30, (also known as "Musica notturna delle strade di Madrid") is titled "Passacalle".

There are such ensemble examples of the form as the "passacaille" "Les plaisirs ont choisi" from Jean-Baptiste Lully's opera "Armide" (1686) and Dido's lament, "When I am Laid in Earth", in Henry Purcell's "Dido and Aeneas", and others, such as the aria "Piango, gemo, sospiro" by Antonio Vivaldi, or "Usurpator tiranno" and "Stabat Mater" by Giovanni Felice Sances, et al.

Nineteenth-century examples include the C-minor passacaglia for organ by Felix Mendelssohn, and the finale of Josef Rheinberger's Eighth Organ Sonata. Perhaps the most frequently heard passacaglia is the finale of Johannes Brahms's "Symphony No. 4". [Although Brahms did not call it a passacaglia, it follows the conventions of a passacaglia, and the repeated figure is based on one found in Bach's [Cantata No. 150, "Nach dir, Herr, verlanget mich".] The last movement of George Frideric Handel's Hapsichord Suite in G minor (HWV 432) is a passacaglia which has become well known as a duo for violin and viola, arranged by the Norwegian violinist Johan Halvorsen. The first movement of Hans Huber's Piano Concerto No. 3 op. 113 (1899) is a passacaglia. [Murtomäki 2008]

Passacaglias for lute have been composed by figures such as Alessandro Piccinini, G. H. Kapsberger, Sylvius Leopold Weiss, Esaias Reussner, Count Logy, Robert de Visée, Jacob Bittner, Philipp Franz Lesage De Richee, Gleitsmann, Dufaut, Gallot, Denis Gautier, Ennemond Gautier, Roman Turovsky-Savchuk and Maxym Zvonaryovl a passacaglia for bandura by Julian Kytasty, and for baroque guitar by Paulo Galvão, Santiago de Murcia, Antonio de Santa Cruz, Francisco Guerau, Gaspar Sanz, and Marcello Vitale.

Modern examples

The passacaglia proved an enduring form throughout the twentieth century and beyond. In mid-century, one writer stated that "despite the inevitable lag in the performance of new music, there are more twentieth-century passacaglias in the active repertory of performers than baroque works in this form". [Stein 1959, 150] Notable modern examples of the passacaglia form include the following (in chronological order of composition):

* Georg Schumann, "Passacaglia über B-A-C-H", op. 39, for organ (ca. 1900)
* Max Reger, Introduction, Passacaglia and Fugue in B minor, op. 96, for 2 pianos (1906)
* Anton Webern, Passacaglia Op. 1 (1908)
* Gustav Holst, first movement of "First Suite in E♭ Major for Military Band" (1909).
* Daniel Gregory Mason, Passacaglia and Fugue, op.10, for organ (1912)
* Arnold Schoenberg, "Nacht" from Pierrot Lunaire (1912)
* Max Reger, Introduction, Passacaglia, and Fugue in E Minor, op. 127, for organ (1913)
* Ernő Dohnányi, tenth variation of Variations on a Nursery Theme, op. 25 (1914)
* Maurice Ravel, third movement of Trio in A minor (1914)
* Paul Hindemith, Sonata for viola solo, op. 11, no. 5, last movement (1919)
* Aaron Copland's Passacaglia (1922)
* Paul Hindemith, String Quartet No. 5, op. 32 (1923) last movement
* Alban Berg, Wozzeck act I, scene 4 (1925)
* Leopold Godowsky's Passacaglia (44 variations, cadenza and fugue on the opening of Schubert's Unfinished Symphony) (1927)
* Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji's Opus Clavicembalisticum contains a Passacaglia (1929-30)
* Frank Bridge, "Lento e ritmico" from "Oration" for cello and orchestra (1930)
* Leo Sowerby, Symphony in G for organ, third movement (1930)
* Sigfrid Karg-Elert, "Passacaglia and Fugue on B-A-C-H", op. 150, for organ (1931)
* Ralph Vaughan Williams, "Passacaglia on B–G–C", for organ (1933)
* Stefan Wolpe, "Zwei Studien" for orchestra, second movement (1933)
* Stefan Wolpe, "Four Studies on Basic Rows" for piano, no. 4 (1935–36); arr. as Passacaglia for orchestra (1937)
* Paul Hindemith, Passacaglia from "Nobilissima Visione" (1938)
* Ralph Vaughan Williams, Symphony No. 5 in D: Movement 4, Passacaglia (1938-43).
* Benjamin Britten, Concerto for Violin and Orchestra, op. 15, third movement (1939).
* Harold Morris, Passacaglia and Fugue, for orchestra (1939).
* Rebecca Helferich Clarke, "Passacaglia on an Old English Tune" for Viola and Piano (1940-1941).
* Dmitri Shostakovich, Symphony No. 8, fourth movement (1943).
* Benjamin Britten, "Serenade for Tenor, Horn, and Strings", op. 31 “Dirge” (1943)
* Walter Piston, Passacaglia for piano (1943).
* Hans Krása, Passacaglia and Fugue, for string trio (1944).
* Frank Martin, Passacaglia for large orchestra (1944).
* Dmitri Shostakovich, Second Piano Trio, third movement (1944).
* William Walton, "The Death of Falstaff", from Henry V (1944 film), also featured in Ken Burns' The War (documentary).
* Benjamin Britten, "The Holy Sonnets of John Donne", op. 35 (1945) “Death Be Not Proud”.
* Benjamin Britten, Passacaglia interlude from the opera Peter Grimes (1945), often performed separately.
* Benjamin Britten, String Quartet No. 2, in C, op. 36, third movement "Chacony" (1945), (commemorating the 250th anniversary of the death of Henry Purcell).
* Ellis B. Kohs, Passacaglia for organ and strings (1946).
* Dmitri Shostakovich, String Quartet No.3 in F, op. 73, fifth movement (1946)
* Benjamin Britten, "The Rape of Lucretia", op. 37 (1946–47) (dramatic passacaglia after Lucretia’s suicide).
* Benjamin Britten, "Albert Herring", op. 39 (1946–47), second-act septet.
* Dmitri Shostakovich, First Violin Concerto, third movement (1947-1948).
* William Schuman, Symphony No. 6 (1948).
* Benjamin Britten, "Billy Budd", op. 50 (1950–51) (cabin scene).
* Dmitri Shostakovich, 24 Preludes and Fugues, op. 87, No. 12 in G-sharp minor, Prelude (1950-1951)
* Miloslav Kabeláč, "Mystery of Time, Passacaglia for large orchestra" (1953-1957)
* Benjamin Britten, "The Turn of the Screw", op. 54 (1954), final variation
* Witold Lutosławski's Concerto for Orchestra, 3rd movement, "Passacaglia, Toccata E Corale" (1954)
* Harry Somers, Passacaglia and Fugue, for orchestra (1954)
* Harold Morris, Passacaglia, Adagio, and Finale, for orchestra (1955)
* Ned Rorem, Symphony No. 3, first movement (1958)
* William Walton, Symphony No. 2, finale (1957–60)
* Paul Hindemith, Octet for winds and strings (1958), second and last movements
* Andrzej Dobrowolski, "Passacaglia" for tape (1960)
* Ronald Stevenson's "Passacaglia on DSCH" (1960-62)
* Carlos Chávez, Symphony No. 6, last movement (1961)
* Benjamin Britten's "Nocturnal after John Dowland" for guitar (1963) concludes with a passacaglia followed by the Dowland theme
* Benjamin Britten, Symphony for Cello and Orchestra, op. 68 (1963–64)
* Don Ellis, "Passacaglia and Fugue" by , from "Don Ellis Live at Monterey" (1966)
* Benjamin Britten, Suite No. 2 for unaccompanied cello, op. 80, fifth movement "Ciaconna" (1967)
* Alfred Reed, "Passacaglia", for band (1968)
* Dmitri Shostakovich, Symphony No. 15, central episode of the final movement (1971)
* Ralph Shapey, String Quartet No. 7, fourth movement (1972)
* Benjamin Britten, Suite No. 3 for unaccompanied cello, op. 87, ninth movement "Passacaglia" (1972)
* Benjamin Britten, String Quartet No. 3, op. 94, fifth movement "Recitative and Passacaglia (La Serenissima)" (1975)
* György Ligeti, "Hungarian Rock (Chaconne)", for harpsichord (1978)
* György Ligeti, "Passacaglia ungherese" for harpsichord (1978)
* Andrzej Dobrowolski, "Music for Orchestra No. 5: Passacaglia" (1979)
* William Walton, Passacaglia for solo cello (1979–80)
* Alfred Schnittke, Passacaglia for large symphony orchestra (1979-80)
* José Antonio Rezende Almeida Prado, "Concerto Fribourgeois" (1985), Second Movement
* Aaron Jay Kernis, Passacaglia-Variations, for viola and piano (1985)
* Witold Lutosławski, Piano Concerto, last movement (1987-88)
* Aldo Clementi, Passacaglia, for flute and tape (1988)
* Mark Alburger, "Deploration Passacaglias", for keyboard, op. 43 (1992), 23 movements memorializing composers from Johannes Ockeghem to Leonard Bernstein.
* György Ligeti, Violin Concerto fourth movement (1992)
* Aldo Clementi, Studio per una passacaglia, for tape (1993)
* John Harbison, Waltz-Passacaglia in E minor, for orchestra (1996)
* Aldo Clementi, Passacaglia 2, for alto flute, horn, trumpet, strings, and piano (1997)
* "Sloth: Passacaglia/A Bud And A Slice", from Joe Jackson, Heaven and Hell (1997)
* Cliff Martinez "Wear Your Seatbelt", from the music for the film of the same title [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0307479/ Solaris] (2002)
* Bear McCreary, "Passacaglia" (and variations such as "The Shape of Things to Come" and "Allegro"), "A Promise to Return", and "Violence and Variations", from the Sci-fi Channel's original series "Battlestar Galactica" (2005)
* Roberto Sierra, Symphony No. 2 ("Gran Passacaglia") (2005)
* Scott Glasgow, "Murder Passacaglia" from the film score to "Chasing Ghosts" (2005) with expanded variations in all the "murder scenes" throughout the film.
* Jóhann Jóhannsson, "Passacaglia" (2006)

Citations

Bibliography

*Bukofzer, Manfred. 1947. "Music in the Baroque Era". New York: W. W. Norton.
* Fischer, Kurt von. 1958. "Chaconne und Passacaglia: Ein Versuch". "Revue Belge de Musicologie" / "Belgisch Tijdschrift voor Muziekwetenschap" 12:19–34.
* Goetschius, Percy. 1915. "The Larger Forms of Musical Composition: An Exhaustive Explanation of the Variations, Rondos, and Sonata Designs, for the General Student of Musical Analysis, and for the Special Student of Structural Composition". [New York] : G. Schirmer.
* Handel, Darrell. 1970. "Britten's Use of the Passacaglia", "Tempo", new series no. 94 (Autumn): 2–6.
* Henderson, Lyn. 2000. "Shostakovich and the Passacaglia: Old Grounds or New?" "Musical Times" 141, no. 1870 (Spring): 53–60.
* Hudson, Richard. 1970. "Further Remarks on the Passacaglia and Ciaconna". "Journal of the American Musicological Society" 23, no. 2 (Summer): 302–14.
* Hudson, Richard. 1971. "The Ripresa, the Ritornello, and the Passacaglia." "Journal of the American Musicological Society" 24, no. 3 (Autumn): 364–94.
* Lucas, Clarence. 1908. "The Story of Musical Form". The Music Story Series, edited by Frederick J. Crowest. London: The Walter Scott Publishing Co., Ltd.; New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons.
* Murtomäki, Veijo. 2008. [http://muhi.siba.fi/muhi/bin/view/Articles/rom_konsertto6?s= Pianokonserttoja Lisztin ja Brahmsin välissä] . Helsinki: Sibelius-Akatemia. fi icon Retrieved on 29 January 2008.
* Silbiger, Alexander. 1996. " [http://sscm-jscm.press.uiuc.edu/v2/no1/silbiger.html Passacaglia and Ciaccona: Genre Pairing and Ambiguity from Frescobaldi to Couperin] ". "Journal of Seventeenth-Century Music" 2, no. 1.
* Silbiger, Alexander. 2001. "Passacaglia". "The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians", ed. S. Sadie and J. Tyrrell. London: Macmillan.
* Stein, Leon. 1959. "The Passacaglia in the Twentieth Century". "Music and Letters" 40, no. 2 (April): 150–53.
* Walker, Thomas. 1968. "Ciaccona and Passacaglia: Remarks on Their Origin and Early History". "Journal of the American Musicological Society" 21, no. 3 (Autumn): 300–320.

External links

* [http://polyhymnion.org/swv/ostinato.html Passacaglias and Chaconnes for Lute]
* [http://polyhymnion.org/adc/music-download.htm Passacaglias and Chaconnes for Baroque Guitar]
* [http://bach.nau.edu/BWV582/BWV582b.html Analysis of Passacaglia and fugue by J. S. Bach]