Viola d'amore
Viola d'amore | |
---|---|
classification |
Chordophone string instrument |
range |
(Normal mood) |
Sound sample |
Ariosti: The Stockholm Sonatas for Viola d'amore Vol. II |
Related instruments |
Gamba , viola , violin , violino d'amore , Hardanger fiddle , viola all'inglese |
Musician | |
List of violinists Category: Violinists |
The viola d'amore is a historical string instrument . It is a little longer and wider than the viola , but is held the same while playing. Usually it has five to seven playing strings and about the same number of sympathetic strings .
Design and sound
The oldest surviving mention of the name Viola d'amore, dates from 1649, when the Hamburg musician Johann Ritter mentioned it in a letter.
Outwardly, the viola d'amore differs from the viola by its ornate body shape and the number of strings and their tuning . The body is structurally closer to that of the viola da gamba family, i.e. That is, like this one, it has blunt C-arms, C-holes instead of F-holes, hanging shoulders and usually a smooth base, which is also curved on some instruments.
The playing strings of the viola d'amore usually consist of gut, the lower strings are usually wound. These give the instrument a bright and silvery sound, which in the 17th and 18th centuries, as the name of the instrument expresses, was characterized as "lovely". This is how Johann Mattheson describes the instrument in his Das neu-opened Orchester (1713) with the words: “Die amliebte Viola d'Amore, Gall. Viole d'Amour, takes the dear name with the deed / and wants to express a lot of languissantes and tendres ... its sound is argentine or silver / dabey extremely pleasant and lovely ... ". Leopold Mozart writes about the viola d'amore in his violin school : "It is a special type of violin that sounds lovely, especially in the quiet of the evening." The sympathetic strings also contribute to the sound , if there are any. The older, northern German instruments (e.g. Joachim Tielke , Hamburg; Christoph Meyer, Danzig ) lack these, while they are a typical feature of the mostly younger, southern German instruments .
The tuning of the strings was never completely uniform and usually depends on the piece of music at hand. Mostly, however, the instrument was tuned in D major (Adad′-fis′-a′-d ″), but also d-f sharp-ad′-fis′-a′-d ″. To simplify the game, scordature is often used, i.e. the tuning is adapted to the key requirements of the piece being played.
The sympathetic strings made of brass or steel are located below the fingerboard and give the viola d'amore a silvery-bright sound that reverberates longer than a violin.
After a heyday from the 17th century to around the end of the 18th century, it was increasingly forgotten. Some instruments were even converted into violas .
Violino d'amore
The violino d'amore is a historical string instrument ; it is the smaller edition of the viola d'amore. The instrument differs from the violin in its design, tuning and especially its sympathetic strings , which cause the notes to resonate for longer.
Works for viola d'amore (selection)
- Attilio Ariosti : some divertimenti as teaching pieces, cantatas
- Johann Sebastian Bach uses two in Arioso No. 19 and Aria No. 20 of his St. John Passion as well as in cantatas 36c and 152
- Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber The VII. Sonata from the Harmonia artificiosa-ariosa collection
- Jean-Marie Leclair : Trio sonata for flute, viola d'amore and bc
- Carl Stamitz : 3 solo concerts and the “Marlborough Sonata” in D major for viola d'amore and violin or viola
- Georg Philipp Telemann : Concerto in E major for flute, oboe d'amore, viola d'amore, strings and bc
- Antonio Vivaldi has written six solo concertos for viola d'amore
At the beginning of the 20th century there was a small renaissance of the viola d'amore.
In some operas the viola d'amore is used in stage music, so in
- Les Huguenots by Giacomo Meyerbeer
- Le juggler de Notre-Dame by Jules Massenet
- Palestrina by Hans Pfitzner
- Madama Butterfly by Giacomo Puccini
There are also works for viola d'amore by modern composers:
- Paul Hindemith (1895–1963): Small Sonata op. 25.2 for viola d'amore and piano as well as chamber music No. 6 op. 46.1 for viola d'amore and chamber orchestra.
- Frank Martin (1890–1974): Sonata da Chiesa for viola d'amore and organ
- Johannes Fritsch (1941–2010): Violectra for viola d'amore and synthesizer
- Georg Friedrich Haas (* 1953): Solo for viola d'amore
There are bibliographies of literature for viola d'amore by Heinz Berck and Michael and Dorothea Jappe, the North German type of the instrument is mainly described by Kai Köpp in his publications.
Online scores
- Partia by Mr. Grobe (around 1700) (voice in scordatura) : sheet music and audio files in the International Music Score Library Project
- Suite: Recueil de piéces pour la Viola d'Amour (Collection of Pieces for Viola d'Amour) by Attilio Ariosti (1666–1729) : sheet music and audio files in the International Music Score Library Project
- Concerto in D minor for viola d'amore, lute and strings RV 540 by Antonio Vivaldi (1678–1741)
- ML Goldis: School for the Viole d'Amour (1916) : Sheet music and audio files in the International Music Score Library Project
literature
- Heinz Berck: The viola d'amore. Self-published, Dreieich 2008, ISBN 978-3-00-023905-2 .
Web links
- International Viola d'amore Society eV (English)
- VioladAmore.com The hidden world of the Viola d'amore (in English)
Individual evidence
- ^ Tiroler Landesmuseum ( Memento from May 8, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Retrieved January 28, 2010
- ↑ Erich Valentin : Handbuch der Musikinstrumentenkunde. Gustav Bosse, Regensburg 1954, p. 426.