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Johann Caspar KERLL (1627 - 1693): "Complete Harpsichord and Organ Music"
Matteo Messori, harpsichorda, organb;
Łukasz Dulewicz, altoc
rec: August 2012, Bologna, Sala Vasaria; Vormbach am Inn, Pfarrkirche Mariä Himmelfahrtb
Brilliant Classics - 94452 (© 2021) (2.52'59")
Liner-notes: E
Cover, track-list & booklet
Scores
Spotify
Battagliab;
Canzone Ib;
Canzone IIa;
Canzone IIIa;
Canzone IVb;
Canzone Va;
Canzone VIa;
Capriccio sopra il Cucua;
Ciaconaa;
Magnificat 1. tonibc [1];
Magnificat 2. tonibc [1];
Magnificat 3. tonibc [1];
Magnificat 4. tonibc [1];
Magnificat 5. tonibc [1];
Magnificat 6. tonibc [1];
Magnificat 7. tonibc [1];
Magnificat 8. tonibc [1];
Passacagliaa;
Rycercata in Cylindrum phonotacticum transferendaa;
Suite in Da;
Suite in Fa;
Suite in Ga;
Suite in a minora;
Toccata Ia;
Toccata IIa;
Toccata IIIa;
Toccata IV (cromatica con durezze e ligature)a;
Toccata V (tutta de salti)a;
Toccata VI (per il pedale)b;
Toccata VIIa;
Toccata VIIIa
Source:
[1] Modulatio organica super Magnificat octo Ecclesiaticis tonis respondens, 1686
Johann Caspar Kerll is especially known for his organ works and for one of his masses, the Missa In fletu solatium obsidionis Viennensis, written during the Turkish siege of Vienna in 1683, which Kerll experienced at first hand. As far as the former are concerned, the term 'organ music' is not entirely correct. Many pieces which are often played at the organ, can also be performed at the harpsichord, as Matteo Messori demonstrates in his complete recording of Kerll's keyboard oeuvre.
Kerll was born into a Protestant family in Bohemia. He became organist at the court of archduke Leopold Wilhelm in Vienna, which probably led to his conversion to Catholicism. He received lessons from the imperial Hofkapellmeister Giovanni Valentini. He was sent to Rome to study with Carissimi; there he composed his earliest works. In 1656 he became Hofkapellmeister at the court of the Bavarian elector Ferdinand Maria in Munich, where he stayed until 1673. His reputation became such that he received various gratuities and was even given noble rank by emperor Leopold I in 1664. From 1677 on he was organist at the imperial court in Vienna. Kerll has influenced next generations of composers and musicians. Agostino Steffani was one of his pupils. His compositions seem to have been known by the likes of Krieger, Handel and Johann Sebastian Bach.
Interestingly, Messori, in his liner-notes, mentions that there was a reason that in 1673 Kerll left his post in Munich. "[It] was on account of a major controversy with the Italian court singers, who simply could not and would not accept the unusual intervals and audacious passages that disregarded the conventionally accepted rules of composition." The above-mentioned mass of 1683 gives us some idea about his treatment of harmony. It is clear that he was an independent mind. That does not mean that he was not influenced by composers of previous generations. In the realm of keyboard music two names need to be mentioned: Girolamo Frescobaldi and Johann Jacob Froberger.
The former has left his marks in the works that are often played at the organ: the toccatas and canzonas and some separate pieces. None of these were published; they have been preserved in manuscript in a number of sources. Messori states that for his recording he used more than thirty different sources. That tells us something about the dissemination of Kerll's keyboard works, reflecting his status as a keyboard player and composer.
One feature of the toccatas is the contrasts between sections, in the tradition of the stylus phantasticus. Messori mentions several particular characteristics of Kerll's toccatas: long trill passages, often in both hands at the same time, double passages in the same hand where there is not only a trill but also a melodic development in another voice, and rapid successions of descending octaves. The eight toccatas correspond to the eight modes in use at the time. This is one of the things that makes each of them different from the others. There are other features as well. The Toccata IV, with the addition cromatica con durezze e ligature is in the tradition of Italian organ music, and it may be a little surprising that Messori decided to play it at the harpsichord. That creates a nice alternative to existing recordings; I personally would prefer a performance at the organ. Although all the toccatas can be played either at the organ or the harpsichord, the Toccata VI per il pedale is specifically intended for the organ. The reason is that the lowest part includes pedal points that cannot be realized on a strung keyboard instrument.
The toccatas are followed by six canzonas. They are written in various modes, but not as the toccatas: the Canzona III is in the first mode, and Canzona VI in the eighth mode. They again are influenced by Frescobaldi, but here also Froberger has played a role, for instance in the closing with a ternary dance in two of them. Another feature is the fast repetition of a single note, something that can also be found in keyboard works by other south-German composers.
Pieces based on a basso ostinato were very popular in the 17th century across Europe. They can be found in numerous Italian works of different genres, from vocal works to keyboard pieces, and were a fixed part of the operas by Jean-Baptiste Lully. Two specimens are included in Kerll's keyboard oeuvre, a passacaglia and a ciaccona, both influenced by Frescobaldi. Imitations of various kinds were also frequently written into instrumental and keyboard music. Birds were a rich source of inspiration, and one of the main was the cuckoo. Handel composed an organ concerto with imitations of this bird, and in the 17th century Kerll was one of several composers who imitated it in a keyboard work. Again, his model was Frescobaldi.
Another popular genre in Kerll's time was the battaglia. The best-known specimen of it is an instrumental piece by Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber. The piece included here is sometimes performed as a work by the Spanish composer Juan Cabanilles, as in two sources it is attributed to him. However, it is included in the work catalogue Kerll put together himself. It is played here for the first time in the complete version as it appears in a manuscript in the Benedict Abbey of Göttweig. This is also the only source which offers the probably correct order of the various sections. It is mostly played on the organ, but it does well on the harpsichord, as this recording shows.
Obviously, the four suites are exclusively intended for the harpsichord. Here the influence of Froberger manifests itself. Kerll follows his model in the order of the pieces: allemande, courante, sarabande, gigue. The suites in D and in F include these four sections, whereas in the suites in A minor and in G the concluding gigue is omitted. Instead, in them each section is followed by embellished variations on the respective dances, called Partita.
The last harpsichord work is the Rycercata in Cylindrum phonotacticum transferenda. It is included in Musurgia universalis by Athanasius Kircher, published in Rome in 1650, as an illustration of how a composition could be transferred onto a cylinder devised for an automatic instrument. There it is attributed to Kerll, but the piece is also included in manuscripts with ricercars by Alessandro Poglietti. It does not appear in Kerll's own catalogue, and the question of its authenticity cannot be solved.
The last section of this recording is devoted to alternatim settings of the Magnificat. In the 'complete' recordings of the organ works that I am aware of, they are not included. I have no idea what the reason may be. The Modulatio organica was written as a gift for the Austrian Duchess Maria Antonia on the occasion of her marriage to the Elector of Bavaria. The eight settings are connected to the modes; this also means that the plainchant is different in each case. Each setting opens with the plainchant "Magnificat", sung here by the alto Łukasz Dulewicz, followed by an organ verse on "Anima mea". Here Kerll uses the plainchant melody as cantus firmus in the upper voice. Each setting ends with the last part of the doxology: "Sicut erat in principio, et nunc et semper, et in saecula saeculorum. Amen." However, it would be unusual to end with plainchant. Therefore each Magnificat ends with a versus ultimus loco Antiphonae. The Magnificat was always preceded by an antiphon, which was to be repeated after it; the repetition could also be substituted by a different vocal or instrumental work; the latter is the case here.
Messori uses four different instruments in this recording. The organ work are performed on an instrument by Johann Ignaz Egedacher (1732), adapted by Johann Adam Ehrlich in 1828 and restored in 2009. Its pitch is a=465, the temperament Werckmeister III. Two harpsichords are copies of Italian instruments of the 17th century, one is a copy of a harpsichord from southern France, whose year of building is not mentioned (probably not known, as is the name of the builder). These turn out to be very apprpriate instruments for Kerll's keyboard music. In some of the pieces played on the harpsichord I would prefer the organ, but that is largely a matter of taste. By playing them on the harpsichord, Messori offers an alternative to most recordings that are already available. It is a bit of a mystery why this recording from 2012 was released as late as 2021, especially as it may well be the only really complete performance of Kerll's oeuvre for keyboard. Messori is a highly competent performer, who has thoroughly researched the repertoire and the performance practice of the time, several aspects of which he discusses in the booklet. His performances are excellent, and exciting to ears that are especially sensitive to this period in music history. This is fascinating repertoire, Kerll was a top-class composer, and each piece has something special to offer. The fine singing of Łukasz Dulewicz is a nice bonus, making sure that the Magnificat settings keep their liturgical character.
Johan van Veen (© 2024)
Relevant links:
Matteo Messori
Łukasz Dulewicz