- Demarzi-6 Sonatas for Cetra o Kitara

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Pasqualini Demarzi - Six Sonatas for Cetra or Kitara plus a selection of Irish tunes

A difference between Renaissance and 18th-century citterns lies in their music. Historical questions of style aside, there is also the question of a consistently growing amateur market for whom a large amount of music was published. What the instruments have in common is that most of the pieces that have come down to us are very simple settings of popular tunes and dances of the day, often no more than the melody transposed to the most convenient key. More ambitious music for solo Renaissance cittern was written by Paolo Virchi, Anthony Holborne and Thomas Robinson; there is a small body of ensemble music in which the cittern plays an accompanying role, and there are also some duets. There is a lot more to choose from in the 18th century: in addition to Demarzi, Geminiani, Marella, Merchi, and Noferi, J. C. Bach, F. Giardani, F. Giordani, J. Oswald, J. Parry and R. Straube all composed for the instrument, and there are contemporary transcriptions of Handel, Haydn and Mozart as well. Some of the music is solo, with and without basso continuo, some for duets, and some for ensemble, in which the cittern has a principal role.

The British Library catalogue suggests c.1740 as the date of publication for Demarzi's Six Sonatas. John Johnson, the publisher, was active from 1740 until his death in 1762, when his widow apparently took over until 1777. His trade sign 'The Harp and Crown' was in use from 1748 until it was acquired by Longman and Co. in 1767. As the sign appears on Demarzi's title page, the date of publication would most likely fall between 1748-67. Although the British Library date makes sense stylistically, if it is true that the cittern revival Geminiani mentions started around 1750, it would make Demarzi something of a pioneer. Typical of the Gallant style, Demarzi's melodies point to the elegance and clarity of the Classical style, yet with the figuration so typical of the Baroque. The harmony sketched out in the basso continuo does not often display the modulation associated with the Baroque, yet it is not as tonic-dominant oriented as later music. Neither is the harmony so dramatic or dark as Baroque harmony can be: the emphasis is on a pleasant lightness well-suited to the major-chord tuning.

Demarzi seems to have been quite familiar with the cittern. The parallel thirds, slurring, and easily reached full chords emphasizing strong beats or cadences are typical of all but the most elementary music for 18th-century cittern. His music is simple yet effective, making excellent use of what the instrument has to offer - sustain, clarity, varied dynamics and tone colors. He does not venture into upper positions very often, nor uncomfortable keys, like Geminiani; neither does he introduce a consistent bass line, as Straube often does, which can be difficult to execute on such a short-scaled instrument. What is interesting about Demarzi's music is how it lends itself to a type of campanella playing idiomatically suited to the tuning and string length. Most of the music can be played in first position, but if the player moves to fourth or fifth position, the bell-like effect often heard on baroque guitar adds a shimmering quality to the performance, brought out all the more on the iron and brass strings. There are also several instances of doubling notes on fretted and open strings, which again make the most of the instrument's dominant characteristics.

Demarzi did not specify an instrument for realizing his "thorough bass". I chose to work with Andrea for a number of reasons, not the least of which being his expertise and taste in realizing continuo parts. The blend of metal- and gut- strung instruments would have been a typical sound of plucked- string ensembles, and the instruments chosen match each other well in terms of volume and sonority. Most important for me, however, was recreating in some small way a private "chamber" performance by student and master, something that must have taken place almost daily. I had the pleasure of studying with Andrea for several years - his guidance and encouragement have been invaluable, as is his artistic contribution. The vast majority of 18th-century cittern music is in the key of C major, and Demarzi's sonatas are no exception; only the last sonata is in F. The tunes performed between the sonatas, therefore, serve to break the monotony of the key of C and to demonstrate some of the cittern's other voices. Dance tunes like those offered here were typical fare on the cittern of all periods, but the choice is personal. None of these pieces appear in printed versions specifically for the cittern in the 18th century, but all (except "Miss Hamilton ") are typical tunes from Irish traditional playing on other instruments. I put "The Fairy Hornpipe" and "Whiskey You're the Devil" together to mark the half-way point of the recital; the setting of "The Orange Rogue" features a consistent second voice, most often accompanying the melody from below, but occasionally also from above, a technique well-suited to this tuning. The same technique is used in the setting of Cornelius Lyons' "Miss Hamilton", to which I have added variations. This setting is dedicated to Irish scholar, composer and musician Michel O'Silleabhin.

The Instruments

The cittern seems to have started life as a conscious attempt at refashioning the Classical Greek "kithara" to Italian Renaissance taste. The Renaissance cittern had a very shallow body, tapering from the neck (4.5-6cm) to the base (2-2.5cm) and, for the most part, used a re-entrant tuning that was well-suited to playing with a plectrum, and to chording. Instruments typically had from 4 to 6 courses, double- and/or triple strung, sometimes with octaves, sometimes all unisons. Arch-citterns with up to 8 extra basses also existed. Typical fingerboard string lengths were from 44cm to 60cm, although several scholars believe that a much shorter instrument also existed, more suitable for the small but demanding solo repertoire. String length has a distinctive though subtle effect on sound that is easier to hear than to describe - given the same pitch, similar string tension and double-strung courses, a longer string length is somewhat softer, with a characteristic "whoosh" during position changes that can be heard on today's Appalachian dulcimer. The re-entrant tuning necessitates almost constant position changing when playing melodies of any range. The combination of shallow body and longer string length gives the Renaissance cittern a bright, jangling sound, which is further emphasized when it is played with a plectrum.

By the middle of the 18th century there were several sizes and types of cittern, most somewhat different from the typical Renaissance instrument. As the cittern evolved, the body became deeper, eventually tapering from about 5cm at the neck to about 7cm at the base - the opposite direction from the Renaissance cittern. The instrument of the type used on this recording typically had 6 courses (4 double, tuned in unisons, and 2 single basses) tuned to a major chord. The most common size had a string length of about 42cm and was pitched at C. Larger instruments had string lengths of from 46cm to 53cm and would have been pitched at A or G. There were also smaller instruments with string lengths of about 33cm, suggesting they could have been pitched higher. Again, arch-citterns, most often with 5 extra basses, were built, especially in France, as were both 5- and 7-course instruments, with various combinations of single and double courses. Instruction books specify playing with the fingers rather than a plectrum. The cittern with a string length of 42cm, tuned to a C-major chord and played with the fingers has a darker, more sonorous tone than the Renaissance cittern, with an emphasis on mid-range frequencies. It has a buzzing rather than jangling sound, without the "whoosh" typical of some other citterns.

Another difference is the variety of shapes used in the 18th century; whereas the Renaissance cittern was more or less fig- shaped, a form that persisted and dominated into the 18th century and beyond, many examples of 18th-century cittern can be found in the shape of a pear, a figure-eight (like the guitar), an almond (sometimes with a bowled back, like the lute and mandolin), with pointed "shoulders", and even undulating shapes resembling a cloud or shell, reminiscent of the Renaissance Orpharion and Bandora. French makers produced a number of elegant, asymmetrical instruments with extra basses, and others with two necks - one long and one short - for tuning at two different pitches.

The 18th-century cittern is also known as the "English guitar". Why guitar and not cittern? This is not as arbitrary or confusing as it seems because the words "guitar" and "cittern" and their various spellings in other languages and dialects stem from the common root "kithara". At the time, and often in the same publication, this instrument was called guitar, guittar, cittern, cetra, cistre, and many other spellings: in the introductory comments to his last work (1760), The Art of Playing the Guitar or Cittra (sic), Francesco Geminani referred to the cittern as "the lesser Guitar or Citera" (sic); G. B. Marella wrote for "Cetra or Guittar"; Giacomo Merchi's op. XV is for "Chitarra"; he seems to have used this word for the cittern and "guitarre" for the guitar proper; G. B. Noferi uses "Guittar" for op. 3, Cetre for op. 4 (duets), and "Guitar " for op. 12; David Rutherfoord's (sic) instructions are for "Cittern or Guittar "; and of course Demarzi's title page reads "Six Sonatas for the Cetra or Kitara ".

The adjective "English" seems to have been used in the 18th- century to distinguish the cittern-type instrument from other types of guitar when that became necessary. The earliest occurrence that I have been able to find comes from colonial America: on 12 November 1764, and again on 3 August 1767, ex- patriot German Jacob Trippell announced in the New York Gazette that he made and repaired "all sorts of [...] English and Spanish Guittars". Others speak of Italian, French and German guitars as well, not to mention the "Italian pocket guitar". The term "English guitar" is used today by some scholars to distinguish the 18th-century cittern from the Renaissance variety.

The cittern I play on this recording was built by John Preston, who worked in London in the second half of the 18th century. It is a typical instrument of the period, fitted with a watch-key tuning mechanism. It was restored in 1999 by Roberto Gabrielli of Rome. The top was caved in due to broken braces, and the replacement bridge was large, heavy and clumsily made. Roberto replaced the top braces and made a new, more suitable ebony bridge fitted with a bone saddle. Small openings between top and sides were re-glued. An earlier and again rather clumsy repair to the top - a crack that goes with the grain, about 3cm from the edge - was left as is. However, another similar crack in the top, nearer to the center, was closed. There is no rose, and instead the sound hole has been bound.

Andrea plays a five-course guitar made by Parizot a Nantes in 1777, which is tuned with bordone. The archlute was made by Roman liutaio Renzo Zenobi in 2001, and is a copy of an instrument by Matteo Sellas.

The Composer

Almost nothing is known of Pasqualini Demarzi. The family name is common in the Veneto, but whether he came from there and when he went to London is not yet known. The British Library Catalogue of Printed Music lists, in addition to the sonatas recorded here, two collections of Solos for two Violoncellos (op. 1 and 2), with approximate dates of 1750, the first published by Walsh, the second by Johnson. We know from the introduction to his Six Sonatas for the Cetra or Kitara that he enjoyed the patronage of the Countess of Pembroke, but more research needs to be done.

The Recording

As mentioned above, we wanted to recreate a private chamber performance, and in order to do so used only ambient mic placement, each of us sitting about 1.5m away from a pair of Schoeps MK2S mics, which were held on a single stand about 1.3m above the floor. Recording was done direct to disk. We performed in a furnished 5m X 5m room with a relatively high ceiling.

The Performers

Doc Rossi, Cittern (Preston, London, c.1770)
Andrea Damiani, Archlute (Renzo Zenobi, Rome 2001, after Matteo Sellas)
Baroque Guitar (Parizot a Nantes, 1777)
Produced by Doc Rossi and Richard Gibson

Doc Rossi has studied with Andrea Damiani, Christopher Morrongiello, John Renbourn and Richard Strasser. He has performed as a soloist and with various groups across North America and Europe and has recorded in a variety of contexts, playing Early Music, Hawaiian Slack-key guitar and Celtic, Mexican and American dance music. One of only a handful of players who specialize in the cittern, he is involved in recording projects and performances dedicated to 18th-century composers for plucked string instruments. During the 1980s Doc Rossi was resident at London's acclaimed Islington Folk Club and The Last Straw, a London club that featured less traditionally oriented acoustic music. He has appeared at the Hudson River Revival, the Philadelphia Folk Festival, and the National Folk Festival (UK). Also a scholar, Dr. Rossi has published a modern edition of Thomas Robinson's New Citharen Lessons (1609), plus articles dealing with guitar and cittern history, and with Shakespeare, Brecht, and the Beat Generation.

Andrea Damiani studied the lute with Diana Poulton, Anthony Bailes and Hopkinson Smith. He has performed and recorded extensively across Europe and the USA, both as soloist and continuo player on archlute and theorbo. His passion for research on lute history and literature has led him to discover and record some previously unknown sources: J'ay pris amour, devoted to the heart-shaped manuscript preserved in Pesaro, Biblioteca Oliveriana, is the main early lute source before Ottaviano Petrucci's prints; and Folias, containing music from 17th-century central Italian sources for archlute, theorbo and guitar, among them a recently found manuscript containing unknown guitar pieces by Giovanni Paolo Foscrini. He has also recorded a CD dedicated to Il Fronimo of Vincenzo Galilei. Mr. Damiani has been invited to teach at several international early music courses, such as those held in Chiusi della Verna, Erice, Lanciano, and by the Cini Foundation of Venice. He regularly teaches at the International Summer Course held in Urbino. He is Lute Instructor at the Conservatorio S. Cecilia in Rome, and the author of Method for Renaissance Lute, published by Ut- Orpheus.

Album Contents:

Sonata I:
1. Sostenuto
2. Aria
3. Minuet
4. The Musical Priest (trad. arr. Rossi)

Sonata II:
5. Moderato
6. Largo
7. Allegro
8. Minuet
9. The Rights of Man (trad. arr. Rossi)

Sonata III:
10. Moderato
11. Largo
12. Grazioso
13. The Fairy Hornpipe - Whisky You're the Devil (trad. arr. Rossi)

Sonata IV:
14. Siciliana
15. Grazioso
16. Minuet
17. The Orange Rogue (trad. arr. Rossi)

Sonata V:
18. Largo
19. Allegro
20. Minuet
21. Rodney's Glory (trad. arr. Rossi)

Sonata VI:
22. Largo
23. Allegro
24. Minuet
25. Miss Hamilton (Cornelius Lyons, 1706, arr. Rossi) Dedicated to Micheal O'Suilleabhain.

Notes by Doc Rossi
Produced by Doc Rossi and Richard Gibson
Recording engineered by Andrea Damiani
Post-production engineering by Kevin Herring
Six Sonatas for the Cetra or Kitara by Pasqualini Demarzi
Cittern: Doc Rossi
Archlute and Baroque Guitar: Andrea Damiani