Grace Notes

Performing Handel’s L’Allegro : An Interview With Filippo Ciabatti

DONNA REILLY

DR: If we listen to more than one recording of Handel’s L’Allegro, Il Penseroso ed Il Moderato, we discover there are many different interpretations of this work. There are even several concerti grossi added to some performances. Why is that, and how are you planning to do it?

The performance of this piece is very complicated.  Sometimes the Moderato part is left out entirely. Handel created many arias for whomever was around then. We  think that, at some point, he may have added some Italian arias for a castrato he was working with at the time. But we also think it’s possible that some things were made for the improvement of the piece itself. The point is, we don’t have a definitive version of this piece, and that’s why you’re going to hear a variety of versions. Some conductors decide, for one reason or another, to cut certain arias or do them in a different way, etc.

Now, as for the concerti grossi, everything has changed from Handel’s time of course. At that time, concerts were very long, and so, to get people’s money’s worth, Handel would add other music to play in between the parts. That’s not relevant for today’s performances, because they’re much shorter. So we won’t perform any concerti grossi between the parts; the piece itself is long enough for a performance today. But what I am considering doing is—because the piece doesn’t have an overture—it might be appropriate to add a movement from one of the concertos at the beginning. It would be historically right to do so.

Amanda Forsythe, who will be singing in this performance, is world-renowned as an incredibly gifted and talented soprano who has sung this music many times. Will you be working with her any special way?

I won’t work with her any differently. We’re extremely excited to have Amanda here. It’s a great honor and a rare occasion to hear such a person doing what she does so well. But it’s a professional relationship when you work with someone like Amanda. She is so knowledgeable, accomplished, and experienced that you have that sort of professional respect that you owe to someone of that stature. But it’s a respect that I feel I owe to all the musicians who work here. So, no, I think we’re just going to work in the same way—and I’m looking forward to that.

How large will this orchestra be?

It’s a full orchestra. The use of instrumentation in this piece is extremely interesting and varied. There are many pieces for solo instruments: a flute solo, a solo horn, and a solo gamba. At one point, there is even the mention of a contrabassoon. The score asks, frankly, for musicians to improvise cadenzas in many different places. I think Handel was really connected to nature, and this inspired him to really explore the full range of how nature could be reflected in instrumentation. You hear that in many of the arias.

What else would you like to say?

I’d like to thank everyone for their support, and to invite everybody to come and hear this incredible piece of music by one of the most beloved composers of all time. In addition, you will have, as usual, the pleasure of hearing the high artistry of our musicians, and the incredible opportunity of hearing one of the leading soprano soloists in the Baroque world.