Mrs. Philarmonica

Mrs Philarmonica (* uncertain: 17th Century; † uncertain: the 18th century) was a pseudonym for a composer of the late Baroque .

An anonymous baroque composer

Under the pseudonym "Mrs Philarmonica" hides a late Baroque composer whose identity is unknown. She became known in London through two printed editions of a total of twelve trio sonatas (parts I and II) , which have been preserved in the British Library , London (call number: g.1032). The publication date of the print is nowhere given, but is estimated to be "around 1715". The life dates of the publisher Richard Meares , a viol player (approx. 1647–1725) are a clue. The female pseudonym “Philarmonica”, derived from Greek, should specifically point to a musical background in the sense of an academic training, translated: friend of harmony. One can only speculate about the reason for publishing anonymously. Either the musician herself wanted to hide her name for whatever reason, or someone else organized this print edition during or after her lifetime and did not want to name the author. The question of whether a male composer is hiding behind it should hardly arise, because there was no sensible reason for a female pseudonym for a composer at the time - such as better salability, the considerable costs of printing should be covered. The salutation "Mrs." suggests a married woman, probably from wealthy circles or under the protection of a sponsor who considered her work worthy of being published.

The sonatas

The twelve four-movement sonatas by the composer “Mrs Philarmonica” are composed for two upper voices (“ violins ”) with accompaniment of a basso continuo (bc). On the original title page of the London publisher Richard Meares , the bc is given as " violone o cimbalo " ( bass viol or harpsichord ). However, the continuo part itself is labeled " Organo " (organ). A total of three voices ( trio ) thus participate in the execution of the sonatas, whereby the bc, the lowest voice, can be assigned variably so that more than three musicians can participate. The trios show a well-developed, partly virtuoso contrapuntal movement with skilful harmonic developments and suggest a thorough training. In the first part of the trio sonatas, the composer gives a practical example of the variable line-up of the bc:

Instrumentation for the bass part

As can be seen in the modern new edition, the first six sonatas (part I) are not only more virtuosic than the sonatas of the second part, but also show a special feature: the numbered basso continuo ( numbered = with numbers for the chords of the harpsichord, the organ or lute) is played around with an additional " violoncello obbligato " part so that two independent instrumental parts are available for the simultaneous performance of the bc, for the chord instrument harpsichord or organ (left hand bass line, right hand chords) so an additional, virtuoso cello or a viol.

Corelli's example

Mrs Philarmonica's sonatas all begin with an Adagio or Largo movement based on the model of the Italian Sonata da chiesa by Arcangelo Corelli , which was exemplary in Europe at the time. The Richard Meres publishing house has published an edition of Corelli's sonatas op. The name " violono o [or] cimbalo " also refers to the example of Corellis in Mrs Philarmonica's name .

Richard Meares

The London music publisher Richard Meares was one of the publishers of the works of George Frideric Handel , where he worked with Handel friend Christopher Smith. Meares must have been a virtuoso gambist, "a famous division de viol ", the English equivalent of a viola bastarda , a virtuoso viol for figurative playing, goes back to him. In the first part of her trios, the composer could possibly have thought of the virtuoso art of her viol-playing publisher. However, the great time of the English viol playing lay in the last 17th century, and the more agile cello now replaced the viol.

Works

Reprint:

Mrs. Philarmonica, 12 trio sonatas for 2 violins and bc , or violoncello obligato and bc (assumed publication around 1715). Furore Edition 448, Kassel 2004, ISMN M-50012-948-6.

literature

• Annette Otterstedt : The viol. Cultural history and practical guide . Bärenreiter Kassel etc. 1994, ISBN 3-7618-1152-7 .

Remarks

1. ↑ See foreword by Elke Maria Umbach, in: Mrs. Philarmonica, 12 Trio Sonatas for 2 Violins and Bc (1715). Furore Edition 448, Kassel 2004.
2. ↑ See Furore Edition of the Sonatas.
3. ^ Arcangelo Corelli, op. V, dedicated in 1700 to Sophie Charlotte von Prussia and published as a reprint by Richard Meares in London.
4. ↑ Annette Otterstedt: The viol. Cultural history and practical advice , pp. 124–126.
5. ↑ Annette Otterstedt: The viol . Pp. 121-124. On Richard Meares and details of his instrument: pp. 204/205, on viola bastarda: pp. 121–124.

Web links

Viol by Richard Meares , publisher of the trio sonatas, on metmuseum.org.