DX 224586

Abstract Page 2
Abstract
Discussions of Heinrich Biber's violin music to date have focused predominantly

on its use (or otherwise) of virtuosity at the expense of other aspects; when
rhetoric is taken as a departure point in this repertoire, a broader, more context-
based interpretation is possible.
Chapter 1 explores the rhetorical background, the role of rhetoric in society, the
education system, and music theory of the period, and situates Biber in relation
to these. The rhetorical style category phantasia, and its musical counterpart, the
stylus phantasticus, are related to contemporary instrumental music, especially
Biber's violin music. Biber's written Latin and German dedications to his music
collections are analysed in Chapter 2: the use of rhetoric to express meaning in
these dedications highlights important aspects of the music.
Chapters 3, 4 and 5 explore the violin music. The sacred violin music—the
Mystery Sonatas—is discussed in Chapter 3, which highlights the symbols and
images associated with the rhetorical and devotional context as exemplified by
contemporary artistic representations, rosary psalters, and other liturgical texts.
Chapters 4 and 5 discuss the remaining violin music, which is not specifically
sacred, in terms of musical style, and particularly the use of the stylus
phantasticus. Appendix A contains transcriptions and translations of the written
dedications, and editions of those previously unpublished compositions discussed
in Chapter 5 are given in Appendix B.
Contents 3
Contents
Listof Abbreviations ................................................................................................6
Listof illustrations, Figures and Tables ...................................................................7
Preface ...................................................................................................................... 8
Introduction: Literature Survey ........................................................................... 12
1 The Rhetorical Background.................................................................... 30
1.1 Rhetoric and Society..................................................................................31

1.1.1 Rhetoric and the Education System: Biber Among the Jesuits .................32
1.2 Rhetoric and Music....................................................................................39

1.2.1 Early Sources for Musical Rhetoric...........................................................40
1.2.2 The Musical-Rhetorical Writings of Biber's Colleagues ..........................42
1.2.3 The Stylus phantasticus as a Rhetorical Style Category............................51
1.2.4 The Relationship Between Music and Rhetoric: Theory or Practice'?.......61
2 Rhetoric, Style, and Meaning in Biber's Written Dedications............63
2.1 The Dedications.........................................................................................63
2.2 Analysis of the Dedications.......................................................................64

2.2.1 The Mystery Sonatas (1670s) ....................................................................64
2.2.2 Sonatce tam aris quam aulis servientes (Salzburg, 1676)..........................69
2.2.3 Mensa sonora (Salzburg, 1680)................................................................. 75
2.2.4 Sonatw violino solo (Nurnberg, 1681).......................................................81
2.2.5 Fidicinium sacro-profanum (Nurnberg, Ca. 1682) ....................................88
2.2.6 Vesperce longiores ac breviores (Salzburg, 1693)....................................100
2.2.7 Harmonia artificioso ariosa (n.p., 1696)..................................................105
2.3 Summary...................................................................................................111
3 The 'Sacred' Violin Music: The Mystery Sonatas (1670s)...................116
3.1 The Historical, Stylistic, and Devotional Background.............................116

3.1.1 Readings of the Mystery Sonatas to Date.................................................119
3.1.2 The Literary and Devotional Background................................................123
3.1.3 The Rosary, Jesuits and Devotion ............................................................128
Contents Page 4
3.1.4 Imagery, Narrative, Scordatura, and the Stylus phantasticus:

cbavtacnaand Musical Imagery................................................................131
3.2 Analysisof the Mystery Sonatas............................................................... 133

3.2.1 Mystery Sonata I: The Annunciation of the Virgin Mary.........................133
3.2.2 MysterySonata II: The Visitation.............................................................137
3.2.3 MysterySonata ifi: The Nativity..............................................................139
3.2.4 Mystery Sonata IV: The Presentation in the Temple................................143
3.2.5 MysterySonata V: The Finding in the Temple ........................................ 145
3.2.6 MysterySonata VI: The Agony in the Garden.........................................149
3.2.7 MysterySonata VII: The Flagellation ......................................................153
3.2.8 MysterySonata Vifi: The Crowning with Thorns.................................... 155
3.2.9 MysterySonata IX: The Carrying of the Cross........................................ 158
3.2.10 MysterySonata X: The Crucifixion..........................................................161
3.2.11 MysterySonata XI: The Resurrection ...................................................... 165
3.2.12 MysterySonata XII: The Ascension.........................................................168
3.2.13 Mystery Sonata Xffl: The Descent of the Holy Ghost .............................170
3.2.14 MysterySonata XIV: The Assumption of the Virgin...............................171
3.2.15 MysterySonata XV: The Coronation of the Virgin..................................173
3.2.16 Passagalia................................................................................................. 176
3.3 Summary...................................................................................................178
4 The Violin Music 'for the Particular Delight of the Ear' .................... 180
4.1 The Sonatce violino solo (1681)................................................................181

4.1.1 TraditionalReadings of the Sonatce violino solo...................................... 182
4.1.2 Reinterpreting the Sonatce violino solo: the Stylus phantasticus,
Style, and Function...................................................................................184
4.1.3 Analysisof the Sonatce violino solo........................................................... 188
4.1.3.1 Sonata!..................................................................................................... 189
4.1.3.2 SonataII.................................................................................................... 193
4.1.3.3 SonataIII.................................................................................................. 199
4.1.3.4 SonataIV.................................................................................................. 202
4.1.3.5 SonataV.................................................................................................... 205
4.1.3.6 SonataVI.................................................................................................. 210
4.1.3.7 SonataVII................................................................................................. 214
4.1.3.8 SonataVIII................................................................................................ 218
4.2 The Harmonia artz:ficioso ariosa (1696) ..................................................219

4.2.1 Sources, Editions, and Text Problems......................................................220
4.2.2 Traditional Readings of the Harmonia artficioso ariosa ........................ 221
4.2.3 Use of the Stylus phantasticus: Style and Function..................................223
4.2.4 The Influence of Muffat, Pachelbel, and Other Cosmopolitan
MusicalTraits...........................................................................................224
4.2.5 Analysisof the Harmonia artficioso ariosa............................................ 225
4.2.5.1 PartiaI...................................................................................................... 225
4.2.5.2 Partial!.................................................................................................... 229
4.2.5.3 PartiaIII................................................................................................... 231
Contents Page 5
4.2.5.4 PartialV...................................................................................................235
4.2.5.5 PartiaV..................................................................................................... 238
4.2.5.6 PartiaVi................................................................................................... 241
4.2.5.7 Partia VII.................................................................................................. 245
4.3 Summary...................................................................................................248
5 Miscellaneous Manuscript Violin Compositions ..................................249
5.1 Introduction...............................................................................................249
5.2 Manuscript Violin Sonatas from KromëN ..............................................249

5.2.1 MS A 609a: Sonata violino solo representativa ( ca. 1669) .....................250
5.2.2 MS A 479b: Sonata violino solo...............................................................255
5.3 Compositions from MS 726 of the Minoritenkonvent, Vienna................258
5.3.1 No.3: Fantasia......................................................................................... 259
5.3.2 No.75:Sonata.......................................................................................... 264
5.3.3 No. 79: Pastorella..................................................................................... 267
5.3.4 No. 80: Turkish Sonata............................................................................. 274
5.3.5 No. 84: Sonata .......................................................................................... 282
5.4 Summary...................................................................................................285
Conclusion ............................................................................................................. 288
Appendices .............................................................................................................294
Appendix A: The Dedications from Biber's Music Collections.............................294
AppendixB: Music Editions...................................................................................303

(i) Fantasia (Vienna MS 726/3)...............................305
(ii)Sonata (Vienna MS 726/75) ..............................313
(iii)Pastorella (Vienna MS 726/79)........................319
(iv)Sonata (Vienna MS 726/84) .............................323
Bibliography .......................................................................................................... 333

List of Abbreviations Page 6
List of Abbreviations
anon. anonymous
Ca. circa
Co'. column
Co's columns
CUP Cambridge University Press
diss. dissertation
'DMS' Denkmäler der Musik in Salzburg
'DTO' Denkmäler der Tonkunst in Osterreich
ed. editor/edited
edn edition
eds editors
et al. et alii, and others
facs. facsimile
f(f). and the following page(s)
fi. floruit, flourished
fol./fols folio/folios
HUP Harvard University Press
ibid. ibidem, in the same place
'LCL' The Loeb Classical Library
MS/MS S manuscript/manuscripts
NGI The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (1980 edition)
NGII The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (2001 edition)
noinos number/numbers
n.p. no publisher's name/no place of publication
OM Osterreichische Musikzeitschrtft
OUP Oxford University Press
p./pp. page/pages
r recto
repr. reprinted
rev. revised by
trans. translated by
U. university
V verso
vol ./vols volume/volumes
Pitch Abbreviations
The following system is used throughout the thesis to specify individual pitches:
p
p
p 1)
p
C B c b c' b' c" b" c" b"
List of Illustrations, Figures and Tables Page 7
List of Illustrations, Figures and Tables
Illustrations (Reproduced by kind permission)
2.1: Fidicinium sacro-profanum, Violone part book, ornament [p. 26]

2.2: Fidicinium sacro-profanum, Viola II part book, ornament [p. 29]
2.3: Fidicinium sacro-profanum, Viola I part book, ornament [p. 29]
3.1: Ornament at the end of Mystery Sonata XV, p. 76
Figures
4.1: Formal Scheme of Sonata I, Variatio
4.2: Formal Scheme of Sonata III, second half, Variatio
Tables
1.1: Comparison of the figurce supeificiales of Bernhard and Samber

5.1: Comparison of Sonata IV (1681) and Fantasia (A-Wm: MS 726/3)
5.2: Principal Themes and their Derivation in the Pastorella (A-Wm:
MS 726/79)
5.3: Comparison of Mystery Sonata X with the Turkish Sonata
(A-WM: MS 726/80)
Preface Page 8
Preface
The initial impulse for the topic of this thesis stems from an earlier study of some
of Heinrich Biber's violin music which I undertook as an undergraduate. 1 This
revealed the problems in much of the secondary literature which focused on
individual aspects of the music such as virtuosity or narrative elements, almost
entirely at the expense of other elements, and the way in which such elements
were often approached anachronistically in Biber's music resulting in somewhat
one-sided interpretations of the music. There were important historiographical
reasons for this, and these will be argued in the Introduction. It was clear then,
that there was a pressing need for a broader, context-based study of this
repertoire than had hitherto been undertaken. It was also clear that musical
rhetoric was of greater importance in Biber's music than had previously been
acknowledged, and that such aspects as virtuosity or narrative elements were not
extraneous to, but formed an integral part of the rhetorical process.
It was originally envisaged that this thesis would present an evaluation of all
Biber's instrumental music and thus complement the pioneering study of his
church music undertaken by Eric Chafe (1946—), which is the most important
English-language study of Biber's music to have appeared to date. 2 It quickly
became evident, however, that there was not space in the present study to do
justice to such a project, and that there was a need to restrict the scope of the
James Clements, 'Heinrich Biber's Mystery Sonatas: Style, Function, and Meaning' (BMus
Diss., U. of Surrey, 1996).
2
Eric Chafe, The Church Music of Heinrich Biber, 'Studies in Musicology' 95 (Ann Arbor: UMI
Research Press, 1987).
Preface Page 9
thesis. The decision was then taken to limit the discussion to only the violin
music, which includes the music for solo violin and for two violins (with and
without basso continuo) but not the numerous instrumental ballettce and other
ensemble music which included other instruments in addition to one or more
violins. It is, however, necessary to make reference to these works and various
vocal compositions from time to time in the thesis as appropriate by way of
comparison. It is indeed in the violin music that musical-rhetorical devices are
most evident, and they are also the works which incorporate aspects of the
rhetorical stylus phantasticus, which will form a central theme of the thesis. It
seemed essential also to include examination of Biber's highly rhetorical written
dedications to his music collections. This was not merely because this had never
before been undertaken, but because there was a need to demonstrate both the
importance of rhetorical techniques that the dedications display, and also to
reveal information about Biber's thoughts on his music, musical rhetoric, and
music in general as exemplified by these important sources.
I should like to record my indebtedness to all those who have assisted me in
various ways during my work on the preparation of the thesis. First, I should like
to thank individuals and authorities at the following libraries and archives who
facilitated my work: Ing. JiI ermák, Dr AntonIn Luká, pan Cyril MësIc of the
Arcibiskupsk zámek a zahrady v KromëIIi (Archiepiscopal Castle and Gardens
in KromèH, Czech Republic); Dr Ernst Hintermaier of the Erzbischöfliches
Konsistorialarchiv, Salzburg; Fr. Karl Lustenberger OFM Con y, of the
Bibliothek und Archiv, Minoritenkonvent Wien; Frau Christa Ritzinger of the
Salzburger Barockmuseum, Sammiung Rossacher, Salzburg; Dr Rainer

Preface Page 10
Birkendorf of the Deutsches Musikgeschichtliches Archiv, Kassel; Frau Dr
Frohmut Dangel-Hofmann of the Musiksammlung des Grafen von Schönborn-
Wiesentheid, Wiesentheid; Dr Karl Wilhelm Geck of the Sächsische
Landesbibliothek, Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Dresden; Frau Brigitte
Geyer of the Musikbibliothek der Stadt Leipzig; Dr Helmut Hell of the
Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin Preussischer Kulturbesitz; Frau Barbel Mund of the
Niedersächsische Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek, Gottingen; Frau Uta
Schaumberg of the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, Munich; Mr Hugo Chapman of
the British Museum, London; and Dr Roger Norris of the Dean and Chapter
Library of Durham Cathedral.
I should like to offer thanks to my supervisor, Dr Geoffrey Chew of the
Department of Music of Royal Holloway, University of London for his
comments and advice, and to my advisor, Dr James Dack of the Department of
Music, Royal Holloway, for his support and advice. Likewise, I wish to record
my thanks to Professor John Rink, whose support and encouragement were of
great reassurance in the final stages of preparation of the dissertation. I also owe
thanks to the following individuals who have offered advice at various stages on
specific aspects of the project: Professor Dr. Jili Sehnal (Brno); Professor
William Jones of the Department of German, Royal Holloway, University of
London; Professor Jonathan Powell of the Classics Department, Royal Holloway,
University of London; Professor John L. Flood of the Institute of Germanic
Studies of the University of London School of Advanced Study; Dr John
McDade SJ, Heythrop College, University of London; Dr Philip Endean SJ,
Campion Hall, University of Oxford; Professor Charles Brewer of the School of

Preface Page 11
Music of The Florida State University; Carla Jackson, Munich; and Mr David
Rymill of Hampshire Record Office, Winchester. In addition, I am in debt to my
colleagues of the British Library Music Collections for their unfailing support,
encouragement, and advice.
I also wish to acknowledge the support of those bodies who have provided me
with financial support, without which the project could not have been
undertaken. First, Royal Holloway for the award of a College Research
Studentship for the first year of study, and various small bursaries. Second, the
Arts and Humanities Research Board of the British Academy for awarding a
studentship for the subsequent two years of study as well as contributing towards
the cost of a research trip to central Europe.
Finally I wish to record my appreciation to Anna Reynolds, Rosemary Wilson
and especially Ian Davis, whose support and friendship over the years has been
greatly valued and a source of much encouragement.

Introduction: Literature Survey Page 12
Introduction: Literature Survey
Much of Heinrich Biber's violin music has been in the public domain for about a
century through the dissemination of editions (see below), and more recently
recordings. During this period, however, it has been discussed in the secondary
literature—almost without exception—from a technical standpoint in terms of its
use of virtuosity and various other aspects of violin technique. This focus—
which has permeated almost all the discussions about Biber to date—is due
largely to two factors: first, the comments made about Biber (published and
unpublished) by his contemporaries, and second, a number of important
historiographical factors of Biber scholarship which have shaped its direction and
our present understanding of the violin music. The historiography of Biber
scholarship has not been explored in print. The purpose of this introduction, then,
is to consider these issues by way of a literature survey, which will, in turn,
provide the background for the present study.
The first two published comments about Biber made by his contemporaries
focus entirely on his remarkable technical abilities as a violinist. Daniel Merck
(ca. 1650-1713) refers to Biber in his treatise of 1695, along with Johann Jakob
Walther (ca. 1650-1717) and Johann Paul von Westhoff (1656-1705), as a
renowned violinist. 3 Likewise, Wolfgang Caspar Printz (1641-1717) mentions
Biber in 1690 in a list of 'the newer and more famous composers and musicians
of this [i.e. the seventeenth] century', along with others such as Antonio Bertali
(1605-1669), Christoph Bernhard (1628-1692), Johann Schmelzer (ca. 1620—
Daniel Merck, Compendium musicw instrumentalis chelica (Augsburg: Christoph Wagner,

1695), fol. Cr {D-Mbs: 4Mus.th.1024].
1680), Johannes RosenmUller (ca. 1619-1684), and Dieterich Buxtehude (ca.
l637-1707). Perhaps the most famous comment made about Biber during his
lifetime, however, is that of the violin maker Jakob Stainer (ca. 16 17-1683),
which was written in a letter to Count Karl Liechtenstein-Castelcomo, Prince-
Bishop of Olomouc, in whose kapelle Biber was employed in KromëI in
Moravia during the period ca.1668-1670. Stainer's description of Biber as 'der
vortreffliche Virtuos (the formidable virtuoso) Herr Biber' is hardly surprising:
Stainer may have known Biber personally, as he is thought to have visited
KromëiI between 1668 and 1670, and Biber also visited Absam to collect
instruments from Stainer for Karl Liechtenstein. Of these three, however, it was
Stainer's statement referring to Biber the virtuoso which was to have a profound
impact on subsequent scholarship, after its publication in 1921-1922. The
comments by Stainer and Charles Burney (see below) have been cited in almost
every twentieth-century article, book, and dissertation about Biber.
Of greater impact on the immediate future—and especially during the nineteenth
century—was the article about Biber written by Johann Gottfried Waither
(1684-1784), in his Musikalisches Lexikon. Published in Leipzig in 1732, this
work was to be the fundamental source for almost all of the principal
Wolfgang Caspar Printz, Historische Beschreibung der Edelen Sing- und Kling-Kunst
(Dresden: J. C. Mieth, 1690), Pp. 147-149. Biber is mentioned on p. 149. Unless otherwise
stated, all translations are my own. The only exceptions to this are works for which well-
established translations already exist such as the works in the 'Loeb Classical Library'
(henceforth 'LCL'), and Harris's translation of Mattheson's Der voilkommene Capelimeister.
Chafe, The Church Music, p. 9. Stainer's letter was first published in Paul Nettl, 'Zur
Geschichte der Musik-Kapelle des Fürstbischofs Liechtenstein', Zeitschrft für
Musikwissenschaft 4 (1921-1922), p. 494.
lexicographers of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Waither's entry for
Biber (together with an English translation) reads as follows:6
Biber (Henr. Jean. Francescus) Vice- Biber (Henr. Jean. Francescus) Vice-
Capell-Meister beym Erz-Bischoffe zu Capell-Meister of the Archbishop of
Salzburg, Maximil. Gandoipho, Salzburg, Maximilian Gandoiph, Reichs-
Reichs-Grafen von Khuenburg, u. hell Graf of Khuenburg, and had engraved in
an 1681 Sonaten mit einer Violin und 1681 sonatas with one violin and basso
G. B. in breit folio graviren; sein Fi- continuo in large folio; his Fidicinium
dicinium Sacro-Profanum, aus zwölff 4 Sacro-Profanum, consisting of twelve, 4-
und 5 stimmigen Sonaten bestehend; and 5-part Sonatas; likewise the
ingleichen die Harmonia artificioso- Harmonia art ficioso-a riosa distributed
ariosa in Septem Partes vel Partitas in seven parts or Partitas for three
distributa mit 3 Instrumenten, sind zu instruments were printed in Nurnberg. In
NUrnberg gedruckt worden. Auf this last work he [Biber] was referred to
diesem letztem Werke wird er em as a Lord High Steward and
Dapiser und Capell-Meister genennet. Capellmeister.
It is apparent that Waither only knew of the three sets of instrumental music
which he mentions—the Sonatce violino solo, Fidicinium sacro-profanum and
Harmonia artWcioso ariosa—the only three of Biber's published sets of
instrumental music to have been published outside of Salzburg (in Nurnberg).
Eight years later Johann Mattheson (168 1-1764) wrote about Biber in his
Grundlage einer Ehren-Pforte (Hamburg, 174O). The article, based on a letter
allegedly written by Biber's son, Carl Heinrich in 1719, provides us with new
information which was apparently not known to Waither. He describes Biber's
performances before Kaiser Leopold I in Vienna and Ferdinand Maria in
Munich, informs us of Biber's birth place in Bohemia (Wartenberg) and
discusses other aspects of Biber's life, such as his patrons in Salzburg (where he
worked from 1670 until his death in 1704), and the 1682 jubilee celebrations in
6
Johann Gottfried Walther, Musicalisches Lexicon oder musikalische Bibliothek (Leipzig: Deer,
1732), pp. 93-94.
Johann Mattheson, Grundlage einer Ehren-Pforte, woran der Tllchtigsten Capelimeister,

Componisten, Musikgelehrten, Tonkllnstler u. Leben, Werke, Verdienste u. erscheinen sollen
(Hamburg: the author, 1740), pp. 24-25.
Salzburg. Owing to the fact that Mattheson had access to more information
relating to Biber, his article is much fuller. Despite this, however, it was
Waither's article (not Mattheson's) which was to be used as the principal source
for almost all subsequent articles.
One such example is the discussion of Biber by Charles Burney (1726-1814).
His comments regarding Biber, which appeared in his A General History of
Music from the Earliest Ages to the Present, are based principally on Waither' s
8
article. Burney wrote as follows:
Of all the violin players of the last [i.e. 17th] century, Biber seems to have been
the best, and his solos are the most difficult and the most fanciful of any Music I
have seen of the same period. One of the pieces is written on three staves, as if
scored for two violins and a bass, but meant to be played in double stops. Others
are played in different tunings of fourths and fifths, as for a treble viol. A
second work by this musician, entitled Fidicinum sacro-prophanum [sic],
consists of twelve sonatas in four and five parts, to be played on three
instruments; and a third: Harmonia Artficioso-ariosa, published at Nuremberg,
consisting of pieces of seven parts, to be played on three instruments. In this last
work he is styled a dapiser.
The sonatas which Burney is referring to in the first five lines of this passage are
the Sonau violino solo (1681) which circulated more widely than any of Biber's
other music (see Chapter 4). Burney must have seen a copy of these sonatas in
order to be aware of the stylistic issues he describes. The last five lines of the
passage, however, depend entirely on Walther, without acknowledgement (see
above): first, the last five lines of the passage (which merely paraphrase
Walther), unlike the first five, omit any further discussion of the works other
than that which is given by Walther; second, Burney's dependence leads him to
misinterpret Walther: the Fidicinium sacro-profanum does indeed consist of
8
Charles Burney, A General History of Music from the Earliest Ages to the Present Period, 4
vols (London: the author, 1776-1789), vol. 2 (1782), p. 580.
Introduction: Literature Survey Pace 16
twelve sonatas in four and five parts but these are not meant to be played by
three instruments (each sonata contains either three or four individual string
parts and basso continuo). Similarly, the Harmonia artificioso ariosa consists
not of seven parts to be played on three instruments, but of three parts to be
played on three instruments. In the latter case Burney is clearly taking the phrase
'Septem Partes ye! partitas' from Waither's article (quoting from Biber's
original title page) to mean seven instrumental parts rather than seven suites or
Partias. In the case of the Fidicinium sacro-profanum, Waither makes no
mention of there being three instruments required for performance. In spite of its
inaccuracies, Burney's description of Biber's music, with its emphasis on
instrumental technique, was to have a powerful impact on the direction which
Biber scholarship was to take in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. This
passage was responsible for maintaining the image of (or perhaps obsession
with) Biber the violin virtuoso during the eighteenth century, and ensuring its
survival into the nineteenth, and has also had a large impact on subsequent
English-language writing about Biber until the present day. A more interesting
aspect of Burney's description of Biber's music is his use of the word 'fanciful'
to describe the 1681 set of sonatas. With its obvious etymological link with such
words as fantasia, fantasy, and the stylus phantasticus—a rhetorical style
category of instrumental music described by several late-seventeenth-century
central European music theorists9—it is surprising that this side of Biber's work
has been overlooked.
See Chapter 1.
The explosion in lexicography during the nineteenth century further propagated
the exclusive seventeenth- and eighteenth-century view of Biber as a virtuoso
violinist. Some music dictionaries primarily focussed on this aspect of his
work, 1 ° while others merely paraphrased Waither's article which emphasised the
instrumental music and Biber's artistry on the violin. 11 Some, however, give us
new information. For example, in the music dictionary written by Alexandre
Etienne Choron (1771-1834) in 1810, we see a mention of Biber's Vespera
longiores ac breviores (Salzburg, 1693) which is the first mention of any of the
vocal music in the literature, and represents a forward step, even though there
are several errors in the article. 12 Similarly, Felix Joseph Lipowsky's (1762-
1842) dictionary of 1811—which owes more to Mattheson's article than to
Waither' s—is the first to mention Biber' s birthplace of Wartenberg (Czech,

13
Vartenberk, now Strá pod Raiskem) on the Bohemian border.
The regional agenda evident in the title of Lipowsky's dictionary—Baierisches
Musik-Lexikon, or Bavarian Music Dictionary—was part of a growing trend at
this time, which was to have a lasting impact. Technically Biber was not a
Bavarian, although his inclusion in Lipowsky's dictionary can probably be
10
Simon Ferdinand Gassner, Universal-Lexikon der Tonkunst (Stuttgart: Franz Kohier, 1849), p.
134; Paul David, 'Biber, Heinrich', in George Grove (ed.), A Dictionary of Music and
Musicians, 4 vols (London and New York: Macmillan, 1879), vol. 1, pp. 240-241.
See, for example, Ernst Ludwig Gerber, Neues historisch-biographisches Lexikon der
Tonkllnstler, 3 vols (Leipzig: A. Kuhnel, 1812), vol. 1, p. 393, and Gustav Schilling (ed.),
Encyclopadie der gesammten ,nusikalischen Wissenschaften, oder Universal-Lexicon der
Tonkunst (Stuttgart: Fink, 1835), p. 630.
12
Alexandre Etienne Choron and François Joseph Fayolle, Dictionnaire historique des
Musiciens, 2 vols (Paris: the authors, 1810), vol. 1, p. 78. The Vespera? longiores ac breviores
was Biber's only published collection of vocal music. There is no evidence that it—like the rest
of his vocal music which remained in manuscript—was more widely known outside of Salzburg
or KromëH.
13
Felix Joseph Lipowsky, Baierisches Musik-Lexikon (Munich: Giel, 1811), pp. 22-23.
Introduction: Literature Survey Pare 18
explained by the fact that Salzburg had become part of Bavaria in 1810, and the
timing of the publication of Lipowsky's dictionary a year later is therefore
significant. 14 In his dictionary of Bohemian, Moravian and Silesian musicians of
1815, Gottfried Johann Dlabaè (1758-1820) devotes an article to Biber.' 5 Whilst
Biber was born in Bohemia, he was of German parentage, had a German name,
and spent most of his life outside of Bohemia. Given that the KromèI archives
(which contain many manuscripts and prints of Biber's music, see below) and
hence Biber's activity in Moravia would not have been known to Dlaba (they
were only rediscovered at the end of the nineteenth century), his decision to
include Biber seems to be based solely on the fact that he was born in Bohemia.
Two other 'political' music dictionaries of Salzburg musicians prepared in this
period—this time from a Salzburg perspective—also include articles on Biber
and mention the fact that he was born on the Bohemian border.16
The most important event for the history of Biber scholarship, and indeed for
research into the music of the Czech baroque, was the rediscovery of the music
collection of Count Karl Liechtenstein-Castelcorno, Prince-Bishop of Olomouc
in KromèI, now housed in the castle which Karl Liechtenstein built in
romëI at the end of the seventeenth century. The importance of the
' After its secularisation in 1803, Salzburg witnessed a period of instability. From 1803 to 1805
it was an electorate under Grand-Duke Ferdinand of Tuscany; from 1805 to 1809 it passed into
the possession of Austria, and from 1809 to the Peace of Vienna it was Bavarian. It became part
of Austria again in 1816. This explains why Biber was included in Lipowsky's dictionary
published in 1811, and also its timely publication, with a dedication to, and engraving of Queen
Fridericke Wilhelmine Karoline at the front.
15
Gottfried Johann DIaba, Ailgemeines historisches KUnstier-Lexikon für Böhmen und zum
Theil auch für Mähren und Schiesien, 3 vols (Prague: G. Haase, 1815), vol. 1, pp. 149-150.
16
Benedikt Piliwein (ed.), Biographische Schilderungen oder lexicon Salzburgischer theils
verstorbener, theils lebender KUnstier, auch soicher, weiche Kunstwerke für Salzburg lieferten
(Salzburg: Mayr'schen Buchhandlung, 1821), pp. 13-15, and Georg Abdon Pichler,
Biographien Salzburgischer Tonkünstler (Salzburg: n.p., 1845), pp. 7-8.
Liechtenstein collection, which was catalogued in 1928 by the Moravian
musicologist AntonIn Breitenbacher (1874—l937),' and contains (at least)
thirty-five manuscripts and prints of Biber's music (both instrumental and
vocal), was soon realised by musicologists. It was at this time that the project of
publishing Biber's complete wuvre of instrumental music was founded by the
Austrian musicologist Guido Adler as part of the regional series 'Denkmaler der
Tonkunst in Osterreich' (henceforth 'DTO'). At the same time the famous
Mystery Sonatas (1670s) were discovered in the Bavarian State Library in
Munich, 18 the publication of which in 'DTO' in 1905,19 preceded by the
publication of the Sonaue violino solo in 'DTO' in 1898,20 firmly established
Biber's reputation as the most famous 'Austrian' violinist of the baroque, whose
technical ability, as exemplified by his instrumental music, far surpassed that of
his contemporaries. (The publication of some of the large-scale vocal music
followed later.) This aspect of Biber's work, which had been central to writings
of the nineteenth century and earlier, was destined to be the focus of research
into his music during the twentieth century, almost to the exclusion of all other
aspects. At this time, numerous articles were published by several important
Austrian musicologists, for whom the image of Biber the virtuoso, violinist-
17
AntonIn Breitenbacher, 'Hudebnf archiv kolegiatnIho kostela sv. MoNce v KromèfIi', Special
Supplement of Caspois VI. Spolku musejnIho v Olomouci 40 (1928), PP. 1-140. The collection
has recently been re-catalogued and published as JiIi Sehnal and Jitfenka Peiková, Caroli de
Liechtenstein-Castelcorno episcopi Olomucensis operum artis musicae collectio Cremsirii
reservata, 'Artis musicae antiquioris catalogorum series' 5/1-2 (Prague: Editio Supraphon,
1998). In this thesis KromèH catalogue numbers are expressed in the format used in Sehnal arid
Peková: 'new catalogue number / old catalogue number'. Hence, the catalogue numbers for the
manuscript of Biber's Battalia are expressed as 'A 840 / B XIV 122'.
18
D-Mbs: MS 4123
19
Erwin Luntz (ed.), Heinrich Franz Biber: Sechzehn Violinsonaten, 'DTO' 25 (Vienna:
Akademische Druck- und Verlagsanstalt, 1905; repr. Graz, 1959).
20
Guido Adler (ed.), Heinrich Franz Biber: Acht Violinsonaten 1681, 'DTO' 11 (Vienna:
Akademische Druck- und Verlagsanstalt, 1898; repr. Graz, 1959).
composer of instrumental music was central. Such musicologists include Erwin
Luntz (1877-1949), Guido Adler (1855-1941) and Paul Netti (1889_1972).21
Perhaps the most important of these was Netti, not only for his work on the
Liechtenstein collection and KromëiI kapelle, but also for establishing the first
detailed biography of Biber and list of works, even though many of his
attributions have since proved spurious.
The image of Biber the virtuoso violinist was further developed in the various
nationalist studies of violin music and histories of music which were published
during the first half of the twentieth century. These include the studies of
German violin music by Gustav Beckmann (1883_1948),22 and Andreas Moser
(1859_1925) ,23 which focus exclusively on Biber's virtuoso instrumental
publications (the Mystery Sonatas, the Sonat violino solo and the Harmonia
artficioso ariosa) and ignore the less-virtuosic instrumental music. The national
histories include Hans Joachim Moser's (1889-1967) history of German
music, 24 and Constantin Schneider's (1889-1945) history of music in
Salzburg, 25 both of which, once again, focus mainly on Biber's instrumental
works, and the technical and virtuosic aspects of those works. The music was
judged by these authors not according to its own merits, but according to its
21
See Bibliography, and discussions in Chapters 3 and 4.
22
Gustav Beckmann, Das Violinspiel in Deutschland vor 1700 (Leipzig: N. Simrock, 1918),
particularly pp. 67-68.
23
Andreas Moser, Geschichte des Violinspiels (Berlin: Max Hesses Verlag, 1923), pp. 83-147.
24
Hans Joachim Moser, Geschichte der deutschen Musik: vom Beginn des dref3igjahrigen
Krieges bis zum Tode Joseph Haydns (Stuttgart and Berlin: J. 0. Cotta, 1923), pp. 114-116.
25
Constantin Schneider, Geschichte der Musik in Salzburg von der altesten Zeit bis zur
Gegenwart (Salzburg: R. Kiesel, 1935), particularly pp. 82-84.
degree of virtuosity, and, the extent to which that could be considered a
particular German (or Austrian) trait.
After the establishment of Biber's position in the canon of Austro-German
virtuoso violinists by the Austrian and German musicologists, it is not surprising
that he came to occupy a rather awkward position in Czech musicology. In the
pre-war Czech music dictionary edited by Gracian emuák (1 882-1961) and
Vladimir Helfert (1886-1945), Biber is described as a 'Czech composer (esk'
skladatel)'.26 Likewise, Jan Racek (1905-1979), in his history of Czech music,
first published in 1949, and subsequently revised and reprinted in 1958, avoids
the issue of Biber's German roots, and describes him as being 'domácfho
pi°ivodu ('of domestic' origin)' in the first edition, to which he adds the
qualification 'püvodem z Vartenberka v echách (originally from Wartenberg in
Bohemia)' in the second edition,27 a subtle change which stresses Biber's
Bohemian background and avoids mentioning his 'German' descent. The agenda
of this volume is apparent, and the sensitivity to the dominance of the German
nations is clearly expressed. Racek propagated the view prevalent in
contemporary culture of the Czech baroque as a period of darkness characterised
by German oppression. Therefore, to acknowledge the 'Germanness' of a key
figure such as Biber would have been contrary to the image of the Czech
baroque which many contemporary musicologists were trying to portray,
26
Gracian emuák and Vladimir Helfert (eds), Pazdfrkzv hudebnI slovnIk nauón) (Brno:
Nákladem 0. PazdIrka, 1937), P. 77.
27
Jan Racek, Ceská hudba od nejstarich dob dopoóátku 19. stoletI(lst edn: Prague and Brno:
Svaz èeskos1ovenskch skladatelü a hudebnIch vdcO, 1949; 2nd edn: Prague: StátnI
nakladatelstvI krsné literatury, hudby a umèni, 1958), p. 84 (1st edn), p. 98 (2nd edn).
although that Biber is mentioned at all is significant. 28 Biber is mentioned in the
context of Racek's discussion of the KromëII kapelle. This passage raises a
number of important issues, so will therefore be given here in full:29
JednIm z nejdü1eitèjIch stledisek One of the most important centres of

hudebnIho ivota v druhd polovine 17. musical life in the second half of the
stol. byla kapela olomouckého biskupa seventeenth century was the kapelle of the
Karla Liechtensteina Kastelkorna (1664- Olomouc bishop Karl Liechtenstein
1695), jejImi éleny byli dva vynikajfcf Castelcorno (1664-1695), whose members
skiadatelé domácIho püvodu Pavel were two distinguished composers of
Vejvanovsk (kolem roku 1640-1693) a 'domestic' origin[:] Pavel Vejvanovsk5 (ca.
Heinrich Biber (1644-1704). Ve sbfrce 1640-1693) and Heinrich Biber (1644-
hudebnin Karla Liechtensteina, která je 1704). In the collection of music of Karl
dnes pe1ivë u1oena v hudebnfm archivu Liechtenstein, which is today preserved in
arcibiskupského zámku v KromèlIi, se the music archive of the archiepiscopal
dochovalo mnoho svètskch castle in KromèH, there are extant many
orchestrálnfch skladeb evropského secular orchestral compositions of
vyznámu, které osvëtlujI dü1eit üsek European importance, which shed light on
svëtské nástrojové hudby v druhd an important period of secular instrumental
polovinè 17. stoletI. Mezi éetn'mi music in the second half of the seventeenth
svètskmi nástrojovmi skladbami century. Among the numerous secular
nalezneme sonaty a balety Schmelzerovy, instrumental compositions we find sonatas
Vejvanovského, Pogliettiho, Bertaliho, and ballett by Schmelzer, Vejvanovsk,
Bibrovy, Corelliho a j. Bohat hudebnI Poglietti, Bertali, Biber, Corelli and others.
ivot, kter tu vládl za tohoto A rich musical life, which prevailed here
umènImilovného cIrkevnfho lechtice, under this art-loving ecclesiastical
plipomIná v mnohém skvèlé hudebnI nobleman, largely suggests excellent
pomry u tehdejIho vIdeñského dvora. musical contacts at the Viennese court at
DalIm düle.itm stfediskem pozdnè this period. Another important centre of late
baroknI nastrojové hudby na stiednI baroque instrumental music in central
Moravè byla lechtická kapela Ferdinanda Moravia was the aristocratic kapelle of
Julia ze Salmu (1650-1697) na zámku v Ferdinand Julius of Salm (1650-1697) in
Tovaovë. Podle dochovaného inventáie the castle in Tovaéov. According to an
hudebnin tovaèovského zámku z let extant inventory of music of Tovaéov castle
1697-1699 byly v Tovaéovè provozovány from the years 1697-1699, there were
balety, ciacony, intrády, serenády, arie di performed in Tovaèov ballett, ciaconas,
cavalli, menuety od Vej vanovského, intradas, serenades, arie de cavalli, [and]
Richtera, Kertzingera, Schmelzera, minuets by Vejvanovsk, Richter,
Bibera, Albertiniho, Rittlera a j. Kertzinger, Schmelzer, Biber, Albertini,
Tovaéovská kapela byla v üzkch stycIch Rittler and others. The Tovaéov kapelle was
s kapelou biskupa Karla Liechtensteina in close contact with the kapelle of bishop
Kastelkorna. Karl Liechtenstein Castelcorno.
28
The most important classification of Czech history at this time was given by Zdenèk Nejedl
(1878-1962), Spor o smysi öeskj5ch dëjin: pokus ofilosofli eskch déjini, 'Knihovna Pokrokové
revue' 2 (Prague: Pokroková revue, 1914) who interprets it in terms of a three act opera: the
Hussite period, the post-White Mountain era, and the nineteenth-century revival of Czech
culture, which can be viewed as two periods of national splendour separated by a period of
national opression. See Geoffrey Chew, 'Jan Racek, Zdenëk Nejedl and the Construction of
Czech Music History after the Second World War', in Robert B. Pynsent (ed.), The Phoney
Peace: Power and Culture in Central Europe, 1945-49, 'SSEES Occasional Papers' 46
(London: School of Slavonic and East European Studies, 2000), pp. 346-358.
29
Racek, Oeská hudba (1949), pp. 84-85.
The revised edition of Racek's volume shows a higher degree of organisation of
material, a much clearer emphasis on the difference between Moravian and
Bohemian, and emphasises even more strongly the folk and nationalist elements
of Czech baroque music. The above passage is typical of one strand of
contemporary Czech writings about the Czech baroque in its emphasis on
secular rather than sacred music, and consequently underplaying the Catholic,
ecclesiastical element of the baroque. 3° It is significant that Racek ignores the
fact that Ca. 60-70% of the Liechtenstein collection comprises sacred music,
including some of Biber's works for the liturgy. The sacred works are mentioned
more in the revisions made to this passage in the second edition, although Racek
compensates for this by stressing the Czech folk and national elements of this
repertoire, and by listing many native composers as examples. There was no
place for a discussion of rhetoric in the instrumental music of Biber in this
climate, which would strengthen the link between the Catholic vocal music and
the instrumental music. Certainly it was not possible to discuss the Mystery
Sonatas in terms other than their use of virtuosity and technical devices, as a
serious discussion of 'narrative' or pictorial effects would require analogy with
the rhetorical traditions of Catholic art and devotion (see Chapter 3).
30
Chew, 'Jan Racek, Zdenëk Nejedl', has shown that (a) Racek's volume presents a somewhat
secular or anti-catholic interpretation of the Czech baroque, and (b) that this may have been
intended as a response to Rosa Newmarch's The Music of Czechoslovakia (London: OUP, 1942).
Given the obvious political agenda of Racek's volume, it is hardly surprising that (as Chew has
pointed out) a riposte should be published in West Germany in 1956 in the form of Rudolf
Quoika's Die Musik der Deutschen in Böhmen und Mähren (Berlin: Merseburger, 1956).
Quoika, whose writings show rather anti-Czech tendencies, emphasises the German aspects of
the Czech baroque at the cost of any Czech elements. Quoika's discussion of Biber, however,
brings no further insights to light and is, rather disappointingly, merely a paraphrase of Hans
Joachim Moser's Geschichte der deutschen Musik, pp. 114-116. It was perhaps no accident,
however, that Quoika chose to emphasise his view that the most important musician at the
KromëH kapelle was a German: 'der bedeutendste Musiker am Hofe Liechtensteins war der
Komponist und Violinvirtuose Heinrich Ignaz Biber von Bibern (the most important musician at
Liechtenstein's court was the composer and violin virtuoso Heinrich Ignaz Biber von Bibern)'
(Quoika, Die Musik, p. 69).
The rather awkward position which Biber occupied in Czech musicology of this
period is perhaps best exemplified not by those works of musicology in which
he featured, but by those in which he should have featured, but was omitted. In
1943 VladimIr Helfert—a colleague of Nejedl during his time at the Prague
University but subsequent opponent of his—founded the regional series Musica
Antiqua Bohemica in Prague which contained works by only Czech composers
such as Frantiek Xaver Brixi (1732-1771), Adam Václav Michna (ca. 1600-
1676), Josef Mysliveèek (1737-1781) and Pavel Josef Vejvanovsk (ca. 1639-
1693). Despite the fact that the largest collection of sources of Biber's music is
in the Liechtenstein collection, not to mention the fact that Biber was born in
Bohemia, he does not feature at all in this series. It is not surprising, therefore,
that some of his sacred compositions from KroméI remain unpublished even
today. The embarrassment felt by the Czechs when dealing with Biber, which is
perhaps the reason why no editions of his music have been published in the
Czech Republic, seemed to continue to be an issue. In 1955, Jan Nëmeèek
(1896—), in his Nástin óeské hudby XVIII. stoletI (Outline of Czech Music of the
Eighteenth Century), felt it necessary to apologise for Biber's German roots:
'Heinrich Ignaz Fr. Biber (164z1_1704), rodák z Vartenberka v echách,
národnostI ov.em Nëmec (Heinrich Ignaz Fr. Biber (1644-1704), a native from
Wartenberg in Bohemia, nationality of course German)'.3 ' The Czech music
dictionary published in 1963 sidelines the issue by describing Biber as a
composer from Bohemia ('skiadatel z ech'). 32 VladimIr tépánek's (1921—)
Jan Nèmeéek, Nástin eské hudby XVIII. stoletI (Prague: StátnI naki. krásnë literatury, hudby a
umenI, 1955), p. 49. The emphasis is mine, not Nëmeèek's.
32
Gracian emuák, Bohumfr tèdroñ and Zdenko Nováek (eds), Ceskos1ovenskj hudebnI
slovnIk osob a institucI, 2 vols (Prague: StátnI hudebnI vydavatelstvI, 1963-65), vol. 1, p. 95.
The emphasis is mine.
and Bohumil Karásek's (1926—) An Outline of Czech and Slovak Music of 1964,
a work intended for foreign readership which places great emphasis on the
national element of Czech baroque music, not surprisingly makes no mention of
Biber, although Vejvanovsk is mentioned. 33 Similarly, the music volume of the
national history of Czech arts, published in Prague in 1971, takes a similar
approach by mentioning Biber only in passing as a native composer, before
moving on to discuss at length the music of Vejvanovsk.34
A look at the music dictionaries of other European countries from the 1950s,
60s, 70s and 80s reveals that the picture being painted of Biber is still that of the
Austrian violin virtuoso. They add little, if anything, to our knowledge of the
composer, and continue to refer to the comments made by Burney in the 18th
century: Burney's comments are even cited in the Dutch and Croatian music
encyclopaedias written during the 1950s. 35 The exception to this is the article by
Andreas Liess (1903-1988) published in the German encyclopaedia Die Musik
in Geschichte und Gegenwart,36 which gives a much fuller and more balanced
account. The state of Biber scholarship at the end of the first half of the
twentieth century is perhaps best exemplified by the need to include him in Paul
Vladimir tèpánek and Bohumil Karásek, An Outline of Czech and Slovak Music: Part I:
Czech Music, trans. from Czech by Iva Drápalová (Prague: Orbis, 1964). Vejvanovsk is
mentioned on p. 21.
Mirko OadlIk (ed.), Oeskoslovenská viastivéda, dli IX: Uméni: Svazek 3, Hudba (Prague:
Orbis, 1971), P. 90.
See Josef Robijns (ed.), Algemene Muziek-Encyclopedie, 6 vols (Antwerp and Amsterdam:
Zuid-Nederlandse Uitgeverij, 1957-1963), vol. 1, p. 472, and also Josip Andreis, Muziêka
Encikiopedija (Zagreb: Izd. i naki. Leksikografskog zavoda FNRJ, 1958-1963), p. 156.
36
Andreas Liess, 'Biber', in Friedrich Blume (ed.), Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart, 17
vols (Kassel and Base!: Bärenreiter, 1949-1951), vol. 1, cols 1828-1831.
Netti's volume Forgotten Musicians. 37 Netti's rather unscholarly article
(containing many inaccuracies) entitled 'Heinrich Franz Biber: A Great Austrian
Violinist of the Baroque' focuses (as its title suggests) unashamedly on the
external, virtuosic effects of the instrumental music.
The situation outlined above gradually began to be addressed during the second
half of the twentieth century. Among the Czechs, it is the Moravian (and
Catholic) musicologist JiI Sehnal (1932—) whose prolific work on the Czech
baroque makes him one of the foremost Czech musicologists this century.
Sehnal has undertaken much important archival work, focussing primarily on
institutions (including KromëH) and the holdings of particular archives, and his
work on the KromèiI kapelle supersedes, for the most part, the earlier work of
Paul Netti. Sehnal has also edited some of the KromèII instrumental music,
published as part of the series 'DTO' in Austria, rather than in his native Czech
Republic. He has also written about the sources for Biber's music in KromèH
and about Biber's connections with the kapelle in Kroméfl.
Having established many of the sources, it was now possible to begin to take a
closer look at the music, and it was now Biber's vocal music which finally
became the focus of attention in research and editions. Werner Jaksch published
his pioneering study of Biber's A major Requiem in 1977 together with an
edition, based on his thesis, strongly rooted in the Austro-German tradition,
Netti, 'Heinrich Franz Biber: A Great Austrian Violinist of the Baroque', in Forgotten
Musicians (New York: Philosophical Library, 1951), pp. 17-27.
focussed largely on the musico-rhetorical aspects of the work. 38 Central and
east-central European music for the liturgy also began to attract attention in
America, partly owing to the influence of Paul Netti, and also Don Smithers,
who visited KromèlI during the 1960s and microfilmed most of the
Liechtenstein collection for Syracuse University Library where it remains today.
Craig A. Otto prepared a catalogue of the microfilms, 39 and his dissertation on
rhetorical aspects of this repertoire—which includes discussions of several of
Biber's works—was also prepared at this time. 40 The Austrian musicologist
Sybille Dahms continued the work of her father Constantin Schneider, and
published a series of articles on Biber's only extant opera, Ar,ninio, chi la dura
la vince. 41 The emphasis on the technical aspects of Biber's instrumental music
still continued to feature in the literature, however. It took centre place in Elias
Dann's doctoral thesis of 1968,42 and returns as a theme in the article about
Biber written by the same author for the 1980 edition of The New Grove
Dictionary of Music and Musicians. 43 Sadly this emphasis was not changed
when the article was revised by Sehnal for the second edition of this work
Werner Jaksch, H. I. F. Biber, Requiem a 15: Untersuchungen zur hOfischen, liturgischen und
musikalischen Topik einer barocken Totenmesse (Munich and Salzburg: Musikverlag Emil
Katzbichler, 1977).
Craig A Otto, Seventeenth-Century Music from KroméFl Czechoslovakia: A Catalog of the

Liechtenstein Music Collection on Microfilm at Syracuse University (Syracuse, NY: Syracuse
University Libraries, 1977).
40
Craig A Otto, 'Symbol Structures in Central European Church Music: Aspects of the Word-
Tone Relationship in the Mid- to Late-Seventeenth Century' (PhD Diss., U. of Syracuse, 1978).
41
See Bibliography.
42
Elias Dann, 'Heinrich Biber and the Seventeenth-Century Violin' (PhD Diss., U. of Columbia,
1968).
'° Elias Dann, 'Biber, Heinrich', in Stanley Sadie (ed.), The New Grove Dictionary of Music and
Musicians, 20 vols (London: Macmillan, 1980), vol. 2, pp. 678-682. This edition will be known
henceforth as NG I.
published in 2001. Interestingly, Sehnal changes Dann's original description of
Biber as a 'Bohemian violinist and composer' to an 'Austrian violinist and
composer of Bohemian birth', which reflects the fact that the problem of Biber's
origins is as pertinent in today's musical climate as it was fifty years ago. 45 By
far the most important study of the music of Biber to date, however, is Eric
Chafe's doctoral dissertation The Church Music of Heinrich Biber, which
included the most detailed biography of the composer, and a comprehensive
catalogue of his works. This work, which focuses primarily on the vocal music
for the liturgy, is a long overdue contribution to the literature, and addresses the
balance of a history of Biber scholarship which almost completely emphasised
the instrumental music. Chafe also discusses those instrumental works which he
believes could have been used for performance in a liturgical context. Although
his analytical techniques are, by and large, purely descriptive, his work on Biber
can still be considered as among the most important of the twentieth century.
Since Chafe's study, there has been considerably more interest in Biber's music
in Austria. In 1994, the 350th anniversary of Biber's birth, two conferences took
place in Salzburg focusing principally on Biber and his music, both resulting in
publications,46 and other articles on Biber were published during this year in
Austria. The regional feeling is still alive in Salzburg, however, as exemplified
Elias Dann rev. Jili Selmal, 'Biber, Heinrich', in Stanley Sadie and John Tyrell (eds), The New
Grove Dictionaiy of Music and Musicians, 29 vols (London: Macmillan, 2001), vol. 3, pp. 519-
523. This article has many important omissions in the bibliography, and some of the
bibliographic details and sigla are incorrect. This edition will henceforth be known as NG II.
Ibid., p. 519.
46
The two conference proceedings were published as Petrus Eder and Ernst Hintermaier (eds),
Heinrich Franz Biber 1644-1704: Musik und Kultur im hochbarocken Salzburg: Studien und
Quellen (Salzburg: Selke Verlag, 1994), and Gerhard Walterskirchen (ed.), Heinrich Franz
Biber: Kirchen- und Instrurnentalmusik: Kongressbericht (Salzburg: Selke Verlag, 1997).
by the recent foundation of the series Denkmäler der Musik in Salzburg, which
has included several volumes of Biber's instrumental music in facsimile, and
modem editions of the vocal music to date (see Bibliography).
Despite almost three centuries of focusing almost exclusively on Biber's
instrumental music, the activities of the last thirty or so years on the vocal music
have redressed the balance. Not only has much of it appeared in editions, but it
has begun to be discussed in terms other than its external features, as
exemplified by the two studies looking at this repertoire from a rhetorical
standpoint (see above). This has not happened as much with the instrumental
music, however, owing not only to the impact of seventeenth- and eighteenth-
century accounts of Biber, but also to the musicological and political climate at
various times in the history of Biber scholarship. Whilst Dieter Haberl's recent
dissertation on numerology in the Mystery Sonatas is a step in the right direction
in its use of context-based analysis, 47 the thesis of Dagmar Glüxam once more
focuses exclusively on aspects of violin technique.48 Now that adequate source
studies and editions are available, there is a need to engage in criticism of the
instrumental (and vocal) music, and the present thesis alms to contribute to this
by focusing on rhetoric.
Dieter Haberl, 'Ordo arithmeticus: Barocker Zahibezug und seine Würzeln dargesteilt am
Beispiel der Rosenkranzsonaten von Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber' (PhD Diss., U. of Salzburg,
1995).
48
Dagmar Glüxam, 'Die Violinskordatur in der Geschichte des Violinspiels under besonderer
BerUcksichtigung der Quellen aus der erzbischöflichen Musiksammlung in Kremsier' (PhD
Diss., U. of Vienna, 1998).
1 The Rhetorical Background Page 30
1 The Rhetorical Background
Rhetoric. 1. a. The art of using language so as to persuade or influence others; the

body of rules to be observed by a speaker or writer in order that he may express
himself with eloquence . . . . 2. a. Elegance or eloquence of language; eloquent
speech or writing. Obs. b. Speech or writing expressed in terms calculated to
persuade; hence (often in depreciatory sense), language characterized by artificial
or ostentatious expression.49
This definition of rhetoric from the Oxford English Dictionary illustrates three
of the principal problems faced by the modern student: first, the lack of a clear
and concise definition of what rhetoric is and how it works; second, the
pejorative light in which rhetoric has sometimes been viewed; and third, the fact
that rhetoric no longer occupies a place in the modern education system or in
everyday life. However, there is now a body of literature discussing rhetoric as it
was understood at various periods of history, and also addressing some of the
prejudices and misapprehensions to which it has been subjected. 5° The purpose
of this chapter then is not to trace the development of rhetoric, nor defend it
from its critics, but to explore the rhetorical context and the role which rhetoric
would have played in seventeenth-century Moravia and Salzburg, together with
a consideration of the ways in which Biber may have been influenced by it. Such
a discussion is in order before any balanced survey of the use of rhetoric in
Biber's music and his writings about music in his dedications can be undertaken.
J. A. Simpson and B.. S. C. Weiner (eds), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd edn, 20 vols
(Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1989), vol. 13, p. 857.
50
One of the best English-language introductions to Classical rhetoric, and its development
throughout history, is Brian Vickers, In Defence of Rhetoric (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1988).
This study also examines Plato's attacks on rhetoric, and defends rhetoric in chapters 2 and 3. A
useful bibliography is given on pp. 481-490.
The chapter is divided into two sections. The first explores the role of rhetoric in
contemporary culture and society, and in contemporary education systems, and
the type of education Biber is likely to have received. The principal authors on
rhetoric who will be returned to throughout the thesis are introduced. The link
between music and rhetoric in antiquity is explored in this section also, as is the
way in which this tradition is continued by writers on rhetoric from seventeenth-
century central Europe. The second section of the chapter deals with rhetoric in
seventeenth-century music. After briefly tracing the early development of the
notion of musical rhetoric, the ideas of contemporary writers on musical rhetoric
with whom Biber was associated are discussed (some for the first time) together
with their likely impact and influence. This is followed by a section examining
the concept of phantasia as a device of written rhetoric and as a musical style
(the stylus phantasticus), both of which are important to discussions of Biber's
written prose and violin music, and assume a central place in this thesis. This
section also considers the problems raised by the study of rhetoric in music, and
the extent to which it might be argued to be an analytical tool rather than
reflecting the creative processes of the composer. By doing this, a framework
will be established, and some of the major concepts, themes, writings, and
personalities—which will be drawn upon throughout—will be introduced.
1.1 Rhetoric and Society
As Brian Vickers remarks, rhetoric was revived in education and began to
flourish primarily during the Renaissance. It was reintegrated into society, and it
was at this time that all the major treatises by the classical writers on rhetoric—
such as Aristotle, Quintilian, Cicero—were rediscovered, and 'were given great

diffusion through the invention of printing' 51 The astonishing extent of the
dissemination of these texts is illustrated by Vickers:52
The truly staggering number of editions, commentaries, and new works listed in
J. J. Murphy's pioneering bibliography, involving some six hundred Renaissance
authors, testifies to the great eagerness with which rhetoric was cultivated. If
there were perhaps two thousand rhetoric books published between 1400 and
1700, each in an edition of between two hundred and fifty and a thousand copies,
and if each copy was read by anything from one reader to the dozens using a
school text, then there must have been several million Europeans with a working
knowledge of rhetoric. These included many of the kings, princes, and their
counsellors; popes, bishops, ordinary clergymen (whether Catholic, Jesuit,
Protestant, Calvinist), all the professors, schoolteachers, lawyers, historians; all
the poets and dramatists, including the women, who were otherwise not granted
much education.
These texts served as the basis for a typical humanist education,53 and continued
to do so well into the eighteenth century and beyond; as Wilfried Barner shows,
rhetoric permeated all layers of society, especially in the German-speaking
lands,54 and it was into this by now well-established culture that Biber was born
in 1644.
1.1.1 Rhetoric and the Education System: Biber Among the Jesuits
It has been suggested that Biber received a Jesuit education, and an examination
of this possibility and the Jesuit system of education is therefore in order,
particularly given that rhetoric was an important strand of a Jesuit education (see
51 Vickers, In Defence of Rhetoric, p. 255.

52 Ibid.,
p. 256
See Warren Kirkendale, 'Ciceronians versus Aristotelians on the Ricercar as Exordium, from
Bembo to Bach', Journal of the American Musicological Society 32/1 (1979), pp. 1-44.
" Wilfried Barner, Barockrhetorik: Untersuchungen zu ihren geschichtlichen Grundlagen

(Tubingen: Max Niemeyer Verlag, 1970). Barner's monograph, which is too extensive to discuss
fully here, demonstrates the importance of rhetoric in (for example) the theatre, society and
general life, in the Protestant and Jesuit education systems, and among the humanists, nobility
and in the universities, predominantly in the German-speaking lands.
below). 55 The Jesuits—who had a greater influence on school and university
education in Catholic central and east-central Europe than any other organisation
during the seventeenth century—were also prominent in music. 56 Although it is
not possible to prove that Biber studied with the Jesuits, there is a significant
amount of circumstantial evidence which suggests that this was the case. First,
the entry recording Biber's baptism in the register from Wartenberg names him
as 'Hennericus fihius Martini e[t] Mari Piebers'; there is no mention of the
other two names—Ignaz and Franz—to which he referred to himself from Ca.
1676 onwards. 57 These two names had strong associations with important Jesuit
leaders: the most important being St. Ignatius Loyola, the founder of the Jesuits,
and Francis Xavier, one of the founder members. Second, JiiI Sehnal has shown
that Biber was in contact with a circle of musicians trained at the Jesuit
Gymnasium in Opava (German: Troppau) by 1663 if not before (by the time he
was 19)—namely, Pavel Vejvanovsk, and Johannes Rittler, 58 as well as an
Unfortunately, virtually nothing in known about Biber's early life, education, and training.
After his birth in 1644, the next piece of documentary evidence we have is a Salve regina a 2
from the year 1663 which survives at KromèlI [CZ-Kra: A 693 / B VI 19], by which time Biber
was 19. Likewise, virtually nothing is known about the following years until Ca. 1668 when
Biber entered the employ of Karl Liechtenstein-Castelcorno, Prince-Bishop of Olomouc in
KromèIi at the age of 24. The various hypotheses which have been put forward regarding
Biber's early years are evaluated more fully in Chafe, The Church Music, pp. 1-8.
56
Thomas Frank Kennedy, 'Jesuits', in NG II, vol. 13, pp. 19-2 1. See also Kennedy, 'Jesuits and
Music: The European Tradition 1547-1622' (PhD Diss., U. of California at Santa Barbara,
1982).
The register is now kept in the Stdtnf Oblastni Archiv v LitomèiIcich, LitomIce: Matrick der
Taufen von 1630. . . his 1714 der Pfarrey Wartenberg [CZ-LIT: L 153/1]. A facsimile of the
register entry is reproduced in Franz Moissl, 'H. I. F. Biber 1644-1704: Em Wartenberger
GroBmeister des Violinspiels', Mitteilungen des Vereins für Heimatkunde e. V. zu Eberswalde 2
(1908), p. 54. This discrepancy, and its likely Jesuit associations, is first remarked upon in
Gerhard Walterskirchen, 'Kurzbiographien Heinrich Ignaz Franz Bibers und Georg Muffats', in
Albert F. Hartinger & Gerhard Walterskirchen (eds), 'Biber und Muffat: Salzburger
Komponisten zur Zeit des Hochbarock', Jahresschrft 1980 der Salzburger Bachgesellschaft
(Salzburg: Gattermaier, 1980), p. 19.
58
JiII Sehnal, Introduction to Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber 1644-1704: Instrumentaiwerke
handschrifthicher Uberlieferung, 'DTO' 127 (Graz and Vienna: Akademische Druck- und
Verlagsanstalt, 1976), p. v.
anonymous KromèII cryptographer59—which suggests that he might have been
studying there also, or at least that he was active in that particular circle. Also
important is the fact that Biber was to retain close links with Vejvanovsk
throughout his life,60 and Biber's employer at KromëfI, Prince-Bishop Karl
Liechtenstein-Castelcomo, was also educated by the Jesuits (at Ingolstadt), 61 as
was his first employer at the Salzburg court, Count Maximilian Gandoiph von
Khuenberg. 62 After studying philosophy in Graz and theology in Salzburg,
Maximilian Gandoiph received his higher training at the German College in
Rome, a Jesuit institution, which was also the workplace of Giacomo Carissimi
(1605-1674) and the most influential music theorist (particularly musical-
rhetorical theory) of the baroque: Athanasius Kircher (1601-1680). Maximilian
Gandoiph was therefore in Rome at the same time as Kircher, and is likely to
have come into contact with him. Third, Biber's skill in written Latin—the
language of instruction of the Jesuits (see below)—and his eloquent use of
rhetorical devices in written Latin (see Chapter 2) has been suggested to have far
surpassed the ordinary. 63 Fourth, it is clear that by 1669 Biber was familiar with
the most important work of Jesuit musicology of the seventeenth century—
See Sehnal, 'KromèiIsk', kryptogramista 17. stoletI', HudebnIvëda 26 (1989), p. 30.

60
See Sehnal, Pave! Vejvanovsk'j a biskupskd kape!a v KromëFIiI (KromèII: Muzeum
Kromè1Iska, 1993), p. 46.
61
Ibid., p.23.
62
See Franz Martin, Salzburgs Fllrsten in der Barockzeit: 1587 his 1812 (Salzburg: Verlag das
Bergland-Buch, 1949; repr. 1966), P. 120.
63
Dieter Haberl, 'Ordo arithmeticus', p. 102. Haberl writes 'die perfekte Beherrschung der
lateinischen Sprache mit allem rhetorischen Können, wie sie uns in den Widmungsvorreden
seiner Druckwerke und in den Rosenkranzsonaten begegnet, kann dann als Bibers eigene Arbeit
angesehen werden und muB nicht in den Verdacht einer lateinischen Ubersetzung von fremder
Hand geraten.' In many of the Jesuit colleges, the vernacular was even forbidden, and the
classes, plays, and disputations had to be in highly formalised Latin. See John Cedric H.
Aveling, The Jesuits (London: Blond & Briggs, 1981), p. 215.
Kircher's Musurgia universalis (Rome, 1650).64 Even if he was not trained by
the Jesuits, the Jesuit-trained musicians with whom Biber was in close contact
from early in his adult life onwards are likely to have influenced him.
The principal education syllabus of the Jesuits was the Ratio atque institutio
studiorum, first published in Rome in 1586.65 Instructions are given in this work
on how classes should be organised in Jesuit institutions. Subjects include sacred
scripture, Hebrew, theology, philosophy, mathematics, humanities, grammar,
and rhetoric. Regarding the instruction of rhetoric, however, the Ratio studiorum
makes it very clear that whilst Aristotle and Cicero may be used for the daily
prelection, style may only be learned from Cicero:66
explicandi tamen non sunt in quotidiana in the daily prelection, however, nothing is
prlectione, nisi rhetorici Ciceronis libri, to be explained except the rhetorical books
et Aristotelis turn Rhetorica, si videbitur, of Cicero, and the rhetoric of Aristotle,
turn Poetica. Stylus . . . ex uno fere and if he [the teacher] thinks proper, the
Cicerone sumendus est. poetics of Aristotle. Style . . . is to be
learned only from Cicero.
In the classes (even the lower classes) of Jesuit institutions, Latin was to be
spoken whenever possible, and only in exceptional circumstances could the
vernacular be used. 67 This was of paramount importance for scripture lessons,
and the professors of this subject are told that they should defend at all times
Haberl, 'Ordo arithmeticus', p. 105. This point is discussed more fully below.
65
An edition is published as Ladislaus Lukács (ed.), Ratio atque institutio studiorum Societatis
lesu (1586, 1591, 1599) 'Monumenta historica Societatis lesu' 129 [= 'Monumenta Pdagogica
Societatis lesu' 5] (Rome: Institutum Historicum Societatis lesu, 1986). All subsequent
references are to this edition. An English translation of the Ratio studiorum can be found in
Edward A Fitzpatrick, St Ignatius and the Ratio studiorum (New York and London: McGraw-
Hill Education Classics, 1933). (The text of the Ratio studiorum is translated by A. R. Ball.)
66
Lukács (ed.), Ratio atque institutio studiorum, p. 424.
67
Ibid., p. 418.
Jerome's Vulgate translation of the Bible, which was that approved by the
church ('versionem ab Ecciesia approbatam defendat').68
The details of the education of Biber's colleague at the KromëiI court, Pavel
Vejvanovsk, who studied at the Jesuit gymnasium in Opava, demonstrate how
the rules of the Ratio studiorum were put into practice at a local level. He passed
in the first class (principi) in 1656, Grammar in 1657, Syntax in 1658, Poetics in
1659, and Rhetoric in 1660, which concords with the subjects of study for boys
at the Jesuit Gymnasia at Brno and Uherské Hraditë (near Opava) which were
as follows: 69
Principi, boys from 11-17 years, most of them 12-13

Grammar, boys from 12-20 years, most of them 14-16
Syntax, boys from 12-19 years, most of them 14-17
Poetics, boys from 13-19 years, most of them 14-16
Rhetoric, boys from 14-20 years, most of them 16-20.
In this system, which seems to have been widespread, 'rhetoric occupied a
privileged position in the school curriculum, being reserved to the higher
classes, forming the climax of a pupil's education'.7°
How comparable the Jesuit education of those such as Biber and his colleagues
would have been to those of aristocrats such as Maximilian Gandolph or Karl
68
Ibid., p. 383.
69
Sehnal, Pavel Vejvanovsk a biskupská kapela, p. 11.
70
Vickers, In Defence of Rhetoric, p. 256.
Liechtenstein is not clear. What is clear, however, is that the Jesuit notion of
rhetoric representing the pinnacle of the education system was established in
those classical sources on rhetoric which the Jesuits advocated (Cicero,
Aristotle, Quintilian), and this was an idea reflected in many seventeenth-
century German-language rhetoric treatises. Brief comment will be made of
some of those authors here, given that Biber alludes to them (both generally and
specifically) in his dedications.
As early as the first century AD Quintilian was advocating the study of music
prior to studying rhetoric, and he devoted an entire chapter to 'Other studies
necessary to rhetoric; music, geometry, astronomy' 71 This no doubt reflects the
ideas on the relationship between music and rhetoric of Cicero (106-43 BC),
Quintilian's teacher. Numerous passages comparing the two arts are to be found
in his principal work on rhetoric, the De oratore (ca. 55 BC).72
Whilst Quintilian and Cicero make many general analogies between music and
rhetoric, and both agree that music is both a pre-requisite subject of study for
rhetoric, as well as of significant use when it comes to the art of elocutio, it was
Aristotle (384-322 BC) who was to make analogies between specific parts of a
musical composition and parts of a speech. Perhaps the most famous example of
71
Marcus Fabius Quintilian, Institutio oratoria, trans. as The Institutio oratoria of Quintilian,
trans. H. E. Butler, 'LCL', 124-127 (London and New York: Heinemann and G. P. Putnam's
Sons, 1921), I.x. All subsequent citations refer to this edition.
72
Marcus Tullius Cicero, De oratore, trans. as Cicero: De oratore, trans. E. W. Sutton with
introduction by H.Rackham, 'LCL', 348-349, 2 vols (London and Cambridge, Massachussetts:
Heinemann and HUP, 1942). All subsequent citations refer to this edition.
this comes from his discussion of the exordium in the Ars rhetorica (ca. 366
BC):73
The exordium is the beginning of a speech, as the prologue in poetry and the
prelude in flute-playing; for all these are beginnings, and as it were a paving the
way for what follows. The prelude resembles the exordium of epideictic speeches;
for as flute-players begin by playing whatever they can execute skilfully and attach
it to the key-note, so also in epideictic speeches should be the composition of the
exordium; the speaker should say at once whatever he likes, give the key-note and
then attach the main subject.
This passage has particular importance with regard to opening movements of
instrumental music, and especially with regard to the stylus phantasticus (see
below).
The continued prevalence of the notion of the close relationship between music
and rhetoric in seventeenth-century didactic texts on rhetoric is reflected in
many of the numerous works published during the seventeenth century. 74 One
example (of many possible) from Johann Matthäus Meyfart's Teutsche
rhetorica—perhaps the most influential rhetoric treatise published in the
German-speaking lands—reads as follows:75

Wer immerdar auff einer Seyten leyret, He who always hammers on one string,
machet ihm Zuhörer zu Feinde und will turn his listeners into enemies and
Spottern. Em künstliche Rede ist eine mockers. An artistic speech is a secret
heimliche Harmoney oder Musica, und harmony or music, and must not be
muB nicht auff einer Seyten streichen played only on one string . . . In all, a
In Summa, eine gantze Rede muB seyn wie complete speech must be like a Music
eine Music von vielen Gesangen, als wenn of many songs, as when Oratio Vecchi
Horatius Vecchi oder die Patres der or the fathers of the Society [of Jesus]
Societet zu Wurzburg eine prachtige Sing at Wurzburg performed a splendid
Comcedien hielten. sung comedy.
'n Aristotle, Ars rhetorica (ca. 366 BC), translated as Aristotle: The 'Art' of Rhetoric, trans. John
Henry Freese, 'LCL' 193 (London, 1926; repr. 1994). Freese's expressions 'flute-player' and
'key-note' might more appropriately be rendered 'aulos-player' and 'final'. All subsequent
citations refer to this edition, and this and all further quotations from texts in the 'LCL' series
give the translation of the published edition.
" An extensive list is given in Barner, Barockrhetorik, pp. 456-487
Johann Matthäus Meyfart, Teutsche Rhetorica oder Rede-Kunst AuJ3 den berllhmtesten
redenern gezogen und beydes in Geistlichen und Weltlichen auch Kriegs-Verrichtungen so wol
zierlich als niitzlich zugebrauchen in zweyen Büchen abgefasset (Coburg: Friedrich Grunner,
1634), book two, p. 12.
Noteworthy here, is the fact that not only does Meyfart make a comparison
between the spoken arts and vocal music, but also (more importantly) with
instrumental music through his play on the words Seyten (or Saiten) and
streichen—a wordplay which Biber was to employ later in one of his dedications
(see Chapter 2).76 Given this widespread and long tradition of a close
relationship between music and rhetoric, it would have seemed natural to Biber
to draw on this tradition and use rhetorical devices and procedures in both his
written dedications and his music, which will be demonstrated below.
1.2 Rhetoric and Music
Having explored the importance of rhetoric in the seventeenth-century education
system as it may have been experienced by Biber, and some of the most
important texts on rhetoric (both classical and seventeenth century) and the
prominence given to music in them, the focus of attention will now turn to
musical rhetoric in the seventeenth century. The purpose of this section is not to
define seventeenth-century musical rhetoric, as there is already a large body of
scholarship which does that, 77 but to outline the emergence of specific strands of
musical-rhetorical thinking which relate to Biber, introduce the various
contributors to musical-rhetorical thought active in Biber's circle and to
76
Many similar examples are to be found in other texts from the period. Some specific examples
include: Balthasar Kindermann, Der Deutsche Redner in welchen unterschiedene Arten der
Reden auf allerley Begebenheiten . . . erhalten sind (Frankfurt: n.p., 1660), f. v r: Daniel Georg
Morhof, Unterricht von der teutschen Sprache undPoesie (Kiel: Reumann, 1682), p. 19.
For a general introduction to rhetoric and music, see George J. Buelow, Peter A Hoyt and
Blake Wilson, 'Rhetoric and Music', in NG II, vol. 21, pp. 260-75. Much early research on
musical rhetoric was undertaken by German scholars; one excellent modern English-language
study, however, is Dietrich Bartel's Musica poetica: Musical-Rhetorical Figures in German
Baroque Music (Lincoln and London: U. of Nebraska Press, 1997).
demonstrate how he related to each, and also assess the importance of the
writings and ideas of each figure.
1.2.1 Early Sources for Musical Rhetoric
Although connections had been made between rhetoric and music during the
middle ages and renaissance, 'not until the baroque period did rhetoric and
oratory furnish so many of the essential rational concepts that lie at the heart of
most compositional theory and practice.' 78 The notion of a musical-rhetorical
compositional practice—Musica poetica—was a predominantly German one
during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Discussions of the subject by
non-German speaking authors on music during this period were relatively rare.79
The most important and earliest sources for musical rhetoric are the writings by
Joachim Burmeister (1564_1629).80 Burmeister's most important work—the
Musica poetica (Rostock, 1 606)—contains his longest exposition on musical
rhetoric, and lists the numerous rhetorical figures to enable the student to
identify these in the works of the masters and imitate them. One maj or problem
with Burmeister' s system—which adopts most of its terminology for the musical
figures from the various figures of speech and figures of thought in rhetoric—is
that it is largely retrospective, in that Burmeister takes as his model Renaissance
78
Buelow, Hoyt and Wilson, 'Rhetoric and Music', p. 262.
See, for example, Gregory Butler, -'Music and Rhetoric in Early Seventeenth-Century English
Sources', Musical Quarterly 66 (1980), pp. 53-64.
80
Burmeister's writings have been published in both facsimile editions, and English translation:
Joachim Burmeister, Musica poetica (Rostock, 1606). Facs. edn Martin Ruhnke (ed.) (Kassel:
Bärenreiter, 1955); Modern edn and parallel English translation: Claude V. Palisca (ed.), with
introduction by Benito V. Rivera, Musical Poetics, 'Music Theory in Translation Series' (New
Haven, Connecticut: Yale U. Press, 1993). An important discussion of Burmeister as music
theorist is Martin Ruhnke, Joachim Burmeister: Em Beitrag zur Musiklehre urn 1600 (Kassel:
Bärenreiter, 1955).
polyphony, most particularly the music of Orlando di Lasso (ca. 1532-1594),
from which all his music examples of the various figures are drawn. It is
difficult, therefore, to reconcile the contents of this treatise with a notion of
baroque musical rhetoric, and the application of Burmeister's ideas to
seventeenth-century repertoire is problematic.
The traditional view of the development of musical-rhetorical theory of the
seventeenth century is that it was the writings of Kircher which formed the
foundation for the work of almost all subsequent major theorists. 8 ' Whilst
Kircher was of great importance, it is not generally acknowledged that in the
region in which Biber was active (Salzburg, Graz), many contemporary theorists
were influenced to a far greater extent (as will be argued below) by the theorist
Christoph Bernhard (1628_1694).82 Given Bernhard's influence in the region,
and the fact that it informs our understanding of Biber's music (see subsequent
chapters), some consideration of his ideas are needed here.
Bernhard was based for most of his life at the Dresden court alongside Heinrich
SchUtz (1585-1672). Bernhard, like Burmeister, categorises the various musical-
rhetorical figures (although using slightly different terminology). More
importantly, however, he is concerned with the music of contemporary baroque
composers—notably Schütz, and Carissimi, with whom he is believed to have
studied during the 1650s—and he was also in contact with such prominent
figures as Buxtehude during his tenure at the Hamburg court (1663-1674).
81
Buelow, Hoyt and Wilson, 'Rhetoric and Music', and also Buelow, 'Kircher, Athanasius', p.
619.
82
See Kerala J. Snyder, 'Bernhard, Christoph', in NG II, vol. 3, pp. 438-440.
Of Bernhard's three treatises on music theory—Von der Singe-Kunst oder
Manier, Tractatus compositionis augmentatus, and Ausfuhrlicher Bericht vom
Gebrauche der Con- und Dissonantien—the Tractatus compositionis was most
influential. 83 A most important contrast to the work of Burmeister is that in these
treatises 'Bernhard presents a concept of the musical-rhetorical figures which
focuses less on the analysis of vocal polyphony through the application of
rhetorical concepts than on the composition of contemporary music through the
use of modern expressive techniques,' and in doing so 'updates the Figurenlehre,
placing it squarely in the context of mid-seventeenth-century stylistic trends
without breaking its ties to the past.' 84 There is evidence that Bernhard's
writings circulated widely in manuscript (they were never printed) and
significantly, it was Bernhard's categorisation of the musical figures which was
adopted by most subsequent music theorists active in Moravia and Salzburg well
into the eighteenth century (see below).
1.2.2 The Musical-Rhetorical Writings of Biber's Colleagues
During the period in which Biber was educated, the concept of musical rhetoric
was already well established. Throughout his life, there is evidence that Biber
came into contact with numerous writers on musical rhetoric and/or their
83
All three are available in modern editions in Joseph Muller-Blattau (ed.), Die
Kompositionslehre Heinrich Schlltzens in der Fassung seines Schulers Christoph Bernhard
(Leipzig: Breitkopf & Hartel, 1926; 3rd edn, Kassel & Basel: Barenreiter, 1999). An English
translation of them appears in Walter Hilse (trans.), 'The Treatises of Christoph Bernhard',
Music Forum 3 (1973), pp. 1-196.
84
Bartel, Musica poetica, pp. 118-119.
writings. The aim here is to explore the nature of these writers' work and their
relationship with Biber, the extent to which they may have influenced his
musical thinking, and the extent to which the ideas and writings of such figures
were disseminated more widely.
The first figure (already mentioned) is Athanasius Kircher, a German educated
at various Jesuit institutions throughout Germany, before taking up a post at the
Jesuit German College in Rome, where he remained until his death in 1680.85
Kircher is important for understanding Biber not only because Biber quotes from
him in one of his compositions (see below) but also because he presents one of
the first discussions of the stylus phantasticus—an important style category
when discussing Biber's music (see below). Like Bernhard's, Kircher's
discussion of rhetoric in his Musurgia universalis—complete with a codified
system of musical figures—was drawn upon by most theorists until well into the
eighteenth century. 86 There is no evidence that Biber had any personal contact
with Kircher, although copies of the Musurgia are still extant in Salzburg. 87 As
was noted above, Archbishop Maximilian Gandolph, under whom Biber served
during the period 1670-1687, had studied at the German College in Rome.
There is also evidence that Biber had been exposed to Kircher's musical writings
85
Regarding Kircher, see George J. Buelow, 'Kircher, Athanasius', in NG II, vol. 13, pp. 618-
620, and Joscelyn Godwin, Athanasius Kircher: A Renaissance Man and the Quest for Lost
Knowledge (London: Thames and Hudson, 1979).
86
For discussions of Kircher's writings on music see Ulf Scharlau, Athanasius Kircher (1601-
1680) als Musikschrftste1ler: Em Beitrag zur Musikanschauung des Barock, 'Studien zur
hessischen Musikgeschichte' 2 (Marburg: Görich & Weiershäuser, 1969), and John Fletcher,
'Athanasius Kircher and his Musurgia universalis (1650)', Current Musicology 7 (1982), pp.
73-83.
87
An indication of the wide circulation of the Musurgia universalis during the baroque can be
gleaned from the citation of almost 300 extant copies listed in RISM.
at an early stage. In his Sonata violino solo representativa (KromëH, 1669),
Biber uses the songs of various birds, as they are notated in Kircher's Musurgia,
as his musical themes. 88 This does, of course, not indicate that Biber was fully
conversant, or agreed with, all of Kircher's ideas on music, but shows that by
1669, aged 25, he was aware of the writings on music of the most important
Jesuit music theorist from central Europe. The fact that he must have known the
original Latin edition of 1650 (and not the later, abridged German translation),
also suggests that he was competent in Latin.89
Prior to his employment in KromëlI2, Biber had worked at the court of the
younger prince of Eggenberg at Graz where he would have come into contact
with the theorist Johann Prinner (1624-1 694).° Prinner' s only extant theoretical
work—his Musicalische Schlissl (1677)—exists in only one exemplar, and
appears not to have circulated widely. 9' This work is little known, and has never
been published. 92 It comprises thirteen numbered chapters dealing with the
88
The connections between Biber's sonata and Kircher's treatise, and the way in which it relates
to the various musical precedents are discussed fully in Michael Lutz, Introduction to Heinrich
Ignaz Franz Biber: Sonata violino solo representativa, 'DMS: Faksimile-Ausgaben' 5
(Salzburg: Selke Verlag, 1994), pp. 5-10. This work is discussed more fully in Chapter 5.
89
The Musurgia appeared in an abridged German translation by Andreas Hirsch, Kircherus
Jesuita German us Germaniae redonatus: Sive Artis magnae de consono et Dissono Ars minor;
Das ist, Philosophischer Extract und Auszug aus deJ3 Welt-berühmten Teutschen Jesuitens
Athanasii Kircheri von Fulda Musurgia universali (Schwabisch-Hall: Hans Reinhard Laidigen,
1662), although this edition did not include the passages of birdsong from the 1650 edition
which Biber quoted in the Sonata violino solo representativa. Judging by the number of extant
copies of this work listed in RISM (27), this translation seems not to have been disseminated
nearly as widely as the original Latin version.
9°
Chafe, The Church Music, p. 3.
91
This MS is now held in the Library of Congress in Washington [US-Wc: ML9S.P79]. I am
grateful to the Deutsches Musikgeschichtliches Archiv in Kassel for providing me with a
microfilm copy of the work. There is almost no discussion of this work in the literature, and it is
not listed in RISM.
92
Neither Prinner nor this treatise are mentioned in the encyclopaedic study of musica poetica
theorists and their treatises by Bartel, Musica poetica, for example.
rudiments of music: voices and ranges, notation, solmisation, intervals,
suspensions, part writing, clefs, signatures, and transposition. Chapter 13
discusses various string instruments: basso di viola, viola da gamba, violetta,
viola da braccio, and violin, and four unnumbered sections at the end deal with
thorough bass ('Organische Instrumentation'), imitative writing ('fuga'),
counterpoint ('Contrapunct'), and a concluding section entitled 'Unterweisung
Wie man alle Stücke auf das Instrument gesezt Lemnen soll'). It is the section
entitled 'Contrapunct' which is of importance in this discussion, as it is here that
Prinner lists and defines various musical figures. His list begins with the
intervals of music. He then goes on to list a number of musical figures, common
to other lists presented by the musica poetica theorists. These are pausa, suspir,
dissonans, sincopatis/ligatura, transitus, variatio, elipsis, retardatio, abruptio.
Many of the descriptions of the figures follow Bernhard's descriptions closely,
as given in his Ausfuhrlicher Bericht vom Gebrauche der Con- und
Dissonantien, and sometimes the same music examples are used. 93 Of the nine
musical-rhetorical figures discussed by Prinner, four are taken from Bernhard
(variatio, elipsis, retardatio, dissonans), two from Kircher (pausa, suspir), and
three are discussed by both Bernhard and Kircher (sincopatis/ligatura, transitus,
abruptio). Significantly, however, the order in which Prinner lists these figures
closely reflects the order in which they are discussed in Bernhard's
Ausfuhrlicher Bericht vom Gebrauche der Con- und Dissonantien.
A similar system of musical-rhetorical figures also appears in Tomá Balthasar
Janovka's (1669-1741) Clavis ad thesaurum magne artis musicce (Prague,
Heilmut Federhofer, 'Prinner, Johann Jacob', in NG II, vol. 20, p. 325.

l7Ol). Janovka was also a Jesuit and strongly influenced by Kircher, and his
Clavis ad thesaurum has been called the first music dictionary of the baroque.95
His definitions of the figures are taken solely from Kircher, however, and not
Bernhard. 96 As far as we know Biber had no definite connection with this work
or its author, but this does demonstrate that musical-rhetorical thinking was also
prevalent in Biber's homeland of Bohemia, and was still thought relevant at the
beginning of the eighteenth century.97
The most important works of contemporary music theory (even though obscure
today) with which Biber was associated are the writings of his colleague at the
Salzburg court, Johann Baptist Samber (1654_1717).98 Samber is important not
only because his system of musical-rhetorical figures appears in his theoretical
writings (see below), but because we know that Biber was aware of his work and
willing to make this publicly known by writing an approbatio of Samber's first
treatise, which appeared at the front of the volume:99
" See entry for Figurae,

pp. 46-56. For an introduction to this works see Jili Sehnal, 'Janovkas
Clavis und die Musik in Prag urn das Jahr 1700', SbornIk pract Filosoficke fakulty Brnénské
university 6 (1971), pp. 25-42.
John Clapham and Tomislav Volek, 'Janovka, Tomá Baltazar', in NG II, vol. 12, p. 809
96
Bartel, Musica poetica, p. 125.
If the ten extant copies in RISM are taken as an indication of the extent to which the Clavis ad
thesaurum circulated, then it would seem that the impact of the work was not great.
98
The two most important of Samber's theoretical works are Manuductio ad organum (Salzburg:
Johann Baptist Mayr, 1704) and Continuatio ad manuductionem organicam (Salzburg: Johann
Baptist Mayr, 1707). They are discussed in Donald R. Boomgaarden and Richard B. Nelson,
'Johann Baptist Samber's (1654-1717) Manuductio ad organum: The First Modern discussion
of Fugue in German', The Journal of Musicological Research 11/1-2 (1991), pp. 93-126.
Samber, Manuductio ad organum, [ p. 9] . The printer's signature on this page is ')( )('.
Ich habe gegenwartiges Tractati (dessen I have keenly read through this current
Author wegen seiner guten Musicalischen treatise (whose author is well known
Wissenschafft und Fundamenten ohne deme moreover for his thorough musical
wohi bekannt) fleissig durchiesen, und knowledge and principles) and found in it
darinnen befunden, daB sonderlich die Jugend that the young, in particular, may
nicht allein mit geringer Manier, und in understand and learn not only how to play
kurtzer Zeit em saubere Partitur zu schiagen, a score correctly with little effort and in a
sondern auch die Modos Musicos, und Tonos, short time, but also, how through
sowol in Cantu Chorali, alsfigurali, durch die solmization, to distinguish and transpose
Solmisation zu unterscheyden und the musical modes and tones in both
transponiren fundamentaliter begreiffen und plainsong and figured music: and thus I
erlehrnen möge, dahere approbire und approve of and acknowledge as good and
erkenne Ich für gut und sehr nutzlich, daB very edifying that this is to be printed.
soiches gedruckt werde Salzburg, 7th March 1704.
Datum Saltzburg den 7. Martii. 1704. Heinrich Franz von Bibern, Lord High
Heinrich Franz von Bibern, Hochfurstl. Steward and Kapellmeister to the High
Saltzb. TruchseB und Capeilmaister. Prince of Salzburg
The section of Samber's treatise of relevance here comes from the second
volume of the Manuductio, entitled Continuatio ad manuductionem organicam
(Salzburg, 1707). It is entitled Wie man eine schöne Harmoniam oder liebliche
Gesang nach gewissen Pnecepten und Re gel componiren, and is a 'restatement
of Christoph Bernhard's contrapuntal doctrine appearing in his AusfUhrlicher
Bericht vom Gebrauche der Con- und Dissonantien, especially his concept of
the figune superficiales'.'°° Samber's list of the figurce superflciales—a term
originally used by Bernhard to denote the more expressive musical-rhetorical
figures—is almost identical to Bernhard's. The only exception is that Samber
lists mutilatio as his seventh figure, in place of Bernhard's heterolepsis.
Table 1.1: Comparison of the figura? superficiales of Bernhard and Samber
'°° George J. Buelow, 'Samber, Johann Baptist', in NG II, vol. 22, p. 205.
7. Heterolepsis 7. Mutilatio
8. Quasitransitus 8. Quasi- diminutio oder
Transitus
9. Abruptio 9. Abruptio
Another important section of Samber's Continuatio ad manuductionem is his
discussion of the modes, perhaps typical of late seventeenth-century Salzburg
modal thinking and thus relevant to Biber. Samber is aware of the rhetorical
aspects of the modes, and makes a close connection between the mode of a piece
of music and the affection it creates. In answer to the question 'Was ist dann
Modus Musicus?', Samber writes:101
Es ist em gewisse Harmonische Art It is a certain 'harmonic' art and

und WeiB aus siben musicalischen manner of seven musical species
Specien und gestalten der Octaven and forms of the octave generated
in scala Dura entsprungen, weiche in the hard scale, which causes
in ihrer Abtheilung / durch die various affections and emotions
Quart, und Quint underschiedlich through its divisions into the
Affecten, und Bewegungen fourth, and fifth.
verursachet.
Unfortunately Samber does not elaborate any further on exactly how the modes
cause the various affections or emotions, although it will be argued in
subsequent chapters that Biber—like S amber—also associated particular
affections with specific modes.
Samber continues his discussion of the modes by telling us that there is
disagreement over the number of modes: some composers believe there to be
fourteen, some twelve, whilst others believe that all of the modes can be reduced
to only two. 102 He seems to be highlighting a theoretical position alluded to by
101
Samber, Manuductio ad organum, p. 157.
Joel Lester, whereby there was a transitional period during the seventeenth
century during which theorists wrote about music combining traditional aspects
of the modes with aspects which are now associated with the major/minor
system of keys)°3
Although Samber gives examples of the various modal systems, he concludes his
discussion on the modes by saying that there are in practice eight modes which are
commonly used by contemporary composers:'°4
Jezt aber will ich zaigen, wie die zwölf But now I wish to show, how the
Modi (weiche etwan dem jenigen von twelve modes (which may be to him
einem schwachen verstand, und of a weak understanding and
GedachnuB entweders zu hoch oder zu memory either too high or too wide-
weitlauffig) hier seynd vorgetragen ranging [a number]) are presented
durch viel berühmte Componisten in here by many famous composers
acht Modes folgender Gestalt reducirt, reduced to eight modes used in the
und gebrauchet werden. following manner.
These can be summarised as follows:
1. D, with a minor 3rd, and no signature

2. G, with a B flat in the signature. Transposed a fourth higher from the first
mode
3. A, from the ninth mode, with a minor third
4. E, with a minor third, and no signature
5. C, with a major third, from mode 11
6. F, from the 12th mode, with a B flat in the signature, and a major 3rd
7. D, from the 8th mode, but a fourth higher, with f sharp in the signature
8. G, with a major 3rd, and no signature
103
Joel Lester, Between Modes and Keys: German Theory 1592-1802, 'Harmonologia Series' 3
(Stuyvesant: Pendragon Press, 1989), shows that modal and tonal concepts were in use
concurrently in the German lands during the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. He
shows how composers from central Europe, particularly from Catholic countries, were especially
slow to abandon the modal traditions. Moreover, the fact that Samber presents various systems
of modes (a fourteen-mode system, a twelve-mode system, an eight-mode system, and a two-
mode system) suggests that he believes current thinking to have developed from the
fourteen/twelve-mode system, although it has not yet become the major and minor system. For a
fuller discussion of this problem with reference to Biber's music, see especially Chapter 4. The
debate about the number of modes, however, predates the seventeenth century, and likewise, the
answers offered by theorists and composers depended not only on what we might now perceive
to be the stage of 'transition' but also on the purposes for which the classification was
undertaken.
104
Samber, Manuductio ad organum, p. 165.
(LCfl?L
Samber's list of modes of common usage suggests that he favoured a system of
eight modes over alternatives such as the twelve- or fourteen-mode system of
some of his predecessors. Although modes 1-4 might be termed today 'minor' and
modes 5-8 'major', a strong dependence on modal procedures is implied in
Samber's use of expressions such as 'transposed a fourth higher from the first
mode (von dem Ersten umb em Quart höher transponirt)' (Samber's mode 2),
suggesting that he viewed this as a modal transposition (adding a flat to the
signature to transpose the mode up a fourth). His use of incomplete signatures may
also be interpreted as a relic of modal thinking. S amber's thoughts offer an insight
into modal thinking at the end of the seventeenth century in Salzburg, and is a
categorisation which is useful for discussing music of the period, and will be
returned to in subsequent chapters when considering specific pieces of Biber' s
violin music.
Unfortunately, Biber's only extant writings on music theory—a singing manual
which he wrote for his daughter Anna Magdalena to use in teaching at the
Benedictine convent on Nonnberg—makes no mention of rhetoric.' 05 This is not
surprising, given that the manual is a singing manual, rather than a composition
manual, and is rather short and limited to only the basics of music.
105
See Erich Schenk, 'Em "Singfundament" von Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber', in Heinz Becker
and Reinharci Gerlach (eds), Speculum musicc artis: Festgabe für Heinrich Husmann zum 60.
Geburtstag am 16. Dezember 1968 (Munich: Fink, 1970), PP. 277-283. Another treatise by
Biber's Salzburg colleague Georg Muffat (1653-1704)—the Regule concentuum partiture
(1699)—also does not discuss rhetoric. Like Muffat's dedications to his sets of instrumental
music, its advice is largely aimed at performance rather than composition. The treatise is
published •as Hellmut Federhofer (ed.), Georg Muffat: An Essay on Thoroughbass,
'Musicological Studies and Documents' 4 (Tubingen: American Institute of Musicology, 1961).
Although many of these writers on music were indebted to Bernhard, it was
Kircher's writings which were the most influential in the long term, and were the
most widely disseminated. The examination of the definitions of musical figures
in the writings of those theorists associated with Biber, does show two lines of
descent: one stemming from Kircher (Janovka), and the other from Bernhard
(Prinner and S amber), and it was the two men whose ideas derived from
Bernhard with whom Biber had personal contact, as shown above. Perhaps most
revealing, however, is that whilst Kircher viewed the musical figures primarily
as affective devices, it was Samber, over fifty years later than Kircher in
Salzburg, who (like Bernhard) considered the figures part of the process of
composition. As the heading of his chapter discussing musical figures reveals,
the musical-rhetorical figures are part of the process of 'how one composes a
beautiful [piece ofi music or pleasant song according to certain precepts and
rules (Wie man eine schöne Harmoniam oder liebliche Gesang nach gewissen
Praecepten und Regel componiren)'.
1.2.3 The Stylus phantasticus as a Rhetorical Style Category
An important stylistic concept, which occupied a place in both rhetoric and
seventeenth-century musical thought, is fantasy or phantasy. In baroque musical
thought the term manifested itself in the stylus phantasticus, which is most
commonly used today to discuss the instrumental music of Buxtehude. 106 As was
noted in the thesis introduction, however, the term was used by Burney to
106
See for example Christine Defant, Kammermusik und Stylus phantasticus: Studien zu Dietrich
Buxtehudes Triosonaten, 'European University Studies' 36/14 (Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang,
1985)
describe Biber's violin music. 107 Despite this, and the fact that one of Biber's
violin sonatas from the 1681 Sonatce violino solo exists in one concordance
under the title 'Fantasia' (see Chapters 4 and 5), this aspect of Biber's violin
music has received no attention, but does seem to be of importance as will be
argued in subsequent chapters. In order to elucidate on the stylus phantasticus as
a musical term, however, it is first necessary to explore the aesthetic and
historical background of its literary, artistic and rhetorical meanings, something
which has not yet been undertaken in relation to the term as a musical concept,
and which will in turn enlighten our understanding of the term as a musical style
of the baroque.
The word fantasy or phantasy stems from the Greek word bavtama which
means either 'the look or appearance of a thing: esp. a showy appearance, show,
display, parade' or 'as a term of phi1osophy, imagination, presentation, the
power by which an object is made apparent. . . to the mind'. 108 Aristotle defines
the term as 'a movement of the mind generated by sensation' 109 or as that which
one 'has in expectation or recollection, opposite to the impression received from
things present'.° More detail on the term is given by Quintilian, who describes
it as 'tIctvtaca or imagination, which assists us to form mental pictures of
107
It is not the intention to imply that Burney's notion of phantasy was the same as Biber's, but
merely to show that he pointed to this aspect of Biber's violin music.
108
Henry George Liddell, and Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon (Oxford: Clarendon Press,
1843; 8th edn repr. 1929), p. 1656.
109
Aristotle, De anima, trans. as Aristotle: On the soul; Parva naturalia; On Breath, trans. W.S.
Hett, 'LCL' 288 (London and Cambridge, Massachusetts: Heinemann and HUP, 1936), iii.3.1 1.
110
Aristotle, Ars rhetorica, I.xi.6.
I The Rhetorical Background Page 53
things'. 11 ' For Quintilian, however, Iav'rarna is an important rhetorical tool. In
his discussion of the ways in which the orator of forensic oratory must acquire
112
the emotions which he is expressing, Quintilian writes as follows:
But how are we to generate these emotions in ourselves, since emotion is not in
our power? I will try to explain as best I may. There are certain experiences
which the Greeks call Iavtarnai and the Romans visions, whereby things absent
are presented to our imagination with such extreme vividness that they seem
actually to be before our very eyes. It is the man who is really sensitive to such
impressions who will have the greatest power over the emotions. Some writers
describe the possessor of this power of vivid imagination, whereby things, words
and actions are presented in the most realistic manner, by the Greek word
eIpavraatwtoç: and it is a power which all may readily acquire if they will.
When the mind is unoccupied or is absorbed by fantastic hopes or day dreams,
we are haunted by these visions of which I am speaking to such an extent that we
imagine that we are travelling abroad, crossing the sea, fighting, addressing the
people, or enjoying the use of wealth that we do not actually possess, and seem to
ourselves not to be dreaming but acting.
For Quintilian, then, (Iavtama is an essential rhetorical device central to the
orator's ability to move the emotions of his audience: 'for it is feeling and force
of imagination that make us eloquent'.113
Quintilian acknowledges that the device was not limited to oratory, however, but
was used in the arts, namely, painting.' 14 In this sense, Quintilian's definition of
Ictv'rama is arguably the basis of a definition of musical presentation or
'programme' music as it might have been understood by Biber." 5 Indeed,
Quintilian suggests that these visions cause us to imagine that we are (among
other things) fighting in a battle. The analogy here with the numerous battle
111
Quintilian, Institutio oratoria, VIII.iii.88.
112 Ibid., VI.ii.29.
113
Ibid., X.vii.15.
114 Ibid., XII.x.6.
115The close connection between phantasia, musical representation, image and the stylus
phantasticus is attested in contemporary music theory (particularly Janovka); see below.
pieces composed during the seventeenth century—including Biber's Battalia-
is obvious. Pursuing such a line of thought leads to a reinterpretation of other
facets of Biber's violin music also. For example, his use of scordatura—often
claimed to be empty virtuosity but also acknowledged as being exploited in the
Mystery Sonatas for sympathetic resonance—can be argued to be a device
employed specifically to enhance the requisite lavtacna of each work (see
Chapter 3). Examples of this include the c', e', g', c" scordatura of the twelfth
Mystery Sonata to enable the violin to imitate a trumpet fanfare, and the g, g', d',
d" scordatura of the eleventh Mystery Sonata to enable the violin to imitate the
sound of chorale singing (a device also employed in the Sonata a 6 die pauern-
Kirchfarth genandt). Another example of lkivtama which Quintilian says we
can imagine is crossing the sea (see above). In this regard it is noteworthy that
many years later, Mattheson, on the subject of extra-musical representation in
music, wrote: 116
If someone might mention that indeed these things cannot be well represented in
music; then one can assure and convince him that he would be deceiving
himself not a little. The famous Joh. Jac. Froberger, court organist for Emperor
Ferdinand III, knew how to represent quite well, on the clavier alone, entire
stories depicting contemporaneous and participating persons, as well as their
emotions. I possess, among others, an allemande with all the trimmings wherein
the crossing of Count von Thurn and the peril he endured on the Rhine is rather
clearly laid before the eyes and ears in 26-note cascades. Froberger was there
himself.
Could Froberger perhaps have been thinking of Quintilian' s 'phantasia' of
'crossing the seas (see above) when he wrote this piece? Mattheson's expression
116
Johann Mattheson, Der volikommene Capelimeister (Hamburg: Verlegts Christian Herold,
1739), p. 130. This translation from Ernest C. Harriss, Johann Mattheson's Der volikommene
Capelirneister, 'Studies in Musicology' 21 (Ann Arbor, MI: UMI Research Press, 1981). An
edition of the original is published as Friederike Ramm (ed.), Johann Mattheson: Der
volkommene Capelimeister: Studienausgabe im Neusatz des Textes und der Noten (Kassel &
Basel: Bärenreiter, 1999). Further references to this work will be to the new edition, although
page numbers are the same for the original edition, as the original pagination is indicated in this
work.
'laid before the eyes and ears' is particularly interesting. A similar Latin
expression—benevolis oculis, ac auribus—is used by Biber in several of his
dedications from his instrumental music (see Chapter 2). This was perhaps a
term associated with rhetoric, or with tavtacna and perhaps representation in
music also. Certainly Froberger was associated, by Mattheson at least, with the
stylus phantasticus. Indeed, it could be argued that this is the explanation for
Biber's use of numerous unconventional devices in much of his so-called
'programme' music, which played a prominent part in his output, and suggests
that there is perhaps a need for a reinterpretation, in rhetorical terms, of Biber' s
understanding of the concept of 'programme' music.
By the seventeenth century, in Central Europe, the term 'fantasy', whilst also
maintaining these meanings, had also acquired other meanings, however. A
German dictionary published in 1691 in Leipzig defines the terms 'Fantasey'
and 'Fantastisch' as follows: 117
Fantasey, die, phantasma, imaginatio mentis, figmentum. Nach seiner Fantasey

leben, suis auspiciis vivere, uti animo suo. Wer nach seiner Fantasey schreibet, muB
auch der Leser fantasey gewartig stehen, qvi ad arbitrium suum scribit, lectorum
arbitratus in judicando expecter.
Fantastisch, & Fantastenhaft, adj. idem quod Fasicht & Fanericht, ingeniô infelici
prditus, delirus, imaginarius, monstruosus, vecors, male sanus, & adv. Insulsè,
insanCm, insane.
Not only does this have the meanings of the definitions above, but it also has the
newer, more sinister meanings of 'unnatural' and 'insane'. This meaning is
reiterated in other seventeenth-century German dictionaries, and the term
117
Caspar Stieler, Der teutschen Sprache Staninibaum und fort-wachs oder teutscher
Sprachschatz (Nurnberg: J. Hoffmann, 1691), col. 444.
cerebrosus, meaning 'having a madness of the brain', is frequently given in the
definition."8
We turn now to the musical counterpart of avTarna—the stylus phantasticus.
The earliest known definition of the stylus phantasticus comes from Kircher's
Musurgia universalis, a volume with which we know Biber was familiar (see
above). Kircher wrote: 119
Phantasticus stylus aptus instrumentis, The stylus phantasticus is appropriate to

est liberrima, et solutissima instruments. It is an extremely free and
componendi methodus, nullis, nec unfettered method of composition, bound
verbis, nec subiecto harmonico to nothing, neither to words, nor to a
adstrictus ad ostentandum ingenium, et harmonious subject. It is organised with
abditam harmoniae rationem, regard to manifest invention, the hidden
ingeniosumque harmonicarum reason of harmony, and an ingenious,
clausularum, fugarumque contextum skilled connection of harmonic phrases
docendum institutus, dividiturque in and imitation. And it is divided into those
eas, quas Phantasias, Ricercatas, pieces which are commonly called
Toccatas, Sonatas vulgo vocant. Phantasias, Ricercatas, Toccatas, and
Sonatas.
Whilst Kircher is thought to be the first theorist to define the term, he was not the
only one: subsequent theorists include (among others) Sebastian de Brossard
(1655-1730), Janovka, Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778), and Johann
Gottfried Walther (1684_1748).120 All of these lexicon definitions derive in the
first instance from Kircher.
118
Lewis and Short, A Latin Dictionary, p. 318. Examples of seventeenth- and eighteenth-
century central-European dictionaries containing these meanings are: Johann Hermann
Widerhold, Neues Teutsch-FranJ3osisch-Lateines Dictionarium oder Wortbuch (Geneva:
Widerhold, 1669; repr. Basel: Widerhold, 1675), p. 112 (1669 edn); Christian Ludwig, Teutsch-
englisches Lexicon (Leipzig, 1716), p. 601, includes the definition 'a fantastical fellow, a man
that has strange fancies or fantastick conceits; that is troubled with freaks.'
119
Kircher, Musurgia universalis, p. 585.
120
Sebastian de Brossard, Dictionaire de Musique, 2nd edn (Paris: Christophe Ballard, 1705), p.
116; Janovka, Clavis ad thesaurum, p. 122; Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Dictionnaire de Musique
(Paris: Chez la veuve Duchesne, 1768), p. 455; Johann Gottfried Walther, Musikalisches Lexikon
(Leipzig: Deer 1732), p. 584.
Significantly, it was Janovka who connected phantasia in music with image and
representation (reprcesentatio):'2'
Phantasia musica est imago, idea, Musical phantasia is an image, idea,

reprsentatio, habitus, & copia rerum representation, appearance, & an
musicalium, animo Musici insidentium abundance of the musical material,
rooted in the musician's mind
The most extensive discussion of the stylus phantasticus appears much later,
however, in 1739 in Johann Mattheson's Der voilkommene Cappellmeister.122
Mattheson was also aware of the less pleasant meaning of the term fantastic.123
Paragraph 93 of Mattheson's definition is a developed paraphrase of Kircher; the
remainder of the definition, however, is original. The most important distinction
between the two theorists' definitions lies in their attitudes towards counterpoint.
Whilst Kircher tells us that the stylus phantasticus 'is organised . . . with the
skilled connection of harmonic phrases and imitation', Mattheson makes very
clear that:'
Die Haupt-Sätze und Unterwürffe lassen The principal motifs and subjects
sich zwar, eben der ungebundenen cannot be completely ignored just
Eigenschafft halber, nicht gantz und gas because of the improvisatory nature;
ausschliessen; sie durffen aber nicht recht they may however not be done in
an einander hangen, vielweniger ordentlich sequence, much less be regularly
ausgefuhret werden: daher denn diejenigen performed: hence those composers
Verfasser, welche in ihren Fantaisien oder who work out regular imitation in
Toccaten förmliche Fugen durcharbeiten, their Fantasias or Toccatas, maintain
keinen rechten Begriff von dem no proper features of the intended
vorhabenden Sty! hegen, als we!chem kein style, as nothing is so very contrary
Ding so sehr zuwieder ist, denn die to it as order and constraint.
Ordnung und der Zwang.
Also of note in Mattheson's definition, is his dependence on rhetorical
vocabulary, or vocabulary associated principally with linguistics rather than
121
Janovka, Clavis ad thesaurum, p. 97.
122
Mattheson, Der volikommene Capeilmeister, p. 87.
123
Ibid., p. 87.
124
Ibid., p. 88.
music. The most striking example comes in paragraph 89 when he is talking
about improvisation, which 'is for competent minds which are stock full of
inventions, and are rich in all kinds of figures (sometimes accessively)'. 125 For
Mattheson then, improvisation, invention, and an abundance of figures was
central to the stylus phantasticus. Rhetoric and music was an important concern
of Mattheson's generally, as is testified by the lengthy discussions of it in Der
voilkommene Cappellmeister, and as he says: 126
niemand wiedersprechen können, daB nicht, none of them can deny, when one
wenn man es reifflich erweget, em grosses considers it carefully, that a great part of
Stuck der Music, die ja eine Klang-Rede ist, music, which indeed is a speech in tones,
darin stecke, und daB, wer nur immer den would reside therein [in rhetoric], and that
Nahmen eines wahren Ton-Meisters whoever wants to be called a true
behaupten will, wo nicht mehr, wenigstens composer, if nothing else, must have at
uberhaupt einen deutlichen Begriff davon least a clear idea of this; whether he wants
haben mUsse; er mag als em Liebhaber, urn to be considered as a lover of music who
wol zu urtheilen, oder als em KUnstler, urn can judge well or as an artist who can
wol zu spielen, zu singen und su setzen, play, sing or compose well.
angesehen werden wollen.
Today, an understanding of the stylus phantasticus as a musical style category of
the Baroque is usually confined to the keyboard and ensemble music of
Buxtehude and his circle.' 27 This is partly because Kircher cites a passage he
believed to be from one of Buxtehude's works as an example of this style.128
Such an understanding unnecessarily restricts a fuller interpretation of the nature
of the stylus phantasticus in other contemporary music. Those elements of
Buxtehude's sonatas which are most often described as being evocative of the
125
Ibid., p. 88. Italics mine. The German reads: 'Aber es gehoren tUchtige Kopffe dazu, die
voller Erfindungen stecken, und an allerhand Figuren (bisweilen mehr als gar zu) reich sind.'
126
Ibid., p. 34.
127
See Defant, Kammermusik und Stylus phantasticus.
128
Kircher actually misattributes the work to Froberger. See Kerala J. Snyder, Dieterich
Buxtehude: Organist in LUbeck (New York and London: Schirmer and Collier Macmillan,
1987), pp. 248-249. See also pp. 248-257 and 290-296.
stylus phantasticus—strange harmonic progressions, chromaticism, mercurial
pulse and texture changes, and virtuosic scale and arpeggio patterns—are,
however, used to a far greater extent in Biber's instrumental music than
Buxtehude' s. Moreover, Biber drew on the term as a title for his fourth sonata
from the Sonatce violino solo, which exists in a late-seventeenth-century
manuscript of Viennese provenance under the title Fanz'asia. 129 Given these
factors, there is justification for discussing his violin music in the context of the
stylus phantasticus.
All of the published definitions of the stylus phantasticus—except for
Mattheson's from 1739—allow it to be used in the sonata. A year later, however,
in his Grundlage einer Ehren-Pforte, Mattheson includes a description of a
sonata by Förster which was performed at Bernhard's house in 1666 as being in
the 'stylo phantastico' (see Chapter 4)130 One would expect that Biber's
sonatas—if they are to be regarded as examples of the stylus phantasticus-
might reflect a stage of development of the stylus phantasticus somewhere
between that described by Kircher and Mattheson.
One other important link between phantasia in music and in rhetoric, and which
is of relevance to Biber, lies in Aristotle's discussion of the exordium or proem
129
Kodex 726 of the Minoritenkonvent, Vienna, 3v-5r [A-Wm: MS 726]. This MS is discussed
in Chafe, The Church Music, pp. 4 and 20 1-203. The authority of the title, however, remains
unclear (see Chapter 5).
130
Mattheson, Grundlage einer Ehren-Pforte, woran der TUchtigsten Capelirneister,
Componisten, Musikgelehrten, TonkUnstier u. Leben, Werke, Verdienste u. erscheinen sollen
(Hamburg: the author, 1740), p. 21.
in rhetoric, and its connections with music, particularly the aulos-player's
prelude (see above for the full quotation). As Aristotle's discussion shows, apart
from his analogy between the exordium of a speech and that of a aulos-player's
performance, of particular importance is Aristotle's instruction that the orator
should (like the aulos player) start his exordium 'by playing whatever they can
execute skilfully and attach it to the key-note'. This seems to be exactly what
Biber is doing in the opening preludes of many of his compositions, in which the
predominant musical features are scales and arpeggios over an extended bass
pedal on the final. It is difficult to see what musical function these often lengthy
introductions serve, other than (as Aristotle says of the exordium in a speech)
for 'paving the way for what follows'. Such sections also serve to make the
listener well-disposed to the mode/key of the piece, which is an important
rhetorical device which Biber discusses in his dedications (see chapter 2). As
Warren Kirkendale has shown, there was a direct link between the exordium in
rhetoric and the ricercar in renaissance music. 131 Furthermore, the ricercar was
associated with both improvisatory practices and, more importantly, the fantasia
or term fantasy (it features in almost all definitions of the stylus phantasticus)
well into the eighteenth century. 132 Given Biber' s evident rhetorical leaning, it is
likely that he would have known about this, and his use of the 'proem model'—
the term which will be used throughout the thesis to denote such movements—
will be argued in the discussion of the music in subsequent chapters.
131
Kirkendale, 'Ciceronians versus Aristotelians'.
132
Ibid., p. 5.
1.2.4 The Relationship Between Music and Rhetoric: Theory or Practice?
Despite the prominence of musical-rhetorical ideas in contemporary musical
thought, the exact impact these ideas had on the practice of contemporary
musical composition is unclear. The problem and its causes are clearly
articulated by Buelow: 133
What still remains to be fully explained is how these critical interrelationships

often controlled the craft of composition. These developments are unclear partly
because modern musicians and scholars are untrained in the rhetorical disciplines,
which since the beginning of the 19th century have largely disappeared from
most educational and philosophical systems. It was only in the early-2Oth century
that music historians rediscovered the importance of rhetoric as the basis of
aesthetic and theoretical concepts in early music. An entire discipline that had
once been the common property of every educated man has had to be
rediscovered and reconstructed during the intervening decades, and only now is it
beginning to be understood how much Western art music has depended on
rhetorical concepts.
Despite the lack of written evidence from Biber regarding his ideas on his
compositional processes, we may be able to reconstruct them to some extent by
studying the extant music, and the dedications which he wrote to the dedicatees
of his various published (and unpublished) sets of music.
Not only is it unclear how far rhetoric was drawn on by composers in creating
music, but it is also unclear how far it influenced theorists in writing about it. It
can be argued that Biber indeed used 'prescriptive' rhetoric, even though this is
difficult to prove, especially in the instrumental music: the evidence is clearer in
the dedications. Samber, too, viewed musical-rhetorical figures as an integral
part of the compositional process, and they can be used to provide an historically
informed approach to analysis, which can embrace other traditional categories
133
Buelow, Hoyt and Wilson, 'Rhetoric and Music', p. 260.
[The Rhetorical Background Page 62
uch as virtuosity, modes or tonal centres. It may be more useful to view rhetoric
n Biber's music both as a creative and interpretative tool, and that both aspects
omplement each other; in Biber's written dedications ambiguity of expression
nd meaning is established through the use of rhetorical figures and other
evices, and the reader is invited to understand the texts on various different
wels and different ways.
[aving explored the rhetorical and musical-rhetorical contexts and traditions as
iey related to Biber, the focus in the following chapters will be on the ways in
hich Biber drew more specifically from these traditions and contexts in his
ork, and more broadly how an appreciation of this enlightens our
iderstanding of his creative output as a whole.

2 Rhetoric, Style and Meaning in Biber's Dedications Page 63
2 Rhetoric, Style, and Meaning in Biber's Written Dedications
2.1 The Dedications
Little is known about Biber's biography, particularly regarding the period
covering his youth and education up until the start of his tenure in Salzburg in
1670. The dedications he wrote for his sets of instrumental and vocal music
during his Salzburg period are therefore important sources for shedding light on
his probable educational background. Nevertheless, they have received little
attention from scholars, compared with the large amount of interest attracted by
the dedications of Biber's Salzburg colleague Georg Muffat, for example. 134 The
systematic rhetorical analysis of all the dedications in a single study is new
territory for Biber studies.
There are seven extant dedications by Biber, which precede each of the following
sets of music: Mystery Sonatas (1670s), Sonata tam aris quam aulis servientes
(1676), Mensa sonora (1680), Sonatce violino solo (1681), Fidicinium sacro-
profanum (ca. 1682), Vesperce longiores ac breviores (1693), Harmonia
artificioso ariosa (1696). All but the first of these was published, and all were
written in Latin only, with the exception of the dedication to the Mensa sonora,
which was published with a dedication in both Latin and the vernacular. All of
the dedications are given in Appendix A with English translations. Whilst only
134
Apart from some comment in recording sleeve notes, and cursory comment in other
publications, the dedications have never before been the subject of a systematic study. Muffat's
dedications, however, have been translated into English (principally because of the information
they give us about contemporary performance practice issues), and are well known. See David K.
Wilson (trans. and ed.), Georg Muffat on Performance Practice: The Texts from Florilegium
Primum, Florilegium Secundum, and Auserlesene Instru,nentalmusik: A New Translation
with Commentary (Bloomington and Indianopolis: Indiana University Press, 2001). See also
Oliver Strunk (ed), Source Readings in Music History, rev. Leo Treitler (New York and London:
Norton, 1950; rev. 1998), pp. 644-655.
three of the dedications relate to the collections 'pure' violin music (the subject
of this study), all of the extant dedications are discussed here in order to enable
both the dedications and the works themselves to be seen in the broader context
of Biber's uvre, and to enable a discussion of all of Biber's writings on his
music. The dedication from Biber's Vesperce longiores ac breviores is also
included as the only dedication relating to vocal rather than instrumental music,
and also as one of only two extant dedications of Biber to his second employer in
Salzburg, Johann Ernst von Thun (the other being the dedication to the
Harmonia artificioso ariosa), and which can function as a 'control', as well as
offering an insight into Biber's views on vocal music. Furthermore, the
dedications were produced over a period spanning almost all of Biber's Salzburg
tenure, and will be discussed here in chronological order in order to demonstrate
this line of development.
2.2 Analysis of the Dedications
Periodically in this chapter it will be necessary to quote parts of sentences or
whole sentences from the dedications. These will not be referenced each time
this happens; instead, the reader should refer to Appendix A, where the original
Latin and German dedications can be found together with English translations.
2.2.1 The Mystery Sonatas (1670s)
The dedication from the Mystery Sonatas is the only one in Biber's collections
not to have been published. Although the collection cannot be precisely dated
within the 1670s, it is generally thought to have been the first Biber wrote during
his Salzburg period. 135 In the absence of a title page or any further documentary
evidence regarding the meaning, purpose and function of the Mystery Sonatas,
the Latin dedication which precedes the music is an important source. Except in
the context of some numerological analysis undertaken by Dieter Haberl, 136 this
dedication has not before been the subject of comprehensive criticism (see
Chapter 3).
The dedication begins in the way in which it continues throughout, with
metaphor. The opening references to the sun of justice (soli justitice) and
immaculate moon (lunce sine macula) to which Biber is consecrating the music,
were established metaphors for Christ as the light of the world, 137 and the Virgin
Mary,' 38 respectively, who are the two central figures of the mysteries of the
rosary. 139 The placing of these two symbols at the start of the dedication
emphasises this. The metaphor does not exist on this one level however. The
reference in the same sentence to Maximilian Gandoiph (the dedicatee of the set)
as the third light (tertia lux) receiving illumination from both Christ and Mary
(ãb utroq(ue) Diuino siempsisti Lumine) not only refers to his holy status by
making an analogy between him and Christ, but it also places him in a threefold
135
The only extant source for the Mystery Sonatas is a bound volume now held in the Bavarian
State Library in Munich (D-Mbs: Mus. Ms. 4123). A facsimile edition of this volume, with
introduction, is reproduced in Ernst Kubitschek (ed.), Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber: Mysterien-
Sonaten ('Rosenkranz-Sonaten'), Bayerische Staatsbibliothek Mllnchen, Mus. Ms. 4123, 'DMS:
Faksimile-Ausgaben' 1 (Bad Reichenhall: Comes Verlag, 1990). On the dating of the Mystery
Sonatas, see Chafe, The Church Music, p. 186, and also Chapter 3.
' 36 1-Iaberl, 'Ordo arithmeticus', pp. 204-209.
See 'Sol Invictus', in Peter and Linda Murray, A Dictionary of Christian Art (Oxford: OUP,
137
1996), P. 543.
138See 'Virgin Mary', in Jennifer Speake, The Dent Dictionary of Symbols in Christian Art
(London: Dent, 1994), pp. 151-152.
139 See Haberl, 'Ordo arithmeticus', p. 20.
unity with Christ and Mary. Biber also makes use of the rhetorical figure
polyptoton (words sharing the same opening syllable) in this sentence on the
words (luna, lux and lumine))4°
This metaphor is then extended (sentence 2), as Biber draws closer analogies
between Maximilian Gandolph and the Virgin Mary. He tells Maximilian 'as a
Son you glow red in holy dignity, and as a Virgin you defend the Virginal honour
of the Mother (Filius enim dignitate sacrã rutilans, Matris Virgineum Virgo
defendis honorem)'. The wordplay and ambiguity in meaning in this context of
the word son (filius) who glows red in holy dignity refers to the biblical
metaphors for Christ both as the son of God and the light of the world or sun of
justice (see above). Likewise an analogy is made between Maximilian
Gandoiph's celibacy as a catholic Archbishop, and the virginity of the Virgin
Mary, which is highlighted through the use of polyptoton on the words virgineus
and virgo. The concept of glowing red (rutilare) has another meaning in this
context: Biber is referring to the Maximilian Gandoiph as 'royal' and thus as a
prince, and is thus flattering him; he uses a similar device in the dedication to his
Vesperce ion giores ac breviores (see below). Biber continues the analogy in the
second half of this equally balanced sentence, by telling us what Maximilian
Gandolph is given in return from Christ and Mary: he is nourished (nutrire) by
Christ, and given milk (lactare) by the Virgin Mary. Once more, polyptoton is
used for the words Mater and Maria, which is developed later in the dedication
(see below).
140
For a seventeenth-century German definition of polyptoton see Meyfart, Teutsche Rhetorica,
pp. 342-347.
Biber then tells us that 'She [Mary] has taken the first letter of her most blessed
Name and placed it as the first [letter] of Your Most Eminent Name (Qute
primam de suo beatissimo Nomine sumens Litteram, primam Tuo Celsissimo
Nomini imposuit.)' The technique to which Biber is referring is the rhetorical
figure of alliteration ('Maximilian', 'Maria'): indeed, much of the rhetorical
wordplay in the dedication (alliteration, metaphor etc.) focuses on names of
individuals. There is a further rhetorical figure involving wordplay on names,
nominatio, which is listed in the Rhetorica ad Herennium.'41 This is in all
likelihood to what Biber is referring in his sentence with his reference to the
alliteration between the names Maria and Maximilian, and also with his use of
the word nomen twice. As Aristotle tells us, the name is one of the rhetorical
topoi.'42
The rhetorical use of names, both as a topic and in conjunction with other
rhetorical figures, is highlighted in the next sentence (sentence 4) where Biber
writes 'in this way Mary has favoured Maximilian (sic Maria Maximilianum
condecoravit.)' This has importance beyond the fact that Biber is yet again using
polyptoton here. Haberl has pointed out that the upper case letter 'M' appears
twelve times in the dedication, and he concludes that this has numerological
significance. 143 This is done above all to emphasise the Marian focus both of this
set of music, and of the rosary itself.
141
Anon., Rhetorica ad Herennium, IV.xxxi. This work gained great popularity subsequent to its
rediscovery in the Renaissance. For an edition and translation see Harry Caplan (trans. and ed.),
[Cicero], Ad C. Herennium de ratione dicendi (Rhetorica ad Herennium), 'LCL' 403 (London
and Cambridge, MA: Heinemann and HUP, 1954).
142
Aristotle, Ars rhetorica, II.xxiii.29.
143
Haberl, 'Ordo arithmeticus', pp. 206-207. This includes the six upper case 'M's in the
opening address ('CELSJSS1ME AC REVERENDISSIME PRINCEPS DOMINE, DOMINE
In sentence five Biber tells us:
Quatuor Chordis CheI9m meam instructam You will find here my four-stringed Lyre
quindecim vicibus discordatam diversisque retuned in fifteen different ways with
Sonatis, Prluds, Allemandis, Courent:, diverse Sonatas, Preludes, Allemandes,
Saraband:, Ar,is, Ciaconã, Variationibus & Courantes, Sarabandes, Airs, Chaconnes,
c. Una cum Basso continuo sedulä cum Variations etc., with a Basso Continuo
diligentia, et secundum possibilitatem elaborated with earnest diligence, and as
magno artifitio elaboratam reperies. far as possible with great skill.
Besides the polyptoton on chorda/chelys and discordareldiversus, a number of
other important issues are raised by this sentence. First, why does Biber describe
the violin as a four-stringed violin, or (more literally) a lyre? Whilst his use of
the term chelys to denote the violin is not uncommon in his dedications, to
describe it as having 'four-strings' is.lW Whether the reason for this is to allow
for the polyptoton on chorda and chelys, or whether there is some other, perhaps
numerological, reason for this is unclear. Second, the 'fifteen different ways' in
which the violin is tuned refers to the scordatura: there are fourteen different
scordatura tunings in the set, and the first and the last compositions require the
normal violin tuning. There are, then, fifteen 'different' tunings in the collection;
these refer to the fifteen mysteries of the rosary, which are explained in the next
sentence (see below).' 45 Third, the use of the generic term 'basso continuo' to
denote the bass part has important implications. In his sacred vocal music Biber
uses the term Organo to denote the bass part (see below), whilst the term
Cembalo is used usually in the secular instrumental music. Are we to assume
then, that Biber is suggesting that the basso part of the Mystery Sonatas need not
be limited to either of these instruments?
CLEMENTISSIME.'), and one in each of the words Matris, Matre, Maria, Maria, Maximilianum,
Mysterionem.
144
See the discussion of the SonatLT violino solo (below) for a fuller discussion of the term chelys.
145
Likewise, Haberl, 'Ordo arithmeticus', pp. 207-208, has concluded that the writing of the text
of the dedication on sixteen separate lines, reflects the sixteen compositions in the set.
The final sentence (sentence 6) is structured as a hypophora (a rhetorical figure),
namely, a question which is immediately answered:
Causam si numeri scire velis If you would like to know the purpose of
enucleabo: Hc omnia Honori the number, I will explain it to you: I
XV. Sacronem Msterionem have consecrated all of these to the
consecravi, quem cüm Tu Honour of the 15 Sacred Mysteries,
feruentissimè promoveas. since you promote it most ardently.
Although Biber tells us here that he has consecrated everything he has written in
the set to the honour of the fifteen sacred mysteries of the rosary, he does not
explain how he has done this. Text-music relationships are not mentioned at all.
Either he is assuming that his meaning will be obvious to those whom he
intended to hear the works, or perhaps—like many of the sentences in his
dedications—the meaning of the music was meant to be ambiguous, and listeners
(or readers) were intended to draw individual interpretations from the
compositions. Whilst Biber gives us no information regarding the performance
context of the Mystery Sonatas, their religious, and especially Marian focus
could not have been emphasised more strongly in the dedication. Moreover,
specific rhetorical symbols are alluded to in the dedication and then again in the
music (see Chapter 3). Of importance is the way in which these symbols are
alluded to through rhetorical wordplay in this dense piece of Latin prose.
2.2.2 Sonake tam aris quam aulis servientes (Salzburg, 1676)
Biber's first published collection of instrumental music—comprising twelve
sonatas for various combinations of strings and brass—was published in

Salzburg in 1676 by Johann Baptist Mayr as a set of nine part books.' 46 As the
title reveals, Biber intended the sonatas to be suitable for performance both in
church (ara, meaning altar) and at court (aula, meaning hail). The importance to
Biber of this, his first publication, may explain the choice of title: it flatters
Maximilian Gandoiph (the dedicatee of the collection) by reflecting both his
secular and sacred status as both Prince and Archbishop (see below). Second, it
adds to the versatility of the set.
After the initial address to Maximilian Gandoiph, Biber begins the text proper
with the expression 'FIDEM in FIDIBUS', and thus introduces a topos which is
to recur in several later dedications. The importance of this 'good faith in
stringed instruments' is highlighted by the upper case letters, also employed in
this dedication to highlight several other important words (for a variety of
reasons), but used by Biber on only one other occasion. 147 The phrase is also
emphasised by its placing at the start of the sentence. The term fides was also
used in this way by Johann Heinrich Schmelzer (Ca. 1620/23-1680) in the
dedication to his Sonatce unarum fidium (1664), which Biber must have
known. 148 Another tOpOS introduced in this sentence—and one which also recurs
146
For a modern edition see Erich Schenk (ed.), Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber 1644-1 704: Sonata
tarn aris quam aulis servientes (1676), 'DTO' 106/107 (Graz and Vienna: Akademische Druck-
und Verlagsanstalt, 1963).
147
See the discussion of the Vesperce longiores ac breviores below. All of the dedications use
upper case letters for the opening address to the dedicatee, and also each time he is referred to.
148
See Erich Schenk (ed.), Johann Heinrich Schmelzer (Ca. 1623-1 680): Sonatce unarumfidiurn
1664, 'DTO' 93 (Vienna: Osterreichischer Bundesverlag, 1958). Biber could have had access to
these sonatas whilst at KromerI, as they form part of the Liechtenstein collection; catalogue
number A 638 / B IV 219. See Sehnal and Peková, Caroli de Liechtenstein-Castelcorno episcopi
Olomucensis operum artjs rnusjcae collectio Cremsirii reservata, vol. 2, p. 908. The term also
had a use in rhetoric, as Quintilian tells us: 'to all these forms of argument the Greeks give the
name of tItç, a term which, though the literal translation isfides "a warrant of credibility,"
is best translated byprobatio "proof." See Quintilian, Institutio oratoria, V.x.8-10.
in later dedications—is Apollo, the source of Music. 149 Biber tells us that the
nature and qualities of Maximilian Gandoiph should be displayed on the lyre or
plectrum (plectrum) of Apollo, and later dedications take up this theme with
analogies between Maximilian Gandoiph and Apollo, as patrons of music (see
below).
In the following sentence Biber makes a direct analogy between musical
harmony and a harmonious existence at court. The former should be governed by
intelligence (INTELLIGENTIA), fingers (DIGITI) should temper or tune
(TEMPERARE, and strings (CHORDAE) should obey, with which he equates
the government of the supreme head of the Prince (PRINCIPIS CAP UT), the
hands of the counsellors (CONSILIARIORUM MANUS) and the compliance of
the subjects (SUBDITT). The three-tier hierarchical structure of both systems is
evident, and the direct relationship between the two is highlighted by the words
in upper case letters:
INTELLIGENTIA............PRINCIPIS CAP UT
DIGITIS...................CONSILIARIOR UM MANUS
CHORD1 .................SUBDITI
This analogy between musical harmony and the harmony of the state is
confirmed in the following sentence, where Biber writes:150
Id quod abundè tranquilla sub hoc Thus the FATHERLAND is peaceful

PATRE PATRIA, felix sub hoc under this its FATHER, the PALACE
PRINCIPE AULA, Ita denique fortunate under this PRINCE, and
totius JUVAVII CONCORDIA sub finally the HARMONY of the whole of
hoc CAPITE PLENO CHORO SALZBURG exults in FULL
triumphat. CHORUS under this HEAD.
' See 'Apollo', in N.G.L. Hammond and H.H. Scullard (eds), The Oxford Classical Dictionary
(Oxford: OUP, 1970; repr. 1984), pp. 8 1-82.
150
Juvavem was the Roman name for Salzburg (encompassing both the town and the state). See
Francis and Paul Mezger, Historia Salisburgensis (Salzburg: Johann Baptist Mayr, 1692), p. 120.
This analogy is an obvious choice for Biber to use in his first published set of
Music, as he can (and does) use it to argue for the importance of music. It does,
however, closely resemble the doctrine of Pythagoras of the harmony of the
world (harmonia mundi) or harmony of the spheres. The position which this
doctrine occupied in seventeenth-century musical life in this region is perhaps
best summarised by Roger Evans as follows: ''
Experiment served ultimately to prove old assumptions; it was part of a

preconceived harmony of knowledge. That may help us to understand why music,
the embodiment of practical and theoretical harmony, played such a great role in
the seventeenth-century Austrian Baroque. The achievements of composers and
performers were underpinned with deeper reflections on the purpose of the art.
It is hardly an accident that Habsburg scholars were so interested in constructing
an 'organum' which might be just the king of musical instruments—Dobrzensky
devised one for Leopold at Prague in 1668—and might also carry the connotation,
familiar to generations of schoolmen, of a logical or mathematical key to the
universe. Not for nothing does the peroration to Kircher's Musurgia describe the
entire world as an organ played by the Creator.
This is not the only place in the dedications where Biber refers to this doctrine,
however, and his most explicit exposition on the subject is found in the 1693
dedication from his Vesper ion giores ac breviores (see below)
In the following sentence Biber points out to Maximilian Gandolph that the title
is expressive of his clemency and sweet government. As part of this plea to
Maximilian to accept his music, Biber describes the publication as trifling
(tenuis). The adjective here, however, is significant because although its more
usual meaning is small or insignificant, when related to style, it can also mean
refined or elegant, an ambiguity of which Biber was no doubt aware. 152 The
'' Roger J. W. Evans, The Making of the Habsburg Monarchy 1550-1 700: An Interpretation
(Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1979), pp. 339-340.
152
See 'tenuis' in Lewis and Short, A Latin Dictionary, vol. 4, p. 1856.
second half of this sentence is, however, more revealing. It includes the words
pausa, suspiro, cantus, durus and mollis, all of which are musical terms. With the
exception of cantus, Biber is not using these terms in their musical sense,
although he highlights their musical importance by having them all in upper case.
The second section of the sentence (itself divided into two halves) after the colon
is particularly important. Biber writes about Maximilian Gandolph:
Quo scilicet prsente subditi in whose presence your subjects most

quietissimè PAUSANT, quem peacefully REST, and during whose
absentem avidissimè SUSPIRANT. absence they most longingly SIGH.
This section of the sentence contains an antithesis (a rhetorical figure involving
contrast), both in terms of the contrasting ideas expressed in its two halves, and
the contrasting verbs. Namely, the idea of presence (prasentia) in the first half
and absence (absentia) in the second, and the subjects resting (pausavi) in the
first half, but sighing for or longing in the second (suspirare). The upper case use
of the verb suspirare, preceded by the verb pausavi, is significant. Whilst both
are musical terms, the latter is more specifically a musical rhetorical figure—a
suspiratio—which makes use of the pausa (a rest) to express a sense of longing
or sighing, usually representing the meaning of the text in vocal music, an
example of which can be found in Biber's opera Chi la dura la vince ( see
Chapter 3)153 Samber does not include a definition of the figure in his list of
153
Whilst suspiratio is without a doubt a musical-rhetorical figure, seventeenth-century theorists
were undecided as to whether a pausa was a rhetorical figure, or merely a technical device. See
Dietrich Bartel, Musica poetica, pp. 362-365. In rhetoric (as opposed to musical rhetoric) neither
of these were listed as figures, because they both form part of elocutio rather than the formal
structure of an oration. In contemporary music theory, however, pausa and suspiratio had
separate, yet related meanings, but were not the same thing.
rhetorical figures, although both Prinner and Janovka do. Janovka defines the
figure as follows:154
Ad hanc revocari potest Stenasmus, At this point the stenasmus or

id est suspiratio, quae variis suspiratio can be mentioned, which
suspiriis per pausas, suspirantis naturally expresses affections of
animi affectus naturaliter exprimit. sighing through various sighs
created through pauses.
In this passage then, Biber is making a link between written rhetoric and
musical rhetoric by highlighting the musical terms (in some cases musical-
rhetorical terms) through orthography and as part of a rhetorical figure
(antithesis). This passage bears comparison with a passage from the dedication
in Biber's published Vesper Psalms, in which the two terms (among others) are
used again, and in a similar fashion (see below).
After telling Maximilian that he will pray for as many years as the number of
notes which he writes, Biber goes on to make more use of musical wordplay in
the following sentence. The uppercase words here are LAETOSQUE TONOS,
MENSURA and MALIGNOS. Mensura is a term used in music, and the
LAETOSQUE TONOS (JOYFUL TONES) and MALIGNOS (ILL-DISPOSED)
form an antithesis not only in meaning, but also with regard to the action of the
verb to which each is subject. Whilst the joyful tones are to be gathered together
(accumulare), the ill-disposed things are to be dispersed (dissipare).
This dedication, unlike that of the Mystery Sonatas, is neither as densely allusive
nor as filled with rhetorical figures as some of the later ones. Likewise, it is not
as subtle, in that Biber spells out his wordplay through the use of upper case
154
letters for important words, a device shared with Schmelzer.' 55 In this respect,
this dedication should perhaps be viewed as Biber attempting in his first
publication to establish a style acceptable to his new employer and dedicatee,
whilst at the same time using several important topoi, and exploiting musical
terms and musical rhetorical figures in rhetorical wordplay.
2.2.3 Mensa sonora (Salzburg, 1680)
Biber's second published set of instrumental music was the Mensa sonora, seu
Musica Instrumentalis, Sonatas aliquot liberiàs sonantibus ad Mensam,
published in Salzburg by Johann Baptist Mayr in 1680.156 This collection
comprises six suites of dance movements—each headed Pars I, II, III etc.—
scored for violin, two violas, violone and cembalo. The title page and the
dedication to Maximilian Gandoiph are—uniquely among Biber's dedications—
printed in both Latin and the vernacular. It is the only time in which this happens
in Biber's publications, and may have been intended to add a particular
polemical undertone to the dedication, as will be argued below. The word mensa
can mean both a table (or a table for food) and also a course of food in a meal,
and this ambiguity in meaning is played on later in the dedication (see below).
Nevertheless, the intended function of these works is made clear. They were
written for performance during the meal (ad Mensam), which is confirmed by the
In Schmelzer's title page from the Sonat unarumfidium the publication date (1664) is made
clear through the uppercase letters in the rebus 'qVo fiDeM soLVit ratisbona Ccesarl.', which,
when understood as roman numerals, add up to 1664. See Schenk, Johann Schnzelzer: Sonaue
unarumfidium, p. viii.
156
For a modern edition of this collection see Erich Schenk (ed.), Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber
1644-1704: Mensa sonora seu Musica hzstrumentalis, Sonatis aliquot liberius Sonantibus ad
Mensam (1680), 'DTO' 96 (Graz and Vienna: Akademische Druck- und Verlagsanstalt, 1960).
better-known term Tafel-Musik in the parallel German dedication. 157 The
discussion below is based largely on the Latin dedication; references are made to
the German dedication only where the two differ in content or meaning, or where
the latter contains important use of rhetorical devices.
Biber opens the dedication by telling us that his musical notes seek once more
their familiar Maecenas (Meccenas), referring to the friend and patron of Horace
and Virgil. 158 Hence Biber is using the term to flatter his patron, Maximilian
Gandolph. This densely-written sentence contains much wordplay, making
particular use of polyptoton on the words gratia (favour) and gratiis (for
nothing), and nota in its various forms (meaning written notes, or quality, worth
etc), and alliteration (Meccenas). The wordplay on nota (worth) highlights the
expression meliore nota (better worth) which was often found on caskets of
Italian wine in antiquity to denote the quality of the contents, and thus relates to
the concept of music for the table.' 59 The polyptoton on nota is paralleled in the
German version in the expressions meine Noten, eine gute Noten, and possibly
also Nothwendigkeit. A wordplay on the similar sounds of words appears in the
German version in the expression Sing- vnd Kling-Kunst, and likewise with the
expressions Gnaden.. . Danck and Gnaden-Banck.
157
See for example Werner Braun, Die Musik des 17. Jahrhunderts, 'Neues Handbuch der
Musikwissenschaft' 4 (Wiesbaden: Akademische Verlagsgesellschaft Athenaion, 1981), pp. 50-
53.
158
See 'Maecenas, Gaius' in Simon Hornblower & Anthony Spawforth (eds), The Oxford
Classical Dictionary, 3rd edn (Oxford: OUP, 1996), pp. 907-908.
159
See 'nota', in Lewis and Short, A Latin Dictionary, vol. 3, p. 1217. The expression 'meliore
nota' is still found on bottles of Italian wine today.
After telling Maximilian Gandolph that 'Music loves You and reveres You
(Amat Te Musica & veneratur)', Biber writes that 'and [Music] deservedly looks
up to the man who takes her up with a most serene brow (meritô suspicit, qui
illam suscipit fronte serenissimâ.)' This section of the sentence incorporates
wordplay on the similarly-spelt verbs suspicio (to revere) and suscipio (to take
up/acknowledge), and is symmetrical in that the two verbs are similar in
meaning, although the subject and object of the second verb is the opposite to
that of the first, and in this sense forms an antithesis. The concept of the 'most
serene brow' is further developed later in the dedication. The brow (frons) or
forehead was a traditional symbol for the inner thoughts, or 'as a mirror of the
feelings' 160
In the following sentence Biber introduces other topoi which are central either to
this dedication and others, or also to some of his music. The analogy between
Music and food already established in the title of the collection is taken up again
in flattery, when he tells Maximilian Gandolph that Biber knows he is not
unaware that nothing penetrates our minds more than a foretaste (prcegusto)' 61 of
high enjoyment (voluptas).' 62 A central place is occupied in Biber's dedications
by the senses—particularly sight and sound—as will be seen below. As will be
demonstrated in the discussion of the Mystery Sonatas in Chapter 3, the
See 'frons', in ibid., vol. 2. P . 783.

161
Without the suffix, the verb gustare means to taste. Biber is probably alluding here also to the
baroque notion of good taste: 'le bon gout'.
162
Defined as 'an agreeable experience or sensation (to the mind or the senses), pleasure,
delight.' See 0. W. Glare (ed.), The Oxford Latin Dictionary (Oxford: OUP, 1982; repr. 1997), p.
2102.
application of the senses to music—particularly in a devotional context—was of
special importance. The final topos is the word fides, denoting both faith and a
stringed instrument, which appears in almost all of Biber's dedications, and has a
musical precedent in the dedications by Schmelzer.' 63 At this point in the
German version Biber introduces further wordplays in the form of a polyptoton
on the words einstimmende, Einhelligkeit, and Einstimmigkeit. An antistoecon
(substituting one letter for another within a word) in the word laiten (leiten)
highlights the rhyming nature of this word with Saiten in the same sentence.
Most of the wordplays in this dedication are indeed on musical terms, or terms
which have musical meanings (among others).
The next sentence explains the point of much of what has come before. Biber
writes:
Non affero igitur ad Tuam mensam lauta Therefore I do not offer at Your table
Apicij fercula, non pretiosum Cleopatr the sumptuous dishes of Apicius, nor
unionem, sed uniformes cum animo Tibi the precious pearl of Cleopatra, but
devotissimo notas, non tam frontem Tibi notes uniform with a mind most
serenare natas, quàm innatam fronti Twe devoted to You, not born to make
serenitatem sibi demereri. Your brow serene, but to deserve for
themselves the serenity which is
natural to Your brow.
Biber's analogy between music and food is continued here with his reference to
Apicius, who was a culinary master in ancient Rome, known for making
sumptuous dishes . lM The reference to the extravagant pearl of Cleopatra has little
to do with pearls, but is (like the reference to Apicius) a reference to food and
163
See the discussion of the Sonatce tam aris, above.
See 'Apicius' in Hammond and Scullard (eds), The Oxford Classical Dictionary, p. 81.
style) 65 Biber is saying that his music is not costly or luxurious, but contains
simple notes which are most devoted to Maximilian Gandoiph. The choice of the
pearl of Cleopatra enables him to have another polyptoton, however, on the
words unio and unformis. The essence of his meaning is that the virtue of his
music lies in its simplicity and devotion to the dedicatee rather than any
(implied) superficiality or bad taste due to gratuitous extravagance or
grandness) 66 He explains that the works were not created to make serene
(serenare) Maximilian Gandolph's brow, but created to deserve the serenity from
his brow. Attention is drawn to this by the repetition of the words frons twice,
and the polyptoton on serenare and serenitatem. This represents a direct contrast
to Apicius's dishes, or Cleopatra's pearl, which symbolise gratuitous waste. It
also demonstrates a degree of modesty and humility on the part of Biber, yet at
the same time arguing, albeit in a more subtle manner, for a higher regard and
worth for his music. Once again the brow is referred to (as above) as a sign of the
indication of the gratification or otherwise of Maximilian Gandolph's senses.
Biber's exaggerated justification of his music, and comparison (although
indirectly) begs the question of what he was trying to achieve? One could argue
that this is a polemic against the latest and more fashionable styles from Italy and
France which were being introduced into Salzburg by Biber's new colleague
165
It is said that Cleopatra made a banquet for Antony, the cost of which astonished him, and
when he expressed his surprise Cleopatra took a pearl ear-drop, dissolved it in a strong acid, and
drank to Antony's health saying that her draught to him shall far exceed it.
166
Stylistically the music is simpler and more straight-forward--one might say more
conventional—than any of Biber's published sets of instrumental music. The virtuosity,
showiness, and unpredictability of the Sonaue violino solo is absent, as is the grandiose pomp of
the earlier Sonatce tam aris quam auils servientes. Style is perhaps another topos in Biber's
dedications, as it is alluded to once more in the dedication from the Sonau violino solo (see the
discussion below).
Georg Muffat. Muffat took up employment in the archiepiscopal court in
Salzburg in 1678, having previously studied in France with Lully. 167 In 1680—
whilst employed in Salzburg—he was sent to Italy to study with Corelli, and his
works dating from these years reflect the influence of these cosmopolitan
studies. 168 Biber's Mensa sonora, like much of his music, is little influenced by
these modern, foreign styles, which he might have considered to be extravagant.
One must ask also why the decision was taken to include a parallel German
dedication with the Latin dedication, when all of the other (earlier and later)
dedications are in Latin only. This dedication still contrasts with those of Muffat,
however, which were published in Latin, German, French, and Italian, reflecting
a more cosmopolitan outlook, and perhaps intending a wider readership.
Certainly Muffat felt that his attempts to introduce the latest Italian and French
styles to such places as Salzburg (among others) were not well received, owing
to the fact that his 'German' contemporaries favoured those aspects of music
associated with the stylus phantasticus:'69
For six years, along with the other music studies, I avidly pursued this style which
was flowering in Paris at that time under the most famous Jean-Baptiste Lully. I was
perhaps the first to introduce this style, not unpleasantly, to many celebrated
musicians when I returned from France to Alsace; from there I was driven out by the
last war to Austria and Bohemia, and afterwards to Salzburg and Passau. However,
since the ballet compositions of the above-mentioned Lully, or other such
composers, because of their flowing and natural motion, completely avoid irregular
runs, frequent and ill-sounding leaps, and all other artifice, they had the misfortune
to be at first poorly received in these countries by many of our violinists, who at that
time were more interested in the number of unusual devices and artifices in the
music than in grace.
167 See Wollenberg, 'Muffat, Georg', NG II, vol. 17, pp. 361-364.
168
Unfortunately, the only extant work of Muffat's from before 1680 is a manuscript violin
sonata (Prague, 1677). It is in the published sets from the 1680s and 1690s where the
cosmopolitan styles flourish most; notably in the Armonico tributo (1682) and the two sets of
Florilegia.
169
Muffat, foreword to Florilegium Primum, as trans. in Wilson, Georg Muffat on Performance
Practice, p. 15.
The final sentence returns once again to the application of the senses to the
music, in which Biber instructs Maximilian Gandoiph to look with his eyes, so
that he does not reject the Mensa sonora with his mind, and then receive them
with his ears and therefore not take exception against them; and finally cherish
them in his mind. The application of the eyes and ears to his music is something
which Biber returns to in several of his dedications and most likely refers to the
mind's eye (see below). The two references to the mind (animus and mens) may
also refer to the mind's eye, whereby it was thought that the soul could be seen
or reached through the eyes.' 7 ° In summary, this dedication is an elaborate and
erudite wordplay on the projected function of the music in the collection.
2.2.4 Sonatce violino solo (Nürnberg, 1681)
The Sonatce violino solo is Biber's only published collection of solo violin music,
comprising eight sonatas for violin and continuo. 171 The dedication to the Sonatce
violino solo, although comprising fewer than two hundred words, stands out
among Biber's dedications in that it displays an especially high degree of
rhetorical artistry. After the formal introductory address to Maximilian
Gandolph, Biber sets the tone of the main body of the dedication. The opening
sentence has four words beginning with the initial syllable 'sol', and there are
ten such words throughout the whole dedication. Polyptoton—which has been
shown to be an important rhetorical device in Biber's dedications—is central to
170
See below.
171
A facsimile edition of these works was published as Manfred Hermann Schmid (ed.), Heinrich
Ignaz Franz Biber: Sonat violino solo, Salzburg 1681, 'DMS: Faksimile-Ausgaben' 3 (Bad
Reichenhall: Comes Verlag, 1991). An edition of the works appeared as Adler (ed.), Heinrich
Franz Biber: Acht Violinsonaten.
Ciceronian style. 172 The word 'so!' and its derivatives also refer here to 'single
things' as well as the solos (the sonatas), 173 and probably also to the sun (sol),174
as Biber engages in wordplay on the word 'sol' in the dedication to the Mystery
Sonatas in this fashion.' 75 This also accords with the view by some at this time of
the sun as a 'second God' in hermetic writings, and 'associated with the monad
as a key image of the deity." 76 Hence, this sentence could be read as lone things,
or God, or Biber's solos are able to provide consolation and the virtue of each of
these is greater because they are 'alone', God, or solos. There seem then, to be at
least three different levels of interpretation: literal, theological and musical. Also
related to the sun, is the Greek God Apollo, the patron of music and the arts and
leader of the Muses, who came to be associated from the fifth century BC
onwards with the sun.177
The second sentence provides an antithesis to the first sentence: whereas the first
sentence was occupied with 'one' and things 'alone', the second is concerned
with things in greater number (plurium). Antithesis is another Aristotelian
172
For a discussion of style in the works of Cicero see Paul MacKendrick, The Speeches of
Cicero: Context, Law, Rhetoric (London: Duckworth, 1995).
173
On ambiguous words see Cicero, De oratore, II.lxii.
174
Widerhold, Neues Teutsch-FranJ3osisch-Lateines Dictionarium (1675 edn), defines 'sol' as
'sol ' Le soleil, Die Sonn', p. 336.
175
See above. See also Kubitschek (ed.), Heinrich Biber: Mysterien-Sonaten, pp. 4-17.
Christopher Butler, Number Symbolism (London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1970), pp. 83-84.
176
The continued prevalence of hermetic thought in the seventeenth century, and their prevalence
and transmission in the German lands through the writings of Robert Fludd, is demonstrated in
Kenneth Stephen Mitchell, 'Musical Conceptions in the Hermetic Philosophy of Robert Fludd:
Their Nature and Significance in German Baroque Musical Thought' (PhD Diss., U. of
Washington, 1994).
177
Jenny March, Cassell Dictionary of Classical Mythology (London: Cassell, 1999), pp. 57-60.
Apollo is also referred to in the dedications from Biber's Sonate tam aris quam aulis servientes
(see above) and Fidicinium sacro profanum (see below).
rhetorical device used throughout Biber's dedications.' 78 This sentence also
makes use of alliteration and wordplay on the word fides, 179 and was a well
established topos of Biber's dedications by this time. It is highlighted by the fact
that the main subject and verb of the sentence (animavi Jides) is placed for
reasons of emphasis at the end of the sentence rather than at the start. This is an
example of the figure of speech in rhetoric known as hyperbaton, whereby
'normal' word order is ignored for ornamental effect.18°
The word chelys in the third sentence denotes the violin, but literally means a
lyre soundbox (the word comes from tortoise, as lyres were originally made from
tortoise shells).' 8 ' This classicizing term was used by Biber, and other late
seventeenth-century composers of the German-speaking lands (such as
Schmelzer), to refer to the violin (see above).' 82 The term Violino was in current
usage (from the Italian), and it is used later in the dedication, although it does not
appear in a contemporary German-French-Latin dictionary.' 83 The idea that
Biber's sonatas were chosen because they are best suited to resound in
compliance of Max Gandolph's rule is an example of the use of allegory—a
common trait of Biber's dedications.
178
Aristotle, Ars rhetorica, Ill.ix.7.
179 See Widerhold, Neues Teutsch-FranJ3osisch-Lateines Dictioniarum (1669 edn), p. 138.
180Quintilian, Jnstitutio oratoria, VIII.vi.62 et seq: 'it is the transposition of a word to some
distance from its original place, in order to secure an ornamental effect, that is strictly called
hyperbatofl (at cum decoris gratia traiicitur longius verbum, proprie hyperbati tenet nomen'.
181The first lyre was reputed to have been made by the Greek mythological figure Hermes from
the shell of a tortoise; see below.
182 See Schmid, Heinrich Biber: Sonatcv violino solo, p. 68.This point is also exemplified by the
title of the treatise on string playing by Merck, Compendium musice instrumentalis chelicc.
183
The term Geige does, however, appear, and is defined as follows: 'Geige f. violon, une viole,
Chelys, fides'. Widerhold, Neues Teutsch-FranJ3osisch-Lateines Dictionarum (1675 edn), p. 165.
In this sentence Biber claims that by choosing these sonatas, he will be able 'thus
to proceed into most humble service not merely with the feet, but also, as they
say, with the hands (sic non pedibus dumtaxat, sed et man ibus, Ut ajunt, in
humillimum iturus servitium)'. Manfred Hermann Schmid interprets this to mean
that the hands which a musician uses are a sign of care, in contrast to the feet
which he relates to the present-day Italian expression fatto con i piedi, meaning
'done without care'.' 84 The opposition between hands and feet is interpreted in
different ways by Classical rhetoricians: Quintilian uses the term pedestris oratio
('pedestrian speech') in a discussion of Cicero, who 'soars high above the levels
of ordinary prose or, as the Greeks call it, pedestrian language, and seems to me
to be inspired not by mere human genius, but, as it were, by the oracles of the
god of Delphi'; 185 and by contrast he describes hand gestures as expressive
enough to replace words.' 86 Biber is thus telling us that his sonatas are not
commonplace, and justifies his apparent arrogance by flattering his employer:
because his music is resounding in compliance with Maximilian Gandolph's rule,
it is of an elevated quality. The sentiment itself draws an analogy between music
and the spoken arts of rhetoric and oratory.
Polyptoton assumes central place in the fourth sentence as well, this time with
the initial syllables 'viol' (violare and Violino)—the term Violino is chosen here
rather than Chelys—and other words beginning with 'v' in the same sentence
' Schmid, Heinrich Biber: Sonatas violino solo, p. 68.

185
Quintilian, Institutio oratoria, X.i.81. See also Lewis and Short, A Latin Dictionary:
'Pedester', vol. 3, p. 1323, is defined as 'plain, common, without poetic flights, without pathos',
and 'Manus' , vol. 3, p. 1112, is defined as 'of the hand of an artist; when you have given yourself
the finishing touch'.
186
Ibid., XI.iii.86. See also XI.iii.85-120.
(vocare, valere, vallare) constitute an example of alliteration, and the common
vowel sounds of valere and vallare provide an example of assonance. So too
does the choice of the verb violare (literally to do violence to), a rather strong
verb given the context, although the term did have another meaning in classical
texts, namely, to shock with the senses, particularly eyes and ears. 187 It could be
argued that this would have been the effect of the highly original music in the
Sonata violino solo (see Chapter 4). Significantly, when anger is discussed by
Aristotle as one of the emotions, the central focus of his discussion is the value or
worth of something and how this incites anger, in the same way in which Biber is
stressing the worth of his music in order not to anger Maximilian Gandolph.188
The polyptoton on 'sol' continues in this sentence, and is stressed by the placing
of the verb (solere) at the end of the sentence. There is wordplay on the word
unus, which could be read as the number one, or as a person. The words minus
and pluribus form an antithesis, which complements the idea that ' "one" is
accustomed to be set before higher numbers'. The least clear part of this sentence
is the expression 'Arithmeticum non satis observavi ordinem'. This could be an
apology for having only one solo instrument rather than an ensemble; certainly
the wordplay throughout the set is on the number one. 189 It has also been
suggested that it is referring to the presence of eight sonatas in the set rather than
187
'Violo' in Lewis and Short, A Latin Dictionary, vol. 4, p. 1994.
188
Aristotle, Ars rhetorica, II.ii.1-27.
189
This is the first of Biber's published collections to be dedicated to Maximillian Gandolph for a
solo instrument. The Mystery Sonatas was the first collection to be dedicated to him, although
they were never published.
twelve or six which were more usual at this time. 190 Another possibility is that it
is referring to some kind of numerical ordering or patterns in the music itself.
Such things have been shown to be an important part of Biber's output, 191 and it
is clear that many of his dedications display an obsession with references to
number. This notion is supported by the fact that Biber uses the word ordo here,
meaning row, series, order or arrangement, suggesting something on a larger
scale than the choice of the number of instruments used in the set. 192 This is also
suggested by the following sentence in which Biber tells us that 'there is in the
Solo of mine a number which, as I trust, is able to delight with variety (Est enim
in ipso meo Solo, Ut confido, varietate delectare possit)'. The term Solo is used
this time with its Italian (and modern-English) meaning, and Biber chooses the
verb confidere rather than fidere, which he used above. Schmi& 93 has plausibly
suggested that Biber' s use of the term varietas refers both to the prominence
given to variation movements in the sonatas, and also to Quintilian's 'variety of
figures'.194
190See Andrew Manze, sleeve notes to recording of Biber's Violin Sonatas (Andrew Manze,
violin; Nigel North, lute and theorbo; John Toll, harpsichord and organ), Harmonia Mundi
907134.35 (1994), P. 8.
191 See Haberl, 'Ordo arith,neticus'. See also Chapter 3.
192 Ordo is also a rhetorical figure involving listing things; see Quintilian, Institutio oratoria,
11j.iii.8. See also Lee A. Sonnino, A Handbook to Sixteenth-Century Rhetoric (London:

Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1968), p. 137.
193 Schmid, Heinrich Biber: Sonatce violino solo, p. 68.
'p" Quintilian, Institutio oratoria, X.ii.i. Quintilian writes 'It is from these and other authors
worth y of our study that we must draw our figures and our methods of composition, while we
must form our minds on the model of every excellence (Ex his caterisque lectione dignis
auctoribus et verborum surnenda copia est et varietas figuraruin et componendi ratio, turn ad
exemplum virtuturn omnium mens dirigenda.)'
The polyptoton on 'sol' continues in sentence 6, and there is wordplay on the
words modus and modulis, which can mean modes and measures or melodies in
musical terms, but they also have other meanings. Modus can also mean measure
or manner, and both terms have important meanings in linguistics: modus means
the mood of a verb, 195 and modulis relates to what Cicero calls the 'modulation
of words'.' 96 This could arguably be Biber making yet another analogy between
his music and oratory. The expression 'that you should consider it worthy of your
gracious eyes and ears (Ut benevolis oculis, ac auribus digneris)' is equally
ambiguous. It could mean that the score is worthy of Maximilian Gandoiph's
eyes and the performance of the score is worthy of his ears. Alternatively it could
relate in general terms to the senses, or specifically to the rhetorical concept of
imago (the mental picture formed by an audience in response to the vividness of
an orator's speech.'97 An orator was expected to make the listener well disposed
(benevolus) to the subject matter of the speech being delivered. A substantial part
of the first chapter of the anonymous Rhetorica ad Herennium is devoted to
telling the rhetorician how to do this: 198
Since, then we wish to have our hearer receptive, well-disposed, and attentive, I
shall disclose how each state can be brought about. . . . We can by four methods
make our hearers well-disposed: by discussing our own person, the person of our
adversaries, that of our hearers, and the facts themselves.
The connection between the concept of the benevolus auditor and Biber is
highlighted in this dedication from the Sonata violino solo, where he writes:
195
Quintilian, Institutio oratoria, I.v.41.
196
Cicero, De oratore, III.xiv.
197
Quintilian, Institutio oratoria, VI.ii.29ff See also Chapter 4. This also relates to the phantasia
concept regarding the emphasis on imagery.
198
Anon., Rhetorica ad Herennium, I.iv.7.
2 Rhetoric, Style and Meaning in Biber's Dedications 88
Solum hoc superest Celsissime ac There remains only this, Eminent and
Reverend(issi)me Princeps, Ut Most Reverend Prince, that you should
benevolis oculis, ac auribus consider it [the music] worthy of your
digneris, atque humillimum servum gracious [or well-disposed] eyes and
diversis modis, et modulis servire ears, and that you may most mercifully
cupientem Clementissimè foveas. nurture your most humble servant as he
is desirous of serving in diverse modes
and measures.
Hence, there is a connection between the benevolus auditor and Biber's
benevolis oculis, ac auribus through the choice of adjective, and Biber's
dedications appeal for benevolentia at the beginning of the collections just as it
was intended to be evoked at the start of a speech.
The last sentence continues with the emphatic polyptoton on 'sol', which appears
three times in this sentence, balancing the four appearances in the first sentence
(with three other occurrences in sentences 2-6). The wordplay continues with the
antithesis between voce sola and votis compluribus, which implies that the solo
voice could be Biber's voice in prayer or the sonatas.
This dedication is thus heavily dependent on rhetorical devices—figures,
metaphor, allegory, wordplay—many of which (including elements which are
not clear to the modem reader) have their roots in classical rhetoric.
2.2.5 Fidicinium sacro-profanum (Nurnberg, Ca. 1682)
Biber's Fidicinium sacro-profanum, a set of twelve sonatas for string ensemble,
was published as a set of six part books by Wolfgang Endtner in Nurnberg
between 1681 and 1683.' The print, which is lavishly produced with elaborate
199
On the dating of this set see Chafe, The Church Music, p. 243. For an edition of the music see
Erich Schenk (ed.), Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber 1644-1 704: Fidiciniu,n sacro-profanum tam
icons, is prefaced by a dedication to Maximilian Gandolph, demonstrating a large
amount of rhetorical artistry. This dedication not only refers to the music, using
rhetorical figures and topoi found also in the other dedications, but (uniquely
among Biber's dedications) also alludes to the lavish pictorial engravings in the
print.
Biber's title for the collection states that it is suitable for both sacred and secular
contexts:
FIDICINIUM SACRO-PROFANUM, SACRED AND PROFANE MUSIC,

Tam Choro, quam Foro Pluribus arranged for String Ensemble for the
Fidibus concinnatum. Choir and Public performance.
As with the title of the Sonata tam aris, it also reflects the status of the dedicatee
of the collection, whose function was both sacred (as Archbishop) and secular (as
a prince). The word Foro indicates a performance context. Literally forum means
an outside venue, a market place, or a court room, and was also the name given
to many market towns in ancient Greece. 2°° The terms fidicinium and fidibus to
denote stringed instruments, apart from comprising an example of polyptoton
which continues throughout the dedication, is, as has been shown above, a
recurring topos in Biber's dedications. Biber would have been aware of
Schmelzer's prior use of this topos (see above), and is most likely alluding to
Schmelzer's Sacro-profanus concentus musicus.201
choro, quam foro, pluribus fidibus concinnatum et concini aptum (1683), 'DTO' 97 (Graz and
Vienna: Akademische Druck- und Verlagsanstalt, 1960).
20
and Short, A Latin Dictionary, vol. 2, pp. 773-774. See also Widerhold, Neues Teutsch-
FranJiosisch-Lateines Dictionarum (1669 edn), p. 143.
201
For a modern edition see Erich Schenk (ed.), Heinrich Schineizer: Sacro-profanus concentus
musicus, 'DTO' 111-112 (Graz and Vienna: Akademische Druck- und Verlagsanstalt, 1965).
Biber starts the dedication with wordplay on the number four:
Qvarta nunc Quadrig rota accedere The Fourth wheel of the Four-horse
videtur, & numeris omnibus absolvi chariot now seems to approach, and a
res constans numero, & Mensurâ, thing, steady in number and Measure,
dum quartum hoc Musicale opus seems to be finished in all numbers,
Reverendissim Celsitudini Vestr while I have dedicated this fourth
consecravi. Musical work to Your Most Reverend
Eminence.
The emphasis on the number four is highlighted by the polyptoton on 'qua' at the
start. The term Quadrigce refers to the four horses of a four-horse chariot. The
chariot is likely to be that of Apollo to whom Biber refers several times later in
the dedication, but is may also be a biblical reference (see below), or refer to the
four-horse fountain in Salzburg's Residenzplatz, which was completed in
166 1.202
Biber describes this set as the fourth musical work he is dedicating to Maximilian
Gandoiph, even though it was not the fourth, but the fifth set he dedicated to
Maxamilian Gandoiph, the others being:
Mystery Sonatas (1 670s)

Sonauc tam aris quam aulis servientes (1676)
Mensa sonora (1680)
Sonate violino solo (1681)
This is, in fact, the fourth published set Biber dedicated to Maximilian Gandoiph
(the Mystery Sonatas having remained in manuscript). Either Biber ignores the
Mystery Sonatas because they were not generally known (not having been
published), or (more likely) because they were not meant to have been known
202
Unfortunately there is no engraving on the fountain, and searches in the secondary literature
have failed to establish a stronger connection between this dedication and the fountain beyond the
four horses. The fountain is discussed in Johannes Ramharter, 'Zwei Monumente aus der Zeit
Erzbischof Guidobalds: Zu den Skulpturen der Domfassade und des Residenzbrunnens in
Salzburg', Barockberichte 7 (1993), pp. 240-248.
about, as they were not intended for large-scale consumption. The other
possibility, although unlikely, is that the Mystery Sonatas post-date the
Fidicinium sacro-profanum. 203 This sentence does use a device common to all of
Biber's dedications: references to numbers, the meanings of which are not
always clear, and Biber's use of the number four here is another example of him
manipulating numbers for rhetorical purposes. Apart from the reference to the
number four (which will be discussed more fully below), Biber says that 'a thing,
steady in number and Measure, seems to be finished in all numbers (numeris
omnibus absolvi res constans numero, & Mensurâ)'. This sentence is, however,
ambiguous: it can also mean that he has freed the set from all numbers as the
verb absolvere can mean both to free and to bring to completion (especially a
work of art). 204 Nevertheless, the reference to number in the music remains, and
it is not clear how we are supposed to interpret this.
The number references continue in the next sentence where Biber writes:
Et profectô terque quaterque beatum And I shall think myself truly three
me arbitrabor, si alterâ jam vice bis and four times blessed, if this
repetita placent demississimi servi submission of your most humble
obsequia. servant pleases as twice already
repeated.
The expression 'three and four times blessed' may have been a contemporary
proverb. More puzzling, however, is Biber's hope that this set 'pleases as twice
203
On the basis of musical style, the Mystery Sonatas have always been thought to have been
earlier works than the Sonat violino solo (1681). See Chafe, The Church Music, p. 186. As was
demonstrated above, however, the compacted style of the prose and complex rhetorical artistry of
the dedication from the Mystery Sonatas, is certainly superior in style to that of the first published
dedication in the Sonatce tam aris. It is possible that style is not an issue here, however. It could
perhaps be argued that Biber would have used a different style depending on such matters as
function, content, intended meaning, and purpose of his music, and that a style from an early
period could be returned to years later, should it be needed.
204
Lewis and Short, A Latin Dictionary, vol. 1, p. 11. Widerhold, Neues Teutsch-FranJ3osisch-
Lateines Dictionarium (1675 edn), p. 6.
already repeated'. Both the number of his published sets at this time, and the
number which he has dedicated to Maximilian Gandoiph exceeds two. One
possible explanation for this might be that Gandoiph paid for the printing of two
sets, and Biber is hoping that he will do the same with this set. Certainly only
Biber's first two published sets were published by the archiepiscopal printer and
publisher Johann Baptist Mayr (the Sonatce tam aris in 1676 and Mensa sonora
in 1680). The next two were published in Nurnberg (Sonatce violino solo in 1681
and Fidicinium sacro-profanum in 1682/1683). An alternative is that Biber
means a total of three times (the first time and two repeats) by the expression
'twice already repeated', in which case he is referring to the favour granted to the
three previous published sets of his instrumental music. The play on numbers in
this sentence is heightened through the continued use of polyptoton (quaterque)
and through the rhetorical figure homoeoptoton (use of words with similar
endings in the same sentence) on the words quaterque, terque, and obsequia.
In the third sentence the word fiducia is used (meaning trust, confidence)
continuing the wordplay and polyptoton used in the title. We know from this
sentence that some or all of these works had already been heard by Maximilian
Gandolph as Biber tells us that they have already been approved of by his most
obliging ears. The reference to eyes and ears in this sentence is used (as already
shown), in one form or another, in the dedications to four of Biber's six sets of
instrumental music (see above).
In the next sentence an analogy is made between 'minds in agreement' (the verb
Biber uses is concordare) and 'notes in harmony' (the verb being consonare).
Both of these verbs are musical terms; not only are the words close in meaning
and have musical connotations, but the use of two such similar verbs close
together with similar endings constitutes a rhetorical figure relating to the
'harmony' of words in a discourse, and the verb consonare is sometimes used to
describe this: 205
There are some four different forms of play upon verbal resemblances. The first
occurs when we select some word which is not very unlike another. . . Or at any
rate the words selected will be of equal length and will have similar terminations,
as in non verbis, sed armis.
This sentence also continues the polyptoton on 'qua' (quartus, quam), and Biber
draws an analogy between Maximilian Gandoiph and Apollo:
Quarta hinc vice Serenissimum For this reason it has pleased me to

Musice Nostr Solem & Apollinem venerate for a fourth time the Most
Musicalibus notis, velut omni ex Serene Sun and Apollo of Our
cardine venerari placuit. Music with musical notes, as if
from each point of the compass.
The wordplay involved in using the word so! rather than fihius (like that of some
of the other dedications, see above), reflects the attribute of Apollo as the sun
God,206 and probably also that of Christ as the son of God. The reference to 'each
point of the compass' relates to the number 4, which has been the focal point of
the dedication since the mention of the four-horse chariot.207
205
Quintilian, Institutio oratoria, IX.iii.75.
206
Warren D Anderson, Music and Musicians in Ancient Greece (Ithaca and London: Cornell
University Press, 1994), p. 176.
207
The four horses in the fountain in Residenzplatz are not joined to a chariot, but face outwards
in four different directions, being joined to the central axis.
In the following sentence Biber places the verbs ridere (to laugh) and arridere
(to smile), at the start and end of the sentence respectively: he is hoping for
favour (which is the more poetical meaning of the verb ridere) but will be
pleased should his work only be smiled upon. The insecurity of a composer
publishing his work in the seventeenth century and the possibility that it will not
be received favourably are evident here. Biber would no doubt have known the
•208
other meaning of this verb, namely 'to laugh at in a mocking tone' Biber does
not tell us who the poet is to whom he refers, but it is likely that it is either
Horace or Virgil, given the reference to their patron, Maecenas, in the next
sentence: 209 'If this happens, great Maximilian shall be to me the greatest Apollo
of Music, and Maecenas of the Muses (Hoc si fuerit, erit mihi ma gnus Apollo
Maximilianus Maximus Musicce, ac Musa rum Mecoenas)'. The wordplay here is
on Maximilian Gandolph's Christian name, through alliteration and polyptoton
(magnus, Maximilianus, maximus), and the passage alludes to Virgil's third
Eclogue, when Damcetas says 'you will be my great Apollo (Et ens mihi ma gnus
Apollo)' 210
Another probable intertext is the anonymous collection of the Homeric Hymns,
which includes various hymns to both Apollo and Hermes recounting the
208
Lewis and Short, A Latin Dictionary, vol. 3, p. 1954.
209
Indeed, there ase several references to Apollo laughing in Horace's Odes (see Charles Edwin
Bennett (trans.), Horace: The Odes and Epodes, 'LCL' 33 (London: William Heinemann; New
York: The Macmillan Co., 1914) and it is clear from the dedication to Biber's Harmonia
artficioso ariosa that he was familiar with the works of Horace (see below). The reference most
likely refers to Horace's Ode I.x.9-12, where there is a reference to Apollo laughing in an
unpleasant way at Hermes, referring to the passage from the Homeric hymns recounting the story
of the day Hermes stole Apollo's cattle (see below).
210
Virgil, Eclogues, trans. as H. Rushton Fairclough (ed.), rev. G. P. Goold, Virgil: Eclogues,
Georgics, and Aeneid, Books 1—VI, 'Loeb Classical Library' 63 (Cambridge MA, and London:
HUP, 1999), 111.104.
mythological tale of the invention of music, and is among the most important
accounts of Apollo and music of the ancient Greek writings. The favourable star
or constellation (sidus) which Biber is hoping for may be the sun, and Apollo the
sun God, as it is in the Homeric hymn to Pythian Apollo, in which Apollo is the
favourable star guiding the ship of the Cretans from Cnossos:21'
There came on them a strong, clear west-wind by ordinance of Zeus and blew from
heaven vehemently, that with all speed the ship might finish coursing over the
briny water of the sea. So they began again to voyage back towards the dawn and
the sun: and the lord Apollo, son of Zeus, led them on until they reached far-seen
Crisa, land of vines, and into haven: there the sea-coursing ship grounded on the
sands. Then, like a star at noonday, the lord, far-working Apollo, leaped from the
ship: flashes of fire flew from him thick and their brightness reached to heaven.
We should understand Biber's 'hope' for a favourable star in the way in which it
is used in the Bible, namely, that the person concerned is looking forward to an
event happening in that he knows there is a considerable chance that it wilL212
Furthermore, the iconography in the print correlates with certain ideas from the
Homeric Hymns, and the ideas expressed in the dedication. The ornament at the
end of the Violone part, for example, includes much imagery associated with
Apollo (illustration 2.1). Its centrepiece, a palm tree inside a cross, was
associated principally with Apollo's birth:213
211 Hesiod et al, trans. as Hesiod, Homeric Hymns, Epic Cycle, Homerica, trans. Hugh G. Evelyn-
White, 'LCL' 57 (London and Cambridge, Massachusetts: HUP, 1914; repr. 1998), p. 355.
Whether or not this would have been known to Biber is unclear—especially given that it is in
Greek—although he could have got most of the information from Horace, which was more
widely available at the time.
212See 'Hope' in John Eddison, Dictionary of Bible Words (London: Scripture Union, 1977), pp.
58-59.
213Hesiod, Homeric Hymns, p. 333. Apollo's birth and its association with the palm tree is
discussed Ofl pp. 218-219.
And as soon as Eilithyia the goddess of sore travail set foot on Delos, the pains of
birth seized Leto, and she longed to bring forth; so she cast her arms about a palm
tree and kneeled on the soft meadow while the earth laughed for joy beneath.
Then the child leaped forth to the light, and all the goddesses raised a cry.
Illustration 2.1: Fidicinium sacro-profanum, Violone part book, ornament

[p. 26]
Other imagery in this ornament relates to Apollo: the drum above the left cross
bar of the cross symbolises music, whilst the arrows below the right-hand cross
bar and the archer's board above it symbolise Apollo the archer.214
The engraving at the end of the second viola part (illustration 2.2) may also refer
to Apollo and the Homeric Hymns. This figure pictures a goose beside the water,
with the words 'Mersa' and 'resvrgo' on either side.215 The significance of this
bird is its long, spread wings, which are a bad omen in the Homeric Hymn to
Hermes. Hermes, the inventor of the Lyre, stole cattle from Apollo on the day he
was born (the fourth of the month), and in his search for his missing cattle Apollo
214
See 'Apollo', in Hammond and Scullard (eds), The Oxford Classical Dictionary, pp. 8 1-82.
215
It is described as a goose in Schenk (ed.), Heinrich Biber 1644-1704: Fidicinium sacro-
profanum, pp. 97-98.
came across a long-winged bird: 'And when Apollo heard this report [from an
old man], he went yet more quickly on his way, and presently, seeing a long-
winged bird, he knew at once by that omen that the thief was the child of Zeus
the son of Cronos [Hermes].' 216 The goose's relation, the swan, is also associated
with Apollo:217
Phoebus, of you even the swan sings with clear voice to the beating of his wings,
as he alights upon the bank by the eddying river Peneus; and of you the sweet-
tongued minstrel, holding his high-pitched lyre, always sings both first and last.
And so hail to you, lord I seek your favour with my song.
Like the swan here, the goose on the right of the image is about to alight, and as
in the poem, Biber is seeking favour with his song. The image of the goose also
has a biblical significance, however: 'Like the duck, gander or swan, the goose is
a beneficent animal associated with the Great Mother and with the descent into
hell.' 218 This is apparent in this picture: on the left side by the verb mersare (to
sink) is a bird (presumably a goose) sinking in the water, whilst on the river bank
on the right next to the verb resurgere (to rise) is a goose about to alight. Hence,
this image has both sacred and secular possible meanings.
Another important image is that which appears at the end of the first viola part
book (Illustration 2.3): an angel with a trumpet hovering above the words 'of
death I speak (mortua loquor)'. The significance of this angel to the other images
and the ideas in the dedication is not clear. It is unlikely to be Apollo himself
because the text is feminine. The angel could be, however, a specific biblical
reference (see below).
216 Evelyn-White (trans.), Hesiod, Homeric Hymns, Epic Cycle, Homerica, p. 379.
217
Ibid., p. 447.
218
'Goose' in Juan Eduardo Cirlot, A Dictionary of Symbols, trans. from Spanish by Jack Sage
(London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1962; repr. 1971), p. 120.
Illustration 2.2: Fidicinium sacro-profanum, Viola II part book, ornament

[p. 29]
Illustration 2.3: Fidicinium sacro-profanum, Viola I part book, ornament

[p. 29]
Returning again to the dedication, we find Biber telling us that he is devoting the
music to Maximilian Gandoiph:
cui qualicunque hoc opere to whom [Maximilian] Your humble

fidibus consonante fidem notat servant makes his devotion with this
ac prnotat his numeris work sounding harmoniously on stringed
copiosos felicissimi Regiminis instruments of whatever sort it may be,
annos REVERENDISSIM€ and marks out in advance many years of
CELSITUDINIS VESTR€ most happy Rule for YOUR MOST
Servus humillimus REVEREND EMINENCE
Biber's choice of the word copiosus is rather apposite here, as apart from its
usual meaning, it is also applied by both Quintilian and Cicero to an orator or a
discourse which is 'rich in language, copious in expression, [or] eloquent', 219 and
in the Rhetorica ad Herennium, the author tells us 'I have undertaken this project
the more gladly because I knew that you had good grounds in wishing to learn
rhetoric, for it is true that copiousness [copia] and facility in expression bear
abundant fruit, if controlled by proper knowledge and a strict discipline of the

220
Apart from the numerous references to Apollo in the dedication, and the imagery
representing him elsewhere in the print, there remains another important link
between the dedication and the imagery: the number four. This is the focal point
of rhetorical wordplay throughout the dedication (as the number one is in the
dedication to the Sonatt violino solo) and the point of reference with which
Biber started the dedication. Apart from the Fidicinium sacro-profanum being
the fourth (published) set Biber dedicated to Maximilian Gandolph, it also has a
special musical significance which links the dedication and the imagery. Four is
the day on which Hermes was born, and the day on which the lyre, and hence
music, was invented:22'
Born with the dawning, at mid-day he [Hermes] played on the lyre, and in the
evening he stole the cattle of far-shooting Apollo on the fourth day of the month;
for on that day queenly Maia bare him.
219
Lewis and Short, A Latin Dictionary, vol. 1, p. 467.
220
Rhetoria adHerennium, I.i.1.
221
Evelyn-White (trans.), Hesiod, Homeric Hymns, Epic Cycle, Homerica, p. 365.
It was also four 'fierce-eyed hounds [which] followed the cows' which Hermes
stole. Although as with the image of the goose, the four-horse chariots also have
an important biblical parallel. In the book of Zechariah in the Old Testament, a
reference to four approaching chariots of horses is made:222
And I turned, and lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came four
chariots out from between two mountains; and the mountains were mountains of
brass. 2 In the first chariot were red horses; and in the second chariot black horses;
3 and in the third chariot white horses; and in the fourth chariot grisled and bay
horses. 4 Then I answered and said unto the angel that talked with me, What are
these, my lord? 5 And the angel answered and said unto me, These are the four
spirits of the heavens, which go forth from standing before the Lord of all the
earth.
As with the chariots in Biber's dedication, those in Zechariah are 'seen to
approach'.
Hence, through a mixture of imagery in the print and subtle rhetorical use of
language in the dedication Biber is able to combine his music with classical
mythology and the roots of music, and at the same time gently flatter his patron
and dedicatee from whom he desires favour and continued service. Furthermore,
the imagery of the print and the dedication combine sacred and secular ideas
(sometimes both at the same time) which both reflect the intended dual function
of the music and the dual role of the dedicatee of the collection.
2.2.6 Vespene ion giores ac breviores (Salzburg, 1693)
Biber's published set of vespers—comprising some twenty-nine psalm settings
and one Loretan litany—was the only collection of vocal music he published
222
Zechariah 6.1-5. Another biblical parallel could be the four-horsemen of the Apocalypse
(Revelation 6. 1-8), although this is referring specifically to horsemen, rather than chariots.
during his lifetime (all the other vocal music remained in manuscript). 223 It was
not only Biber's first publication of vocal music, but also the first of his
publications to be dedicated to Archbishop Johann Ernst von Thun, who had
succeeded Maximilian Gandolph who died in 1687. This is the longest of all the
dedications, but it contains fewer rhetorical figures than were used in the
dedications of the 1680s, which may have been designed to meet Maximilian
Gandoiph's personal preferences. Thus, although this dedication is not from a set
of violin music, or even instrumental music, it may contribute to a fuller picture
of Biber's output by offering a comparison with those dedications which Biber
wrote for Maximilian Gandoiph.
Although less complex than some of the earlier dedications, it nevertheless
exemplifies some rhetorical techniques. The title of the set establishes a topos
which is referred to again later in the dedication. The title Vesperce Longiores ac
Breviores Unacàm Litaniis Lauretanis translates as 'Long and Short Vesper
Psalms with a Loretan Litany'. An alternative rendering would be Long and
Short Evenings with a Loretan Litany, vesperce meaning 'evening' in Latin, but
also referring to the vespers service (and the music for it) which traditionally
took place in the early evening.
Perhaps the most important theme of the dedication is expressed in the opening
sentence:
223
A discussion of the music in this collection can be found in Chafe, The Church Music, pp.
136-158. There exists no complete modern edition of the works. The concluding work from the
set has, however, been published in a modern edition: Rudolf Walter (ed.), Heinrich lgnaz Franz
Biber (1644-1 704): Litanice Laurtance (Hilversum: Harmonia-Uitgave, 1980).
VBi Chorda human Voci consonat, Where a String harmonises with a human
ibi Cmiitum corda facile flectuntur ad Voice, there the Hearts of the heavenly
Gratias & Favores; nèque unquam ones are easily moved towards
majori efficaciâ Vocem & chordas thanksgiving and praise; and the Royal
intendit Psaltes Regius, quàm dum Psalmist never deployed his voice and
Preces suas animavit sonoro strings with greater efficacy than when
Decachordo. he gave life to his prayers with a
sounding ten-string instrument.
This is the clearest statement in Biber's dedications of the doctrine of the
harmonia mundi which he previously alluded to in the dedication from the
Sonatce tam aris quam aulis servientes (see above). The royal psalmist to whom
Biber refers is David (which is spelt out later in the dedication, see below), and
the ten string instrument is a biblical reference to the Psalms of David:224
I will sing a new song unto thee, 0 God: upon a psaltery and an instrument of ten strings will
I sing praises unto thee.
Biber's opening sentence also makes use of the rhetorical figure adnominatio
(two words which sound the same but mean different things) on the words
chorda (string) and cordis (heart), which combines to form a wordplay with
Decachordo (ten string instrument).
The relationship between the two worlds—earth and heaven—which is
mentioned in the first sentence, is developed in the second, where Biber flatters
Johann Ernst von Thun by telling him that 'Princes have high rank on Earth as
Spirits do in Heaven (prcestare in Terris Principes, quod in Ccelis Numina)'.
224
Psalms 144.9. Other references to the instrument of ten strings include Psalms 33.2 and 92.3.
In the third sentence there is a polypopton on the words nota (in the forms notas
and notam) referring to both the musical notes and the token of loyalty, which is
a similar kind of wordplay to that seen in both the German and Latin dedications
in the Mensa sonora (see above). Biber further flatters Johann Ernst von Thun in
this sentence by drawing parallels between him and David, principally referring
to the royalty of the latter, having already referred to the same thing in the
previous sentence through the use of the word purpura (purple), which refers to
the fine clothing of royalty. Biber used a similar technique about twenty years
earlier in the dedication from the Mystery Sonatas (see above).
A wordplay on the word umbra (shadow, semblance) is used in the next
sentence, with the play on the word vesperte (evening) which was alluded to in
the title of the set: 'These are Vesper Psalms; hence, they show only a Shadow of
my humble mind, since Vespers are close to the night (Psalmi tamen Vespertini
sunt, hinc solàm animi mei demissi Umbram exhibent, dum Vesperce Umbris
vicin€e.)' The importance of the association of vespers with the evening is clear,
and is highlighted by italics for the word Vespertini in the original orthography
(see Appendix A).
The use of italics to highlight words in this dedication is comparable with the use
of upper case letters for the same reason in Biber's first published dedication in
the Sonatce tam aris quam aulis servientes seventeen years earlier. Indeed, the
dedication in the earlier set is the next in terms of length and number of words
(approximately double that of the others) and is less rhetorically complex. As in
the earlier set, it is predominantly musical terms which are highlighted through
the use of italics. Apart from chorda in the first sentence, and Vespertini just
mentioned, there are other examples of italicisation of musical words in the next
sentence: pausa, suspiria, triplo, and dura. In common with the earlier
dedication, these words are not being used in their musical sense, however, and
the italics are being used to highlight the dual meaning of these words.
In the final sentence, the words Tactus (touch), Tenore (steady), Altus (noble),
Soprano and Cantus (song) are used (and italicised)—in that order—and their
obvious musical meaning is part of the wordplay which has been taking place in
earlier sentences. The hardest part of this sentence to explain, however, is the
passage when Biber says 'and I may bring forth a Song from Above, or silently
from beyond the Grave, through which I may earnestly pray for Happy and
Immortal Tens of Thousands of years for Johann Ernst (& Soprano seu tacitè sub
Tumulo Cantum producam, quo JOANNI ERNESTO exoptem Felices Annorum
Myriades, eàsque immortales)'. This concept is particularly hard to explain is
Biber seems to be discussing himself praising Johann Ernst from heaven as if he
had already died.
Apart from these examples, however, none of the topoi usual in the early
dedications such as wordplay on the word fides, references to numbers, or to
Apollo or other figures from classical mythology are present. Generally, this
dedication contains far fewer rhetorical figures—such as polyptoton, alliteration,
or assonance—than earlier dedications, and the only possible reason for this
change in style can be the fact that this set is dedicated to a new patron. Instead
Biber seems to be returning to an earlier, and more straightforward prose style

which he used over seventeen years earlier in the 1676 Sonata? tam aris quam
aulis servientes. Even in his final published dedication from the Harmonia
artficioso ariosa (as will now be shown), where some of the earlier traits are
returned to, it is not to the same extent.
2.2.7 Harmonia artiflcioso ariosa (n.p., 1696)
Biber's collection of seven trio sonatas Harinonia art ficioso ariosa was
published in 1696 without a publisher's name or publication place, and
subsequently reissued in a textually-corrupt posthumous edition in Ca. 1712 by
Endtner in Nürnberg. Only the 1696 publication contained the Latin dedication,
which is to Archbishop Johann Ernst von Thun.225
Whilst Maximilian Gandolph was known for his love and promotion of the arts,
particularly music, Johann Ernst von Thun was known as Salzburg's unmusical
archbishop. 226 This may explain why a significant portion of Biber's dedication
seeks to convince the dedicatee of the value of music (see below). Moreover, the
rhetorical complexity of the earlier dedications to the instrumental sets is largely
absent, although more evident than in the Vespera? ion giores ac breviores.
The title of the set is emphasised by being repeated again in the opening sentence
of the dedication. The most common, and literal translation of the words
Harmonia artficioso ariosa is 'skilful-melodic harmony'; the word harmonia
225
An edition of this set was published as Paul Netti and Friedrich Reidinger (eds), Heinrich
lgnaz Franz Biber 1644-1704: Harmonia artficiosa-ariosa diversimode accordata, 'DTO' 92
(Vienna: Osterreichischer Bundesverlag, 1956). This edition should be used with caution,
however, as it is based on the 1712 corrupt print. See Chapter 4.
226
See Chafe, The Church Music, pp. 20-21.
refers generally to the music. Artficiosus signifies something done 'according to
the rules of art' in broad terms or something 'on which much art has been
bestowed, made with art, artificial, ingenious.' 227 The Italian term Arioso,
likewise, means more than just melodic. It can also mean 'graceful, light,
attractive, pleasing, . . . tuneful',228 and could also refer to the naturalness of
music springing from nature. 229 Hence Biber is describing his music as both
skilful or artistically accomplished as well as being attractive and pleasing, thus
stressing both the artistic and aesthetic value of the music, a theme which he
returns to later in the dedication (see below). 230 The mixture of Italian and Latin
not only demonstrates Biber's linguistic skill, but also pays homage to the
Italians for the trio sonata genre, and particularly for the primarily melodic style
which was such a hallmark of Italian string writing at this time. One has only to
think of the violin and trio sonatas of Corelli for examples (the first four sets of
which were published before Biber's Harmonia artWcioso ariosa). 231 It was the
style of Corelli's trio sonatas to which Georg Muffat paid homage in his 1682 set
of trio sonatas entitled Armonico tributo, a style which Muffat has been credited
227
Lewis and Short, A Latin Dictionary, vol. 1, P. 168. These are the two principal usages of the
word in the anonymous, Rhetorica ad Herennium, 4.4.7 and 3.16 if.
228
Barbara Reynolds (ed.), The Cambridge Italian Dictionary, 2 vols (Cambridge: CUP, 1962),
vol. 1, p. 54.
229
This is indeed how Roger North understood the term 'Ayre' in 1710. In answering the
questions 'What is Ayre?', he defines it as 'a sort of musick that seems to flow from Nature, one
sound following another as if they were of a family, so as nothing occurs that occasions any one
to say Why, or What means this?'. See John Wilson (ed.), Roger North on Music: Being a
Selection from his Essays Written During the Years c. 1695-1 728 (London: Novello, 1959), pp.
67-68.
230 J-Iarmonia is not only the Latin word for music, but was also a Greek God. As with the Mensa
sonora (1680), Biber chose not to include the title of each work in the overall title of this set (as
he did in Sonat violino solo or Sonata tam aris quam aulis servientes, for example).
231
These are: Opus 1, Sonate a tre (Rome, 1681); Opus 2, Sonate da camera a tre (Rome, 1685);
Opus 3, Sonate a tre (Rome, 1689); Opus 4, Sonate a tre (Rome, 1694).
with having introduced to the German-speaking lands. 232 Biber's use of two
languages in the title of this publication (Latin and Italian in this instance) as a
means of paying homage to the musical style of another country was a technique
famously employed later in the baroque by Bach in his Italian Concerto from the
ClavierUbung II, which was styled 'Concerto nach Italiaenischen Gusto' in the
original print 233
After his usual opening address Biber tells us that he has 'inscribed' his
Harmonia artijicioso ariosa to Johann Ernst von Thun. In the following sentence
Biber makes clear to Archbishop Thun that this music is for him ('Tuum est hoc
opus'), and continues by saying of the music that 'One Consort is played by
several String instruments (Unus Concentus pluribus luditur fidibus)'. This
antithesis (on unus and pluribus), not only tells as that the music is played by
more than one instrument, but also alludes to the notion of one God or faith
served by many which he stresses further in the dedication. Biber's meaning
becomes clearer in the second half of this sentence where he writes 'certainly,
this is the archetype of Your Virtue, to which all things that are worthy of
eternity give life harmoniously (nimirum Tua hcc Virtutis idea est; quam omnia,
qu aternitatem merentur, concorditer animant)'. By writing this Biber has
ingeniously established a link between the church and music which cannot be
ignored as it reflects Archbishop Thun's personal ideas. Hence, Biber has already
232See William S. Newman, The Sonata in the Baroque Era (New York: Norton, 1972, rev. edn),
pp. 220-222.
233Klaus Engler (ed.), Johann Sebastian Bach: ltalienisches Konzert, BWV97J (Vienna:
SchottlUfliversal Edition, 1977), P. vi.
advanced an argument for Archbishop Thun to accept both his dedication, and
music.
In the next sentence, Biber asks, 'And why would it not be allowed to call to
witness my faith in stringed instruments (Et quidni in fidibus fidem liceat meam
contestari?)' The polyptoton here on the word fides must have become a musical
commonplace in Salzburg by this time (see above). Biber is also alluding directly
to rhetoric at this point by using the terms licere (to be permitted) and contestari
(to call to witness). This rhetorical question also refers to the summoning of a
witness in a court of law, the central place of forensic oratory.234
The next sentence has two equal halves which rhyme and both start with the
same word (quam), and also form another antithesis, contrasting everything
(omnia) with the Archbishop (ribi):
Quam omnem cui alteri potiüs debeo,

Quàm Tibi Clementissimo Principi meo?
Having devoted the entire dedication until this point to an appeal to Archbishop
Thun to favour music (or more specifically his music), Biber now places himself
entirely at the mercy of the Archbishop with this sentence. He strengthens his
position in the following sentence by telling Archbishop Thun that 'Indeed, since
we behold all the signs of a happy Predestination resplendently in you, you could
not also fail to love Music as well? (Sane, cam omnia felicissimce
Prcedestinationis indicia luculenter in Te conspiciamus, non potes non etiam
Musicam amare.)'
234
See Lewis and Short, A Latin Dictionary, vol. 1, p. 448.
Biber brings the argument to a logical conclusion in sentence 7: 'And perhaps
therefore I may be rightly confident that Your Most Reverend Eminence will also
deem these my Musical labours worthy of [your] Most Gracious eyes and ears
(Ac vel ideô merità confidam, Reverendissimam Tuam Celsitudinem etiam
Musicales hosce labores meos Gratiosissimis oculis auribásque dignaturam.)'
Since all heavenly things are disposed concordantly, and since they are happy to
see their pre-destination in Archbishop Thun, he would surely be able to love
music, which is itself concordant. Biber hopes, on the basis of these arguments,
that Archbishop Thun will consider his music worthy of his eyes and ears.
Whether Biber had grounds on which to make the assumption we do not know,
but his argumentative technique could hardly be structured more tightly or
coherently.
Having established reasons why Archbishop Thun should love music, and
therefore the collection Biber is offering him, Biber then goes on to argue for his
music. Biber writes 'These are arias (as we call them), but also skilful, that in this
way I may combine the useful with the sweet, delivering every note under Your
Most Merciful Protection (Aric (uti vocamus) sunt, sed art z:ficiose, Ut sic
miscerem utile dulci, omne punctum relaturus sub Tuâ Clementissimâ
Protectione.)' The purpose of this sentence is to justify the music which Biber is
presenting to Archbishop Thun, and Biber seems to be trying to cover all
possible criticisms in telling us that his music is not only sweet and tuneful, but
also that it is useful. This passage also alludes directly to Horace's Ars poetica:5
235
Horace, Ars poetica, trans. H. Rushton Fairciough, Horace: Satires, Epistles and Ars poetica,
'LCL' 194 (London and Massachussetts: William Heinemann, 1970), P. 479. Horace goes on to
make an analogy with music, although in less than positive terms: 'Yet faults there are which we
can gladly pardon; for the string does not always yield the sound which hand and heart intend,
Aut prodesse volunt aut delectare Poets aim either to benefit, or to

poetae aut simul et iucunda et amuse, or to utter words at once both
idonea dicere vitae. . . . omne tulit pleasing and helpful to life . . . . He
punctum qui miscuit utile dulci, has won every vote who has blended
lectorem delectando pariterque usefulness and sweetness, at once
monendo. delighting and instructing the reader.
The usefulness of the music could lie in the possibility that it might perhaps be
used for dancing (dance forms predominate in each Partia), although the style of
the music would suggest otherwise (see Chapter 4). The usefulness could lie in
the musical techniques used in each work, namely the predominance of imitative
techniques (such as canon) throughout the set, something which is not used in
Biber's other dance music. Indeed, that the works are described in the dedication
as Arice (Partia is the heading given to each work in the print) together with the
prominence of the term arioso in the title places emphasis on the tunefulness of
the works, and perhaps suggests that they were intended to be listened to rather
than danced to (see below).
After bidding to Archbishop Thun to 'Live long, rule happily, Great Prince!
(Vive diu, regefeliciter, Magne Princeps!)', Biber concludes by returning to his
earlier allusion of all things praying together in harmony and his analogy with
music: 'Thus all good people pray unanimously, and I with them (Ita omnes boni
uno concentu vovent, et ego cum us.)'
This dedication, from the first and only set of purely instrumental music Biber
dedicated to Johann Ernst von Thun, is different in style from the earlier
dedications to Maximilian Gandoiph. Whilst the prose is still compact and
but when you call for a flat often returns you a sharp; nor will the bow always hit whatever mark
it threatens. But when the beauties in a poem are more in number, I shall not take offence at a few
blots which a careless hand has let drop, or human frailty has failed to avert.'
structured, it is far less 'rhetorical', and there are no mentions of figures of
classical mythology, sun and stars, and numbers, and the exuberance and
confidence of the earlier dedications are absent. The tone of this dedication
suggests that Biber may even have had to pay the production costs himself.
Certainly Biber never again published another set of instrumental music, and his
rather public plea to the Archbishop to love music may have fallen on deaf ears
and closed eyes.
2.3 Summary
This chapter has highlighted the central place occupied by rhetoric in the prose
style of Biber's written dedications. The most important rhetorical figures used in
the dedications are polyptoton, alliteration and assonance, as well as metaphor,
allegory, and ambiguity. These rhetorical figures and devices are used to allude
to a variety of established topoi—either musical, theological, rhetorical or
mythological—which recur in many of Biber's written dedications. In the
dedication to the Mystery Sonatas, for example, rhetoric was used to highlight
the importance of two important theological and artistic symbols—the sol
justitice and the luna immaculata—which appear as important symbols in the
music (see Chapter 3). In the Sonatce tam aris quam aulis servientes rhetorical
tools highlight important musical terms, which are used in the dedications with
alternative, non-musical meanings, as well as to refer specifically to musical
rhetoric; similar devices are used in the Vesperce. In the Mensa sonora the
rhetoric is used to elaborate an extended allegory on the function of the music
(ad mensam, as Tafelmusik) and the banquet itself (mensa) which is a deliberate
and consistent ambiguity in meaning throughout the dedication. Ambiguity is

important in the dedications from the next two sets—the Sonata violino solo and
the Fidicinium sacro-profanum--in which rhetorical tools highlight various
numbers which have specific meanings both for the sets in question, and as
theological, mythological and musical symbols. These rhetorical techniques
reach a peak in the Fidicinium sacro-profanum, in whose dedication they
highlight sacred and secular topoi which are not only important themes of the
music itself, but are also alluded to in the splendid iconography of the print.
The purpose of this chapter has been threefold. First, to illustrate the central
importance of rhetoric as a structuring device in the dedications. Second, to show
how rhetoric is used to articulate more clearly (sometimes more forcefully and
sometimes more subtly) the principal arguments of the dedications, and the topoi
therein and the way in which these relate to the musical style of the compositions
themselves. Even the ambiguities in meaning in the dedications have been argued
to be rhetorical in origin. Third, to explore the possible meanings of the
dedications as a whole, and to shed light on the music. As has been shown, the
dedications reveal important information not only about the philosophical and
historical background in which they were written, but also important information
about the style and function of the sets, as well as possible important meanings of
the music itself. The analysis has shown that rhetorical figures were not merely
used for artificial effect or as a dry academic pursuit—a misconception of the use
of virtuosity particularly in Biber's violin music—but as a means of furthering
the argument and highlighting important topoi, in what are largely a series of
rather short, but extremely densely and carefully structured dedications.

Moreover, this density of the prose style which is richly allusive reflects the
rhetorical concept of phantasia. As was shown in Chapter 1, phantasia in
rhetoric was something that is 'showy' and was also a means by which objects
and images are made apparent to the mind. Biber achieves this in these
dedications through the extensive use of metaphor, allegory, and other rhetorical
figures.
Having established this, we need now to consider exactly what the dedications
can tell us, and to elucidate the interpretative limitations. This analysis has
revealed that the various rhetorical techniques are not all used in every
dedication, and that whilst there are many similarities of style, a variety of
different approaches is also used in each. These are dictated by such factors as
musical style and function, instrumentation and genre, and the patrons, and
consequently it should not be expected that Biber will employ the same rhetorical
devices throughout his entire ceuvre, nor that there should be consistent parallels
between the rhetoric in the music and the prose style of the dedications. More
often the parallels are between specific symbols alluded to through by rhetorical
figures in the prose, which then assume importance in the music through the use
of similar rhetorical devices. 236 As Reinhard Goebel remarked:
We sometimes need to employ abstraction or combine different elements. The

ideas that give rise to a particular technical device in the music are derived from
these sources in the most varied manner, which accounts for the heterogeneous
nature of the individual works.
Although written specifically about the Mystery Sonatas, the procedure of open-
mindedness which Goebel advocates is applicable to all of Biber's works.
236
This is particularly true of the Mystery Sonatas, which will be shown in Chapter 3.
The final issue to be considered here is the question of the authorship of the
dedications. Until this point it has been assumed that Biber was the author,
although there is always the possibility that someone else wrote them on his
behalf. As we have seen, the author of the dedications was not only skilled in
writing Latin prose with rhetorical artistry, but also had a knowledge of music
and some knowledge of musical rhetoric, but also a knowledge of classical
antiquity, and of the theological and artistic symbols alluded to in the prose.
Whilst it is possible that Biber did not write the dedications himself, this seems
unlikely. As was shown in Chapter 1, Biber is likely to have received a Jesuit
education including all of these subjects, and particularly rhetoric in the language
used by the Jesuits: Latin. Furthermore, there are enough similar topoi between
the dedications to suggest a single author. The reference to royalty (purpura) in
the 1693 Vesper Psalms dedications, for example, mirrors the similar reference
to rutilare (glowing red) used in the Mystery Sonatas over twenty years
previously.
The real question is, perhaps, not who wrote the dedications, but why the prose
style relies so heavily on rhetorical artistry? By contrast, Georg Muffat's
significantly longer dedications are eminently more practical in terms of the
performance-practice advice they offer (see above). The answer to this question
might be that it was done in order to flatter a patron who admired this prose style,
or because it was an important stylistic creative trait of Biber's. Moreover, it
need not be assumed that Biber believed all the views expressed in the
dedications (such as the doctrine of the harmony of the world) since these could
have been included merely to satisfy the tastes of the patron. Whilst it does not
necessarily follow that rhetoric is an important aspect of Biber's music simply
because it is important in the dedications, it will be argued below that this is
indeed the case, and that in some instances, there are parallels between the
rhetoric of the dedications and the rhetoric of the music. Above all, this analysis
has shown rhetoric to be not only an important compositional device in the
dedications, but also an important analytical tool in uncovering the meaning, or
in some cases the meanings of the dedications. A similar rhetorically-based
approach will now be applied to the music in the following chapters.

3 The 'Sacred' Violin Music: The Mystery Sonatas (1670s) Page 116
3 The 'Sacred' Violin Music: The Mystery Sonatas (1670s)
3.1 The Historical, Stylistic, and Devotional Background
Biber's Mystery Sonatas are his most well known and perhaps least understood
compositions. Since their rediscovery in Ca. 1889 , 237 the works have attracted
considerable attention owing to the technical and musical devices they display.
The set comprises fifteen compositions for violin and continuo, and a concluding
Passagalia [sic] for unaccompanied violin. Only in the first and last works is the
violin tuned normally: each of the other fourteen works requires a different
scordatura tuning. Although composers had used scordatura before Biber, none
had employed it so extensively or with such extreme re-tunings, and none had
used the device to construct a single collection of instrumental music. The
second unusual facet of the set relates to the images in the manuscript. In the
only extant manuscript source for these works, 238 each of the first fifteen
compositions is prefaced by a copper-plate engraving depicting (in order) each of
the fifteen mysteries of the rosary. 239 The final work, a Passagalia scored for
solo violin only, is prefaced by an ink drawing of a Guardian Angel holding the
hand of a child.
237
Regarding the rediscovery of the Mystery Sonatas see Kubitschek, introduction to Heinrich
Jgnaz Franz Biber: Mysterien-Sonaten ('Rosenkranz-Sonaten'), Bayerische Staatsbibliothek
München, Mus. Ms. 4123, P. 15. Soon after the rediscovery of the Mystery Sonatas, they were
published as Erwin Luntz (ed.), Heinrich Franz Biber: Sechzehn Violinsonaten, 'DTO' 25
(Vienna: Akademische Druck- und Verlagsanstalt, 1905; repr. Graz: Akademische Druck- und
\Terlagsanstalt, 1959). This edition, however, has numerous errors, particularly in the eleventh
sonata. A superior edition has recently been published, however: Ernst Kubitschek (ed.),
Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber: Mysterien-Sonaten für Violine und GeneralbaJ3, 'Diletto Musicale:
Doblingers Reihe alter Musik' 1237-1239, 3 vols (Vienna and Munich: Doblinger, 2000).
238
D-Mb: Mus. Ms. 4123.
239Regarding the rosary, its history and its use in the Catholic Church, see William A.
Hjnnebusch, 'Rosary', in The New Catholic Encyclopedia, 15 vols (New York: McGraw-Hill,
1967), vol. 12, pp. 667-670.
3 The 'Sacred' Violin Music: The Mystery Sonatas(1670s) Page 117
Many questions regarding these sonatas remain unanswered. In the absence of a
title page, we do not even know what their proper title is. 24 ° The manuscript is
undated, although the general consensus of musicological opinion places it in the
early to mid 1670s. 241 We do not know what function the sonatas were intended
to serve, nor where they would have been performed, nor how the images which
preface each work relate to the compositions they precede. The last issue has,
however, attracted the greatest attention. Numerous attempts have been made to
relate each composition to the pictures which precede them and to the texts of the
gospels in order to highlight 'programmatic' effects or an underlying 'narrative'
for each composition. Some scholars have constructed extensive narratives for
each composition, whilst others have concluded that the works are intended to
portray no more than mood. (These interpretations will be discussed more fully
below in the analyses of each work.) More recently, Dieter Haberl has
undertaken extensive numerological analyses of each composition. 242 Like the
earlier analyses, however, not all Haberl's interpretations are fully convincing
(see below). Such an approach also raises the problem of the degree to which
such numerological relations were intended to be heard or understood by Biber's
240
The first page of the extant manuscript is a dedication to Biber's Salzburg employer,
Archbishop Maximilian Gandoiph von Khuenberg. When the works were first discovered at the
end of the nineteenth century, they were nicknamed the Copper-Plate Engraving Sonatas. They
have also been referred to in the literature as the Biblical Sonatas, the Rosary Sonatas, and the
Mystery Sonatas.
241
The terminus post quem for the compilation of the manuscript is 1670, when Biber entered the
employment of the dedicatee of the set, Archbishop Maximilian Gandoiph in Salzburg; the
terminus ante quem being 1687, when Maximilian Gandolph died. The sonatas are generally
believed to be earlier works than the 1681 violin sonatas, which means that the manuscript must
have been prepared between 1670 and 1681. Some scholars have suggested specific dates in the
mid-1670s as the date of compilation, although this can be nothing more than speculation. For
further discussion of the dating of the manuscript see Chafe, The Church Music, p. 186.
242
Haberl, 'Ordo arithrneticus'.
audience. Many of Haberl's observations—which are rooted in cabbalistic
numerology and involve complex mathematical procedures in analysing the
music—could not have been perceived through listening to the works alone: a
detailed and extensive analysis of the score is required in order to appreciate
them. This does not, however, mean that such mathematical relationships could
not have been part of the composer's intention: they may have been a form of
personal piety never intended to be audible. It is clear, however, that if these
works were used for devotional purposes (which seems most likely) we need to
understand the devotional context before addressing the music, as the plausibility
or otherwise of any narrative or 'representative' effects in the music depends on
it. Returning to Goebel's comments on the Mystery Sonatas:
In order to uncover the spiritual content of these works, we have to draw on our
knowledge of rhetoric, allegory, devotional history, 17th-century religious dogma
and the contemporary doctrines of the 'affections' and of the musical figures. We
sometimes need to employ abstraction or combine different elements. The ideas
that give rise to a particular technical device in the music are derived from these
sources in the most varied manner, which accounts of the heterogeneous nature of
the individual works.243
The latter point is particularly important. We should not expect each
composition in the collection necessarily to employ the same techniques—such
as numerology, 'programmatic' effects or a 'narrative'—in the way in which
they relate to their engraving, as the subject of each mystery is different and
would have been associated with its own tradition of symbols and meanings,
some more easily translatable into music than others. Furthermore, it is now
thought that the works could have been written over a number of years, and are
not necessarily contemporary with the date of compilation of the manuscript.2W
243 Goebel, sleeve notes to recording of Biber's Mystery Sonatas, p. 10.

244 Chafe, The Church Music, pp. 186-187.
This chapter aims to explore the various contexts—musical, artistic, religious—
and to demonstrate the traditions of each context to which the Mystery Sonatas
relate, and consequently show how the rhetorical signs, symbols, and ideas
associated with each have shaped the music. 245 These aspects have been under
emphasised by scholars hitherto.
3.1.1 Readings of the Mystery Sonatas to Date
The most common interpretations of the Mystery Sonatas have involved a search
for a narrative thread in the individual compositions, and sometimes throughout
the collection, articulated through pictorial elements audible in the music, which
derive mainly from the narrative descriptions of each mystery as given in the
gospels. As a result, such pictorial elements as rushing demisemiquavers to
represent either the flapping wings of the Angel Gabriel (Mystery Sonata p246 or
the great wind of Pentecost (Mystery Sonata XIll), 247 a 'minor key' to evoke the
pains of giving birth (Mystery Sonata rn) 248 dotted rhythms to represent the
hammering of nails (Mystery Sonata X), 249 parallel octaves to represent chorale
singing (Mystery Sonata XI), 25 ° and fanfare-like chordal writing for the violin to
245
Note that the title 'Mystery Sonatas' is being employed in this thesis because it is the name by
which the compositions are most frequently referred. Its use here does not imply anything
regarding the genre of the works. Titles of each work will appear as Mystery Sonata I, Mystery
Sonata II, etc. adopting the Roman-numeral numbering system used in Biber's other sets, but is
not intended to indicate that the works were originally described in this way.
246
Davitt Moroney, sleeve notes to recording of Biber's Mystery Sonatas (John Holloway, violin;
Davitt Moroney, harpsichord and organ; Tragicomedia), VCD 7 90838-2 (1990), p. 22.
John Holloway, 'Biber: A Man of Mysteries', The Strad 105 (1994), p. 243.
Eva Johnson, as quoted in Peter Holman, record review of Biber's Mystery Sonatas (Eva
Johnson, baroque violins; Loretta O'Sullivan, baroque cello; Eric Mimes, harpsichord and organ),
Early Music 17 (1989), p. 453.
249 Moroney, sleeve notes, p. 30.
250 Chafe, The Church Music, p. 190.

represent trumpet fanfares (Mystery Sonata XIT),25 ' have become popular. There
are, however, three principal problems with such interpretations. First, they tend
not to be rooted in seventeenth-century ideas and traditions which relate to each
mystery, and there is therefore a danger that each interpretation can be pushed
beyond what is legitimate. Second, although perhaps plausible for some of the
compositions in the collection, they do not fit all of them, and consequently,
interpretations (mainly through the use of biblical narratives) are forced onto the
music though not convincingly demonstrated. Third, they fall to take account of
contemporary devotional, artistic, musical and historical contexts, which were
rooted in well-established traditions.
Perhaps the most extensive analysis of the Mystery Sonatas to draw from the
gospel texts is by Davitt Moroney, and will be referred to below as necessary.252
As with many such analyses, the technique does not convincingly fit all the
compositions. In his analysis of Mystery Sonata ifi ('The Nativity'), for example,
Moroney tells us that despite the fact that 'it is unclear exactly which aspects of
the Christmas Story Biber intended to reflect here . . . it is easy to associate the
following texts from St Luke:
Sonata and Presto: And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the
field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came
upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round them: and they were sore afraid.
Courente: And the angel said unto them, Fear not; for, behold, I bring you good
tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in
the City of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
251
Dann, 'Heinrich Biber and the Seventeenth-Century Violin', p. 325. Dann's study of the
Mystery Sonatas largely ignores the issue of the relationship between the music and the subjects
of each mystery, and focuses instead almost exclusively on technical aspects of violin playing in
the pieces, without offering an explanation as to why Biber uses such technical devices.
252
Moroney, sleeve notes, pp. 13-36.
Double: And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host
praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good
will toward men.
Adagio: And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe
lying in a manger . . . But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her
heart.'253
The direct relevance of these biblical texts to the movements in question seems
by no means as self-evident as Moroney is implicitly claiming, and no further
explanation is offered. Moreover, for other mysteries (such as the Flagellation, or
the Assumption or Coronation of the Virgin) there is little or no mention in the
Bible of the events, and the construction of a parallel narrative is even more
problematic. The problem can, however, be resolved to some extent by using
narratives in contemporary non-biblical sources (see below), and avoiding
anachronistic interpretations. Indeed, some of Moroney's (and others')
speculative readings seem plausible if reference is made to contemporary
musical, devotional, and artistic concepts and traditions. Specific examples will
be discussed in the analyses below.
The most important recent study of the Mystery Sonatas is Haberl's pioneering
numerological analysis. 254 His method involves counting all the notes for every
movement of the Mystery Sonatas; he differentiates between counting the note
heads of each note, and the number of sounding notes in each movement, which
he gives in numerous tables in his thesis, differentiating in each of these two
subcategories between the number of notes in the violin part, and the number of
notes in the bass part. He then interprets his findings using cabbalistic
253 Ibid., pp. 24-25.

254
Haberl, 'Ordo arithmeticus'.
techniques, and also relates it to biblical number exegesis. He also presents a
numerological analysis of the set as a whole, pointing out the importance of the
perfect numbers 6, 28, and 496 as structuring numbers for the whole set (specific
examples will be given below). 255 Quite plausible is his interpretation of the
number 2772, the total number of sounding bars of music (including repetitions)
in the Mystery Sonatas, which, apart from being palindromic, also relates to the
number of books in the Bible. After the Council of Trent, the number of books in
the Bible was set at 72: 45 in the Old Testament and 27 in the New Testament.
The total number of bars in the Mystery Sonatas (2772) can be split to become 27
and 72, 27 being the number of books in the New Testament, 72 being the total
number in the whole bible, and the difference (45) being the number of books in
the Old Testament, which Haberl concludes is a deliberate number game
employed by Biber. 256 Haberl draws many such interpretations from his
numerological analysis of the Mystery Sonatas, which he relates to established
ideas on biblical numerology, some more convincing than others. They are too
numerous to be listed here in full, although the most important ones will be
discussed and considered in the analyses of each work presented below.
Haberl's approach is more satisfactory than one searching for narratives drawn
from the gospels: he grounds the majority of his interpretations on a substantial
body of contemporary texts. Yet even he is apt to present numerological
proportions without further explanation of their meaning or significance. For
example, in his analysis of Mystery Sonata II, Haberl asserts that the 248 note
255
A perfect number is a number equal to the sum of all the numbers by which it can be divided.
The first four perfect numbers are 6, 28, 496, and 8128.
256 Ibid., p. 139.

heads of the violin part in the Allamanda can be doubled to make 496, the third
perfect number and the number of note heads in the Prceludium of the Mystery
Sonata I, and that the number of bars in the Allamande is 20, which is the
rectangle number of 4, but he is not able to offer an interpretation of the meaning
of these numbers. Admittedly, many of the signs and symbols which would have
been understood by Biber are not easily identifiable today.
3.1.2 The Literary and Devotional Background
When Biber compiled the manuscript of the Mystery Sonatas, there was already
an established tradition of devotional books relating to the fifteen mysteries of
the rosary, comprising the five Joyful Mysteries (covering events from the
Annunciation to the Finding of the child Jesus in the Temple), the five Sorrowful
Mysteries (dealing with the events of Christ's Passion) and the five Glorious
Mysteries (from the Resurrection to the Assumption and Coronation of the
Virgin). Most (although not all) of these devotional books were published
anonymously by the various confraternities and archconfraternities of the rosary
which flourished in central Europe from the fifteenth century to the middle of the
eighteenth.257
One such confraternity existed in Salzburg in the seventeenth century, and we
know that Maximilian Gandoiph was a member and promoter of it. 258 The room
in which the confraternity is thought to have met—the Aula Academica of the
University, erected in 1619—contains large-scale paintings of the fifteen
These will be discussed in more detail below as appropriate.

258
mysteries of the rosary on its walls. 259 These fifteen images are the same as the
first fifteen images in Biber's manuscript, and thus link the music and the venue.
The Marian congregation which met there would have been split into a large and
a small congregation: all students of the University would have been registered in
the former, and all pupils of the Gymnasium in the latter. Additionally, there
existed from 1619 onwards the Congregatio Angelica for the lower grades or the
preparatory classes of the Gymnasium. 26 ° It seems likely that the Mystery
Sonatas would have been performed in these rooms as part of the devotional
exercises, although as Kubitschek remarks, the rather large room is not
particularly suited to the intimate nature of the music. He also suggests a
connection between the Congregatio Angelica and the Passagalia from the
Mystery Sonatas which is preceded by a drawing of a guardian angel holding the
hand of a child, although the likelihood that this work would have been
performed to such young children also seems difficult to imagine.261
Whilst little precise information regarding the activities of this confraternity is
available, we can look to others for an idea of its activities.262 Whether or not
259
Some of the paintings are anonymous, others have been attributed to or confirmed to be the
work of two painters: Zacharias Miller and Adrian Blomaert (1564-1651). All fifteen paintings
are reproduced, with commentary, in Adolf Hahnl, 'Die Aula Academica der Alma Mater
paridiana zu Salzburg: Studien zur Baugestalt und Ausstattung', Studien und Mitteilungen zur
GesChichte des Benediktiner-Ordens und seine Zweige 83 (Ottobeuren: Kommissionsverlag
Winfried-Werk, 1972), pp. 7 17-754.
260
Kubitschek, introduction to Mysterien Sonaten (Rosenkranz Sonaten), facs. edn, p. 12.
261
Ibid. The problem of the Passagalia is discussed further below.
262
A summary of extant information about the confraternity from the seventeenth to the
nineteenth century appears in Rupert Klieber, Bruderschaften und Liebesbllnde nach Trient: Ihr
Totendienst, Zuspruch und Stellenwert im kirchlichen und gesellschafthichen Leben am Beispiel
Salzburg 1600-1950, 'Schriftenreihe des Erzbischof-Rohracher-Studienfonds' 4 (Frankfurt and
Berlin: Peter Lang, 1999), pp. 326-332. See also pp. 525-532. An item in the British Library
relating to the services for the dead instituted by this confratrenity in Salzburg (not listed in
Klieber) is anon., Bericht, Uhrkund, Gedenckzaichen, ewiges rosenkrantz Gebetts, von der
Biber was a member of this confratemity is uncertain, although we do know that
he was a member of one such religious confraternity in Salzburg (the Heilig-
Kreuz-Bruderschaft), 263 and his wife Maria Biber was a member of the
Josefsbruderschaft, 264 so the possibility that he took part in the Marian
congregations must not be ruled out. Biber could well have written his Mystery
Sonatas for the Marian congregations, since we know he wrote his Litanice de
Sancto Josepho for the Josephsbruderschaft, and it is also likely that he wrote his
Offertorium in Festo 7 dolorum for another confraternity founded in Salzburg in
1688, the Maria-Sieben Schmerzen Bruderschaft. According to Kennedy, one of
the four principal uses to which the Jesuits put music was within the practice of
the Marian congregations in the colleges.265
Marian veneration was central to the ideology of rosary confraternities: Mary had
a central role in the fifteen mysteries, and when used in devotion, the mysteries
involved the recitation of ten Ave Marias for each mystery. The important and
central place occupied by Mary in rosary devotions is made clear in the paintings
of the fifteen mysteries in the Aula Academica of Salzburg University. In the
paintings depicting the Sorrowful Mysteries, for example, Mary is the largest
figure in the foreground, being comforted by an angel, and is seeing the events
heiligen Ertzbruderschaft Rosarii für die sterbende in 1640 Jahr alihie auffgericht, und
einverleibt (Salzburg, 1640) (BL: 1897.c.20.(42*). The document is a one-page form which was
filled in by members, but tells us little about the practices of the brotherhood beyond the
provisions for praying for the dead.
263
See Klieber, 'Musikalische Implikationen einer Institution: Salzburgs Bruderschaften im
Ausgang des 17. Jahrhunderts am Beispiel St. Josef und Hl. Kreuz', in Petrus Eder and Ernst
Hintermaier (eds), Heinrich Franz Biber 1644-1704: Musik und Kultur im hochbarocken
Salzburg: Studien und Quellen (Salzburg: Selke Verlag, 1994), pp. 141-153.
264
Ernst Hintermaier (ed.), Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber: Litanic de Sancto Josepho zu 20
Stimmen, 'DMS' 9 (Salzburg: Selke Verlag, 1999), p. ix.
265
Kennedy, 'Jesuits', in NG II, vol. 13, p. 19.
(such as the Flagellation, the Crowning with Thorns etc.) in a vision, and in the
pictures they are taking place in the background. The emphasis in these particular
paintings is on Mary's suffering, and it is also a way of giving Mary a central
role in events which she is believed not to have seen first hand. A large portion
of Biber's extant output has a Marian agenda, 266 and many of his instrumental
compositions end with the Marian dedication Aid] M[aiorem] D[ei] G[loriam]
B[eatae] V[irginis] M[ariae] S[anctae] Caeciliae.267
The various rosary psalters (as they were known) which were published by the
confraternities of the rosary often contained information on the origin of the
rosary, statutes of the confraternity, the Salve regina, various prayers and the
litanies of the Virgin Mary. Most important, they would list the fifteen mysteries
of the rosary and include meditations on them. The latter could include any or all
of the following: a narrative of events for each mystery, quotations from relevant
sections of the gospels, accompanying prayers, and engravings depicting each of
the mysteries. Most of these liturgical books were small in format, and were
intended for private devotion. As an aid to the use of the book, detailed
instructions were often given on the order of the recitations, and where to
incorporate the Ave Marias and Pater nosters. The images were included to act
266
Apart from the Mystery Sonatas, his earliest surviving composition was a setting of the Marian
text Salve regina, his Vesperce ion giores ac breviores unacum iitaniis lauretanis includes a
section of Psalmi de B.M. Virgine, and there is also an extant Stabat Mater.
267
See, for example, Lutz, Introduction to Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber: Sonata violino solo
representativa, p. 10. Furthermore, there is a series of paintings depicting some of the mysteries
of the rosary at Krom&i, and many of the works in the Kromfl archives have obvious Marian
and rosary connections. These include the anonymous Missa B: V: in caelos assumptae (A 73 /
B I 88), the lost Missa Beate Rosae (B I 37), Vincent Fux's Missa B. V. M. Assumptae Hiezingk
(A 38 / B I 47), and Vejvanovsk's Missa Visitationis B. M. V (A 115 / B 1109), all of which
date from the 1660s. This supports the notion that some of the Mystery Sonatas could have been
written at KromèiI.
as a stimulus to the imagination of the person engaging in the meditation, and
this formed part of a long tradition. The person praying on each mystery was
expected to do so for a considerable time—often over an hour (see below)—and
was expected to imagine all details of the scene with the aid of the prayers, the
text from the gospel and the picture. Things which they might be required to
think about with these aids included the physical attributes of the scene in which
the mystery took place (often in exhaustive detail), the clothes and external
features of the participants, and the dialogue of the participants (see below). The
image played a central part in the devotional process. The engravings of the
mysteries which preface the first fifteen works in Biber's set are likely to have
been cut out of one of these rosary psalters, although scholars have so far been
unable to identify the source.268
Music was also associated with the rosary before Biber compiled his Mystery
Sonatas.269 In this context then, the Mystery Sonatas are not the anomalous
works which they were thought to be when initially rediscovered. Instead, they
form part of a tradition of rosary devotion, to which the visual arts—both in the
forms of printed engravings and paintings of the rosary cycle—and also music,
were central. Working in such a context, it is not surprising that Biber should
268
am grateful to the Department of Prints and Drawings at the British Museum for examining
the engravings. They were, however, not able to identify them, but confirmed that they appear to
be early 17th century, either Flemish or German.
269
Two examples of seventeenth-century rosary publications including music are Unser lieben
frawen Rosenkrantz. Das ist: Em newes schones Geistliches andachtiges Lied Von dem
dreyfachen Rosenkrantz der ubergebenedeyten Himmelkonigmn und Muetter Gottes MARIAE
(Innsbruck: Joann Gachen, 1638) which contains a rosary hymn alongside poems on each of the
fifteen mysteries, and also Vier schone newe geistliche Lieder von unser lieben frawen der
himmelkonigin Maria (Innsbruck: Michael Wagner, 1640), which contains four songs on rosary
subjects with both music and text (in German).
write a set of instrumental compositions on the subject of the mysteries of the
rosary.
3.1.3 The Rosary, Jesuits and Devotion
The Jesuits were well-known as promoters of rosary devotions during this
period,270 and indeed, their constitutions explicitly promoted rosary devotions,271
and among its individual members they compiled rosary psalters, even though
they had no single official rosary psalter of their own. Such devotions reflect the
ideas of the Jesuits' central spiritual text—the Exercitia spiritualia (Spiritual
Exercises)—written by St Ignatius of Loyola, in the early part of the sixteenth
century. The Spiritual Exercises were translated into French, German and Latin
in the sixteenth century (they were originally in Spanish), and were published
and reprinted throughout the sixteenth, seventeenth and eighteenth centuries in
numerous editions. The Spiritual Exercises were intended to be used by a
retreatant under the instruction and guidance of an experienced spiritual director,
and parts of the notionally four-week retreat involves extensive meditation on
events in the life of Christ and Mary, and most of the mysteries of the rosary are
included. Given the considerable influence of this text in Catholic circles
throughout Europe, the influence of the Jesuits and Ignatian spirituality in
270
Indeed, even at the end of the eighteenth century outside of central Europe the Jesuits were
still remembered for this practice: 'St. Ignatius, founder of the Society of Jesuits, gave an hour
every day to the improvement of his soul in the devotion of the holy Rosary—And his children,
worthy of so glorious a parent, have rules prescribed them in their constitutions, to teach the
mysteries of the holy Rosary. . [and] to say it. And in their instructions of the sodality they exhort
all, to be much affected to the universal devotion of the Rosary.' (Italics original.) From: John
O'Connor, An Essay on the Rosary and Sodality of the Most Holy Name of Jesus. .. to which is
added an Introduction to the Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary: Giving an Account of its
Institution, Indulgences, Privileges, & c. . . . ( Dublin: the author, 1772), pp. 267-268.
271
George E Ganss (trans.), Saint Ignatius of Loyola: The Constitutions of the Society of Jesus
(St. Louis, Missouri: Institute of Jesuit Sources, 1970), p. 186.
general, and the likelihood that Biber had a Jesuit education, it is a valuable
source for telling us about the way in which the mysteries would have been
prayed during the seventeenth century.
Each time the retreatant meditates on an event from the life of Christ or Mary, he
is directed to a text at the back of the book which summarises the events (often
with extracts from the gospels), before working through a number of
preliminaries and headings relating to the event in question, which are aimed to
direct the praying. The degree of detail given to the person praying, and the depth
and extent to which they were intended to meditate on each event are illustrated
by the instructions for meditation on the incarnation (given here in full):272
102. First Prelude. This will consist in calling to mind the history of the subject
which I am about to contemplate. Here it will be how the three divine Persons look
upon the whole surface of the world filled with human beings. They see so many
turning away from love to damnation, and they decree in their eternity that the
second Person should become human to save the human race. When the fullness of
time had come, they send the messenger Gabriel to Mary in Galilee [ 262].
103. Second Prelude. This is the composition, seeing the place. Here it will be to see
the great expanse of the earth, inhabited by so many different peoples, and then to
focus on the house and room of Mary in the village of Nazareth in Galilee.
104. Third Prelude. This is to ask for what I desire. Here it will be to ask for a deep
interior knowledge of the Lord who has become human for me, that I may love and
follow my Lord ever more closely.
105. Note. It should be noted that the same preparatory prayer without any change,
as mentioned in the beginning, and the three preludes, with such changes of form
as the subject matter demands, are to be made during this week and subsequent
weeks.
106. First Point. This will be to see the different persons.
First, those on the face of the earth, with such diversity of dress and custom. Some
are white, others black; some at peace, others at war; some weeping, others
laughing; some well, others sick; some being born, others dying; and so on.
272
Cándido Dalmases (ed.), Sancti Ignatii de Loyola: Exercitia Spiritualia: Textum
antiquissimoruin nova editio lexicon textus hispani, 'Monumenta historica Societatis lesu' 100
(Rome: Institutum Historicum Societatis lesu, 1969), pp. 222-227. All subsequent references will
be to this edition, unless otherwise stated. Dalmases' edition contains four parallel texts of the
Exercitia Spiritualia, including the Vulgate text prepared by Ignatius and one of his assistants in
1548, and used up till the nineteenth century as the standard version. It is this version that Biber
would have known. Since then it has been replaced by a more historically correct Spanish
version. This translation taken from Elisabeth Meier Tetlow (ed.), The Spiritual Exercises of St.
Ignatius Loyola (Boston and London: U. Press of America and The College Theological Society,
1986), pp. 41-42.
Secondly, I will see and reflect upon the three divine Persons enthroned in eternal
glory. They look upon the whole earth, and behold all the peoples in great
blindness, turning toward death and judgement.
Thirdly, I will see Mary and the angelic messenger greeting her. I will reflect upon
these things in order to draw profit from what I have seen.
107. Second Point. This will be to listen to what the persons on the face of the earth
are saying, that is, how they speak to one another, swear and blaspheme, and so on.
I will also listen to what the three divine Persons are saying, proposing to work the
redemption of humankind, and so on. Then I will listen to what the angel and Mary
are saying. Finally I will reflect on all these word in order to draw profit from what
I have heard.
108. Third Point. This will be to consider what the persons on the face of the earth
are doing, for example, hurting wounding and killing each other and condemning
themselves. Also I will reflect on what the divine Persons are doing, carrying out
the most holy work of the incarnation, and so on. Likewise, I will consider what
the angel and Mary are doing: how the angel proclaims the divine message, and
how Mary acts humbly and gives thanks to God. Then I will reflect upon all this to
draw some profit from it.
This passage highlights the centrality of both images and the use of imagination
to prayer, which was as relevant in late-seventeenth-century, Catholic Salzburg,
as it was when the Spiritual Exercises were first written, and is exemplified by
the many sumptuous oil paintings seen in churches and Cathedrals in central
Europe (including Salzburg and its Aula Academica), depicting events from the
life of Christ and Mary. The emphasis on the active, imaginative and creative
involvement of the person praying represents a sharp contrast to other modem
traditions of praying the rosary. Loyola advocated a more sensory approach: the
application of the five senses to all the events in the life of Christ is highly
recommended by him. 273 The importance of using music as a devotional 'tool' in
this context is clear. A member of the Marian congregation in the Aula
Academica in Salzburg University during the 1670s could see the paintings on
the wall, and hear any texts being read by the person directing the devotional
exercises, and use both of these to visualise the event being meditated. The use of
music in this context alongside art complements the religious aesthetic both by
moving the affections of the listener towards the mood of the events being
273
Dalmases (ed.), Sancti Ignatii de Loyola: Exercitia Spiritualia, pp. 232-235.
meditated, and also by highlighting specific, established symbols and images
which are mentioned both in the texts associated with each mystery and in the
artistic traditions, thus enabling them to be precisely visualised.
3.1.4 Imagery, Narrative, Scordatura, and the Stylus phantasticus:

Iavtacna and Musical Imagery
Since the relationship between the music and the engravings in the Mystery
Sonatas has loomed largest in modem musicology, there has been a tendency to
approach the works with anachronistic and implausible concepts of programme
music and narrativity. If better interpretations are to be offered, the pieces should
be viewed in the context of their probably contemporary devotional functions.
If images and imagination were important to the devotional context of the
Mystery Sonatas, one might expect Biber to exploit the various rhetorical signs,
symbols and imagery associated with them in his music, and, if so, to employ the
stylus phantasticus. As was shown in Chapter 1, central to this style was the use
of rhetorical means to represent images to the imagination of the listener. We are
reminded here of Quintilian, who describes phantasia as 'IovtucTta or
imagination, which assists us to form mental pictures of things', 274 a concept
which was paralleled in some of the definitions of the stylus phantasticus (see
Chapter 1). Biber's Mystery Sonatas evoke the stylus phantasticus, in that they
are showy or virtuosic, many of the movements reflect the stylistic freedom
274
Quintilian, Institutio oratoria, VIII.iii. 88.
which had become associated with the style (see below), and above all, each
composition has its own rhetorical locus topicus, demonstrated by the engravings
preceding each sonata. Accordingly, Biber draws on a variety of rhetorical
devices—rhetorical figures, narrative, signs and symbols—in a manner
analogous to that in which they were used in baroque art. Just as a baroque
painting might use only one of these facets, or a combination of them, so Biber
draws on them in different ways and combinations in each composition. It is in
this light that Biber's use of scordatura should be viewed: as a rhetorical tool,
which is adapted in each composition according to the locus topicus of each (see
below) in order to create the requisite phantasia or representatio of each work.275
Hence, the c, e', g', c " scordatura of the twelfth composition (depicting the
Ascension) is used in order to allow increased resonance of the instrument in the
mode most commonly associated with such a jubilant occasion (the final is C),
and also to enable the violin to imitate the trumpet fanfare, a symbol of the
arrival or departure of a great personage, and used to sound the presence of a
member of the nobility in the baroque, all of which were signs associated with
the locus topicus of this particular composition.276 On the other hand, the a flat, e'
flat, g', d" scordatura of the sixth sonata (depicting the events in the Garden of
Gethsamane) creates a uniquely eerie and unresponsive resonance on the violin
275
Biber's use of scordatura in this set was for a long time misunderstood as a merely external
and artificial device used to enhance the virtuosity of the set; indeed an arrangement of the works
was made by Robert Reitz, H.LF. Biber: Funfzehn Mysterien (Vienna: Universal Edition, 1923),
for a conventionally tuned violin, thus misunderstanding the purpose of the scordatura.
276
Biber uses a similar device in the 'et resurrexit' and 'et ascendit' of his Missa Christi
resurgentis.
which reflects the movement's title—Lamento--and the locus topicus of the
piece.
3.2 Analysis of the Mystery Sonatas
In the analyses below, it will be shown how these rhetorical devices are drawn on
in each piece, the traditional context from which the device comes will be
illustrated and the way in which each piece relates to that tradition will be shown.
The problems posed by certain modern analyses mentioned above will be
explored, and their plausibility considered. Each composition in the collection is
discussed individually, and in sequence. This is done in order to elucidate more
clearly those large-scale narrative elements of the collection as a whole, and also
to clarify musical cross-references between compositions and their narrative
quality.277
3.2.1 Mystery Sonata I: The Annunciation of the Virgin Mary278
This work, with a final of d, 279 and in which the violin is tuned conventionally,
comprises a set of variations over a four-bar ground bass, framed by a Prceludium
277
This organisation of material also reflects the possibility that Biber may be drawing from
different traditions in each piece. It also allows for the possibility that in some of the pieces there
may be few rhetorical features which can be identified, and hence ensure the presentation of a
more complete and well-rounded interpretation of each piece. Haberl organises his analyses of
the pieces in the same way (and earlier commentary on the pieces, such as Chafe, are similarly
presented), thus permitting this study to be used easily in conjunction with those studies.
278
Titles are only given here for ease of reference, and to give an indication of the mystery to
which each composition relates. These, together with the title Mystery Sonata followed by a
number, did not appear in the manuscript, although they are widely adopted today.
279
This is Samber's first mode of frequent usage (see Chapter 1). Upper- and lower-case letters
are use to indicated finals in the thesis, the former representing a final with a 'major' third above
it, and the latter with a 'minor' third above it. The same system is used to indicate specific
chords, although in neither case should these be taken to mean 'keys' in the modern sense.
and Finale, in each of which the violin plays rushing, demisemiquavers in scales
over a pedal note. The engraving which precedes the composition depicts the
Virgin Mary kneeling before an altar, in front of which the Angel Gabriel hovers.
At the top of the image there is a dove, which was the traditional symbol in art
for the Holy Ghost.28°
Example 3.1: Mystery Sonata I, opening, violin part only, bb. 1-6
The rushing demisemiquavers in the opening and concluding movements
(Example 3.1), have often been described as a representation of the rustling of
the angel's wings. 28 ' Whilst we know that Biber was able to employ such
'programmatic' devices in some of his secular instrumental music282—and it is
reasonable to accept that such devices might also be used in the Mystery
Sonatas—it is difficult to substantiate this example. Whilst the placing of the
device at the start and end of the sonata supports its symbolic use as a 'narrative'
280
The Annunciation is described in the Bible in Luke 1. 26-38. The earthly symbol for the Holy
Ghost as a dove is biblical, and is most associated with Christ's baptism (see Mark 1.10, Luke
3.22, John 1.32), but was often used as a way of portraying the Holy Ghost in Art; see Murray,
The Oxford Companion to Christian Art, p. 155.
281
See, for example, Moroney, sleeve notes, p. 22.
282
Examples include imitation of various birds in the Sonata violino solo representativa (see Lutz
(ed.), Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber: Sonata violino solo representativa) and depiction of battle in
his Battalia (See Bernhard Moosbauer (ed.), Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber: Battalia a 10:
Faksinzile der autographen Stimmenhandschrft und deren Neuedition, 'DMS: Faksimile-
Ausgaben' 8 (Salzburg: Selke Verlag, 1999)).
element, there are, however, no other obvious techniques which reflect the
narrative of the subject in use in the work. That the figuration is a rhetorical
symbol for something is likely. Since this is one of only two mysteries in the
collection referring to the earthly presence of the Holy Ghost (the other being the
third Glorious Mystery, the descent of the Holy Ghost at Pentecost, which also
pictures a dove in the engraving), 283 and the similarity of the violin figuration at
the start of each sonata, it is more likely to be a musical symbol for the Holy
Ghost. More specifically, it is probably a symbol of the moment of Mary's
conception by the Holy Ghost 284 and the idea that a son (fihius) is a gift from
God. Indeed, Biber uses the same type of violin figuration in his Nisi Dominus (a
setting of Psalm 127) when the bass soloist sings the words 'are the sons of one's
youth' (Example 3.2). The broader context of this passage emphasises the notion
that—in common with Mary's conception of Christ—sons are a gift from God:
3: Lo, Sons are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the womb a reward.
4: Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the sons of one's youth.
The notation of exactly 496 note heads in the first movement of this piece (496
being the third perfect number) 285 also suggests a focus on the perfect nature of
the Virgin Birth, to which, indeed, Biber draws our attention in the dedication to
283
The engraving which precedes the fifth glorious mystery depicting the Coronation of the
Virgin in heaven also depicts the Holy Ghost in the form of a dove. This event, unlike the other
two mysteries mentioned, takes place in heaven and not on earth.
284 Luke 1.35.

285
Haberl, 'Ordo arithmeticus', p. 143. As Haberl shows, cabalistic square and triangle numbers
are also important ordering numbers in this piece.
the Mystery Sonatas in alluding to Mary as the immaculate moon (Lunce sine
macula) (see Chapter 2).
Example 3.2: Biber, Nisi Dominus, bb. 80-83
Th
Bass
Org
# #
This piece does not seem to display other programmatic or symbolic effects. It is
hard to understand Moroney's claim that the work displays the 'tightest
programmatic construction'. 286 Moroney's suggestion, for example, that the trill
on the penultimate note of the work (a semibreve b" flat) could 'be Biber's
musical depiction of the exact moment of Christ's conception',287 seems quite
anachronistic in its conception of 'programme music'. Certainly some
contemporary depictions of the Annunciation portrayed the moment of
conception by means of the ray of light which often shines from the Holy Ghost
(in the form of a Dove) to Mary, although we cannot isolate one single note with
286
Moroney, sleeve notes to recording of Biber's Mystery Sonatas, p. 22.
287
Ibid., p. 23
a trill on it—a typical device at cadences such as this—and claim that the same
thing is being represented. There are other more prominent passages in this
composition which could be claimed to be this, should Moroney's idea be
accepted. Contrary to Goebel's claim, 288 texts from the Gospels were often
printed in rosary devotional books and Biber could have drawn on them for
'programmatic' devices in the Mystery Sonatas. Any interpretation of them
should, however, be rooted in the historical context.
3.2.2 Mystery Sonata II: The Visitation
The second Mystery Sonata, with a final of A, using the scordatura a, e', a', e",
comprises three movements: an opening Sonata, followed by an Allaman[de],
and a concluding Presto. The engraving which precedes the composition depicts
Elizabeth greeting Mary in the centre, with Zachariah in the background on the
left side of the picture, and a child in the background on the right.289
Scholars have not been able to find so-called 'pictorialisms' in this problematic
piece beyond Chafe's suggestion that the 'imitation and dialogue between violin
and continuo in the first and last movements of the second sonata (the Visitation)
are appropriate to the suggestion of dialogue between Mary and her cousin.'290
Given the prominence of imitation (however small-scale) in many of the
288
Goebel, sleeve notes, p. 10-11. Goebel argues that the German-language Bible was withheld
from Catholics in Germany until the beginning of the twentieth century, and concludes that
'Biber could certainly have had no thought of setting biblical passages in a strictly programmatic
style' and that any attempt to analyse the Mystery Sonatas in such a way 'must be regarded as a
falsification of historical circumstances.' This point is, however, not of great relevance, since (as
was shown in Chapters 1 and 2) Biber's ability in Latin meant he would probably have read the
vulgate version of the Bible, and the likelihood of him having received a Jesuit education
suggests this is the version he would have been used to.
289 The Visitation is described in the Bible in Luke 1. 39-56.
290
compositions in the collection, it is difficult to substantiate this, and there seem
to be no signs or symbols readily available within the artistic or devotional
context to relate it to. Haberl also finds little to say about this composition,
beyond the fact that the number 28 (the second perfect number) is an important
structuring device, although he does not offer a reason why this should be the
case.29'
It is one of the shortest compositions, and perhaps this is due to its relative
importance in the sequence of narrative events as a whole. There appear to be
few rhetorical figures or other devices used which can be related to either
devotional or artistic traditions, though this may be because some of the
traditions and contexts have not survived. The general character is one of
exuberance, corresponding to the atmosphere of this event in the Bible. This
locus topicus is enhanced in the music through the use of a resonant acoustic,
which is exploited to the full through the use of numerous open strings in chordal
passages. Biber uses the same final (A) and optimistic character as Mystery
Sonata V ('The Finding in the Temple'), and also makes use of dance
movements, which is perhaps significant since it is the next composition in the
set not to have a sorrowful undertone (see the discussion of Mystery Sonatas III
and IV below). The three movements perhaps relate to the months for which
Mary stayed with Elizabeth, and likewise, the disjunct, leaping violin part
(particularly in the Allaman[da]) perhaps relates to John leaping in Elizabeth's
womb when she is greeted by Mary, an event described in the gospels.292
291
Haberl, 'Ordo arithmeticus', p. 146.
3.2.3 Mystery Sonata III: The Nativity
There are five distinct movements here: an opening Sonata and Presto, a
Courante, a Double, and a concluding Adagio. The engraving which precedes the
music depicts the scene of the nativity: Mary, Joseph and the new-born Jesus are
in the centre; an angel hovers behind Jesus, and there are two onlookers on the
right side and the ox and ass on the left side of the picture.293
The scordatura, b, f' sharp, b d' reflects the principal mode of the piece (the
final is b, and there is a two-sharp signature), and owing to the raising of the
lower three strings, gives the violin a rather strained and tense sonority. This
increases the overall affection of the piece, which is one of grief and lament, as
does the chromaticism and use of a slow movement to end the work. The doleful
mood of the music is in direct contrast to the joyousness we associate with the
Christmas story today, and it is also in direct contrast to the pastorella style
employed by Biber in his motet Festo Trium Re gum, Muttetum Natale a 6 which
employs recorders and oboes. 294 The prevailing mood of this sonata has baffled
scholars: one commentator concluded that 'it is unclear exactly which aspects of
the Christmas story Biber intended to reflect here'. 295 A useful clue is given by
292
Luke 1.41.
293
See Luke 2. 1-20 and Mathew 2. 1-12.
294 Other works in KromèlI whose titles suggest the subject matter of this work are the two
Sonatc natales, one each by Vejvanovsk (CZ-KRa: A 624 / B IV 202) and Schmelzer (CZ-
KRa: A 583 / B IV 149), although both of these are in a much more exuberant style including the
use of brass instruments. There was also a tradition of performance of music at the crib in church
which was often erected during the Christmas season, and with which the Pastorella was
associated. See Geoffrey Chew, 'The Christmas Pastorella in Austria, Bohemia and Moravia and
its Antecedents', 2 vols (PhD Diss., U. of Manchester, 1968), vol. 1, PP. 244-248, and also
Chapter 5 of the present study.
295
Moroney, sleeve notes, p. 24. Corelli's Christmas Concerto (see Richard Platt (ed.),
Arcangelo Corelli (1653-1 713): Concerto Grosso in G minor, op. 6, no. 8 ['Fatto per la notte de
Natale' /'Christmas Concerto'], 'Edition Eulenburg' 1883 (Urtext Edition: London, ca. 1997))
Goebel, who points out that nativity scenes in art often depict Christ surrounded
by the torture implements of his death. 296 There was indeed a long tradition of
works of art including symbols of the Passion in scenes of the nativity, or of
Christ as an infant. These might include the Virgin Mary praying over the baby
Christ in a pose associated with death (eyes closed and hand over heart), 297 the
baby Christ on his own lying on or near a crucifix and with skulls in the
picture, 298 or even a portrayal of the crucifixion in the same picture as the
nativity.299
The music not only relates to the tradition of nativity representations in art, but
also to the devotional context. In the Spiritual Exercises, the principal emphasis
in the contemplation of the nativity is on the idea that Christ was born to suffer
for man's salvation, and the retreatant is instructed to focus principally on
Christ's sufferings, and avoid thought of the joyous events which were to
follow:300
raises similar problems. Although there is no evidence that Corelli had intended any type of
narrative, the use of the g minor key, and chromaticism in the slow movements, poses similar
problems.
296
Goebel, sleeve notes, p. 12.
297
See, for example, the discussion of Giovanni Bellini's (ca. 1440s-15 16), 'The Madonna of the
Meadow' (ca. 1500) in Gabriele Finaldi et a!., The Image of Christ: The Catalogue of the
Exhibition Seeing Salvation (London: National Gallery Company Limited, 2000), pp. 62-63. A
similar painting exists in the collection of the Zámecká obrazárna KromëiLIská (Kromèii Castle
picture gallery) by Neri di Bicci (1419-1491), which is part of a cycle of eight Marian paintings
which were added to the collection in the fifteenth century. The painting shows the Virgin Mary
(and others) praying over the Christ child.
298
See the discussion of 'The Christ Child Resting on the Cross' (1670s) by Bartolomé Esteban
Murillo (1617-1 682), in ibid., pp. 64-65.
299
See the discussion of 'The Adoration of the Kings and Christ on the Cross' (ca. 1465-1475),
attrib. Benedetto Nonfigli (ca. 1430s—l496), in ibid., pp. 66-67.
°° Dalmases (ed.), Sancti Ignatii de Loyola: Exercitia Spiritualia, pp. 230-231. Translation:
Tetlow (ed.), The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola, p. 43.
116. Third Point. This will be to see and consider what they are doing, for
example, making the journey and suffering that the Lord might be born in the
greatest poverty; and after so many labours, after hunger, thirst, heat and cold,
after insults and injuries, might die on the cross, and all this for me. Then I will
reflect and draw some spiritual profit from what I have seen.
The locus topicus of this composition then is the pain and suffering of Christ
during his lifetime. It is in this context that the quotation (in the Adagio of this
piece) from the tenth Mystery Sonata ('The Crucifixion') should be understood,
as a rhetorical cross reference, or symbol, which foresees events which are to
come (Example 3.3). In the same movement Biber uses extensive chromaticism,
and the rhetorical musical figure passus duriusculus, a figure involving a
chromatic descent or ascent, 301 which he often associates with lament (see below)
(see Example 3.4).
Example 3.3: (a) Mystery Sonata III, Adagio, bb. 5-7 (b) Mystery Sonata X,
Variatio III, bb. 8-10 (both at sounding pitch)302
(a)
(b)
301
See Muller-Blattau, Die Kompositionslehre, pp. 77-78. Bernhard defines this as 'when a voice
rises or falls a minor semitone (wenn eine Stimme em Semitonium minus steiget, oder fállet)'.
Both of Bernhard's music examples relate to either lament, or the word lacrymosa as expressed
in the vocal text.
302
Unless otherwise stated, all music examples are given at sounding pitch.
Example 3.4: Mystery Sonata III, Adagio, bb. 13 14
passus duriusculus
Apart from these affective devices, there seem to be no clear 'programmatic'
effects depicting the narrative of this mystery. The only possibility, perhaps, is
the style of the first three movements, which are full of registral leaps and rapid
descents and ascents (see Example 3.5) which could be intended to evoke the
following passage associated with the nativity:303
112. Second Prelude. This is the composition, seeing the place. It will consist in
seeing with the imagination the way from Nazareth to Bethlehem. Consider its
length and breadth; whether level or through valleys and over hills. Behold the
place or cave of the nativity; whether large or small, high or low, and how it was
prepared.
Indeed, the only dance movement in the work is entitled Courente, which is well
known as having come from the verb meaning to run (courir in French). This
part of the composition could easily relate to the Flight to Egypt which took
place soon after the nativity, and is corroborated by the similar use of a Courente
in Mystery Sonata IX, relating to the journey to Calvary (see below). In short, the
music of this work strongly reflects the mood of Counter-Reformation Catholic
piety and the emphasis on the sufferings which Christ was to endure rather than
the joy associated with the nativity today.
303 Dalmases (ed.), Sancti Ignatii de Loyola: Exercitia Spiritualia,

pp. 228-229. Translation:
Tetlow (ed.), The Spiritual Exercises of St. ignatius Loyola, p. 43.
Example 3.5: Mystery Sonata III (a) Courante, bb. 19-22, (b) Double, bb. 2-5
(a)
(b)
3.2.4 Mystery Sonata IV: The Presentation in the Temple
With the exception of the Passagalia, the fourth Mystery Sonata is the only one
to consist of a single long movement, a Ciacona. The engraving at the start
pictures the baby Jesus in the arms of the aged Simeon in the Temple. The Virgin
Mary is to the right of Simeon, and there are three other people in the
background and foreground of the picture; the woman at the front is most likely
to be Anna. 304 The scordatura used here, a, d', a', d", is one of the two most
resonant tunings in the set (the other being the g, g', d', d" scordatura of the
eleventh composition, the Resurrection) and evokes the resonant Temple in
which the Presentation took place. The final is d, and the work appears to be in
Samber's first mode of frequent usage.
Why Biber wrote this as one continuous movement is unclear. Haberl has shown,
however, that numerology plays an important role here. The 84-year-old Anna
had 'lived with her husband seven years from her virginity', 305 and these
numbers (7 and 84) occupy an important position in the composition. The end of
the seventh variation is a structurally significant point in that it marks the return
of a (slightly altered) repeat of the opening variation an octave lower in the
Luke 2. 21-40.
Luke 2. 36.
eighth variation. By the end of the seventh variation the 12-note ground bass had
been notated seven times: 7 x 12 = 84. The total number of notated violin notes
in variations 1-7 is 420 (84 x 5), and the total number of violin and bass notes in
these variations is 504 (84 x 6).306
Like the third Mystery Sonata, the music is remarkably sorrowful, however, and
the fifth variation is a quotation from the tenth Mystery Sonata (depicting the
Crucifixion) (Example 3.6).
Example 3.6: (a) Mystery Sonata IV, Variatio V (b) Mystery Sonata X,
Variatio IV
(a)
(b)
Furthermore, these two sonatas share a similar violin resonance, achieved
through similar scordatura tunings, and the violin figuration of the tenth and
eleventh variations of the fourth Mystery Sonata is remarkably similar to that
used in the opening of the tenth Mystery Sonata. The presentation of Christ was
306 Haberl, 'Ordo arithrneticus', p. 153.

closely linked with his circumcision, 307 the latter of which was viewed from the
middle ages onwards as the first occasion on which Christ's blood was shed, and
was thus seen as a symbol, foreshadowing the events of the Passion leading to
Christ's Crucifixion. 308 More importantly, Simeon says '(Yea, a sword shall
pierce your own soul also), that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed,'309
which foresees the piercing of Christ's side at the Crucifixion. This part of the
presentation of the infant Jesus was important to Marian devotion, and was one
of the Seven Sorrows of the Virgin. 310 It is in this context in which this quotation
from the tenth Mystery Sonata should be understood, and its appearance in the
tenth sonata could be argued to be a representation of the point of Christ's side
being pierced.
3.2.5 Mystery Sonata V: The Finding in the Temple
This composition, consisting of an opening Prceludium followed by an
Allaman[da], Guigue, Saraban[de] and Double, uses the scordatura a, e', a', c"
sharp. The engraving depicts the twelve-year old Christ standing behind an altar
and speaking to seven church elders. 311 This is the first composition since
Mystery Sonata II (which also has a final of A), not to appear to evoke passages
of the Passion which were seen in the two preceding sonatas, and consequently,
the locus topicus and mood of the piece is joyful. As Dann says, this is created
307
See 'Circumcision of Christ', in Murray, A Dictionary of Christian Art, p. 119. They write: 'It
[the circumcision] was also seen by Christians as the first shedding of His blood and was
therefore not only one of the Seven Sorrows of Mary, but also the first act of the Passion. Some
medieval representations of the Instruments of the Passion include the knife.'
308
See Finaldi eta!., The Image of Christ, p. 58-59.
309 Luke, 2. 35.

310
'Sorrows of Mary', in Murray, A Dictionary of Christian Art, p. 546.
311
The biblical description of this event is in Luke 2. 42-52
through the resonant scordatura and the use of rising melodies to open every
movement (Example 3.7), and contrasts with the falling melodies of Mystery
Sonata VI (Examples 3.8, 3.11), the first of the Sorrowful Mysteries. 312 This
argument can, however, be taken further. The three-sharp signature of this piece
with its final on 'A' forms an antithesis with the two-flat signature (three flats in
modern notation) of Mystery Sonata VI, with its final on 'c'. These signatures are
the sharpest and flattest signatures used in the set, respectively, and their
rhetorical significance relates both to the choice of signatures and their bearing
on the locus topicus of each of these two compositions. Furthermore, the use of
the two signatures in adjacent compositions in the set heightens the rhetorical
impact of Mystery Sonata VI when heard after Mystery Sonata V.
Likewise, the contrasting rising melodies in this composition form an antithesis
with the falling melodies used in Mystery Sonata VI, the two being examples of
the rhetorical figures anabasis and catabasis, respectively. Kircher defines these
as follows:313
Anabasjs sive Ascensio est The anabasis or ascensio is a musical

periodus harmonica, quam passage through which we express
exaltationem, ascensionem vel res exalted, rising, or elevated and eminent
altas & eminentes exprimimus, Ut thoughts, as exemplified in Morales
illud Moralis (Ascendens Christus (Ascendens Christus in altum).
in altum etc.)
Catabasis sive descensus periodus The catabasis or descensus is a

harmonica est, qua oppositos priori musical passage through which we
affectus pronunciamus servitutis, express affections opposite to those of
humilitatis, depressionis affectibus, the anabasis, such as servitude and
atque infimis rebus exprimendes, Ut humility, as well as lowly and base
illud Massaini: Ego autem affections, as in Massainus: 'I am,
humiliatus sum nimis, & illud however, greatly humbled', or in
Massentii: descenderunt in Massentius: 'The living have
infernum viventes. descended into hell'.
312
Dann, 'Heinrich Biber and the Seventeenth-Century Violin', p. 318.
313
Kircher, Musurgia universalis, book 8, p. 145.
As Bartel points out, this is different from Burmeister's hypotyposis (musical
representation of a text in vocal music) which was intended to 'make the text or
events "seem" (videri) present, Kircher's figures are to actualize the intended
affection. The catabasis [and anabasis], like so many other musical-rhetorical
figures, is called to do more than simply reflect the text: it is simultaneously
image and source of the affection.' 314 In the Mystery Sonatas, then, where there
is no sung text as in vocal music, the musical figures have to do both these
things, and any texts which might be associated with each figure, would come
from the liturgical books or readings used as part of the devotional context.
Example 3.7: Anabasis figures from Mystery Sonata V, movement openings
Allamanda
Haberl has shown that the number seven has important structural significance in
the piece: there are fourteen bars in the Prceludium (seven slow, seven fast), the
following three dance movements comprise 77 bars (11 x 7), there are 91 notated
314
Bartel, Musica poetica, p. 214.
bars in the whole sonata (13 x 7), and 168 (24 x 7) sounding bars when the
repeats in the dance movements are counted. He relates this to the engraving
preceding the composition, which depicts seven church elders being addressed
by Christ. 315 Haberl's hypothesis is plausible, although it is not something which
could have been appreciated by the members of the Marian congregation in
Salzburg, most of whom would not see the manuscript of the Mystery Sonatas.
Likewise, it does not reflect the painting depicting this event in the Aula
Academica, in which there are ten figures depicted in addition to Christ, Mary,
and Joseph.
One other anomaly is the order of the dance movements, and the placement of a
Sara bande—a slow dance—as the conclusion of the composition. Despite
concluding that 'it is not clear whether a precise scriptural text relates to each
section of the music', Moroney supplies texts from the gospels to each
movement, without explaining how the text relates to the music. 316 One possible
explanation for the unusual order of dance movements is that the three dance
movements might represent the three days for which Mary and Joseph were
searching for Christ, 317 and that on the third—represented here by the
Sarabande—they found him.
315
316
Moroney, sleeve notes, p. 26.
317
The three day search is mentioned both in the Bible (Luke 2. 42) and in the Spiritual
Exercises.
3.2.6 Mystery Sonata VI: The Agony in the Garden
The extraordinary muted violin sonority created by the scordatura of this work (a
flat, e' fiat, g', d'), with its avoidance of notes which might result in sympathetic
resonance, is perfectly suited to the locus topicus displayed in the engraving
preceding the music. It depicts Christ's agony as he prays on the Mount of
Olives, with one of his disciples sleeping in the foreground, and a further three
figures at the entrance to the garden.318
Of all the Mystery Sonatas, this is the one which most closely evokes the subject
matter of the mystery with which it is associated, and in doing so draws on the
largest number of musical-rhetorical figures. Indeed, Biber seems to have had an
especially developed rhetorical vocabulary for music for lamentation. The music
is headed merely with the term Lamento, a descriptive term indicating style or
affection, rather than the prescriptive movement titles used elsewhere in the
collection (such as allemande or courante) which have formal implications.319
The descending melodies which open each movement (mentioned above) form a
catabasis, and thus an antithesis to the examples of anabasis used in Mystery
Sonata V, and may have a parallel in contemporary artistic depictions of Lament
also. 320
318
See Luke 22. 39-46, Mark 14. 26-41, Mathew 26. 36-46.
319
Regarding the Lament tradition and the relationship of this composition with it see Christian
Berger, 'Musikalische Formbildung im Spannungsfeld nationaler Traditionen des 17.
Jahrhunderts: Das "Lamento" aus Heinrich Ignaz Bibers Rosenkranzsonate Nr. 6', Acta
Musicologica 64 (1992), pp. 17-29.
320
One scholar (Andreas Prater and Hermann Bauer, Painting of The Baroque (Köln: Benedikt
Taschen Verlag, 1997), p. 28) points to the way in which in Annibale Carracci's (1560-1609)
Lamentation (depicting the lamentation of Christ after he has been taken down from the cross)
'there is a profound sense of gravity that determines the character of the composition here. None
of the figures . . . is fully upright. The composition is structured by the portrayal of reclining,
crouching, bent and stooping positions . . . The upper edge of the painting seems to be drawn
The figure suspiratio (a musical expression of a sigh through a rest) used in the
opening (Example 3.8),321 was often used to depict sighing in vocal music; it is
mentioned in Biber's dedications (see Chapter 2), and occurs in an aria from Act
I, Scene 8 of his opera Armino Chi la dura Ia vince, in which Nero sings about a
lover's sighing (see Example 3.9). Another musical-rhetorical figure employed in
this work is the tremolo (the repetition of the same note), 322 which, in violin
playing, involved the grouping of several notes of the same pitch in one bow
movement creating an undulating, throbbing effect. 323 Here it is probably
intended to depict Christ praying on the Mount of Olives, as it seems to be
associated with praying by Biber elsewhere (in his Laetatus sum it accompanies
the text Rogate, quae ad pacem sunt Jerusalem). 324 The passus duriusculus
figure (a chromatic ascent or descent, often spanning a fourth) used here, was
associated with lament in the seventeenth century (Example 3.10). It occurs also
in Segesta's Lamento-Aria in Act II, scene 5 of Armino Chi la dura la vince,
when Segesta sings about a woman of a thousand sorrows. These musical
rhetorical figures evoke the locus topicus of the mystery, which is centred on
sorrow and despair. This reflects the devotional context in which these works
would have been used, where the focus was on 'sorrow with Christ in sorrow, to
down low so that not one of the figures is able to stand in an upright full-length position.' The
picture now hangs in the National Gallery.
321
One of the many contemporary definitions of suspiratio is Janovka, Clavis ad rhesaurum, p.
55. For a discussion of the suspiratio with a definition, see Chapter 2.
322
Seventeenth-century theoretical sources display a certain amount of ambiguity with regard to
this figure. The two principal interpretations are the repetition of a single note, and the alternation
of the principal note and that which is one step higher. See Bartel, Musica poetica, pp. 427-431.
323
See David D. Boyden, The History of Violin Playing from its Origins to 1761 and its
Relationship to the Violin and Violin Music (London: OUP, 1965), pp. 266-268.
For a discussion of the organo tremolante figure in the Laetatus sum see Chafe, The Church
324
Music, pp. 130-132.

be broken with Christ broken, and for tears and interior suffering because of
Christ's great suffering for me.'325
Example 3.8: Mystery Sonata VI, opening
Example 3.9: Biber, Arminio Chi la dura la vince, Nero's Aria (Act I,
Scene 8), bb. 9-11
li- ci ilso-spir-ar li- ciil so-spirar.
6 I'3 6
5
Example 3.10: Mystery Sonata VI: organo tremolante and passus duriusculus
figures
passus duriusculus
The violin figuration in the Adagio towards the end of the composition (Example
3.11) though not a specific rhetorical figure, is commonly described as a
Dalmases (ed.), Sancti Ignatii de Loyola: Exercitia Spiritualia, pp. 286-287. Translation:
Tetlow (ed.), The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola, p. 67.
representation of the dripping of blood which Christ sweated whilst praying on
the Mount of Olives. 326 The wounds and blood of Christ were the focus of much
baroque art depicting the Passion of Christ (see below), and there was a long
tradition of devotion to the five wounds of Christ which played a prominent role
in Passion iconography of the middle ages and renaissance. 327 In such a context,
this example of musical representation is plausible. The sonata ends with an echo
device (Example 3.12), which was common in seventeenth-century instrumental
music, perhaps depicting the mountains and valleys around the Mount of Olives.
The description of the valleys does not appear at this point in the Bible, but is in
the Spiritual Exercises, where Christ is described as being arrested like a
criminal and dragged down one face of the valley and up the other to Anna's
house.328
Example 3.11: Mystery Sonata VI, Adagio, bb. 1-3
326
'And his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground'. Luke 44. 22.
See Moroney, sleeve notes, p. 27.
327
James H Marrow, Passion Iconography in Northern European Art of the Late Middle Ages
and Early Rena issance: A Study of the Transformation of Sacred Metaphor into Descriptive
Narrative (Kortrijk: Ghemmert, 1979), pp. 95-170.
328
Dalmases (ed.), Sancti Ignatii de Loyola: Exercitia Spiritualia, pp. 284-285.
Example 3.12: Mystery Sonata VI, ending
.1 p 1 F
3.2.7 Mystery Sonata VII: The Flagellation
The engraving preceding this sonata depicts Christ tied to a pillar and being
scourged by two men, whilst another looks on. 329 The scordatura is c f, a c",
and the work consists of an Allamanda followed by two variations, and a
Saraband followed by three variations. The gospels merely tell us that Christ was
scourged, without further elaboration. For the purposes of devotion, however, the
narrative was elaborated upon by writers of devotional
By the fourteenth century the substance of the Evangelists' terse report that 'they
scourged Him' had already been transformed in Northern Europe into a
complicated and grotesque ritual . . . Accounts of the infliction of the wounds, of
their appearance and the accompanying bloodshed frequently run to more than
five or six folios. . . relating the event in a relentless frenzy of sadistic rhetoric.
Such writers focussed on the kinds of whips, the number of wounds, the method
of scourging, and the number of teams of scourgers. The most common number
of scourgers tended to be three teams of two, and it is indeed a team of two
scourgers who are represented in the engraving preceding this sonata.
Some of the violin figuration in this composition has been suggested by some
commentators to represent the actual whipping (Example 3.13a—b); the repeated-
329 Mathew 27. 26, Mark 15. 15, John 19. 1.

Marrow, Passion Iconography, pp. 134-135.
note figuration of example 3.13b in particular corresponds to Monteverdi's
genere concitato. 331 Given the focus of discussions of the flagellation in
devotional tracts, it is quite plausible that Biber could have intended such a literal
representation. Furthermore, such rapid repetition of notes of the same pitch is
used by Biber in the Battalia to evoke battle, a technique which had become
well-established as a means of representing anger or fighting in battle pieces by
seventeenth-century composers in the German-speaking lands.332
The more reflective style of the opening movement and the second Variatio may
have been intended to direct the worshipper to think about the pain and suffering
of Christ, or perhaps specifically his wounds, which are often displayed in
significant detail in baroque paintings depicting the flagellation. 333 Such images
depicting Christ as the Man of Sorrows during the Passion were common, as was
the Ecce Homo ('behold the man') picture, conveying a similar image of Christ
in pain and suffering in order to evoke sympathy in the person looking at the
image. This might well be what is being referred to in the Allamande and
following Variatio of the composition, which is milder in tone than the genere
concitato figuration of the following movement. Related, is the difference
between the engraving in the manuscript and painting in the Aula Academica
depicting this event. In the latter, Mary is placed at the front of the painting, and
is being consoled by an angel. She is the largest figure in the painting, and the
331
See Strunk (ed.), Source Readings in Music History, pp. 665-667. The genere concitato is
generally considered to have been taken from Monteverdi to the German lands by Heinrich
Schütz.
332
See Moosbauer, Introduction to Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber: Battalia a io, pp. v—vi.
Finaldi et al., The Image of Christ, p. 146. See also, 'The Flagellation of Christ', in Gertrud
Schiller, Iconography of Christian Art, 2 vols, trans. Janet Seligman (London: Lund Humphries,
1971), vol. 2, pp. 66-68.
central focus. The scourging is taking place in the background, and is being seen
by Mary in a vision. 334 It may be Mary's pain and suffering as a result of her
vision that is referred to in the meditative opening of this sonata, which one
commentator has described as 'a very gentle affair, if it is a flagellation at all'.335
Likewise, Haberl finds few number relations in the composition, and certainly
none which can be interpreted though number exegesis, for example.
Example 3.13: Mystery Sonata VII (a) Sara bande, bb. 1-4, (b) Variatio I,
bb. 1-5
(a)
(b)
3.2.8 Mystery Sonata VIII: The Crowning with Thorns
There is little Biblical description of the events depicted in the engraving
preceding this piece, 336 which uses the scordatura d f', b' flat, d". The engraving
shows Christ surrounded by six people: two engaged in forcing the crown of
thorns onto his head, one kneeling mockingly before him and handing him the
reed with which they would later strike him, and the others laughing and
mocking him. After the initial tripartite Sonata (Adagio-Presto-Adagio), there are
three dance movements: a gigue and two doubles.
This technique is used in all the paintings depicting the sorrowful mysteries (except for that
depicting the carrying of the cross), and enables the painter to give a central role to Mary in
events she is believed not to have witnessed first hand.
Boyden, record review, p. 398.
336 Mathew 27. 27-30, Mark 15. 16-20, John 19. 2-3.
There are no clear 'programmatic' effects in this composition. The emphasis on
dance movements—and generally in those works depicting the five sorrowful
mysteries—may be intended to highlight the humanity of Christ in his suffering.
For devotional purposes the emphasis would have been on the wounds caused by
the crowning with thorns, 337 which was often depicted with great detail and
brutality in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century art.338
There is a figure in the Sonata movement (appearing three times in all) which
refers to a similar figure in Mystery Sonata VI (depicting Christ's agony in the
garden) (Example 3.14). The cross-reference was probably intended to be
understood in Mystery Sonata VI as prefiguring the events of the Passion leading
to the Crucifixion, in the same way that Christ foresees events in the garden
when he prays, 'Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me'.339
Likewise, Christ's forthcoming death is suggested in the painting in the Aula
Academica depicting the crowning with thorns, in which he is depicted with
closed eyes and crossed arms and legs, which, as Hahnl points out, was a means
of representing death in art.34o
Haberl notes the use of various square and triangle numbers in this work, but
supplies no interpretation of their significance. Specific musical rhetorical figures
Marrow, Passion Iconography, pp. 141-142.

338
See, for example, Finaldi et al., The Image of Christ, pp. 114-115, 119, 147.
Luke 22. 42.

340
Hahnl, 'Die Aula Acadenzica', p. 736.
are not easy to identify. The angular lines of the violin writing, perhaps portray
the lines of the thorns which made up the crown of thorns, and the jolting
rhythms of the Gigue add to this. The crown of thorns had long been a focus of
Passion devotion. A specific example of this—as it was represented in
contemporary art—can be seen in an illustration from the register of the
associated music pact of the Holy Cross Brotherhood, dated 1695, which Biber
was the first person to sign. 34 ' The illustration depicts a full-page picture of the
crown of thorns, with the signatures written in the centre. At various points on
the crown of thorns the following are drawn: Christ's hands and feet (his
wounds), the nails and pliers used during the Crucifixion, the pillar to which
Christ was tied for the scourging, and the ladder used to take him down from the
cross, the Veronica (see below), and Salzburg's medieval Residenz.
Example 3.14: (a) Mystery Sonata VIII, Sonata, b. 15, (b) Mystery Sonata VT,
Lamento, bb. 15-16
(a)
,
)
-
341
This is reproduced in Eder and Hintermaier (eds), Heinrich Franz Biber 1644-1 704: Musik
3.2.9 Mystery Sonata IX: The Carrying of the Cross
The engraving here depicts Christ carrying the cross with the help of Simon of
Cyrene, and a soldier overseeing the process. 342 In the bottom right-hand corner
is Veronica, handing Jesus a cloth with which to wipe his face, which he is
reaching out for (see below). The corresponding painting for this mystery is more
elaborate than the engraving. Whilst the same central figures are pictured, they
are in the midst of a battle involving many soldiers, and as Hahnl points out, the
soldiers appear to be Turks—with their turbans, curved sabres, and half-moon
signs—who posed such a strong and persistent threat to the west. 343 Thus, the
painter at least (Zacharias Miller) seemed to view the ongoing wars between the
Ottoman Turks and the Christians of the west as an allegory for Christ's ongoing
battle carrying the cross for man's salvation. 3 The scordatura is c, e', a', e".
The Courante and two doubles which constitute the focus of this work (framed
by a freer opening Sonata and Finale) become increasingly more technically
demanding for the violinist, which is evocative of Christ's ongoing struggle
carrying the cross. In paintings, Christ was frequently represented with children
mocking him, throwing stones at him and spitting at him. 345 Prominence was
given in art to these sufferings of Christ on the way to Calvary, especially the
tradition of depicting a 'spikeblock' tied to Christ's body onto which he would
und Kultur, table 5 (between pp. 173 and 177).
342 Mathew 27. 32, Luke 23. 26-32, John 19. 17.
Hahnl, 'Die Aula Academica', p. 736.
This issue assumes particular significance in the Vienna manuscript source for Mystery Sonata
X, which is discussed fully in Chapter 5.
Marrow, Passion Iconography, pp. 14 1-142.

land each time he stumbled.346 The mood of this sonata may have been intended
to encourage meditation on such images.
This work has a formal structure comparable to that of Mystery Sonata Ill: both
compositions consist of a freely composed opening movement entitled Sonata,
followed by a Courente with two Doubles, and conclude with a freely-composed
final movement (entitled Adagio in the former work, Finale in the latter). It was
suggested in the discussion of Mystery Sonata ifi that the use of a Courente
related to the notion of travel (either to Bethlehem or the flight to Egypt); the
literal meaning of the verb from which the word Courente is derived meaning
'running'. The use of a Courente in Mystery Sonata IX may relate to the journey
to Calvary. These two compositions are the only two in the set to have this
formal structure, and are two of only three to include a Courente (the other being
Mystery Sonata Xll).
Haberl has shown that the number 22—the number for the letter 'x' in the natural
order number alphabet and hence a number representing the cross—is an
important numerological structuring device in this piece. The opening Sonata, for
example, comprises 374 notated notes (17 x 22), and 352 sounding notes (not
counting those which are tied, which is 16 x 22). Similarly, the number of
sounding notes in the Courante and Doubles totals 1188 (54 x 22), the total
Ibid., pp. 17 1-189

number of sounding notes in the violin is 1430 (65 x 22), and finally, the opening
movement is the twenty-second movement in the Mystery Sonatas.347
The Finale involves the violin in recitative-like passage work over an E pedal in
the bass (Example 3.15). The various broken triads (the traditional symbol for the
Trinity) and arpeggio figurations—which are repeated as an echo an octave
lower—have a rhetorical quality. Perhaps these triadic figures and their echoes
were intended to evoke the 'minor' image of Christ imprinted on the cloth which
Veronica is seen handing to him in the engraving which precedes this
composition.348
Towards the end of the composition the violin quotes a passage from Mystery
Sonata X (the Crucifixion) (Example 3.16), perhaps indicating the arrival at
Golgotha, the scene of the Crucifixion.
Example 3.15: Mystery Sonata IX, Finale, bb. 4-9
Haberl, 'Ordo arithmeticus', pp. 166-167. He gives other examples of the use of the number
22 in this sonata also.
348
Veronica does not feature in biblical discussions of the Carrying of the Cross. The cloth she
passed to Christ was also called the 'Veronica', and is an anagram of the phrase vera icon
(meaning 'true image'), indicating that the image imprinted on the cloth after Christ wiped his
face on it was intended to represent Christ's true image. There was a long tradition of depicting
this legendary aspect of this mystery; see Ewa Kuryluk, Veronica and her Cloth: History,
Symbolism, and Structure of a "True" Image (Cambridge, MA: Basil Blackwell, 1991).
Example 3.16: (a) Mystery Sonata IX, Finale, bb. 13-14, (b) Mystery Sonata
X, Pneludium, bb. 10-11.
(a)
^fljn
) I
3.2.10 Mystery Sonata X: The Crucifixion
Biber's sonata on the Crucifixion, like the seven words of Christ on the cross,349
comprises seven sections: an opening Preludium followed by an Aria with five
variations. The opening violin figuration (see Example 3.17)—involving dotted
triplet rhythms and triads in close position enabled by the tuning of the e" string
to d"—has been described as a depiction of the hammering of the nails into
Christ's body. 35 ° Given the tradition of devotion to not only the wounds of Christ
but also the instruments of torture (including the nails) in both the visual arts and
devotional tracts, this suggestion is plausible. 35 ' As in the previous composition,
the number 22 (the number symbol for the cross) is an important symbol in this
work, 352 and (as shown above) a number of passages from this sonata are quoted
or alluded to in some of the earlier Mystery Sonatas. This indicates the structural
importance of the composition in the set as a whole, both as the last of the five
sorrowful mysteries, and as the depiction of the end of Christ's earthly life.
The seven words Christ spoke on the cross form part of the meditation given in the Exercitia
spiritualia. See Dalmases (ed.), Sancti Ignatii de Loyola: Exercitia Spiritualia, pp. 360-361.
350 Moroney, sleeve notes, p. 30.

351
Finaldi et al., The Image of Christ, pp. 144-159.
352
Haberl, 'Ordo arithmeticus', pp. 168-169.
Example 3.17: Mystery Sonata X, bb. 1-7
The music of the final variation employs violin figuration which demands a
degree of virtuosity from the performer unseen elsewhere in the Mystery Sonatas,
and in this respect looks forward to similar devices in the Sonatce violino solo of
1681. This has been interpreted in two principal ways in the literature. First, it
has been described as a depiction of the following passage from the gospel which
takes place immediately after Christ's death: 353 '51: And behold, the curtain of
the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom; and the earth shook, and the
rocks were split; 52: the tombs also were opened, and many bodies of the saints
who had fallen asleep were raised, 53: and coming out of the tombs after his
Resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many.' 354 This
interpretation can be related both to the engraving preceding this work in the
manuscript, and also to the painting of the Crucifixion in the Aula Academica. In
the background to the engraving there are clouds and darkness, whilst
additionally in the painting, the faint outlines of the sun and moon are depicted,
only just visible in the dark sky. 355 Second, it has been suggested that the violin
Moroney, sleeve notes, p. 30.
Mathew 27. 5 1-53.
It also relates to Biber's reference in the dedication to the sun of justice and the immaculate
moon as symbols for Christ and Mary (see Chapter 2). Unlike in the other paintings of the
sorrowful mysteries in the Aula Academica, however, Mary is positioned behind Christ being
consoled by an Angel. The principal focus of this mystery in the painting is Christ and the
Crucifixion, rather than Mary's suffering.
is imitating the technique of the Cithara, which, with its high tensions of gut
strings stretched across a wooden frame, was a symbol for the Crucifixion.356
Whilst the former interpretation accords with seventeenth-century paintings of
the crucifixion,357 the latter reflects a similar tradition of Crucifixion
symbolism. 358 Certainly a loud and forceful rendering of this passage in a
generous acoustic would create the effect of the former interpretation, whilst a
light, delicate and detached rendering would suggest the latter. This raises the
question of whether such rhetorical and symbolic devices were intended by the
composer or are imposed by listeners. In the case of the Mystery Sonatas, the
answer must be both. Whilst it is difficult to believe that Biber would have
composed this music without such rhetorical devices, it is equally appropriate to
suggest that the music was intended to stimulate the listener to construct a
personal interpretation of the mystery in its devotional context, in the same way
in which seventeenth-century devotional paintings and religious tracts were. 359 It
is also plausible that one rhetorical symbol could represent more than one thing
at a time. In the above example, the two interpretations are not mutually
356
Dagmar Neumann, 'Das Prinzip der Nachahmung instrumentaler Idiomatik im 17. und frühen
18. Jahrhundert', in JiiI Sehnal (ed.), Musik des 17. Jahrhunderts und Pave! VejvanovsIç:
Referate von dem g!eichnamigen intern ationalen Symposium in KroméfIf (Kremsier), 6.-9.
September 1993 (Brno: Osterreichisches Ost- und Sudosteuropa-Institut, 1994), p. 186.
Finaldi eta!., The Image of Christ, pp. 122-123. See also 'Crucifixion', in The New Catholic
Encyclopedia, vol. 4, pp. 485-497.
358
A traditional symbol of the crucifixion was the drum, with its skin stretched across a wooden
frame. This symbolism can be traced to St. Augustine, and is discussed in Marrow, Passion
Iconography, pp. 165-167.
See the discussion of 'Meditation and Imagination' in Henk van Os, The Art of Devotion in the
Late Middle Ages in Europe 1300-1500, trans. Michael Hoyle (London: Merrell Holberton,
1994), p. 165.
exclusive. This idea is reflected in the ambiguous use of words—itself a
rhetorical figure—in most of Biber's dedications.36°
Like the rhetorical use of modes to form an antithesis to mark the change from
the Joyful to the Sorrowful mysteries in Mystery Sonatas V and VI, a similar
device is used to mark the change from the Sorrowful to the Glorious mysteries.
Whilst the scordatura required for Mystery Sonata X is relatively simple (g, d', a',
d"), and requires the alteration of only the e' string, the scordatura of Mystery
Sonata XI (g, g', d', d"), the first work relating to the glorious mysteries, is the
most complex tuning in the set, requiring more alteration of pitches than any
other (see below). The former facilitates the playing of triads, particularly in the
opening section of the work, whilst the latter allows the easy playing of resonant
octaves. Whilst Mystery Sonata X has a final of g and a signature of one flat,
Mystery Sonata XI forms an antithesis by using the same final, but with a
signature of one sharp and a major third above the final, which evokes the
change from a 'sorrowful' to 'glorious'. The likelihood that this was a deliberate
rhetorical device is suggested by the fact that a second source for Mystery Sonata
X—the only work from the set to have a concordance—is a tone higher with a
final on 'a', and thus suggests that the version of this work in the Munich
manuscript was used for this specific rhetorical reason.361
360
See Chapter 2.
361
The Vienna version survives in a manuscript containing numerous violin compositions, and
has programmatic titles for each movement relating to the siege of Vienna by the Turks in 1683.
Owing to the fact that its relationship with the Munich version is problematic, and the other
3.2.11 Mystery Sonata XI: The Resurrection
The engraving of the Resurrection depicts the resurrected Christ, with two grave
watchers in front of the empty tomb. 362 The scordatura required, g, d', g', d", is
unique in the set. The two inner strings are required to be crossed over to produce
the octaves g, g' and d', d". It is implicit in the notation of the scordatura at the
start of the piece, and can be done either by exchanging the position of the two
violin strings, or by crossing them between the tailpiece and the bridge, and
again between the nut and the pegs. The latter interpretation has been favoured
by scholars (and performers), as it produces two visible crosses, which not only
symbolise the cross of the crucifixion, but also mirrors the cross on the flag
which Jesus is holding in the engraving—a symbol for victory over death.363
Likewise, as Haberl has shown, the number 22 is structurally important in this
composition.3M
A sustained G pedal in the bass begins the work, above which the violin plays
rhetorical figuration, with echo effects (Example 3.18). The echo effects of this
section have been described as a depiction of the empty tomb, 365 also shown in
the engraving. However, the figuration makes much use of the (ornamented)
musical-rhetorical figure, circulatio, a figure often used to depict circular
movement expressed in the text of vocal music, and which was first defined in
questions relating to its authorship, genesis, and date, it has been decided to discuss it together
with the other works by Biber in that manuscript in Chapter 5.
362 Mathew 28. 1-8, Mark 16. 1-8, Luke 24. 1-12, John 20. 1-18.
363
364 Ibid., p. 177.

365
theoretical literature by Kircher. 366 The circle, traditionally associated with the
sun and as a source of life,367 was also associated with God and Christ as the
Light of the World 368 which Biber points to in his dedication in the Mystery
Sonatas (see Chapter 2). Furthermore, the Resurrection took place at sunrise, and
Biber may have intended to evoke that image with the circulatio figure. There
was a long tradition of representing this symbol in the visual arts, as exemplified
by Matthias Grunewald's (ca. 1470-1528) famous depiction of the Resurrection
in the Isenheimer altarpiece, where Christ is portrayed engulfed by the light of a
1ç \thmt thm.
Example 3.18: Mystery Sonata XI, bb. 9-12: square brackets indicate the
circulatio figure
I II I I II I I
In the central movement, titled Surexit Christus hodie, the violin plays a cantus
firinus melody in octaves which derives from a medieval Easter hymn. 369 The
scordatura here permits the violin to imitate the singing of this melody in
366
See Kircher, Musurgia universalis. Kircher's definition of the circulatio is on p. 145 of book
8: 'KincAxocnç sive circulatio est periodus harmonica, qua voces quasi in circulum agi videntur,
servitque verbis actionem circularem exprimentibus, uti illud Phillippe de Monte: Surgtam et
circumibo Civitatem (The kykiosis or circulatio is a musical passage in which the voices appear
to move in circular motion, and serves as an expression of words with a circular motion or
content, as exemplified by Phillippe de Monte in the text: "I will arise and surround the city.")'
367
See Warren Kirkendale, 'Circulatio-Tradition, Maria Lactans, and Josquin as Musical Orator',
Acta Musicologica 56 (1984), pp. 69-92.
368
Luke 2. 32, John 1. 5; 3. 19; 8. 12; 12. 35.
369
This is discussed fully in Manfred Hermann Schmid, "Surrexit Christus hodie": Die Sonate
XI aus den Mysterien-Sonaten von Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber', in Bernd Edelmann and Manfred
Hermann Schmid (eds), Altes im Neuen: Festschrzft Theodor Gollner zum 65. Geburstag
(Tutzing: Hans Schneider, 1995), pp. 193-208.
octaves, a device Biber also used in his Sonata a 6 die pauern-Kirchfartt
genandt. 37 ° Furthermore, the melody includes a total of 33 sounding notes, which
was Christ's age when he died.37'
The use of stile antico notation for the central movement of this work is unique
in the set. The 3/1 time signature is given in the last bar of the opening Sonata,
which is also the first bar of the central movement. Biber may have intended the
signature to represent the three-in-oneness of the Holy Trinity. The references to
the number three go further in this composition, however. There are three
movements, the articulations of the circulatio figure at the start are sounded in
three different octaves, the triplets which lead into the Surexit Christus hodie are
grouped into threes, and the chorale tune is played three times in full in octaves
in the violin. Besides the interpretation of this as a reference to the three-in-
oneness of the Trinity, the other important fact is that the Resurrection took place
on the third day after the Crucifixion, and at the sixth hour. Just as the chorale
tune is heard three times in the violin in octaves in its entirety, it is heard six
times in it entirety in the bass part. 372 Uniting all these ideas is the stile antico
notation in the middle movement, which results in an abundance of circles
(semibreves) on the page, which mirrors the use of the circulatio figure with its
association with the sun and Christ at the start, and the concept of the circle as
the source of life, reflected in Christ's victory over death in the Resurrection.373
370
For an edition, see Sehnal (ed.), Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber (1644-1 704): Instrumentalwerke
handschrftlicher Uberlieferung, 'DTO' 151, pp. 1-10.
371
372
There are eight statements of the Surexit Christus hodie melody, although only six are
complete, and without interruption. The other two are altered, extended variations on the melody.
mn Regarding the various meanings of the circle see Kirkendale, 'Circulatio-Tradition', p. 81.
The significance of the time signature in relation to the circulatio figure is
supported by Waither, who, in his definition of the figure (which he calls a
circolo), also points to the double C or CC time signature.374
3.2.12 Mystery Sonata XII: The Ascension
This work, consisting of an opening Intrada, leading to an Aria Tubicinum
followed by an Allamanda, Courente and Double, uses the scordatura c', e g', c".
It is difficult to know exactly how a composer could depict the events of the
Ascension in music. 375 Biber has opted for a rhetorical phantasia or
representatio—a trumpet fanfare with timpani imitated by the violin and violone
(Example 3.19)—which was commonly used at this point in the Credo of the
mass ordinary. This bright mode with its exuberant resonance used in
combination with fanfare-style trumpet music is used in Biber's mass settings to
accompany the text 'et ascendit'. It would have been a recognised symbol in
seventeenth-century Salzburg for the Ascension, and has a parallel in
contemporary art. The choice of scordatura and mode for this composition,
coupled with the fanfare-style of the music, recalls the stylus phantasticus, in that
Biber is suggesting images to the mind of his listener through the employment of
technical and musical devices in the music. Indeed, the opening Intrada is
stylistically like the proem model (see Chapter 1), in its free style using chords
and scales of C, and suggests a call to attention due to the arrival of a great
personage. That Biber is imitating trumpet writing on the violin in this work is
made clear by the direction Aria tubicinum at the start of the second movement.
Walther, Musicalisches Lexicon, p. 166.
The Ascension is discussed in the Bible in Mark 16. 19, Luke 24. 50-51, and Acts I. 6-12.
Furthermore, the opening Intrada is written in the alto clef, not a clef used by the
violin during this period, but one used by trumpets. Biber uses a similar device in
his Trombet.. und Musicalischer taffeldienst a 4, in which a solo violin imitates
the trumpet; the opening Intrada uses similar figuration to Mystery Sonata XII,
and is likewise written in the alto clef. In the former, Biber makes clear the
intended image by heading the violin part with the direction Tromba luditur in
Violino Solo.376
Example 3.19: Mystery Sonata XII, Aria Tubicinum, bb. 1-5
Ma Tubicinum
Solo Violone
That only the opening two movements of this work seem to be clearly
representing the Ascension can perhaps be explained by the engraving preceding
the work, and by biblical descriptions of this event. The engraving shows eight
figures looking upwards, and at the top of the image Jesus' two feet are visible,
with clouds on either side. According to Acts, Jesus was 'taken up; and a cloud
received him out of their [the Apostles] sight'. 377 The focus then moves
immediately to the Apostles on earth, who are instructed to cease looking up to
heaven, and continue with their work on earth.
376
For an edition see Sehnal (ed.), Heinrich lgnaz Franz Biber 1644-1704: Instrumentaiwerke
handschrzftlicher Liberlieferung, 'DTO' 127, pp. 47-60.
Acts, 1. 9.
3.2.13 Mystery Sonata XIII: The Descent of the Holy Ghost
The engraving preceding this work shows the Virgin Mary surrounded by the
twelve Apostles, above which the Holy Ghost is represented in the form of a
dove. 378 Emanating from the Holy Ghost are the tongues of fire descending on
the Apostles, as described in the Bible. Like the first composition, the piece has a
final of d (with no signature), and the scordatura (a, e', c' sharp, e'D enables the
violin to play rapid consecutive thirds with ease to depict the rushing wind of
Pentecost (Example This effect, with its virtuosic passage work, double
stopping and extreme dynamics (piano to fl), and figuration depicting the
swirling winds evokes the stylus phantasticus. Furthermore, the opening violin
figuration depicting the swirling winds of Pentecost uses the circulatio figure.
The following dance movements continue the mood of the opening movement.
There appear to be, however, no further uses of specific rhetorical figures or
references to symbols or images from either contemporary artistic depictions or
devotional tracts.
Example 3.20: Mystery Sonata XIII, Sonata, bb. 12-19
378
The descent of the Holy Ghost at Pentecost is described in Acts 2. 1-42 only.
See, for example, Chafe, The Church Music, p. 190.

3.2.14 Mystery Sonata XIV: The Assumption of the Virgin
The engraving prefacing this piece depicts the Virgin surrounded by cloud and
suspended in mid-air above an altar, with eleven figures below (presumably the
Apostles). The music comprises an opening Prceludium followed by a set of
ground bass variations (Aria) which turns into a Gigue for the last nine
variations. The resonant scordatura of this work (a, e a', d') allows the violin to
play chords of D and A involving triple and quadruple stopping with ease. This,
together with a two-sharp signature and a final of D, produces a joyous mood,
and has an antithetical relationship with the sombre character of the previous
piece.
There is no biblical discussion of the assumption of the Virgin, and 'narrative'
representations are sparsely used in this work. Apart from the mood evoked by
the mode and scordatura, the idea of ascent is represented through the use of
ascending melodic lines in the violin. This rhetorical figure (anabasis, see above)
involves the use of ascending melodic lines to represent ascending or exalted
images or affections (Example 3.21).
At the end, the violin breaks off half way through a phrase in the third bar of the
ground bass, and leaves the continuo to conclude the composition alone
(Example 3.22). This device—a rhetorical figure known as abruptio—is likely to
depict the final Assumption of the Virgin into heaven. The term abruptio was
first used by Christoph Bernhard, and definitions of it are also offered by Kircher
and Janovka. Bernhard defines it thus:38°
380
Bernhard, AusfUhrlicher Bericht vom Gebrauche der Con- und Dissonantien, p. 152.
3 The 'Sacred' Violin Music: The Mysteiy Sonatas (1670s) Page 172
Abruptio heiBet AbreiBung, und ist, Abruptio means tearing off, and occurs
wann man in der Quarta der Cadenz, when one ends on a fourth in the
welche erst durch die Tertia solte cadence which should have been
resolviret werden, endiget, ehe der resolved through a third, before the
Ba13 die Cadenz schliellet. bass ends the cadence.
Whilst the definitions of the abruptio differ in certain particulars, the common
consensus is that it is a sudden, unexpected idea at the end of a piece which is
rapidly completed or breaks off. Significantly, when Samber describes the figure,
he makes no mention of the lack of the resolution of the fourth to the third, but
instead focuses on the fact that the upper voice cadences before the bass, which
correlates with Biber's use of the figure as described above:38
Abruptio ist und geschicht wann em Abruptio is and occurs when an

obere Stimm ehender die Cadentiam upper voice makes the cadence
machet als der Bass. earlier than the bass.
Perhaps the reason why this device is not used in Mystery Sonata XII (depicting
Christ's Ascension), lies in the difference between the Christ's Ascension and
Mary's Assumption: whereas Christ ascended into heaven himself as part of a
voluntary action, Mary was physically taken into heaven by Christ and God after
she had died on earth.

Example 3.21: Examples of the anabasis figure in Mystery Sonata XIV
[PraeludiumJ
Aria
jJJrrrrr
Example 3.22: Mystery Sonata XIV, ending
ty.
3.2.15 Mystery Sonata XV: The Coronation of the Virgin
In the engraving preceding this work, Mary is pictured in the centre kneeling on
a cloud with Christ (with a crucifix) on one side and God the Father on the other,
both holding the crown above Mary's head. The Holy Ghost—in the form of a
dove—hovers above Mary's head. The work consists of an opening Sonata,
followed by an Aria with three variations, a Canzon, and a Sarabanda with one
variation.
381
Samber, Continuatio ad manuductionem, p. 224.
Haberl has shown how two important images in the engraving are represented in
the numerological proportions in the music. First, the cross Christ is holding is
represented (as in earlier sonatas in the collection) through the use of the number
22. The 484 sounding notes in the fourth variation of the Aria equal the square of
22 (22 2 = 484), and the 506 sounding notes in the Canzon are a multiple of 22
(22 x 23 = 506). Second, the triangular halo on the head of God is represented
through the use of the number three. In the opening Sonata there are 300 notated
notes in the violin part which can be represented by the triangle number 24 (300
= A24) and there are 105 notated notes in the basso continuo part, which can be
represented by the triangle number 14 (105 = A14). The total number of notes
(33
therefore is 405, which is equivalent to fifteen times three cubed x 15 = 405),
the number fifteen representing the fact that this is the fifteenth mystery of the
rosary.382
Having represented two of the three main symbols in the picture (the cross and
the triangle) through number symbolism, Biber turns to a musical-rhetorical
figure to symbolise the crown; the most important symbol of this mystery, and
the most audible in the music. The crown is symbolised in the music through the
circulatio figure in the variation of the Sarabanda (see Example 3.23). As this
example shows, the circulatio here is in its original form, in the shape of a sine
curve, thus illustrating the two halves of the complete circle. 383 The use of a
circulatio in music of this period to symbolise a crown was not uncommon, as
382
383
See above, and also Kirkendale, 'Circulatio-Tradition', p. 69-92.
exemplified by the use of the figure on the word 'corona' in the third act of
Monteverdi' s L 'Incoronazione di Poppea.384
Example 3.23: Mystery Sonata XV, Sarabanda, bb. 17-21
That Biber had this form of symbolism in mind is suggested by the drawing
which marks the end of the music in the manuscript (Figure 1), which depicts a
crown inside a half-moon shape. As shown above, the latter was a symbol for
Mary which Biber alludes to in his dedication, and the former is the most
important symbol of the coronation. Together they represent the Virgin after her
coronation. The placing of this image is also important, as not only is it at the end
of this composition in the manuscript relating to Mary's coronation, but it is the
only ornamental image in the manuscript to depict a specific object. All of the
other works conclude with such ornamental drawings, but none depicts
identifiable objects.
Illustration 3.1: Ornament at the end of Mystery Sonata XV, p. 76
---
384
For more music examples of the use of the circulatio figure, see Kirkendale, 'Circulatio-
Tradition'.
3.2.16 Passagalia
The final work in Biber's manuscript is headed Passagalia [sic], and includes
sixty-five variations on the four-note bass g', f, & flat, d' for unaccompanied
violin. In the manuscript the work is preceded by an ink drawing of a Guardian
Angel holding the hand of a child in the same circular format as the fifteen
engravings in the manuscript which preceded each of the first fifteen
compositions. The violin is tuned normally.
The exact relationship between this work and the other fifteen has never been
clarified. Eugen Schmitz linked the work to the feast of the Guardian Angel on 2
October which marked the start of the rosary month, concluding that Biber was
deliberately linking the two together. 385 He also suggests that the four-note
ground bass derives from the hymn published in 1666 by the Jesuit Peter
Keyenberg, entitled Einen En gel Gott mir geben. 386 There are however problems
with this theory. First, the interval sequence of Biber's bass (tone-tone-semitone)
does not follow that of Keynberg's hymn (semitone-tone-tone). Second, the
melodic descent is in the first four bars of the twelve-bar hymn and is not an
important feature of it after the opening. That Biber may have known the work,
particularly given his probable Jesuit training, is likely. The descending four-note
tetrachord was one of the commonest baroque ground basses, however, so a
connection between the hymn and the Passagalia must remain only hypothetical.
385
Eugen Schmitz, 'Bibers Rosenkranzsonaten', Musica 5 (1951), PP. 235-236.
386
An edition of the hymn appears in Wilhelm Bäumker (ed.), Das katholische deutsche
Kirchenhied in semen Singweisen, 4 vols (Freiburg im Breisgau: Herder'sche Verlagshandlung,
1891), vol. 3, p. 235.
The other possibility (as mentioned above) is that the piece refers to the
Congregatio Angelica of Salzburg University.
It is generally acknowledged that this piece is the most important composition for
solo violin before Bach's famous Chaconne. The piece is indeed virtuosic, and
the various violin figurations take place around the passagalia theme which is
never absent. The fact that the theme is never omitted prompted Haberl to
identify it as a symbol for the Guardian Angel, 387 an idea also discussed by Chafe
who referred to it as symbolising 'the constant watchfulness of the Guardian
Angel'. 388 This notion does accord with the paintings in the Aula Academica, in
which Mary is depicted throughout the sorrowful mysteries being consoled by an
angel (see above), although we are not certain that the angel in the paintings is
the 'Guardian Angel'.
Furthermore, the antithesis formed by the descending bass and predominantly
ascending violin figuration above it, suggest the contrast between earth and
heaven. We have seen in earlier pieces how the anabasis (the rhetorical figure
involving ascending melodic lines to depict an image of ascent or exuberant
affection) is used, and likewise the catabasis (the rhetorical figure involving
descending melodic lines to express a notion of descent or lowly affections).
Here the antithetical use of such figures seems to evoke the angel whose right
hand is pointing up towards heaven, but who is looking downwards in the
Haberl, 'Ordo arithnzeticus', p. 192.

388
direction of the child whose hand he is holding. This seems to suggest one of the
few mentions of the guardian angel in connection with children in the gospel of
St Mathew which reads 'See that you do not despise one of these little ones
[children]; for I tell you that in heaven their angels always behold the face of my
Father who is in heaven.'389
3.3 Summary
It has been shown in this chapter that although the Mystery Sonatas are in some
respects unique, they are not as anomalous as they were once thought. They form
part of a long tradition of rosary devotion, to which both music and image were
central. Image and imagination were of particular importance to the devotional
context: imagery (in the form of pictorial representations in churches and
chapels, and in private rosary psalters), and imagination in the creation of mental
images by worshippers in meditation. The originality of the Mystery Sonatas lies
in the diverse ways in which the music draws on these devotional traditions, and
translates well-established symbols and images into musical language. This is
achieved in the Mystery Sonatas through the stylus phantasticus, and other
musical-rhetorical devices.
Biber could have scored his music dedicated to the fifteen mysteries of the rosary
for voices using any of the texts established with the rosary, as he did in the
Marian vespers which formed part of his 1693 publication of Vesper Psalms, and
389
Mathew 18. 10. Guardian angels were frequently depicted caring for children. See Murray, A
Dictionary of Christian Art, p. 18-19. Incidentally, in the baroque Old (Jesuit) Cathedral (Alter
Dom St Ignatius) in Linz, a painting of a guardian angel holding the hand of a child with his left
hand and pointing the other arm towards heaven—the same image which precedes the Passagalia
in Biber's manuscript—is situated above the altar in the Guardian Angel Chapel. I have been
which would have enabled him to pin-point the various symbols, signs and
images with greater specificity. Such an approach would not, however, have
allowed for the broadness and ambiguity of interpretation that results from the
use of instrumental music and the absence of a text or audible words. Biber's
approach, therefore, reflects the devotional context to a greater extent, in which
the person praying was intended to meditate and take part in the creative and
meditative process first hand, and to draw his own response, understanding,
interpretation and empathy from the various symbols and signs which were
suggested in the readings, paintings, and music. In the final analysis, the music,
like the rosary psalters and the paintings, were tools aimed at inducing a higher
level of understanding and serving a higher purpose.
unable to discover whether this was an established format of guardian angel iconography, or
whether it was particularly associated with the Jesuits in Austria during the baroque.
4 The Violin Music 'for the Particular Delight of the Ear' Page 180
4 The Violin Music 'for the Particular Delight of the Ear'
With Biber's collection of 'sacred' violin music already considered in Chapter 3,
the focus of attention now turns to his collections of violin music written 'for the
particular delight of the ear'. This well-known quotation—from the preface to
the 1701 reworking of the set of six string sonatas Armonico tributo (1682) by
Biber's colleague Georg Muffat—highlights the problem of the relationship
between style and function which is common to much instrumental music from
the seventeenth century. In full, Muffat writes:390
These concertos, since they were composed only for the particular delight of the ear,
can be most fittingly performed for (above all) the amusement of great Princes and
Lords, and for the entertainment of prominent guests, grand meals, serenades, and
gatherings of music-lovers and virtuosi; they are suitable for neither the Church,
because of the ballets and other arias which they contain, nor for dancing, because
of the alternation of slow and tragic passages with lively and nimble ones.
This description is equally applicable to the two collections of Biber's violin
music discussed in this chapter: the eight solo violin sonatas of Sonatce violino
solo (1681) and the seven trio sonatas of the Harmonia artficioso ariosa (1696).
Chafe includes a discussion of the Sonatce violino solo in his study of Biber's
church music, but omits any discussion of the Harmonia artijicioso ariosa, even
though both collections have numerous stylistic similarities (virtuosity, use of
ground bass movements, mercurial changes of texture and harmony). Neither of
the dedications from these two collections refer to any performance function,
although Chafe's assumption that the former collection of sonatas was intended
for church performance, whilst the latter collection was not, needs further
390
Muffat, foreword to Auserlese Instrumentalmusik, trans. Wilson, Georg Muffat on
Performance Practice, p. 71. For an edtion of this collection see Erwin Luntz (ed.), Ausserlesene
mit Ernst und Lust gemengte Instrumental-Music, 1701: Erster Teil: Sechs Concerti Grossi,
'DTO' 23 (Vienna: Gesellschaft zur Herausgabe der Denkmäler der Tonkunst in Osterreich,
1914).
consideration. It will be argued below that these two collections of Biber's violin
music were—owing to their style and particularly their use of the stylus
phantasticus—unlikely to have been intended for church performance, and are
more usefully considered as examples of the style category to which Muffat
alludes above.
4.1 The Sonatte violino solo (1681)
The Sonaue violino solo—engraved by Thomas Georg Hoger in Salzburg and
published in 1681 by Lohner in Nurnburg—has always been Biber's best known
collection of violin music, and unlike the Mystery Sonatas, it remained well-
known throughout the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. 391 Similarly, there are
more extant copies of this print than any of Biber's other publications. 392 The
lavishly presented publication—dedicated like the Mystery Sonatas to
Maximilian Gandoiph—contains eight sonatas for violin and bass, only two of
which (IV and VI) require scordatura. The set includes some of Biber's most
enduring compositions, which were both popular during his lifetime, and
continued to be so afterwards, and consequently appears to have been the
collection on which his reputation was maintained throughout the eighteenth and
nineteenth centuries (see the thesis introduction). Moreover, it was Biber's first
391
Chafe, The Church Music, p. 192. Besides the numerous mentions of these works in
nineteenth-century lexicography, both Burney and Quantz referred to them in the eighteenth
century—see below.
392
Chafe, The Church Music, lists ten extant copies of the print dispersed throughout Germany
and Austria, a complete manuscript copy of the print in Vienna (see Chapter 5) and other
manuscript versions and arrangements. The copy of the print in the Staats- und
Universitätsbibliothek Hamburg (listed in Chafe) was destroyed during the Second World War,
however. Additionally, another copy (not listed in RISM or Chafe) has been discovered in
Cracow [PL-Kj: Mus. ant. pract. B 600]. See Aleksandra Patalas (ed.), Catalogue of Early Music
Prints from the Collections of the Former PreuJiische Staatsbibliothek in Berlin, Kept at the
Jagiellonian Library in Cracow (Cracow: Musica lagellonica, 1999), p. 37.
published collection of solo violin compositions (the Mystery Sonatas having
remained in manuscript). Its importance to Biber is highlighted by the quality of
the production: it was engraved rather than typeset (as was the case with Biber's
two previous publications, the Sonatce tam aris quam aulis servientes and the
Mensa sonora). This importance is made clear in the publication by the inclusion
of an engraving of the composer in 'his 36th year' wearing the medal he had
been awarded by Emperor Leopold I in 1677 when he performed some of his
sonatas—probably some of the Sonatce violino solo—at Laxenburg (near
Vienna).393
4.1.1 Traditional Readings of the Sonatce violino solo
Recognising the importance of the music of Biber, Guido Adler—in the
introduction to his 1898 'DTO' edition of this collection—gives a general
overview of Biber's music (mainly the instrumental music) as it was understood
at that time. Adler appears not to have known the Mystery Sonatas, which were
not published in 'DTO' until 1905, and accordingly he cites the Sonatce violino
solo as the prime examples of Biber's violin artistry. 394 Adler's focus in
discussing these sonatas and Biber's other instrumental music is almost entirely
on aspects of violin technique and virtuosity, and the ways in which these show
Biber to have been the most important violin composer of his time, and indeed,
It is of no surprise therefore that the Sonatce violino solo was the first collection of Biber's
music to be edited and published in the series 'DTO' in 1898, beginning the project of publishing
all his instrumental music in the series: Adler (ed.), Heinrich Franz Biber: Acht Violinsonaten.
This has remained the principal edition of the collection to date. A facsimile edition was
published as Schmid (ed.), Heinrich Jgnaz Franz Biber: Sonatce violino solo, Salzburg 1681.
Adler makes no mention of the Mystery Sonatas—which were rediscovered during the 1890s
(see Chapter 3)—and his ignorance of them is attested by the fact that he claims the Sonatce tarn
aris quam aulis servientes to have been Biber's first dedication to Maximilian Gandoiph. See
Adler (ed.), Heinrich Franz Biber: Acht Violinsonaten, p. vi.
the most important German violin composer, ranking as an equal among his
Italian and French contemporaries. 395 Indeed, several mentions are made among
the lengthy descriptions of violin technique, scordatura and virtuosity, of the
ways in which Biber's writing for the violin surpasses his contemporaries of
other nationalities. More specifically, Adler tells us that whilst Biber has
demonstrated his understanding of the French style as admired at the Vienna and
Dresden courts in his instrumental ballettie, it is in his solo violin sonatas where
the German characteristics come to the fore, especially regarding the way in
which they extend the boundaries of violin technique and virtuosity. 396 It is
apparent that Adler's concentration on a common 'German' cultural inheritance
has resulted in this focus on virtuosity at the expense of a more rounded
interpretation. He does, however, allude to vocal qualities of the music—the use
of what he terms recitative-like writing in the opening movements and the song-
like writing of the arias—and to the similarities between certain free passages of
violin writing and the toccata style, although without making any mention of
musical rhetoric. A similar nationalist approach preoccupied several pre- and
post-war German writers on violin music, and Biber's Sonaue violino solo were
used by them to serve similar aims to Adler's.397
As mentioned in the thesis introduction, such an emphasis stems in part from
Burney's claim that Biber was the best violinist of the seventeenth century, and
Ibid., p. V.
396
Ibid., p. xi.
See, for example, Beckmann, Das Violinspiel in Deutschland vor 1700, pp. 70-74; Andreas
Moser, Geschichte des Violinspiels (Berlin: Max Hesses Verlag, 1923), pp. 127-130; and Rudolf
Aschmann, Das deutsche polyphone Violinspiel im 17. Jahrhundert (Zurich: L. Speich, 1962),
pp. 43-47, and 9 1-96.
that the Sonatc violino solo were 'the most difficult and the most fanciful of any
Music . . . of the same period'. Adler and others focused on proving that Biber
was the best violinist and on the 'difficulty'—not the 'fantasy'—of his music.
The later discussion of these sonatas by Chafe, however, does recognise that both
difficulty and fantasy are important elements in the collection, and that whilst
virtuosity is important, it 'has a great deal to do with the structures as well as the
styles of the sonatas.' 398 Chafe mentions the importance of musical rhetoric, but
does not explain how this is used. His conclusion, however, that 'the Sonatae
Violino Solo is a very ambitious collection in which the dialectic of the totally
fantastic and the controlled is central to the overall intention', 399 is most apposite.
4.1.2 Reinterpreting the Sonatce violino solo: the Stylus phantasticus,

Style, and Function
In his description of the stylus phantasticus (see Chapter 1), Kircher tells us that
'it is organised with regard to manifest invention, the hidden reason of harmony,
and an ingenious, skilled connection of harmonic phrases and fugues'. What
exactly he intended by the expression 'hidden reason of harmony (abditam
harmoniae rationem)' is unclear, as the term harmonia encompassed a broader
spectrum of meaning during the seventeenth century than it does today. 40° One
sweeping, yet workable definition for the purposes of this discussion is given by
Janovka: 'harmony is various tones and sounds collected together in one concord
398
Ibid., p. 195.
400
For an exposition on the (earlier) history of the term see Robert M. Isgro, 'Sixteenth-Century
Conception of Harmony', College Music Symposium: Journal of the College Music Society 19/1
(1979), pp. 7-52.
(Harmonia est diversorum tonorum seu sonorum ad concentum redacta unio)'.401
This definition might suggest that the meaning of harinonia should not be limited
to the common modem understanding of the word harmony—emphasising the
vertical alignment of notes to form chords—but should embrace the wider
meaning relating to the way in which 'tones' and 'sounds' are put together to
make a piece of music.
It is less clear, however, why Kircher should demand that the reasoning behind
the harmonia—as used in the stylus phantasticus—should remain hidden. He
probably considered the sense of freeness, improvisation, and lack of formal
restraints—which he describes at the start of his definition of the style—as being
of central importance, and that whilst there is a clear need for a reasoned
harmonia in the music, it is secondary to the sense of freedom evoked by the
style and must not therefore be too prominent. These two opposing, yet essential
ingredients of the stylus phantasticus seem to be to what Chafe is referring when
he discusses 'the dialectic of the totally fantastic and the controlled' in the
Sonatce violino solo. On the surface level, these pieces are fantastic (to use
Burney's term) and sound especially free and improvisatory, although in order to
create that effect, a high degree of formal planning and control is needed, and the
former is made possible, and enhanced by, careful application of the latter, as
will be argued below.
401
Compared with the Mystery Sonatas, whose movements are predominantly
traditional binary dance forms (Gigue, Sarabande, Allemande etc.), the Sonata3
violino solo use only five such movements in the whole set (one Gigue, one
Sarabande, two Doubles, and one Gavotte).402 It is not surprising that these
dance types, with their prescribed harmonic, metrical and formal schemes, are
largely avoided in the Sonatce violino solo. Instead they are replaced by
movement types which allow the composer greater flexibility of length, form,
metre, and texture, and the ability to change any one of these at any movement.
These movement types can be divided into two categories: movements with only
general tempo indications (Allegro, Presto) as titles, and variation movements
(ciaconi and passacagli). Indeed, extensive use is made of variation technique in
each of the eight sonatas. Furthermore, many of the movements have no title at
all. This enables Biber to write music which is not constrained by formal
conventions such as those of binary dances. The only formal convention which
these movement types impose is the repetition of the ground bass. This is suited
to an improvisatory style, since each musical unit in the violin part need not be
the same length as each repetition of the ground bass: it can be shorter, or indeed,
it can be extended to last over several repetitions of the bass. Likewise, the violin
can also fall silent whilst the bass continues, or the ground bass itself can be
extended or contracted to suit the music. Biber frequently uses all these
techniques in the Sonatce violino solo, and is thus not limited to the necessity of
repeating whole sections or specific, or longer-term patterns, such as those used
in binary dances. Moreover, variation movements were particularly associated
with the stylus phantasticus in the second half of the seventeenth century, as
402
Over half of the movements in the Mystery Sonatas are conventional binary dance forms.
Mattheson suggested. In a description of a concert which took place at the house
of Christoph Bernhard in 1666, Mattheson says:403
An. 1666. kam der weltbekannte In 1666 the world famous Johann Rist
Johann Rist . . . nach Hamburg, sich came to Hamburg, to experience
eine Freude mit der alda berühmten the joy of the famous music there. A
Musik zu machen. Man hielte ihm em splendid concert was given for him in
treffliches Concert in Bernahrds Bernhard's house, in which, among
Hause, wo, unter andern, eine schone other things, a beautiful sonata by
Sonata von Förstern, jun. mit 2. [Kaspar] Förster Jr. with 2 violins and
Violinen und 1. Violadagamba 1 viola da gamba was played, in which
gemachte wurde, darin em jeder 8. each had eight bars to play his free
Tact hatte, seine freien Einfälle hören improvisation, according to the Stylo
zu lassen, nach dem Stylo phantasrico. phantastico.
As Kerala J. Snyder remarks, this sounds rather like an improvised ciacona, and
testifies to a connection between the stylus phantasticus and the improvisatory
style on the violin with an ostinato bass, for Mattheson at least. 404 The parallel
with Biber's improvisatory Sonatce violino solo, dominated by ostinato bass
movements is apparent. Whilst Mattheson did not associate the sonata with the
stylus phantasticus in his definition of the style (see Chapter 1), this is probably
because (as Snyder suggests) by the time he was writing, sonatas tended to be cast
in a four-movement Corellian mould. 405 In any case, Mattheson's omission of any
association between the sonata and the stylus phantasticus is incongruous with the
description of the concert given at Bernhard's house above, in which he does
associate the sonata with the stylus phantasticus, and in turn, he specifically
associates variation techniques with the stylus phantasticus.406
403 Mattheson, Grundlage einer Ehren-Pforte, p. 21.
Snyder, Dieterich Buxtehude, pp. 290-291.

405 Ibid., p. 295. It must be remembered that Mattheson's comments on the sonata by Förster refer
to an earlier period (1666) than his published account of the stylus phantasticus in Der
voilkommene Capelimeister (see Chapter 1).
406 Likewise, the other theorists discussed in Chapter 1 did associate the stylus phantasticus with
the sonata.
It is widely recognised that Biber extended the usual violin register: an area in
which he made an important advancement in these sonatas. Janovka tells us that
the ordinary range for the violin is from g to d", 407 yet Biber often takes the violin
beyond this in the Sonata violino solo, and goes as much as a fifth higher in the
second sonata (to a"). The reason, however has never been considered. Extended
register relates to the style of the music. Throughout all eight sonatas, not only
does Biber exceed the normal violin range, but he writes frequent and rapid
registral changes embracing the whole of the instrument's register, which
suggests improvisation, and lack of formal restrictions. Like Kircher's concept of
the stylus phantasticus, Biber's use of register appears to be 'free and unfettered
bound to nothing', although (as will be shown below with specific examples)
it is controlled and used to maximise the effect of long-term goals and climaxes.
4.1.3 Analysis of the Sonata violino solo
As with the discussion of the Mystery Sonatas in Chapter 3, the discussion of
both the Sonatw violino solo and the Harmonia artficioso ariosa in this chapter
is organised piece by piece. This is done in order to present the fullest picture,
and to allow easy comparisons to be made between one piece and another within
the chapter, and between chapters. It also ensures that when there is little in terms
of rhetorical interpretation to be said about a particular composition this is made
clear: the absence of rhetorical procedures in one composition is as important as
its use in others, and may be done for important reasons.408
407
Janovka, 'Violinus', in Clavis ad thesaururn, p. 321
408
This also broadly reflects the discussion of Biber's music collections in Chafe, The Church
Music, and also ensures that principal ideas about one piece of music can be found in one place in
the dissertation.
4.1.3.1 Sonata I
This first sonata comprises four distinct movements: an opening (unnamed)
movement, an Adagio-[Allegro]-Presto complex (which could itself be viewed as
three separate movements), an extended set of variations with the title Variatio,
and a concluding Finale. Extended commentary on certain aspects of Sonata I
will be given here in order to explain some of the important facets which are also
significant features of the set as a whole.
Characteristic of many opening movements in the set, this first movement
indulges in apparent freeness of form, improvisatory style including numerous
scale passages, chordal passages and rests in an almost recitative-like fashion
supported by a pedal in the bass. The style represents a marked contrast with
Buxtehude's more measured, metrical opening movements. Likewise, it does not
have parallels in the introductions to Corelli's sonatas, which are more melodic
in character, as is the solo violin sonata by Georg Muffat. In Sonata I, the
introduction—the first part of which comprises 22 bars of music on an A pedal in
the bass—begins with the violin sounding the final (A) three times, each of
which is followed by an arpeggiated triad A-C sharp-E. This is repeated a few
times in a slightly varied form, and the violin then plays a descending scale on A,
which is followed by a lengthy scale passage, before conclusion with virtuosic
double stopping of a broken chord of A. This section is not only rhythmically
free, but the music is what a violinist might play to warm up—a series of
arpeggios and scales in the mode of the piece to be performed. Comparable
opening movements are found in sonatas two, three, five and seven. Biber's
Sonata violino solo representativa, which has the same final as the first sonata of
the Sonatw violino solo, also has a similar introductory section. This is an
example of the Aristotelian proem model which was discussed in Chapter 1, and
is of particular importance in the Sonau violino solo. The stylus phantasticus is
evoked in this movement through virtuosic passage work combined with rapid
changes of register. In the following Adagio-[Allegro]-Presto complex similar
characteristics evoke the stylus phantasticus: sudden changes of register, texture
(from homophonic, chordal writing, to monodic scales and arpeggios), tempo,
and rhythm.
The Variatio movement occupies a central position: it comprises 58 variations on
a four-bar ground bass. The music of this movement sounds exceptionally free
and improvisatory. It contains all the traits typical of the stylus phantasticus
present in the first two movements of the work, as well as some additional ones:
reverse echo effects (piano then forte), repeated notes in the genere concitato,
consistent use of passages involving wide leaps and string crossing for the violin
(usually over an octave). Despite its improvisatory sound, the movement is
carefully, and symmetrically structured:
Figure 4.1: Formal Scheme of Sonata I, Variatio
(x) Introduction (basso ostinato): (8 bars)
(a) Principal theme in violin: (12 bars)
(b) Variations: (108 bars)
(a) Principal theme in violin (contracted): (8 bars)
L(b) Variations: (80 bars)
(a) Principal theme in violin: (12 bars)

Each statement of the principal theme is preceded by the four-bar ground bass in
the continuo part only. In the first of the (b) sections, momentum gradually
increases as note lengths shorten from crotchets to quavers to semiquavers, as the
variations progress. The pattern is broken however by a return to crotchets and
dotted minims in double stopping and a piano marking towards the end of this
section. In the second (b) section, however, the gradual increase in momentum is
more forceful, as note values become shortened with each change in violin
figuration. Finally the tempo changes to Presto, with triple stopping crotchets in
the violin part (for the first time in the piece), which eventually gives way to
quaver motion. In short, in these two (b) sections, Biber controls changes in
tempo, rhythm, texture, and virtuosity to create a gradual climax which sounds
free and spontaneous, although the whole is underpinned by a tightly worked-out
structure. Every climax in the music is timed and planned, and phrase structure,
register, and virtuosity are combined to enhance the impact of the stylus
phantasticus. To use Kircher's words, whilst it sounds as if it is 'bound to
nothing' there is an underlying 'hidden reason of harmony' in this set of
variations.
The Finale is similarly stylistically free, comprising mainly violin scales and
other figurations over a D pedal. Biber's harmonic language here borders on the
bizarre, however, and needs further explanation as it is problematic in other
works in the set also. The composer is working in a system displaying both
modal aspects as well as ideas now associated with a major/minor system of

keys.409 Many of Biber's compositions have incomplete signatures—a relic of
the modal system, indicating that a modal transposition has occurred. 41 ° The
second, sixth and seventh sonatas of the Sonatce violino solo which have
signatures of two flats (Sonata VI, final c) and no signature (Sonata II, final d;
and Sonata VII, final G) are good examples; and the first and last sonatas both
have an 'A' as final, but the first sonata has a signature of three sharps whereas
the last has a signature of two sharps. Despite this, it is the first sonata which
seems most 'modal'. There is no G sharp present in the last 22 bars of the piece,
for example, and this note would indeed be chromatic if this sonata was
conceived in terms of a mode with the final A, although this does not correlate
with the fact that the G sharp is in the signature. A clear indication that signatures
for Biber did not have the modern meaning associated with them when used in a
tonal framework is given in the Sonata violino solo representativa. This piece
has a final of 'A', and its language is that of the modern A major, yet the violin
has a signature of three sharps whilst the bass part has a signature of two. The
second sonata of the Sonatce violino solo (like the first) also displays a similar
modal characteristic: E flats are introduced over the final pedal on G, and there is
no sharpened seventh at the final cadence (C sharp). Biber's first Mystery Sonata,
which has the same final and a similar pedal at the end, does not do this: no E
flats are introduced, and the seventh degree of the scale is sharpened at the final
cadence.
409
Lester, Between Modes and Keys. For a fuller discussion of this problem, and its articulation
in contemporary theory see Chapter 1.
410
Walter Atcherson, 'Key and Mode in 17th Century Music Theory Books', Journal of Music
Theory 17 (1973), p. 215.
Although there are strong modal flavourings to some of these sonatas, more tonal
traits also appear. In the Adagio of the fourth sonata, for example, which sounds
like our modern b minor, the principal cadences are on A, E and b, a segment of
the circle of fifths. The circle of fifths—a device predominantly associated with
tonal thinking—is also used as the basis of a repeated harmonic progression in
the Presto of the fifth sonata. A harmonic progression of F sharp-b-E-A-D-G-
C41 ' is one such example (Example 4.1). What is clear about this music is that
Biber's harmonic language is particularly flexible in outlook, and it—like so
many aspects of the violin music—appears not to be confined to any one
particular system.
Example 4.1: Sonata V, Presto, bb. 14-16
4.1.3.2 Sonata II
Like Sonata I, this sonata also has a tripartite strncture. An opening introductory
movement (unnamed) is followed by an Aria with six variations and the work
concludes with another free Finale movement. The final of the composition is d,
and there is no signature: the work appears to be written in Samber's first mode
(see Chapter 1), which is common to Mystery Sonatas I and Xffl, both of which
have the same sombre character as this composition.
411
Upper and lower case letters are used here to denote 'major' and 'minor' chords, not keys.
The first movement—although shorter than that of Sonata I—is also an example
of the proem model. In contrast to that of the first sonata, the mood of this piece
is one of gravity, and much use is made of the descending melodic figure
catabasis. Even where the melodic shape of each melodic group is upwards, each
group is placed lower than the one before resulting in an overall downward
descent (see Example 4.2). Despite these downward descents, the violin reaches
up to a"—thereby extending the violin's range.
Example 4.2: Sonata II, opening movement, bb. 1-8
The central variation movement comprises a twelve-bar Aria, followed by six
variations. Like the first movement, the Aria is dominated by downward,
catabasis figures (Example 4.3). The figuration of Variatio 1 resembles that of
the opening movement of the sonata, with its emphasis on melodic descents, and
likewise, when it makes use of ascending melodic groups, each generally starts
on a lower note than the previous one. The string-crossing patterns of Variatio 2
(Example 4.4) are similar to those used in the central section of the Lamento of
Mystery Sonata VI, and also the second Variatio from the Sarabande from
Mystery Sonata VII. The rapidly repeated notes of the same pitch combined with
large leaps for the violin in Variatio 3 form a contrast to the music of Variatio 2
and Variatio 4 (Example 4.5), although the overall melodic shape here is still
downwards. Variatio 4, however, forms an antithesis with the preceding

variation with regard to its Adagio marking, and the predominance of catabasis
figures. Indeed, the only ascending melodic lines in this variation are passus
duriusculus figures—another rhetorical figure which (like the catabasis) Biber
associated with lamentation and grave emotions (Example 4.6). Virtuosity is an
important aspect of variations 5 and 6: the former makes use of dotted rhythms
and large leaps and fast triplet figuration, whilst the latter makes use of multiple
stopping. Surprisingly, the most important melodic figure in these two variations
is the anabasis, once again forming an antithesis with Variatio 4. Moreover, they
are probably placed in order to highlight the gravity of Variatio 4, and also the
Finale, which returns to the same mood of lamentation.
Example 4.3: Sonata II, Aria, bb. 1-4
Example 4.4: Sonata II, Variatio 2, bb. 1-4
&fH

The Finale begins with a two-and-a-half-octave catabasis, which sets the tone
for the conclusion of the work and makes much use of chromaticism. The passus
duriusculus figure is once again prominent, still in its ascending form as earlier
in the movement (Example 4.7). Like Sonata I, this movement comprises
improvisatory-like semiquaver figuration over a bass pedal-note a fourth above
the final (G in this case). Also like Sonata I, no use is made of the sharpened
seventh above the final, and the final returns in the bass only at the latest possible
moment in the final bar. Thus these two works form a pair, even though the
exuberant mood of Sonata I with its final of A as compared with the more
sombre mood of Sonata II with its final on d suggests an antithetical relationship;
nevertheless, the ordering of the eight sonatas in the publication may well have
been undertaken by the printer rather than Biber.
Example 4.7: Sonata ii, Finale, bb. 1-5
Regarding the ordering of the sonatas in the collection, Manfred Hermann
Schmid points out that the finals of each sonata produce the notes of the natural
hexachord (C-A), 412 and suggests that the set is organised according to two
groups of three (sonatas 11–N and V–V11); the first group containing two major-
key sonatas and one minor-key sonata and the second containing two in the
minor key and one in the major (adopting Schmid's use of modem terminology),
413
with the first and the last sonatas on A falling outside this scheme:
I I I I
A.. .d—F—D,e—c—G.. .A
The set does contain two groups of three sonatas, and two 'additional' sonatas,
but Schmid's isolation of the first and last sonatas deprives his suggested unit
(comprising the two groups of three sonatas) of one of the notes of the natural
hexachord—A. Furthermore, apart from the common final, there are no musical
reasons to isolate these two works. A more plausible division of the set (3 + 1, 3
+ 1) is as follows:
I I I I
A—d —F—D,e—c—G—A
In this scheme, the finals of the two groups of three (sonatas I–ill and V–V11)
include every note of the major hexachord (C, D, E, F, G, A) without duplication.
Furthermore, the finals of the first group of sonatas form a triad with a minor
third (D-F-A), whilst those of the second form a triad with a major third (C-E-G).
The first group still contains two 'major-key' sonatas and two 'minor-key'
412
Such a structuring device was also used by Buxtehude in his two published sets of sonatas.
See Snyder, Dieterich Buxtehude, p. 281.
413
Schmid, commentary to Heinrich lgnaz Franz Biber: Sonatae Violino Solo, Salzburg 1681, p.
69. The terminology relating to keys is Schmid's, not mine.
sonatas, and the second, two 'minor-key' works and one in the 'major-key'
which Schmid pointed to.414
Another device linking these six sonatas into two groups of three is the use of
what S amber terms 'minor cadences' ( chords IV—I in modern terminology) at
the end of the first three sonatas, each of which have strong modal
characteristics, contrasted with clear, unambiguous 'major cadences' (V—I in
modern terminology) at the ends of sonatas V—Vll. 415 Furthermore, there is a
stylistic reason for isolating the fourth and eighth sonatas: both use extreme
technical devices for their duration. The fourth sonata utilises scordatura tuning
(of all four strings) throughout, and the eighth is written on three staves, as if it
were a trio sonata. Whilst scordatura is also used in the sixth sonata, it is only
introduced half way through, and only one string is altered (the E string is tuned
down a tone between movements). Also, its use here is integral to evoking
lamentation, as it facilitates chromatic tremolo chords (see below). Furthermore,
the finals of these two works only duplicate the six notes of the hexachord which
are produced by taking the finals of the other six sonatas. It is indeed possible
that Biber originally envisaged this set to be a set of six sonatas, like the six
sonatas of Schmelzer's Sonau unarum fidium, to which Biber's dedication is
It is interesting that it is these two opposing triads (D-F-A and C-E-G) which form the basis of
a title of a rebuttal of key theory (in response to Mattheson), namely, Johann Heinrich Buttstett's
Ut, mi, sol, re, fa, la, tota musica et harmonia aeterna (Erfurt: Werther, ca. 1715). Lester,
Between Modes and Keys, p. 120, points out that Buttstett is indicating the basic dichotomy
between major and minor in the title of his treatise, which could perhaps be Biber's intention in
the Sonatce violino solo.
415
Samber, Manuductio, pp. 154-156, uses the term 'cadenz major' to mean a V-I cadence, and
'cadenz minor' to mean a IV-I cadence. After page 156 he gives eight plates of music examples
of cadence types.
indebted (see Chapter 2). The possibility that there is some kind of ordering
pattern taking place here is perhaps suggested by Biber's apology in the
dedication for not observing arithmetical order ('Arithmeticum non satls
observavi ordinem'). 416 Whatever Biber's intended ordering, and whilst much of
the music sounds improvisatory and spontaneous, there appear to be (like
Kircher's 'hidden reason of harmony') ordering patterns underlying not only
sections of individual movements and sonatas in the collection, but also the
collection as a whole.
4.1.3.3 Sonata III
This composition contains two variation movements: the first an Aria with two
variations which follows the metrically freer (unnamed) opening movement, the
second a set of variations over a four bar ground bass repeated 31 times. Between
the two variation movements there is a freer movement with many changes in
tempo and style. The work evokes the stylus phantasticus principally through its
mercurial harmonic progressions (in the freer movement) and the way in which
this feature is used in conjunction with similar abrupt changes in violin writing
between simple monody and showy passage work of the most virtuosic kind.
The conclusion of this work is particularly problematic (see Example 4.8). Chafe
comments on it as follows:417
Finally the variations come to a halt and the oscillation moves into the bass, with
eighth-note alternation of the subdominant B-flat (on the beat) and the tonic F
(off the beat) from here to the end. Above this the violin breaks loose finally,
with nothing but the note f" at first, more penetrating than ever as it moves to a
416
Some of the possibilities of Biber's meaning of this expression are discussed in Chapter 2.
417
thirty-second-note rushing climax of uncontrollable ecstatic abandon. The final

cadence can hardly be called that at all; nowhere else in the violin literature of the
age does such an abrupt halt appear, the violin leaping down almost two octaves
to end with the basso continuo on the third of the chord, on the weak part of a
weak beat, at the peak of its exaltation.
The other meaning of fantasy as 'cerebrosus . . . having a madness of the brain'
(see Chapter 1) comes to mind here. The fourth degree of the scale is emphasised
in this passage in the bass, and as a harmonic area: during the last thirteen bars of
the sonata every E natural is altered chromatically to become E flat, so it is
unclear at the end whether the music is cadencing in F or B flat. The virtuosity of
this section is an integral part of the sense of freedom and lack of restriction of
the stylus phantasticus: without the virtuosity and speed the affect would be
considerably lessened. Furthermore, the modalltonal language of the whole
sonata is as curious as its finale. It starts and ends with F chords (with a major
third) and has a signature of one flat. The principal cadences are on the chords of
F, A, a, and C, which, being the notes of the final, and the third and fifth above
the final, suggest that the piece might be in mode 5 or 6.418 Particularly striking is
the sudden shift from F to A and then to C (one flat, to three sharps, to no
signature), which does not correspond with a major-minor framework, despite
the subsequent sequence of cadences on C, G and d (a segment of the circle of
fifths).
418
Gioseffo Zarlino, Istitutioni harmoniche (Venice: the author, 1558), part four trans. Vered
Cohen as On the Modes (New Haven: Yale U. Press, 1983), tells us that the modes should
cadence principally on the final of the mode, and the fifth and third above the final.
Example 4.8: Sonata III, concluding six bars
This section of the sonata (as Chafe's description illuminates) seems to defy
description in either modal or tonal terms, but seems rather to represent the
harmonic freedom of a composer working in a rather free system, not bound by
the conventions of any one system. Alternatively, one might argue that the
section illustrates the inapplicability of those systems as currently formulated.
The abruptness of the ending of the sonata, however, is not restricted to this work
by Biber, although this is perhaps the most striking example of it: it is a further
example of the abruptio figure, which was also important at the end of Mystery
Sonata XIV (see Chapter 3). This musical-rhetorical figure was an obvious
choice for a piece using the stylus phantasticus, as it enhances the free and
unrestricted nature of the music, which is so important to the style. Moreover, it
complements Biber's approach to harmonic language, virtuosity, form and
register in this work, particularly with regard to the way in which all are
combined in the work's conclusion.

Once more, despite this freeness of form and improvisation, the work displays a
high degree of structural planning similar to Sonata I. The whole work can be
divided into two symmetrical halves. In the first half, the Aria with two
variations is framed by an Adagio and a Presto (with two contracted, transposed
repeats) at the start, and a Presto followed by an Allegro and an Adagio at the
end. The second half—the Variatio movement—is also symmetrical:
Figure 4.2: Formal Scheme of Sonata III, second half, Variatio
(a) Principal theme (repeated): (28 bars)
(a) Principal theme: (8bars)
(a) Principal theme: (11 bars)
(c) Closing variations leading to end (28 bars)
(d) Closing material (12 bars)
4.1.3.4 Sonata IV
This composition is in many respects different from the others in the Sonatw
violino solo. First, it makes use of scordatura throughout, and is the only work in
the set to do so. It is true that Sonata VI also makes use of scordatura in the
second half (see below), although it is used there to enhance affect. In Sonata IV,
however, the scordatura merely facilitates the playing of certain chords. Second,
a binary dance—a Gigue and two Doubles—occupies a central position. Third,
obvious characteristics of the stylus phantasticus—abrupt changes of style,
texture, rhythm, register, harmonic language—are absent in many of its

movements. Furthermore, the only other work in the set to use a binary dance
movement (a Sarabande) in conjunction with a different technical device for the
violin throughout is Sonata Vhf. 419 This supports the argument (see above) that
the Sonatce violino solo were envisaged as a set of six sonatas comprising two
groups of three (sonatas 1-111 and V-Vu), and that sonatas IV and Vffi have been
inserted.
As mentioned in Chapter 1, a different version of Sonata IV survives in a source
in Vienna under the title Fantasia, and it will be argued in Chapter 5 that the
reason for these different titles is reflected in the differing ways in which Biber
uses the material common to each. In those movements of the two versions
which share common material, Biber's use of that material is significantly freer
in the Fantasia than in Sonata IV, and the former displays more characteristics of
the stylus phantasticus than the latter. The discussion here will, then, be limited
to those movements of Sonata IV that do not share material with the Fantasia
version.
The opening (unnamed) movement of Sonata IV does share material with the
Fantasia version, although the following Presto movement does not. The
following Gigue is largely the same as that used in the Fantasia version,
although the two subsequent Doubles—which correspond to a single Variatio
movement in the Fantasia—use different material in the violin part, although this
too is straightforward. The articulation of the figuration in Double 2 is the same
as that used in variation 10 of Mystery Sonata IV (see Example 4.9). Of greater
419
The work is written on two staves throughout, but the direction 'a violino solo' indicates that
interest is the rhetorically-conceived Adagio-[Presto]-Adagio complex which
links these dance movements to an Aria with four variations. Its declamatory
style—recitative-like qualities, and use of rests—suggests a rhetorical
conception, although it is not immediately obvious which affection is being
constructed. The following Aria with four variations—apart from comprising 8-
bar (4 + 4) units—evokes the stylus phantasticus in its virtuosity (variations 2
and 3), and unrestricted approach to violin register (variations 1 and 2). Like
Double 2, this movement also recalls a technique used in Mystery Sonata IV,
namely, the repeat of the opening theme as the final variation (variation 4). The
Finale again displays a highly declamatory style of violin writing, and echo
effects similar to those in the Finale of Mystery Sonata IX ('The Carrying of the
Cross'); see Example 4.10. The use of scordatura, binary dance movements, and
other stylistic and technical traits associated with the Mystery Sonatas suggests
that this work may predate the 1681 set, with which it seems to have less in
common. Although sections of it appear to be rhetorically conceived, it is often
difficult to associate these with specific affections. The work is more restrained
than any of the others in the set, and demonstrates fewer traits of the stylus
phantasticus or other rhetorical facets, which are so prominent in other pieces in
the 1681 publication. Furthermore, the juxtaposition of smaller-scale, closed
forms (the Gigue and two doubles and the Aria and four variations) with
recitative-like sections, results in a work which has far less unity of direction, or
overall affective goal, and is in this sense less-well rounded than some of the
other works in the collection.
the music is intended to be played on one violin only.

Example 4.9: Sonata IV, Double 2, bb. 1-4 (at sounding pitch)
Example 4.10: Sonata IV, Finale, bb. 1-7 (at sounding pitch)
4.1.3.5 Sonata V
This work has the same final as the Balletti lamentabilj (e), and appears to be
written in Samber's fourth mode: e with a 'minor' third. 42° Significantly, the two
works have in common a mood of gravity and sadness, without the despairing
pathos of, for example, Mystery Sonata VI, or Sonata VI of the Sonatce violino
solo (see below). And there seems to be a struggle between this aspect and the
stylus phantasticus elements of unpredictability, and virtuosity at play in this
sonata. Variation movements are again central: an introductory movement leads
to the first set of ground bass variations (marked Variatio), and this is joined to
the second and concluding Aria with four variations by a freer, Adagio-Presto
complex.
The (unnamed) introductory movement is not a proem in the Aristotelian sense:
it is more harmonically varied, and has a strong recitative-like style. The two-
octave descent of the opening few bars (see Example 4.11) sets the weighty tone.
A rhetorical conception is suggested by the declamatory opening passage, and
the subsequent phrases. The music juxtaposes a slow monodic recitative style
(opening, and bars 14-16), with rapid scales and passage work in
demisemiquavers (bars 11-13 and 17-21), and slow multiple stopping (bars 22-
27)—all spanning the violin register and imbuing the music with drama
(Example 4.12). Moreover, the free use of such elements in combination was
typical of the stylus phantasticus. After a cadence on a (3 chord at bar 11—
suggesting a modal conception—which is reaffirmed at bar 16, the music pauses
dramatically at bar 21 with an upward scale spanning almost two octaves to d"' in
the violin part before leaping two octaves to the note d. From this point the music
takes a new harmonic direction in the Adagio, leading to a chord of B-D sharp-F
sharp in bar 27, which leads inevitably, without a break, into the first variation
movement (Example 4.13). Not only does this opening movement start with a
large catabasis (see above), most of the melodies throughout are downward, and
the passage work in the forte section (bars 17-21), uses mainly ascending
figuration, although the placement of each group successively lower than the
previous generates a descent. Likewise, towards the end of the movement an
incomplete form of the passus duriusculus figure is used in the bass (see
Example 4.12). Although Biber uses this figure here and elsewhere in this work
(see below), he never uses it in its complete form (spanning the interval of a
fourth or a fifth), or in its descending form, and likewise does not overuse the
catabasis in this piece. Thus a weighty affection is created, but the more
despairing grief of Mystery Sonata VI, for example, is avoided.
420
Samber, Manuductio, p. 165.
Example 4.11: Sonata V, opening movement, bb. 1-3
Example 4.12: Sonata V, opening movement, bb. 16-27
At the outset of the variations, over an eight-bar ground bass (heard fifteen times
in total, including repetitions), Biber foregrounds the freedom of the work by
including two clashes of E natural with D sharp in the first variation (Example
4.13). During the first half of this movement, in which each variation lasting
eight bars is followed by another eight bars of similar material over the same
bass, momentum is built up through the shortening of the note values in each
successive variation. Minims give way to quavers and then to semiquavers before
the ground bass is heard once on its own for the seventh articulation. After this
the violin writing becomes ever freer, juxtaposing extremes of dynamics and
register, reflecting the stylus phantasticus in its delight of freedom and diversity
(Example 4.14). Biber follows the repetitions of the ground bass with a simple
aria-like variation marked Adagio, which is contrasted with a tempo change to
Presto, and semiquaver and demisemiquaver violin writing.
Example 4.13: Sonata V, Variatio, bb. 1-8
Al1ero
Example 4.14: Sonata V, Variatio, bb. 57-64
The variations lead directly into the Adagio-Presto complex; the principal dotted
violin figuration of the Presto—used here imitatively—is similar to that used at
the opening of Mystery Sonata X (Example 4.15). The imitation, however, is not
developed. Notable affective devices, adding to the weighty emotion evoked by

other facets of the piece, include a chain of 4-3 suspensions, and an incomplete
passus duriusculus (Example 4.16).
The opening section of the final movement—an eight-bar Aria with four
variations—is straight-forward monody. This gives way to more active
semiquaver writing (variation 1, marked Presto), and large registral leaps in
dotted rhythms (variation 2). The third variation (Adagio) is a contrast with
variations 1 and 2, and with a surprising 'Neapolitan' flavour at the end—caused

by the introduction of an F natural—evoking the stylus phantasticus (Example
4.17). The movement, and the entire work, is brought to a rapid, if abrupt,
conclusion, by variation 4, made up of continuous demisemiquavers. Unlike in
the variations which end Sonata III, there is no gradual accumulation of
momentum leading to a climax. The key features are unpredictability, and rapid
changes. Whilst the two principal movements of this piece are structured in terms
of variation technique, Biber varies each, creating a sense of freedom and
unpredictability.
Example 4.17, Sonata V, Variatio 3, bb. 6-8
4.1.3.6 Sonata VI
The sixth sonata is one of the most impressive, and has always been the most
popular of the sonatas. Its two halves are separated by the introduction of a
scordatura tuning in the middle. The first half opens with an introductory slow
movement and concludes with lengthy Passacagli [sic]. The second comprises a
free opening movement, followed by a Gavotte with one variation, and concludes
with a lengthy Adagio movement. Apart from this published version, there is also
a lute arrangement of the passacaglia, and another solo violin sonata surviving in
Vienna which shares some of the material. 42 ' Chafe describes this work as
'rhetorically conceived', and says the 'piece projects an affective sphere
dominated by a heavy baroque lamentation that is unmistakably cast from the
mold of conventional figures, and assembled in highly rationalistic fashion,'422
although without specifying what the figures are and how they are put together in
order to evoke this 'heavy baroque lamentation'.
Example 4.18: Sonata VI, opening movement, principal themes: (a) violin,
bb. 1-3, (b) violin, bb. 9-10, (c) violin, bb. 5-8
P
(a) pl L.J r
r
J j-
(c)
One means through which Biber achieves this is his choice of mode. The piece
has a final of c, with an incomplete, two-flat signature. This is the same mode as
in Mystery Sonata VI—headed Lamento. Half way through this sonata, the
violinist is required to tune the E string down a tone, and the piece changes its
mode to Samber's second mode: G with a B flat in the signature, like mode 1 but
a fourth higher, and which occupies a similar sound world to the mode in which
the piece starts. As mentioned in Chapter 3 with regard to Mystery Sonata VI, the
depiction of downward motion was a topos particularly associated with
lamentation in baroque art, and was translated into musical terms in Mystery
421
The different versions are summarised in Chafe, The Church Music, pp. 247-248. The Vienna
version for violin and continuo is discussed in Chapter 5, and edited in Appendix B.
422 Ibid., p. 197.

Sonata VI. Such a device is also used throughout Sonata VI, where descending
melodies (catabasis figures) predominate; it is, as Chafe says, from rhetorical
figures that Biber constructs lamentation. In the first [Adagio] movement, for
example, there are three main musical ideas (see Example 4.18): the first two are
catabasis figures, and the last is a passus duriusculus in ascending form. With
the exception of the final two cadential bars of the movement, all the music
derives from these three basic rhetorical figures used at various pitches
throughout. 423 The only ascending melody in the movement is the passus
duriusculus—the important chromatic figure associated with lament.
Like the opening movement, the lengthy Passacagli is made up almost entirely
of catabasis figures (Example 4.19). The piece is virtuosic and the fact that Biber
does not use the main bass theme regularly, but inserts several episodes, allows
for a freer evocation of the stylus phantasticus, to which the continuous changes
of register and use of chromaticism also contribute.424
'The seconô half of the sonata begins after the introduction of scordatura with a
movement of recitative quality. Scales, lombard rhythms, and declamatory
statements are combined in this chromatic movement which prepares the way for
the Gavotte and its variation which follows. The freedom once again evokes the
stylus phantasticus. The principal theme of the Gavotte and its variation is once
again a catabasis (Example 4.20), and through this means, combined with the
423
There is an edition of this movement—as it appears in the Vienna version of the work (almost
identical to the published version)—in Appendix B.
424
For a brief discussion of the form of this piece, see Chafe, The Church Music, p. 198.
choice of mode, Biber creates a dignified movement which does not evoke
dancing.
Example 4.19: Sonata VI, Passacagli, principal themes: (a) violin, bb. 1-5,
(b) violin, bb. 21-23, (c) violin, bb. 89-90, (d) violin, bb. 105-108
(a)
4 I' 1r'IThf
f
(d)
Example 4.20: Sonata Vt, Gavotte, bb. 1-2 (at sounding pitch)
The Adagio-Allegro movement which concludes the work is perhaps the freest in
the sonata, and the most declamatory. In the Adagio Biber uses simultaneously
two of the principal figures associated with lament: tremolo in the violin part and
a passus duriusculus in the bass (Example 4.21). This gives way to a virtuosic
Allegro section which marks the return to the mode in which the piece started,
and in turn gives way to a ten-bar section marked Adagio which is among the
most declamatory of any of Biber's sonatas. The drama is achieved through a
gradual broadening of the pulse by means of changes of time and through the use
of chromaticism, passus duriusculus figures, and the downward descent through
two octaves of violin register (Example 4.22). In short Biber achieves in this
work the sense of 'heavy sense of baroque lamentation' through his use of
rhetorical figures—many of which reflect the slylus phantasticus—and also
through his choice of mode for the piece, and his use of notes chromatic to that
mode. By using these features throughout he is able to give the whole sonata a
sense of direction climaxing in the final Adagio.
Example 4.21: Sonata VI, Adagio, bb. 13-16
[snileJ
Example 4.22: Sonata VI, Allegro, bb. 8-15
3 3 3 3 .
3 3
4.1.3.7 Sonata VII
This sonata forms a complete contrast with the previous work. It has a final of G
with no accidentals in the key signature—Samber's eighth mode of common

usage425—and thus contrasts strongly with the mode of Sonata VI. With the
exception of the dramatic Adagio, all the movements open with anabasis figures,
unlike in Sonata VI (see Example 4.23). The walking bass line of the first
movement (see Example 4.23) suggests an Italian—possibly Corellian-
influence (it is not used elsewhere in Biber's sonatas) which could have reached
Biber through the work of his colleague Georg Muffat. It is interesting to note in
this regard that Muffat's period of study with Corelli in Rome (where he was sent
by Maximilian Gandolph) took place at this time (1680-1682).
As in many of Biber's works in this set, the first movement opens with slower
note values (minims in this case) and gradually gives way to crotchets, quavers,
semiquavers, then demisemiquavers, evoking a sense of improvisation and
freedom. At the height of activity—when the violin is playing rushing scales
covering almost the whole of the instrument's register—it cadences suddenly on
the third beat of a bar and leaves the bass to conclude the work shortly afterwards
(Example 4.24). There is no final chord—the final quavers in the bass part are
unfigured—and the work ends abruptly with a quaver in the bass and with no
concluding pause or even a double bar in the print to mark the end of the
movement. This figure is an abruptio in the sense of Samber's definition, in that
the violin part finishes suddenly before the bass part. Its impact is less dramatic
than the abruptio figures which end Mystery Sonata XIV or Sonata III from the
current set, although the effect is similar, and this piece is lighter in mood than
those.
' Samber, Manuductio, p. 165.

Example 4.23: Sonata VII, opening themes: (a) Opening movement, bb. 3-6,
(b) Aria presto, bb. 1-4, (c) Ciacona, bb. 1-2
(a)
(b)
(c)r r r
The Aria with variations which follows is irregular. After the eight-bar Aria
theme (4 + 4), there is one variation using continuous quaver motion, followed
by one using continuous semiquaver motion, with each four-bar unit being
repeated. At this point there is a variation in which the violin plays the music of
the first half of the Aria theme from the beginning (bars 1-4) whilst the bass
plays the second half of the Aria theme from the beginning (bars 5-8), which is
then repeated. For the second half of this variation, the two parts are exchanged.
Whilst the effect continues to sound free and unrestricted, there is a more formal
compositional procedure taking place in the music. From this point onwards the
ground bass is abandoned, and the bass plays mainly the violin theme from the
Aria, whilst the violin intersperses polyphonic versions of this theme (in multiple
stopping) with free interjections of passage work in semiquavers. One scholar
has shown how 'the pervasive exploitation of foiled anticipation was a

compositional device integral to the stylus phantasticus' 426 Biber achieves that
in this sonata. After having established the variation technique with an Aria and
two variations, he then disregards the ground bass altogether and uses the second
half of the Aria theme as the bass for the first half, and vice versa, before
abandoning variation technique altogether for a freely composed style which
persists for the remainder of the movement. Hence, he is implying one image,
whilst creating another.
The Adagio which follows is more declamatory, and is reminiscent of
Schmelzer's sonatas in its almost complete avoidance of multiple stopping. The
extensive use of chromaticism, and changes of tempo and register evoke the
stylus phantasticus. A more doleful mood than the rest of the sonata is evoked by
the chain of 7-6 suspensions near the start and 4-3 suspensions (another Corellian
trait) leading to the final cadence.
Example 4.24: Sonata VII, opening movement, bb. 31-35
426
Gary Zink, 'Athanasius Kircher's Slyus Phantasticus and the Viennese Ensemble Sonata of
the Seventeenth Century', Schlitz Society Reports 7/2 (1991), p. 12.
The final Ciacona once more asserts the importance of variation technique in this
composition, although its use is, yet again, not regular. The Ciacona theme is
made up of not one section or one section with two halves, but of a tn-sectional
theme, each section lasting four bars (hence, 4 + 4 + 4). After the opening
Ciacona theme, there are a further four variations—each (with the exception of
variation 3) using progressively shorter note values—before the main Ciacona
theme returns.
4.1.3.8 Sonata VIII
In this sonata the violin part is notated on two staves as if it were a trio sonata,
but intended to be played on one violin only, yet there is no obvious practical
reason for the notation to outweigh the difficulty for a violinist in reading from
two staves. Indeed, some of Biber's other sonatas, which use more multiple
stopping and counterpoint in the violin part, would benefit more from being
written on two staves than this sonata does. 427 The direction 'a violino solo' at
the head of this sonata, however, makes it clear that it is to be played only on one
violin, and this direction itself testifies to the unconventionality of the
notation.428 It does not reflect a requirement to emphasise the 'contrapuntal'
strands of the music, which is necessary in many of Biber's sonatas: most of the
time the two voices in this work do not play together, but imitate each other at
regular intervals. Rather, Biber's layout and direction 'a violino solo' may well
427
Biber's Pastorella, for example, which uses material from a Pastorella with a trio sonata
texture by Schmelzer, is one such work which would benefit from being on two staves, but is
written on only one. See Chapter 5 for a discussion of this piece.
428
In this regard it is interesting to note that another manuscript version of this work from Vienna
(A-Wm: MS 726/14) has the sub heading 'a doi violini'. It is unclear weather this stems from a
copy which was written for two violins, or weather this is as a result of a copyists error or
confusion resulting from the unconventional aspect of the score.
imply that the violin is required to imitate the sound of a trio sonata, with its two
independent violin parts, and that the notation is rhetorical, based on the concept
of lktvtarna. For example, in the same way that Quintilian requires the orator to
imagine the topic 'with such extreme vividness that they seem actually to be
before our very eyes' (see above), perhaps Biber is asking the violinist to portray
to his audience the Javtacia (or representatio) of a trio sonata, and it is only
through performance—another important strand of rhetoric—that the violinist
will be able to do so. This sonata—which also makes use of ground bass
movements and alternating imitative passages between the two 'voices'---draws
to mind the trio sonata which Mattheson describes as having been performed at
Bernhard's house in 1666 'in which each [instrumentalist] had eight measures to
play his free improvisation, according to the Slylo phantastico' (see above).429
4.2 The Harmonia artificioso ariosa (1696)
The Harmonia art ijicioso ariosa was Biber's last published collection of
instrumental music. First published as a set of engraved part-books in 1696
without a place or publisher's name, the work was subsequently reissued in Ca.
1712 in Nuremberg by Endtner. The set comprises seven trios, each titled Partia
I, II, ifi etc. in both editions of the collection. Five of the pieces are for two
violins and continuo (numbers I, II, ifi, V and VI), one for violin, viola da
braccio and continuo (Partia IV), and one for two viole d'amore and continuo
(Partia Vii). All the trios require scordatura tuning, except for Partia VI.
429
See the discussion of image and phantasia in Chapter 1.
4.2.1 Sources, Editions, and Text Problems
Only a few sources survive for the Harmonia artificioso ariosa, although the
relationship between them is problematic. There are two extant copies of the Ca.
1712 print,430 and only one copy of the original 1696 print. 431 The only other
source is a manuscript version of Partia VII based on the Ca. 1712 publication
although written a tone higher and prepared around 1900.432 Biber's Latin
dedication only appears in the 1696 edition: both the composer and the dedicatee
(Archbishop Johann Ernst von Thun) had died by 1712, the approximate date of
the second edition. The dedication is discussed in Chapter 2.
The publication of Ca. 1712 is inferior to the earlier edition, however, and the
compiler has been much less careful with regard to checking details. The
orthography of the original title is changed from Harmonia artificioso ariosa to
Harmonia art ificioso-ariosa and the plates from the 1696 print were
confused: the printer removed the dedication, provided a new title page, but
printed the music for the two upper string parts in the wrong part-books (Violino
I in Violino II and vice versa) for significant sections of the music. Because the
430 D-Gs: 4Mus VI, 1070, and PL-Wu (bass part only).
431
D-WD: Sign. 25. Chafe, The Church Music, p. 241, erroneously lists this as Wurzburg,
whereas this exemplar is in fact part of the music collection of the Graf von Schönborn-
Wiesentheid, now held in SchloB Wiesentheid.
432
D-B: Mus.ms.1775. This copy includes a full score, and separate parts for viola d'amore I and
II. Significantly, in the full-score the viola d'amore II part is bracketed together with the 'basso'
part throughout, implying that the keyboard player is intended to play this part with his right
hand, in addition to playing the bass. This notion is supported by the parts in that whilst viola
d'amore I is written clearly in ink (having originally been drafted in faint pencil), viola d'amore
II is in feint pencil only, and was never written over with pen.
' This deteriorated further when the collection was published in the series 'DTO' as Harmonia
artif
iciosa-ariosa: Paul Netti and Friedrich Reidinger (eds), Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber 1644-
1704: Harmonia artificiosa-ariosa diversimode accordata, 'DTO' 92 (Vienna: Osterreichischer
Bundesverlag, 1956).
first exchange happened during a movement (at the end of the Prceludium of
Partia Ii) when each part was at a different point in the music, this movement is
26 ½ bars in length in Violino I, 25 ½ in Violino II, and the correct 26 bars of
music in the Basso part. The editors of the 'DTO' edition used only the Ca. 1712
edition as their exemplar despite being aware that there was an earlier edition, cut
music from the end of the Praludium in Violino I, and added music to the
Violino II part.434 It will suffice to say here that in the 'DTO' edition the parts are
the correct way round for Partia I, and the opening of Partia II. They are,
however, reversed at the end of the Prceludium of Partia II, where there are also
a number of textual changes to the music in the edition. 435 This situation
continues until the end of Partia III. The parts are the correct way round
throughout Partia IV, but reversed for Partia V and Partia VI. They are correct,
however, for Partia VII. This explains why (in the 'DTO' edition) in Partias II,
III, V and VI, the second violin often has higher-pitch notes than the first, and
why in passages where the two instruments are in imitation, the second violin
appears (contrary to Biber's usual practice) to start the imitation.
4.2.2 Traditional Readings of the Harmonia artificioso ariosa
An introduction to the 1956 'DTO' edition appeared four years later, written by
Paul Nettl who was one of the joint editors. 436 His remarks were mainly limited
to the formal variety of the dance movements in the collection. He also
These problems and the resulting textual changes are described in detail in Peter Woliny,
'Heinrich Ignaz Franz Bibers "Harmonia art Wcioso-ariosa": Zur Druckgeschichte und
Werkgestalt', Schlltz-Jahrbuch (Kassel, 1988), pp. 126-132. There is at present no good modern
edition of the Harmonia artficioso ariosa.
These are summarised in Ibid., pp. 128-130.

comments on the fact that the set contains seven suites. As he says, this was a
particularly German feature—instrumental collections of six or twelve works
being more usual in Italy—and it often had numerological implications relating
to such things as the number of planets or the number of days in the week, for
example. Both of Buxtehude's published sets of trio sonatas (for violin, viola da
gamba and bass) contained seven sonatas, and there was a further set of seven
keyboard suites by him depicting the nature and qualities of the planets. 437 These
all preceded the 1696 edition of the Harmonia artijicioso ariosa, but whether
Biber was influenced by any of them in his decision to include seven works in
this collection, however, must remain conjecture.
Elias Dann provided more detailed commentary on each composition in his 1968
thesis, mainly limited to questions of violin technique. 438 It is difficult to
understand his claim that 'the fantastic and improvisational elements of the
sonatas for violin and bass have disappeared', 439 however, particularly as he cites
many passages of each composition which could be described in those terms. It is
true that owing to the fact that there are two equal upper instruments (as opposed
to one solo violin) the metrically free and improvisatory music of the slow
movements of the violin compositions is not present in the Harmonia artficioso
ariosa. The music is, however, quite as 'fantastic' as any of Biber's other music
when the concept of fantasy is understood in historical context (as outlined in
436
Paul Netti, 'Heinrich Franz Biber von Bibern', Studien zurMusikwissenschaft 24 (1960), pp.
61-86.
Snyder, Dieterich Buxtehude, pp. 133-134.

438
Dann, 'Heinrich Biber and the Seventeenth-Century Violin', pp. 326-336.
Ibid., p. 327.
Chapter 1). Indeed, the Harmonia artficioso ariosa are among the most
musically challenging, fantastic and technically demanding chamber music to
have been written during the seventeenth century, and it is therefore perhaps not
surprising that the complete set was not recorded until 1993.
4.2.3 Use of the Stylus phantasticus: Style and Function
The situation is better summarised by Chafe's comments: 'while the virtuosity
and extravertedness of the earlier compositions are still present [in the Har,nonia
artficioso ariosa], we now encounter a higher incidence of the planned as
opposed to the improvised, a tighter control of the intellectual over the
sensuous.' 0 This 'tighter control' and 'higher incidence of the planned' is never
allowed to outweigh good taste and style. Biber's techniques of planning are
impressive, and there are many instances of this underpinning passages involving
both violins which otherwise sound improvised and fantastic (specific examples
will be given in the analysis of the individual works below). This aspect is
typical of the 'hidden reason of harmony' of the stylus phantasticus mentioned
by Kircher. It cannot be denied, for example, that the Prceludium which opens
Partia III and the Ciacona which ends it both sound improvised and fantastic, yet
the two violins are in strict canon throughout (see below).
Moreover, as outlined in Chapter 2, Biber points to this problem both in the title
of the set and in the dedication itself. His references to the skilful (artficiosus)
and the melodic or natural (arioso) nature of the music, and his combination of
what is both sweet (dulcis) and useful (utilis), refer to two passages from Horace
° Chafe, The Church Music, p. 27.

in which he debates the primacy of nature over the artistic, and 'sweetness' over
'usefulness' (see Chapter 2). Horace concludes that art can be both pleasing and
useful, and that art must be both natural and skilful at the same time. It is this
dialectic which Biber refers to in the dedication and which is fully explored in
the music of the Harmonia artficioso ariosa. Chafe referred to this as the
'dialectic of the totally fantastic and the controlled' in the Sonatte violino solo
(above), although it is of greater prominence in the Harmonia artificioso ariosa.
4.2.4 The Influence of Pachelbel, Muffat, and Other Cosmopolitan

Musical Traits
Charles Brewer has suggested that Biber could have published the Harmonia
artficioso ariosa 'as a response to a similar set of six trio-partitas for two
scordatura violins and continuo that Johann Pachelbel published in 1691, the
Musicalische Ergotzung (Musical Delight).'' However, there is a problem with
chronology here. The Musicalische Ergotzung was in fact not published until an
unspecified date after Pachelbel had moved back to Nurnberg in the summer of
l695 . 2 The probability that Biber could have known the works by the time he
set out to publish the Har,nonia artificioso ariosa in 1696, then, is not great.
There are indeed similarities between the two collections, such as the presence of
scordatura and of variation movements and canons, although it is not possible to
trace specific connections between the two composers' music. Moreover, these
are characteristics popular in much instrumental music of the region at this time.
' Charles E. Brewer, Sleeve notes to H.I.F. Biber (1644-1704): Harmonia artficioso-ariosa
(Tafelmusik, dir. Jeanne Lamon), Sony Classical: Vivarte SK 58 920 (1994), p. 7.
Ewald V. Nolte, rev. John Butt, 'Pachelbel, Johann', in NG 11, vol. 18, p. 850.
However, a number of aspects of the Harmonia artficioso ariosa seem unusually
cosmopolitan, such as Biber's choice of dance movements. This influence
probably came from his Salzburg colleague Georg Muffat who is generally
thought responsible for generating interest in the German-speaking lands in the
new Italian and French styles.
4.2.5 Analysis of the Harmonia artificioso ariosa
The Harmonia artficioso ariosa has not previously been considered in detail as a
set. The discussion below focuses on each work in turn, presenting an evaluation
of the use of rhetoric in each. Owing to the problems of the sources and the
modern editions quite extensive music examples are given. All these are
reproduced from the 1696 version of the publication.
4.2.5.1 Partia I
Partia I is scored for two violins in scordatura (a, e', a', d"), and comprises six
movements: an opening Sonata (Adagio—Presto—Adagio), an Allamande, a
Gigue with two variations, an Aria, a Sarabande with two variations, and a
concluding Finale (Presto). The piece appears to be in Samber's first mode, with
a final of d (with a minor third), and no accidentals in the signature.W3 The
cadence at bar 17 on a chord of A-C natural-E also suggests this: had the piece
conformed to d minor in modern terms, this chord would use a C sharp. It is true
that there are cadences ending with chords of A-C sharp E in some of the binary
dances (for example at the ends of the first halves of the Allamande and the Aria)
but the raised third degree in these instances reflects the presenece of a 'tierce de
Picardie'. It is the cadence in the middle of a movement (such as bar 17) which
is the most reliable indicator of a modal conception.
Chafe's notion of 'a tighter control of the intellectual over the sensuous' in the
Harmonia artflcioso ariosa can be seen here. Almost every movement opens
with imitative techniques such as canon (see Example 4.25). This is important as
it represents a strong style change when compared to the various Ballettr and
other dance music which Biber had written in the previous two decades, in which
the principal style comprised a melody (usually in the first violin part) with a
homophonic accompaniment. This is particularly true of much of the music in
the sonatas from the Mensa sonora (1680), which contains many of the same
dances used in the Hannonia artficioso ariosa.
If we compare Partia I of this collection with Pars IV from the Mensa sonora-
Biber's other published set of secular instrumental music containing dances,
which might have been used for dancing—we find a rather different
compositional approach in use. First, the music is simpler in style, and less
virtuosic. No variations on any of the dance movements are used, and the texture
comprises a melody (violin 1) with accompaniment (violin 2, viola, bass) in
almost all the movements. The imitative techniques used in the Hannonia
artificioso ariosa (see Example 4.25) are almost entirely absent, and the three
string parts are unequal, in contrast to Partia I (and indeed all the works in the
Hannonia artficioso ariosa) where the two string parts are equal partners. It was
" Samber, Manuductio, p. 165.

Example 4.25: Partia I, movement openings: (a) Presto, bb. 1-4, (b)
Allamande, bb. 1-3, (c) Gigue, bb. 1-3, (d) Aria, bb. 1-3, (e) Finale:
Presto, bb. 1-4
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
shown how in the Sonatc violino solo Biber avoided binary dance movements,
which allowed him increased formal freedom in the music. However, in the
Harmonia artficioso ariosa binary dances are common. The presence of two
violins, however, allows Biber to have one violin playing elaborate passage work
whilst the other plays the melody of the dance movement in question, thereby
evoking the increased sense of freedom and improvisation associated with the
stylus phantasticus. This is an important technique for Biber in the Harmonia
artficioso ariosa.
As this shows, an important emphasis in the Harmonia artficioso-ariosa is on
the artistic skill (artficiosus): this music is (unlike some of the earlier suites and
Balletta) not merely dance music, but music to be listened to. If the music was
used for dancing, the intricate passage work of the variations might have
obscured the metre. Moreover, the opening Sonata (Adagio-Presto-Adagio) is
not a dance, and the time changes would not be suitable for dancing.
Furthermore, the free style of the Finale clearly implies that it could not have
been used as a dance. This movement—in which the violins play rushing
semiquavers over an 'A' pedal—is freer in style than the binary dances, and
more evocative of the stylus phantasticus. However, even here the violins are
playing largely in canon throughout, there being only a few alterations to the
second violin part to ensure that the harmony is maintained (see Example 4.25).
This effect of an improvisatory surface level underpinned by canon—what
Kircher might have regarded as 'the hidden reason of harmony'—is central to the
Harmonia artificiosa arioso. Whilst one image is created for the listener—
freedom and improvisation—another, contrasting technique forms the underlying
compositional procedure.
Other 'fantastic' components are the variation movements which follow the
Gigue and the Sarabande respectively, in both of which there is considerable
semiquaver passage work. Most reminiscent of the stylus phantasticus is the
technique employed in Variatio I of the Gigue, in which one violin plays the
melody whilst the other plays rushing semiquavers for sixteen bars before
exchanging parts for another sixteen, and so on. This again calls to mind
Mattheson's description of the trio sonata performed at Bernhard's house in 1666
(see above). Moreover, it allows Biber to achieve an effect of freedom,
virtuosity, and improvisation in these binary dances.
4.2.5.2 Partia II
This composition is perhaps the most conventional in the set, and is in this
respect the least interesting. After the Praludium, there is a group of four dances
beginning with an Allamande and ending with a Gigue, and with a Balletto
(Allegro) and an Aria (Presto) between them. In common with Mystery Sonata
III, the final of the piece is b, and there is a signature of two sharps. The two
violins also have the same scordatura tuning as that used in Mystery Sonata III—
b, f' sharp, b' d".
Although the mode and the scordatura result in the same sonority as in Mystery
Sonata III, the mood is not as sorrowful, and there are a number of differences
between the two works. First, with the exception of the Praludium all the
movements in Partia II are fast, whereas in Mystery Sonata III not only is the
opening movement slow, but more important, so is the final movement.
Moreover, the constant alternation in Partia II between piano in the sections

scored for violins only, and forte in the sections with bass (enhanced by the
multiple stopping) arguably adds a sense of 'confidence' to the opening
movement. The effect is not unlike the solo/tutti contrasts of the concerto grosso
which Muffat is generally held responsible for having introduced to Salzburg and
the German-speaking lands at this time. Second, unlike in Mystery Sonata ifi,
chromaticism is not an important affective element of Partia II. Third, the passus
duriusculus—important in the final movement of Mystery Sonata Ill—is absent
from Partia II. This demonstrates the importance of particular formal, affective
and rhetorical devices in Biber's music to evoke a particular affection, but more
specifically shows that the choice of a particular mode or scordatura tuning on its
own is not enough for evoking that same affection. The more conventional
mould of the piece, and the sparseness of rhetorical figures, correlates with the
absence of features commonly associated with the stylus phantasticus.
Correspondingly, few of the artful compositional techniques used elsewhere in
the collection are present. The distribution of material between the two violins is
fairly equal, and most movements use simple, short-term imitative techniques.
The fact that this work is not representative of the style of the other works in the
collection may prompt one to ask why Biber included it. One possible answer
would be to provide a contrast to the other works in the collection, and to provide
a contrast to the works on either side of it (assuming that Biber or possibly the
printer deliberately selected the order of the works in the collection with this in
mind). Stylistically it contrasts strongly with both the stately exuberance of
Partia I, and also with the brilliance of Partia III. Moreover, the impact of
Partia III is enhanced when preceded by Partia II, given that the mode of the
former (A with a two-sharp signature) forms a strong antithetical relationship
with the latter. Apart from these relationships, there seem to be no clear
overriding grouping principles at play in this set such as those which govern the
Mystery Sonatas or the Sonatce violino solo.
4.2.5.3 Partia III
The two-sharp signature of Partia III (which has a final of A) suggests another
modal transposition. This is not one of Samber's modes of common usage, but
can be viewed as a transposition of his eighth mode of common usage which he
describes as 'G with a major third'.' This work comprises six movements:
Prceludium (Allegro), Allamande, Amener (Presto), Balletto, Gigue, Ciacona.
The opening Pneludium contains fifty bars of music of nothing more than
brilliant rushing scales, and arpeggios and chords of A-C sharp-E over an A
pedal in the bass (Example 4.26). The multiple stopping of this passage exploits
the sonority enabled by the scordatura and resonance of the violin to the full,
forming a contrast with the more tense scordatura of Partia ii. This movement is
another example of the proem model. No other explanation for the static
harmony and improvisatory nature of this movement has been offered in the
literature. Although the style of the music is free and improvisatory, and evokes
the stylus phantasticus, the musical technique Biber uses is not free. Throughout
this movement the two violins play in canon either at the octave or in unison,
sometimes a bar apart, sometimes only one beat apart (see Example 4.26). The
effect of freeness and improvisation is created through the absence of metre
underpinned by regular harmonic changes, the rapid alteration of register in the
' Samber, Manuductio, p. 165.

two violin parts, and the gradual decreases in note values resulting in a sense of
climactic momentum. Once more, this reminds us of Kircher's description of the
stylus phantasticus, being at the same time 'bound to nothing' yet having a
'hidden reason of harmony.'
Example 4.26: Partia III, Pra3ludium, violins, bb. 1-14
Similar to the opening movement, the other movements also make use of close
imitative techniques in one form or other, but do not evoke the same degree of
freedom. This is what one might expect from dance movements, although the
brevity of these movements (the Gigue lasts only about thirty seconds in
performance) and the degree of compositional artifice which they display,
suggests that they were perhaps not intended to be used for dancing.
The concluding Ciacona is the longest movement in this work, consisting of 33
variations over a four-bar ground bass. It is marked Canon in unisono at the
beginning, and the two violins play an exact canon at the unison throughout the
piece. From the start, however, several techniques characteristic of the stylus
phantasticus are introduced to undermine the strict form imposed by the canon to
create a sense of enhanced stylistic freedom. At the opening, for example, the
first violin commences the ground bass theme a bar early in bar 4, before the
ground bass has been stated once in its entirety. This is followed by the second
violin in bar 8, and a further entry by the first violin in bar 10 which coincides
with the second bar of the third sounding of the ground bass. Hence, the regular
metrical structure usually associated with the ciacona is challenged and
undermined before it is properly established (Example 4.27 (a)). It is not until bar
13 that the metrical regularity of the four-bar ground-bass unit is properly
established. A further example of an illusion being created, is in bars 17-19 and
3 8-50 where the effect is that of only one violin playing, when in fact both are in
use. In the latter example, the rushing semiquavers are typical of the freeness of
the stylus phantasticus (Example 4.27 (b)). Most remarkable is the passage from
bar 103 to 113, during which the bass theme returns in all voices, appearing to
sound a bar too early in the upper voices as at the start, and one expects the
movement to end. However, in bar 109 there is a time change to 9/8 in the first
violin part only which starts playing a Gigue against the other two parts which
are still sounding the Ciacona bass theme and are both notated in the original
time signature. It is not until bar 113 when the time signature in the second violin
changes to 9/8 that the piece turns into a Gigue proper for the last five variations.
Example 4.27: Partia III, Ciacona: (a) bb. 1-13, (b) bb. 38-49, violins only
(c) bb. 101-114
(a)
(b)
(c)
As Gary Zink says of the stylus phantasticus, 'it is possible to surmise that the
stylus phantasticus was dependent in part upon a composer's ability to play
deliberately against the established expectations of his audience . . . . One
specific facet of the Viennese corpus [of instrumental sonatas] clearly suggests
that the pervasive exploitation of foiled anticipation was a compositional device

integral to the stylus phantasticus.' 5 The concept of 'foiled anticipation' is
related in current musicology to nineteenth-century ideas on musical thought. A
more appropriate interpretation—based in an historical understanding of the
stylus phantasticus—would be to say that the composer was creating an 'image'
or phantasia for his listener which is contrary to what is actually happening in
the music. It is this aspect which Biber achieves in this movement, and it is
remarkable that he creates such variety, and thwarts musical expectations in a
piece which has such a pre-determined formal design. In this movement—as in
many in the collection—Biber is experimenting with the dialectic of the
improvised versus the formal (see above).
4.2.5.4 Partia IV
Unique in the collection, this work is scored for violin and viola di braccio, and
belongs to a genre closer to that of Buxtehude's opus 1 and opus 2 sonatas,
which are frequently described as evoking the stylus phantasticus. 6 This is the
only work Biber wrote for this combination of instruments, and he uses the
scordatura tunings of b flat, & flat, b' flat, &' flat (violin) and e flat, b flat, e' flat,
b' flat (viola di braccio). The work comprises an opening Sonata (Adagio-
Allegro), followed by five brief yet eclectic dances: Allamande, Trezza (Presto),
Aria, Canario, Gigue (Presto), Policinello (Presto). The piece has a final of E
flat, and the two-flat signature once again suggests modal transposition.
Zink, 'Athanasius Kircher's Stylus Phantasticus', pp. 11-12.

446
For a modern edition see Carl Stiehi (ed.), Dietrich Buxtehude: Instrurnentaiwerke: Sonaten
für Violine, Gambe und Cenibalo 'Denkmäler der Deutscher Tonkunst' 11 (Graz: Akademische
Druck- und Verlagsanstalt, 1957).
Example 4.28: Partia IV (a) Sonata, bb. 11-25 (at sounding pitch)
The opening movement is the freest in style: following a declamatory, slow
section containing multiple stopping (Adagio) and silences (the figure
suspiratio), a fugal Allegro begins. The start of the latter section contains the
texture of a five-part fugue, with two 'voices' in each of the string solo parts (and
one in the bass), which creates the image of four string instruments playing rather
than two (Example 4.28). At bar 23 a new idea begins (see Example 4.28),
which, with its rushing scale passages suggests the stylus phantasticus, and the
rapid exchange of ideas between the two solo parts is reminiscent of the sonatas
of Buxtehude.
With the exception of the Aria, all the short dances following this movement are
canonic, and use other contrapuntal techniques (such as inversion of themes).
Whilst the Canario was an exotic dance of Spanish origin from the sixteenth and
seventeenth centuries, the Trezza was almost exclusively used by Austrian,
especially Viennese, composers in the period 1660-1700, although its origins are
less clear."47 These two dances, together with the Allamande (German), Gigue
(French), and Pollicinello ( Italian?) attest to the deliberate cosmopolitan nature
of this piece. What is most remarkable about these dance movements, however,
is their length. The Allamande is the longest of them: all of the others last a
minute or less in performance. It is difficult to appreciate, therefore, how these
could have been used for dance at court. In spite of their brevity, all the dances
display a high degree of craftsmanship. Most exceptional is the final dance—a
Pollicinello, marked Presto—consisting of two repeated sections each of only
two bars in length. This is, in effect, little more than a cadence, lasting less than
twenty seconds in performance (with repeats). The dance is over almost before it
has begun, and it brings Partia IV to a rather abrupt conclusion. There was no
musical necessity for including it as the work could have ended satisfactory with
the Gigue which preceded the Pollicinello. It is probably therefore a musical
joke, which was intended to set up expectations in the listener—or indeed those
attempting to dance—which were not going to be fulfihled."48 Either way it
displays the unpredictability, pointed to by Zink, so characteristic of the stylus
phantasticus in central Europe at this time. The craftsmanship and brevity of this
series of dances suggests that they were intended to be listened to rather than
danced, and perhaps seen as a demonstration of both Biber's compositional skill
and cosmopolitan influences.
See Netti, 'Die Wiener Tanzkomposition in der zweiten Hälfte des siebzehnten Jahrhunderts',
Studien zurMusikwissenschaft 8 (1921), PP. 93-95.
I have been unable to find this dance in other music of the period. Literally, the term 'pollice'
is the Italian word for 'thumbs'. The Poilicinello probably relates to the commedia deli' arte
character Pulcinella who became famously known as Punch in England.
4.2.5.5 Partia V
Written in a one-flat system, and with a final of g suggesting a modal
transposition, this work correlates with Samber's second mode of common
usage. 9 The scordatura tuning (for both violins) is g, d', a', d"—the same as that
used in the tenth Mystery Sonata—and it begins (like Mystery Sonata X) with
chords of G-B flat-D in close position in multiple stopping in dotted rhythms,
evoking a similar affection to that of Mystery Sonata X. The style of the opening
movement, with its dotted rhythms, is similar to that of the French overture—a
style Biber would have encountered, if only in the instrumental music of Georg
Muffat. There are five movements: Intrada (Alla breve), Aria (Adagio), Balletto
(Presto), Gigue, Passacaglia (Adagio-Allegro-Adagio). The focal point is the
lengthy Passacaglia; in comparison, the previous four movements are all rather
brief.
The first four shorter movements all use close imitation or canon to some extent.
The Aria, although imitative, has a more arioso-style. The Balletto lasts less than
thirty seconds in performance (with repeats). Like many of the 'dance'
movements in this collection it seems to be a collection of imitative techniques
rather than intended for dancing; like the other Balletti from this set mentioned
above, it is stylistically different from the Balletti from Biber's earlier years
expressly written for dancing. Like the other movements in this work, the Gigue
is heavily imitative and brief.
Samber, Manuductio, p. 165.

The concluding Passacaglia comprises more than half the work, and it is in this
movement in which the traits of the stylus phantasticus appear. Like the Ciacona
from Partia III, this piece also becomes a Gigue towards the end (bar 109),
although there is no change of time signature. The piece is given cohesion by the
return of the opening material at the end (bars 149-169) in a slightly altered
form. The characteristics most evocative of the stylus phantasticus include the
virtuosity of the violin writing combined with the constantly changing violin
figuration. The rapid violin figuration between bars 41 and 60 involving
imitation of four-bar sections between the two violins (Example 4.29) is
stylistically similar to techniques employed in Buxtehude's trio sonatas, and is
particularly reminiscent of the trio sonata described by Mattheson (see above).
Following this climactic rush of semiquavers is a change of style, typical of the
stylus phantasticus. The new style involves a conjunct, chromatic linear descent
in both violins in minims and crotchets, including a passus duriusculus, typical
of Biber's lamento style (Example 4.29). Also typical of the stylus phantasticus,
this section is followed by an abrupt style change at bar 81 (see Example 4.29) to
continuous semiquaver motion, with the two violins playing in thirds. This
section sounds freer and more improvisatory than the measured section which
precedes it, although even in this section, short imitative entries are included.
Example 4.29: Partia V, Passacaglia, bb. 41-81

4 The Violin Music 'for the Particular De1iht of the Ear' Pane 241
4.2.5.6 Partia VI
Written in a two-sharp system with a final of D, this is the only work in the set
requiring conventional tuning of both violins, and it is also the most virtuosic.
The binary dance forms used in all the other trios until this point are absent: the
Partia consists of an opening Prceludium (Adagio-Allegro), an Aria (consisting
of two four-bar sections, each repeated) with thirteen variations, and a
concluding and stylistically-free Finale (Adagio). This tripartite scheme—
comprising a set of variations framed by a prelude and finale—is unique in the
set, though it reflects a formal scheme common in the solo violin music, notably
the Sonatce violino solo. 450 Indeed, the virtuosic arpeggios in the violin figuration
from the opening movement of this work as well as the distribution of material is
more typical of much of the figuration in Sonata VIII (the 'trio sonata' for solo
violin) from the Sonatas violino solo than of anything else in the Hannonia
artWcioso ariosa.
The opening movement is pure virtuosity. As with earlier works in this
collection, the Adagio of the Prcvludium sounds the 'key note' in the manner of
the proem model (see Chapter 1). The Allegro (bars 11-47) distributes almost
continuous demisemiquavers between the two violins (see Example 4.30), a
figuration common in Italian violin music (such as Corelli), although this is more
virtuosic. The Aria and thirteen variations could almost be described as an
exercise in different violin and compositional techniques, although the ingenuity
of this movement lies in the way in which these are combined. The Aria
(Example 4.31) itself is not merely a straightforward melody with
450
Sonatas I, II, III, IV, V, and VI of the Sonatce violino solo use this type of formal scheme.
accompaniment. Instead, its principal theme (violin 1) shares its material with
bars 2-3 of the bass theme, which is sounded once before being repeated (with a
varied ending) a fourth lower.
Example 4.30: Partia VI, Pradudium, bb. 11-16 (violins only)
Variatio I presents the Aria theme in a three-part (although not strict) fugal
texture, omitting the first bar of the bass (Example 4.31). Variatio II, moving
mainly in semiquavers, contains many imitative entries but is quite free, whilst
Variatio III moves in continuous demisemiquaver patterns which alternate
between the two violins evoking a sense of freeness. Variatio IV and Variatio V
are a pair: in the former the first violin plays the theme whilst the second violin
plays continuous semiquavers (slurred in pairs), and in the latter the second
violin plays the theme, whilst the first violin plays mainly dotted semiquavers. In
both these variations, the first bar of the theme in the bass is omitted in order to
create the canonic effect. The sixth and seventh variations also work as a pair. In
Variatio VI the first violin sounds the theme, and the second violin and the bass
play imitative passages moving in crotchets and semiquavers, whereas in
Variatio VII the theme is in the bass, and the two violins play imitative passages
similar to those in Variatio VI. In Variatio VII the bass plays the theme as it was
stated in the Aria, and not the original bass theme as has been the case until this
point in the variations. In Variatio VIII, the bass plays continuous semiquavers in
the manner of a running bass, above which the violins share the theme: the first
violin plays the first two bars of the theme whilst the second violin is silent, then
the second violin plays the next two bars, and so on. Having had the theme
shared between the two violins in Variatio VIII, Biber has all three voices
playing the theme in Variatio IX: the bass starts, followed by the first violin
(syncopated) a quaver later, and the second violin a quaver after that (albeit with
small rhythmic and note alterations to maintain the harmony). The constant
invention and reinvention of textures for stating the theme—one moment simple
and the next more complex—not only evokes the freeness of the stylus
phantasticus, but is also a good example of what Biber might have intended by
the term artificiosus in the title of the collection. In variations X, XI, and XII, the
Aria theme is absent, and instead contrasting violin techniques are explored:
multiple stopping in Variatio X, flying spiccato in Variatio XI, and octave leaps
and string crossing in Variatio XII, all involving imitative techniques. The theme
returns in the final variation, and is once again shared between the two violins
(each playing one or two crotchets of the theme before exchanging parts). This
time, however, whilst one violin is playing the theme, the other is engaged in
virtuosic demisemiquavers in scales.

Example 4.31: Partia VI, Aria and variations: (a) Aria theme, (b) Variatio I,
bb. 1-4, (c) Variatio III, bb. 1-4, (d) Variatio IX
(a)
(b)
(c)
(ci)
The 19-bar Finale concludes the piece with virtuosic scales and arpeggios
(semiquavers, demisemiquavers, and hemideniisemiquavers) over an A pedal in
which the two violins play in thirds giving the impression of free improvisation.
In this movement (like the Finale from Partia 1) the two violins are in canon
throughout (mainly at the unison), and usually one beat apart (sometimes two);
see Example 4.32. Hence, once more the freeness evoked in the music is
underpinned by a strict canonic procedure.

Example 4.32: Partia VI, Finale, bb. 1-14, violins only (at sounding pitch)
I I
This Partia combines exploration of violinistic techniques with a wide array of
compositional styles, and it is the combination of these which gives the work its
artifice. The rapidity with which these are juxtaposed, and the sense of invention
and unpredictability evokes the stylus phantasticus. Virtuosity is not explored for
its own sake, however, but the overall musical effect of this piece relies on the
way in which it is combined and contrasted with other compositional techniques.
4.2.5.7 Partia VII
Scored unusually for two solo viola d'amore and bass, it is thought that this
Partia could have been written and performed as early as 1692 at the abbey on
Salzburg's Nonnberg, possibly by Biber with his daughter Maria Anna

Magdalena. 451 Although the work does not fall strictly under the scope of this
thesis, it warrants discussion on the basis that it is part of the Harinonia
art ficioso ariosa collection.
The final is c, and there is a two-flat signature. This is reflected in the scordatura
tuning of the two string instruments which is c, g, c', e' flat, g' c", allowing full
exploration of the sonority of the instrument. Although the c final may be
intended to represent the same mode used in Mystery Sonata VI, and the sixth
sonata from the Sonatc violino solo, this work is less lamenting. This is
primarily because in this work Biber does not use the familiar rhetorical figures
he associated with lamentation (in conjunction with this particular mode). Of the
seven movements in the work (Prceludium, Allamande, Sara bande, Gigue
(Presto), Aria, Trezza, Arietta variata) all but the Aria and Trezza are written in
the principal mode of the piece. The Aria and the Trezza have a final of A flat,
with the same signature as the other movements.
This is the longest work in the collection, not only owing to the large number of
dances in it, but also to the lengthy variation movement with which it ends. Apart
from the Praludium and Finale, the other 'dance' movements are
straightforward, relying on a mixture of homophonic and imitative techniques.
The Pneludium follows the proem model, comprising eighty bars of music over
four separate pedal notes: C (bb. 1-26), E flat (bb. 31-43), A flat (bb. 51-55),
and G (bb. 67-78). During the movement there are no less than eight changes of
metre, and the two string instruments alternate between passages of multiple
451
Chafe, The Church Music, pp. 23-24.
stopping, rushing scales in semiquavers, and virtuosic passage work. The
constant changes of tempo and texture combined with the absence of a rhythmic
bass for the majority of the movement again evokes the sense of free
improvisation, typical of the stylus phantasticus. As in so many of the other
movements in the Har,nonia art ficioso ariosa, however, this movement is
underpinned by the canon between the two string instruments throughout.
Sometimes the instruments are one bar apart (bb. 9-15, 20-28, 36-41, 45-48,
67-70, 75-77), sometimes two (bb. 16-19), but sometimes only half a bar (bb.
42-43), or even only one crotchet beat apart (bb. 31-35, 51-58, 71-74). The
distance between the two parts in canon is constantly changing, and thus
contributes further to the sense of improvisation and unpredictability.
The Arietta variata comprises an eight-bar ground bass with eleven variations,
each—with the exception of the final variation—repeated. As with other ground
bass variations, Biber increases momentum by increasing the virtuosity required
of the players with each new variation, and shortening the principal rhythmic
units from minims and crotchets (ground bass and variation 1), to quavers
(variations 2-4), to semiquavers (variation 5). Variations 6-9 form a unit on their
own, comprising a binary Gigue in all but name (variations 7-8) framed by two
identical statements of a simplified version of the principal variation theme
(variations 6 and 9). This ensures a temporary break in the accumulation of
momentum—a device used by Biber in other variation movements—before the
music recommences with the alternation of demisemiquavers and semiquavers in
variation 10. The theme then returns (this time marked piano, and without a
repeat) to bring the work to a close.

4.3 Summary
In the Sonatce violino solo Biber used rhetorical techniques in conjunction with
other aspects of form, harmony, and virtuosity to create music which often
sounded free and fantastic, although it was usually planned and controlled. In the
Harmonia artficioso ariosa Biber set himself a different challenge, set out in the
dedication. This was to write music for two solo instruments—not just one—but
at the same time to maintain the sense of 'melody' (or 'naturalness') and
'sweetness' alongside the necessary 'skill'. This was a challenge which he had
already gone part way to confronting in Sonata VIII from the Sonatce violino
solo. Whilst the presence of two solo instruments in the Harmonia artificioso
ariosa meant that Biber could not write music as unrestricted and free as some of
that in the 1681 collection, he was not, however, forced to abandon such styles
altogether. Through the planned use of underlying compositional procedures
(such as canon and other imitative techniques), alongside controlled virtuosity
and other formal and rhetorical devices, he was able to create passages similarly
fantastic and rhetorical in sound. Biber never allowed the necessary underlying
artifice to interfere with what he called the 'sweet' or 'melodic' nature of the
music, however. Moreover, although the different genre necessitated meticulous
planning and control, the effect could still be equally fantastic when required.
Whilst the intended affection of each piece in the two collections discussed in
this chapter is not always immediately obvious, it has often been possible to
clarify this through comparison of the rhetorical procedures used in one piece
with other works by Biber (both vocal and instrumental). The Mystery Sonatas
proved valuable in this respect as each of those works has a more clearly stated
affection to which comparison could be made.

5 Miscellaneous Manuscript Violin Compositions 249
5 Miscellaneous Manuscript Violin Compositions
5.1 Introduction
In this chapter Biber's remaining compositions for violin which survive in
various miscellaneous manuscript sources will be considered. Owing to the
heterogeneity of these pieces and the diverse manner in which they relate to
Biber's corpus of violin music considered elsewhere in the thesis, and the lack of
an established chronology for them (see below), each work will be considered
separately. The works survive in two separate collections in KromèfI and
Vienna, and are discussed here according to their provenance. Apart from the
famous Sonata violino solo representativa (ca. 1669), none of the works has
been the subject of thorough research. Chafe comments on some of the works,
albeit briefly, and his ideas will be discussed where appropriate below. For the
benefit of the reader, editions of four of the compositions which have not yet
appeared in published editions are to be found in Appendix B.
5.2 Manuscript Violin Sonatas from Kromèh
Although the sources for most of Biber's compositions are to be found in the
KromëlI archives, ordy two solo violin sonatas by the composer survive there.
Both works have a final of A, although both are different in character and
remarkable in their own ways. Whilst the first work to be discussed here—the
Sonata violino solo representativa—is full of extra-musical ideas depicting bird
and animal sounds, the second—a Sonata violino solo—has no obvious extra-
musical features, but is instead a compendium of differing violin techniques and
of contrasting rhetorical ideas.

5 Miscellaneous Manuscript Violin Compositions Page 250
5.2.1 MS A 609a: Sonata violino solo representativa (ca. 1669)
The first composition to be discussed in this chapter is among Biber's best
known. In this piece the violin imitates the sounds of various animals—the
Nightingale, Cuckoo, Hen and Cockerel, Quail, Frog, and Cat—before
concluding with a Musquetir Mars in which the violin represents the sound of the
fife whilst the continuo evokes the drums. Some of these movements are linked
by other, presumably non-representative sections of music, and the work is
framed by an opening Allegro and concluding Allamande. 452 The original title—
Sonata violino solo representativa—ap pears at the head of the single source for
this work, a manuscript held in the KromèiI archives. 453 It is thought to have
been written for the carnival celebrations which took place in Vykov (near
KromëiI) in February 1
It is well-known that the songs of the Cuckoo, Hen and Cockerel, and Quail, are
quotations from a section of Kircher' s Musurgia universalis in which he notated
the songs of these birds.455 This is important not because it tells us about what
Biber thought about Kircher, but because it demonstrates that he was aware of
Kircher's important writings on music as early as 1669 (see Chapter 1). The
work also shares characteristics with similar pieces by Schmelzer, Johann Jakob
452
For an edition see Sehnal (ed.), Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber: Instrumentaiwerke
handschrft1icher Uberlieferung, 'DTO' 127, Pp. 3-15.
" For a facsimile edition see Michael Lutz (ed.), Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber: Sonata violino
solo representativa, 'DMS: Faksimile-Ausgaben' 5 (Salzburg: Selke Verlag, 1994).
'' Sehnal (ed.), Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber: instrumentaiwerke handschrftlicher Uberlieferung,
'DTO' 127, p. vii. Sehnal argues that Biber composed the piece for Karl Liechtenstein as a
substitute for the Vogelsang by Schmelzer which Liechtenstein had been trying to obtain in
January of that year, but without success.
Kircher, Musurgia universalis, plate between pages 30 and 31 in book 1.

Walther, and Alessandro Poglietti (early 17th century-1683), and particularly
Carlo Farina (ca. 1604-1639) whose Capriccio stravagante (Dresden, 1627) is
an important precedent in that it includes imitation of military instruments along
with the various animal sounds. Likewise, there were several treatises which
discussed and listed birdsong with regard to the origin of music from this period
and subsequently. It is not the purpose of this discussion, however, to consider
these musical and musical-theoretical precedents, as this has been done
elsewhere, and was indeed the primary focus of recent scholarship on this
composition.456 Instead, the emphasis will be on other issues of style which are
raised by the work, and how this relates to a larger rhetorical aesthetic.
The crucial element for understanding this work seems to lie in a consideration
of the title, and what exactly Biber intended by the term representativa.
Unfortunately this work is not an autograph, so we do not know what authority
this title has. The Latin noun representatio means a 'vivid presentation' or 'the
act of bringing before the mind' and is linked to the verb reprasentare meaning
'to represent in art' 457 Quintilian applies it to rhetoric thus:458
The ornate is something that goes beyond what is merely lucid and acceptable. It consists
firstly in forming a clear conception of what we wish to say, secondly in giving this
adequate expression, and thirdly in lending it additional brilliance, a process which may
correctly be termed embellishment. Consequently we must place among ornaments that
évápyeia which I mentioned in the rules which I laid down for the statement of facts,
456
The seventeenth-century musical and musical-theoretical precedents are discussed in Lutz,
Introduction to Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber: Sonata violino solo representativa, pp. 5-10. An
earlier tradition is traced in Richard d'A. Jensen, 'Birdsong and the Imitation of Birdsong in the
Music of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance', Current Musicology 40 (1985), pp. 50-65, and
the aesthetic concept of birdsong as the origin of music is explored in Mathew Head, 'Birdsong
and the Origins of Music', Journal of the Royal Musical Association 122 (1997), pp. 1-23.
P.G.W. Glare (ed.), The Oxford Latin Dictionary, 2 vols (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1982; rev.
1984), vol. 2, p. 1621.
Quintilian, Jnstitutio oratoria, VIII.iii.6 1-62.

because vivid illustration, or, as some prefer to call it, representation, is something
more than mere clearness, since the latter merely lets itself be seen, whereas the
former thrusts itself upon our notice. It is a great gift to be able to set forth the facts
on which we are speaking clearly and vividly. For oratory fails of its full effect, and
does not assert itself as it should, if its appeal is merely to the hearing and if the judge
merely feels that the facts on which he has to give his decision are being narrated to
him, and not displayed in their living truth to the eyes of the mind.
For Quintilian, then, reprasentatio or vdpycia is part of the higher, ornate style,
which goes beyond clarity of expression and 'thrusts itself upon our notice': the
orator can use reprcesentatio to display 'the living truth to the eyes of the mind'.
This concept is referred to in some of Biber's written dedications in his music
collections (see Chapter 2). The title of this sonata, then, suggests that the music
is supposed to encourage the listener to form a mental picture of the images—in
this case animal sounds and the musketeer—a technique comparable to
Quintilian's phantasia (as outlined in Chapter 1). Thus, just as reprtvsentatio
enables the orator to display the truth to the eyes of the mind, phantasia 'assists
us to form mental pictures of things'. 459 Moreover, it closely parallels the stylus
phantasticus with regard to its emphasis on images and appearances, and the
work also displays numerous other characteristics of the stylus phantasticus (see
below). The term reprcesentatio was not in widespread usage in music theory,
although the term stile rappresentativo had previously been used in print by
Guilio Caccini (1551-1618) in the dedication to his opera Euridice (1600) to
describe the new dramatic style of writing for the voice, attempting to match the
emotions portrayed in the music of the Greeks. The term was used by others
during the seventeenth century (mainly Italians such as Monteverdi), and was
predominantly, although by no means exclusively, associated with music for the
Quintilian, Institutio oratoria, VIII.iii.8 8.

stage. 460 More specifically (as was shown in Chapter 1), however, reprcesentatio
was closely associated with phantasia by Janovka:46'
Phantasia musica est imago, idea, Musical phantasia is image, idea,

reprsentatio, habitus, & copia rerum representation, appearance, & an
musicalium, animo Musici insidetium abundance of musical ideas, rooted in
the musician's mind
In the Sonata violino solo representativa, Biber makes clear each of the 'vivid
images' he is representing in the music through the use of headings at the
relevant points in the manuscript. Furthermore, some of the animal sounds
(particularly the bird songs) would already have been familiar from Kircher, and
the characteristic Cuckoo figuration, for example, would have been well known
from other musical precedents such as Schmelzer's Sonata Cucà. 2 Whether
Biber intended this to be a serious work demonstrating his erudition, or a more
light-hearted, humorous work, however, is more difficult to answer. Certainly
both are plausible, and given the likelihood of the composition having been
written for carnival, and the other meaning of the word phantasia as relating to
'madness of the brain' (see Chapter 1), the latter interpretation—often adopted
by modern-day performers—is particularly forceful.
460
For an account of this term see Tim Carter, 'Stile rappresentativo', in NG II, vol. 24, p. 391.
Carter's discussion relates, however, only to vocal music with a text and the use of this style to
represent that text: no mention is made of purely instrumental music. Such ideas were
disseminated in the German speaking lands during the first half of the seventeenth century by
Heinrich Schütz (see Chapter 3).
461
462
See Erich Schenk (ed.), Johann Heinrich Schmelzer: Sonatce unarum fidium, 1664 &
Violinsonaten handschr?ftlicher Uberlieferung, 'DTO' 93 (Vienna: Osterreichischer
Bundesverlag, 1958), pp. 82-89.
The composition displays many characteristics of the stylus phantasticus. Apart
from its obvious aim of depicting images, it is also virtuosic. There are numerous
quirky and abrupt changes of style and register, extensive use of chromaticism
(particularly in the sections depicting the cat and the frog). Furthermore, the
arpeggios and scales with which the work opens are typical of the proem model
as outlined in Chapter 1 and which was shown in Chapter 4 to be important in
Biber's 1681 solo violin sonatas.
At the end of the composition, the inscription Aid] M[aiorem] D[ei] G[loriam]
B[eatae] V[irginis] M[ariae] S[anctae] Cceciliae is written in manuscript,
revealing that the work is dedicated to God, the Virgin Mary, and St Cecilia,
uniting the ethereal source of music with its earthly patron saint and protector.
This, in a way, reiterates the notion of the origins of music—one theory being
that it came from nature, and birdsong, and was in this sense a gift from God—
which opened the discussion of this work (above). In the Sonata violino solo
representativa then, Biber combines the contrasting areas of nature and the
intellect in art, and results in a piece which appears to be more erudite than its
musical counterparts such as those by Schmelzer and Waither. The title alludes
to the technique in classical rhetoric of reprasentatio463 which is revealed in
Biber' s music through the stylus phantasticus in order to portray the birds and
animals of nature. The work is made more learned by the musical quotations
from Kircher who had been able to 'master' nature by writing down the bird
songs. The Sonata violino solo representativa (like Kircher's treatise)
463
Biber's use of the Latin word 'representativa' rather than the Italian 'rappresentativo' suggests
that he is alluding to this and the stylus phantasticus rather than the stile rappresentativo, the
former being associated with instrumental music, the latter with vocal.
demonstrates the closeness of nature and art, and the way in which the two
imitate one another, and which was an important theme in Biber's dedication
from the Harmonia artficioso ariosa (see Chapter 2) and the music from that set
(see Chapter 4) which also reiterates (like Biber's title) a classical ideal (Horace).
In summary, the work uses the technique of rhetoric to refer to the classical
problem of the relationship between the intellect and nature in art, and seems to
conclude (like Horace, and Biber in his dedication from the Harmonia artficioso
ariosa) that both are of importance.4M
5.2.2 MS A 479b: Sonata violino solo
In contrast with the Sonata violino solo representativa, the Sonata violino solo
contains no obvious representations of extra-musical ideas. Dated by Sehnal as
having been written after 1670 (on the basis of the watermark used in the paper),
the work is also a Biber autograph and is important in that respect. 465 Not only is
it a later work in terms of chronology—coming from Biber's Salzburg period—it
represents a later stage in Biber's output for solo violin on the basis of style and
technical demands. Much of the violin figuration is to be found in the Sonata
violino solo of 1681, and the technical demands required of the soloist in this
' With this in mind it is worth noting that among the famous trick water fountains built at
Hellbrunn Castle on the outskirts of Salzburg between 1613 and 1619 under the Archbishop
Markus Sittikus (1612-1619)--and where Biber married Maria Weiss in 1672—there is a pair of
adjacent grottos, one concerned with birdsong and the other with image. In the birdsong grotto
the songs of eleven birds are played by a hydraulic system with bellows and twelve pipes, whilst
in the adjacent 'mirror grotto' a mosaic can be found with many small mirrors embedded in it.
These two offer acoustic and optical sensations respectively (something alluded to in several of
Biber's dedications), and combined they allude to both birdsong and imagery, the subject of the
Sonata violino solo representativa.
465
JiI Sehnal, Introduction to Hem rich Ignaz Franz Biber: Instrunientaiwerke handschrftlicher
Uberlieferung, 'DTO' 127, p. vii. An edition of this sonata can be found on pages 15-3 1 of that
publication.
work reflect those sonatas more than, say, the Mystery Sonatas, as does the
length of the work (206 bars in modern notation).
The work comprises three movements: an opening movement with Adagio and
Presto sections, followed by a freer middle movement, and concluding with an
Aria with eleven variations. 466 The largely homophonic Adagio is unremarkable,
as is the following Presto, which—with its continuous dotted rhythms in the
violin—is a Gigue (though not specifically identified as one). The second
movement is the most interesting from the point of view of musical rhetoric. As
Sehnal says, 'in the introduction [second movement] one encounters instrumental
recitative, which changes from virtuosic passages, lyrical cantabiles and epic,
animated sections.' 467 The freeness of form, prominence of pedal notes (on E [16
bars], A [30 bars] and D [4 bars]), and extensive use of scales and arpeggios of A
and E, correlates with the proem model outlined elsewhere in the thesis. Indeed,
much of the violin figuration in this movement is similar to that of Sonata I from
the Sonata violino solo of 1681 (although the latter makes more technical
demands), and which also has a final of A. By contrast, however, the 1681 work
has a Gigue-like section at the end of the freer, proem section, which is the more
usual order for Biber. Much of the music of this movement is not made up of
easily identifiable rhetorical figures, although it is clearly rhetorically
466
In his edition, Sehnal merges the first two movements, thus making the work a two-movement
sonata. In the autograph, however, Biber uses a characteristic, curved double barline with a pause
to mark the end of the movement at the end of the Presto (bar 52), indicating that the following
(unnamed) movement is independent of the Presto, and not in fact another section of it.
467
Ibid., p. vii. The German reads: 'In der Einleitung stoL3t man auflnstrumentalrezitative, die mit
virtuosen Passagen, lyrisch kantablen und episch erregten Partien wechseln.'
determined, as represented by the abrupt changes of pulse, and echo effects
(piano and forte markings in the score) for example (see below).
The Aria and variations which conclude the work are drier, more technically and
rhetorically diversified. A multitude of violin effects are used: string crossing
(variations 1, 2, 4, and 8), multiple stopping (variations 5, 7, 8, and 11), rapid
demisemquaver scales covering the whole of the violin's range (variations 3, 10),
repeated notes in the genere concitato (variations 8 and 10), syncopation
(variation 9), and playing of arpeggios and chords (variation 11). The most
notable use of a rhetorical figure is in variation 7, labelled 'Tremolo tardissimo'
in the autograph. This variation not only uses the rhetorical figure tremolo
throughout, but also combines this with a brief use of the passus duriusculus
figure (see Example 5.1). This figure—as has been demonstrated elsewhere in
the thesis—is associated by Biber with lamentation, but its use here seems out of
place, however, as the character of the piece as a whole is certainly not that of
lamentation. The string crossing and constant alteration between forte and piano
in variation 2 also seems to have been rhetorically conceived, although the
intended affection is not clear (see Example 5.2), other than being a technical
exercise in string crossing and dynamic contrasts.
Example 5.1: Sonata violino solo, variation 7, bars 1-5
passus duriusculus
I I
Tremolo. tardissimo.
.-___.' simiiej
Example 5.2: Sonata violino solo, variation 3
This sonata generally appears unbalanced, lacking as it does a finale-type
movement, and although some aspects are drawn from the rhetorical tradition,
these do not always blend well together. As a result, Chafe's conclusion that the
work lacks a 'larger dynamic such as governed the forms of the F-major and C-
minor sonatas from the 1681 collection' seems appropriate, although his
conclusion that the Aria and variations are 'without much of the rhetorical
gesture of the Sonatae violino solo' needs to be quaJified. 8 As shown above,
there are several rhetorical elements or individual gestures in the movement (and
the work as a whole) although they do not combine to form an overall, cohesive
rhetorical gesture, reflecting any particular locus topicus. In this respect, the
work is less well-rounded musically than the Sonata violino solo representativa
or some of the Sonatce violino solo mentioned above, for example.
5.3 Compositions from MS 726 of the Minoritenkonvent, Vienna
Manuscript 726 of the Minoritenkonvent in Vienna is well known as a source of
music for violin and bass from the latter part of the seventeenth century in central
Europe. The 102 compositions in the manuscript are mainly copies of works
468
from other sources.469 There are in total thirteen compositions in the manuscript
by Biber: a Fantasia (no. 3), copies of the eight Sonatce violino solo of 1681
(nos. 7-14), a Sonata (no. 75), a Pastorella (no. 79), another version of Mystery
Sonata X (no. 80) known as the Turkish Sonata because of its movement titles,
and another work titled Sonata (no. 84). Of these, all but the eight Sonatce violino
solo of 1681 (nos. 7-14)--which were considered in Chapter 4—will be
discussed in this chapter. Owing to the lack of knowledge regarding the
chronology of the pieces, each work will be discussed here in the order in which
it appears in the manuscript.
5.3.1 No. 3: Fantasia
The first piece by Biber in the Vienna manuscript bears the title Fantasia, and is
the only known piece by Biber to have this title. 47 ° Despite the obvious
connection between this term and the concept of phantasia and thus the stylus
phantasticus, it is not possible to comment on the authority of the title of the
piece, although there is no reason to doubt its authenticity. 47 ' Significantly, this
piece shares much of its musical material with the fourth sonata from the 1681
set of Sonatce violino solo discussed in Chapter 4. Fortunately these two works
only share material—they are not merely the same piece with different titles-
469
The music archive of the Minoritenkonvent in Vienna is disucssed in Friedrich Wilhelm
Riedel, Das Musikarchiv im Monoritenkonvent zu Wien: Katalog des älteren Bestandes vor 1784,
'Catalogus musicus' 1 (Kassel: Internationale Vereinigung der Musikbibliotheken &
Internationale Gesellschaft für Musikwissenschaft, 1963); MS 726 is discussed on pp. 80-82.
Apart from Biber's Sonatw violino solo, other published collections which are copied in the
manuscript are Waither's Scherzi da violino solo, 1676 (nos. 15-26) and Hortus chelicus, 1688
(nOS. 27-54). See Chafe, The Church Music, p. 266.
470
A-Wm: MS 726/3, fols 3v-5r.
471
Two inscriptions in the manuscript are: 'Hic liber Francisci H. . .' and 'Ad usum P[at]ris
Alexandri Giessl Ord: Mm: 5: Franc: Conventual:'. See ibid., p. 82. It is not clear from this who
copied the music, however.
which is important, as a close comparison between the two pieces might reveal
Biber's conception of the meaning of the term 'Sonata' as compared with
'Fantasia', or at least his understanding of the term 'Fantasia' in the 1660s/1670s.
An edition of this piece can be found in Appendix B.
On the basis of compositional style, Chafe claims that the undated Fantasia is an
earlier work than the 1681 version, and was probably composed in the 1660s or
early 1670s,472 although the two differing styles may well reflect their different
genres (Sonata and Fantasia) rather than their chronology. There are,
unfortunately, no clues in MS 726 regarding the chronology of the pieces therm.
Whilst the 1681 Sonatt violino solo do come after the Fantasia in the
manuscript (nos. 7-14), the Pastorella—argued by Chafe to be a work from the
1660s473—is placed as no. 79474
The two works are of similar length: the Fantasia contains 120 bars, whereas
Sonata IV has 148 bars. In the following table, the way in which the two works
relate to each other is set out, together with the number of bars for each
movement.
472
Ibid., p. 4.
Clearly, a study of the genesis and composition of MS 726 is in order if such questions are to
be answered. The manuscript has not yet been the subject of a thorough study.
Table 5.1: Comparison of Sonata IV(1681) and Fantasia (A-Wm: MS 726/3)
Sonata IV Fantasia - Relationship

[Prludium] 16 [Pneludium] 10 Same material, although
_______________________________ ____________ more compact in Sonata IV
Presto 17 Presto 55 Unrelated movements
_____________________________ [Adagio] 21 _______________________
Gigue 8 Gigue 8 Same material, with slight
differences. Sonata IV uses
dotted crotchets in the bass
compared with quavers in
Fantasia
Double 8 I Yariatio 8 Yin part: different
Bass: ornamented in
Fantasia, but remains same
as Gigue in Sonata IV
Double 2 8
Adagio—[Allegro]- 29
Aria & Variatio 1-4 40
Finale—Presto 22
Minuet 18
As this table shows, the comparable movements between the two pieces are the
opening [Prccludium], and the Gigue. On the whole, the principal difference
between the Fantasia and Sonata IV in these movements is a freer use of material
in the former compared with a tighter organisation of material in the latter. As
Chafe observes, the opening 'six bars [of Sonata IV] contain ten of the
Fantasia'.475 Whilst this might indicate that (as Chafe suggests) the Fantasia is
an earlier work, it might also relate to the freeness of the slylus phantasticus. A
similar leaning towards a freer style is found in the Gigue, in which 'according to
his usual practice, Biber repeats the bass of the Gigue exactly in the two doubles
of the Sonata, while in the Fantasia he varies the bass of the double
[VariatioJ.' 476 The way in which he varies it is by filling in the bass harmony

476
Ibid.
notes with continuous quaver motion, thus producing a more inventive and freer
bass line.
The centrepiece of the Fantasia—which has no comparable movement in Sonata
IV—is the Presto. Chafe's comments on this movement need to be considered
here in full:477
The lengthy fugal Presto is at once the most characteristic movement of the Fantasia
and the least compatible with Biber's later style. The beginning makes this clear
immediately: after an initial statement of the long theme by the violin, four bars of non-
thematic extension lead to another statement in the continuo. This leisurely approach
sets the general tone of the Presto, whose overabundance of ideas betrays the youthful
composer. In Biber's later fugues the themes contain no such appendages and are
always imitated after a short interval. The Presto, on the other hand, contains a
profusion of secondary ideas and figurations that give way to one another without ever
recurring. Among them we find themes from the introduction and the descending triad
figure that appears in many of Biber's works.
Whilst Chafe's observations on the style of the music and its use of material is
correct, his interpretation needs further consideration. First, his suggestion that
the long theme which opens the piece is not compatible with Biber's later style is
problematic. This piece cannot be described as 'fugal' in the strict sense of the
term, as although it uses contrapuntal techniques, it does so quite freely. In fact,
Biber does not engage in strict fugal procedures in his solo violin music at all:
some movements (in the Mystery Sonatas for example) open with imitation at the
fourth or fifth, but tend not to continue with the procedure beyond a few bars.
The short themes of Biber's later 'fugues' (to which Chafe refers) which are
imitated after a short interval must be those in the ensemble music (Sonatte tam
aris quam aulis servientes or Fidicinium sacro-profanum) or in the sacred vocal
music (the text 'quam ohm Abrahae' is often set in this way). In any case, as
Chafe admits, the theme itself is short (bars 10-12); it is the 'non-thematic
" Ibid.,
p. 203.
extension' which makes it so lengthy. Whilst we know that Kircher mentions the
'skilled connection of harmonic phrases and fugues' in his definition of the stylus
phantasticus (although he does not go on to explain this), Mattheson does not
consider contrapuntal procedures to be as important in the stylus phantasticus.
He makes it clear that a composer must not completely ignore the principal
motifs and subjects in a piece using the stylus phantasticus simply because of the
improvisatory quality of the genre, but says 'those composers who work out
formal fugues in their Fantasias or Toccatas, maintain no proper features of the
intended style, as nothing is so very contrary to it as order and constraint' (see
Chapter 1). This seems exactly what Biber is doing in the Presto. Furthermore, at
the opening of the Presto Biber appears to start a fugue with the opening idea
with its characteristic leap of a fourth at the start, and then thwarts expectation by
using the lengthy 'extension' to which Chafe referred (bars 12-15). Such
deviance from an established, and implied model was associated with the stylus
phantasticus at this time in Central Europe (as Zink has shown; see Chapters 1
and 4).
Likewise, the 'overabundance of ideas' and 'profusion of secondary ideas and
figurations that give way to one another without ever recurring' were also a
typical trait of the stylus phantasticus. Indeed, Janovka also associated an
'abundance of musical ideas (copia rerum musicalium)' with the 'phantasia
musica' (see above). After the opening theme (bars 10-12 in the edition) and the
'extension' (bars 12-15), numerous (mostly unrelated) new ideas are introduced
one after another (bars 16-19, 19-22, 28-32, 35-36, 37-39, 40-44, 46-50, 51-
52, 57-58, 59-62, 63), and the theme is interjected occasionally between some of
the new ideas (bars 23-24, 32-33, 44-45, 53-55). As this shows, however, the
amount of new material in the Presto far outweighs the occurrences of the theme.
The other two movements in the Fantasia are musically unremarkable: a lyrical
and Italianate [Adagio] with a walking bass, and a straightforward Minuet at the
end, contrast with the greater amount of activity in the other movements.
Above all, it seems clear that this piece contains many characteristics that were
typical of the stylus phantasticus, and this perhaps tells us why Biber chose the
title Fantasia for this version of the work, and thus gives us a good indication of
what this term meant to him. Furthermore, whilst many characteristics might
perhaps suggest that the piece is an earlier (or, as Chafe argues, inferior) version
of the 1681 composition, there is clearly more to be gained from assessing the
style differences between the two versions in terms of the relationship between
style and genre and how Biber might have understood them.
5.3.2 No. 75: Sonata
The next piece to be considered from the Vienna manuscript is also related
musically to the 1681 set of Sonata violino solo, this time to Sonata VI, and
raises similar problems to the previous Fantasia.478 This piece has been
discussed briefly by Chafe, who pointed out that the music of the first
movements of both versions are the same, but the remainder of the music is
different. After the opening Adagio in the Vienna version, there is only one
478
A-Wm: MS 726/75, fols 153v-155v.
movement—a long passacaglia entitled Passagagli Ada gissimo comprising 56
variations over a ground bass. 479 An edition of this piece appears in Appendix B.
Pointing to the less technically demanding violin part of this work (with only one
multiple stop) compared with the published version, Chafe argues that the
version in the Vienna manuscript was written significantly earlier than the 1681
version :480
the somewhat crude style of the counterpoint between violin and bass in a
few places invites the opinion that, like the version of the third [sic] of the
Sonatae Violino Solo from the same manuscript, this piece was written at
least before Biber's Salzburg years, if not much earlier.
The possibility that this piece is earlier is strong; Chafe does not explain however
(or give examples) of what he interprets as the 'crude style of the counterpoint'.
Regarding the style of the violin writing, certainly the simple melodic style of the
Passagagli Ada gissimo without multiple stopping is more in keeping with the
style of the opening movement shared by both versions. In comparison, the
passacaglia in the 1681 version is significantly more demanding with regard to
its continuous use of multiple stopping and frequent and abrupt changes of
register. This however, is not enough to tell us which version of this work might
have been the original, as revisions of a work need not necessary go from simple
to complex.481
Chafe, The Church Music, p. 197. The ground basses in the passacaglias in the two versions
are different, although they do share the characteristic of an accented second beat. Another
version of the Passacaglia from the 1681 version exists in an arrangement for Lute. See ibid.
480 Ibid., p. 198.

481
This question cannot be answered on the basis of style analysis alone. Until we have a
thorough understanding of the philological relationships between the extant sources, the question
must remain open.
Since the opening Adagio is almost identical to the 1681 version (apart from a
few differences in bass figuring) little comment will be made on it here, other
than to remind the reader of the extensive use it makes of the rhetorical figures
catabasis and passus duriusculus, two important figures associated in Biber's
music with lament.482 In this respect, both these compositions share the same
affective sphere as the Lamento from Mystery Sonata VI (see Chapter 3).
After the 23-bar Adagio, the Vienna version is dominated by the 225-bar
Passagagli Adagissimo. As was shown in Chapter 1, the freedom of the
passacaglia was associated with the stylus phantasticus by Mattheson, at least,
who mentions it in connection with a passacaglia by Förster performed at the
house of Christoph Bernhard in 1666. Furthermore, in his description Mattheson
talks about the 'free improvisation' in the passacaglia which results in a
continually changing array of new ideas and figures, which is closely associated
with the stylus phantasticus as was seen in the Fantasia (above).
Biber's Passagagli Adagissimo uses a different ground bass to that used in the
1681 version of the work, although like the opening Adagio, it makes use of one
of the principal musical-rhetorical figures associated by Biber with lament:
catabasis. The descending catabasis is used in two ways throughout that
movement. First, in the ground bass theme itself which descends from c' to g
before leaping down an octave to G. Second, in the melodic variations in the
violin part. The opening variation is characteristic with its overall descending
melodic shape based around the notes E flat, D, C, B natural, despite one or two
482
See Chapter 4.
upward turns. This feature characterises many of the variations, as does the use
of downward leaps covering a wide interval (see for example bars 52-55). Such
rhetorical figures evoke 'an affective sphere dominated by a heavy baroque
lamentation' which Chafe alludes to in the 1681 version.483
The other feature which adds to this sense of lamentation is chromaticism, also a
feature of the 1681 version. Biber explores the conflict between the flattened and
natural forms of the note B, particularly on the last bar of the ground bass (above
the G in the bass) at the cadence. This is made clear in bars 194-199 in which the
melody c', b' flat, a' natural, b' natural, g' (194-195) is altered upon repetition to
become c', b' natural, a' natural, b' natural, g' (198-199). Also prominent in the
piece is a play between the interval relation A flat to B natural (used
melodically), which is used many times (bars 30, 74, 94, 98-99, 102-103, 106,
122, 154, 178, 194). Both of these features are deliberate and prominent features
of the piece, and not errors in the manuscript: they occur too frequently for the
latter to be the case. Their use adds to the mood of lamentation which the piece
evokes and relates to the prominence of chromaticism as a feature of the Adagio.
5.3.3 No. 79: Pastorella
The next work in the Vienna manuscript to be considered is a Pastorella, which
exists in no other known concordance ascribed to Biber. 484 An edition of it can
be found in Appendix B. This piece has received almost no attention in print.
Chafe discusses it only in the context of a consideration of Biber's relationship
483
A-Wm: MS 726/79, fols 160v-162r.

with Schmelzer, but dismisses the work as being 'obviously secular in intent'.485
This was a serious misunderstanding, however, as the Pastorella was not a
secular composition. As Chew explains, the Pastorella was 'a church
composition for Christmas, found in central Europe from the second half of the
17th century to the 20th century, in Roman Catholic areas. In one or more
movements, it usually represents events from a sequence based partly on Luke ii:
the announcement of midnight, appearance of angels, awakening and dialogue of
shepherds and their offering of gifts (or singing and playing, sometimes of a
lullaby) to the Christ child. Some deal with the Magi; some were probably
designed as edifying substitutes for an ancient ceremony of rocking the Christ
child' 486 Furthermore, such crib rocking ceremonies are known to have taken
place in KromèiI during the seventeenth century.487
Biber's Pastorella is a complex piece, however. As Chafe points out, the work
shares much of its material with another Pastorella by Schmelzer from the Rost
manuscript—a manuscript of over three hundred early German violin works.488
The principal differences between the two works being that whilst Schmelzer' s
485 Ibid., p. 200.
486 Chew, 'Pastorella', in NG II, vol. 19, PP. 225-226. The quotation comes from p. 225.
For further discussion of the history of the Pastorella and its uses see Chew, 'The Christmas
Pastorella'.
488
See Chafe, The Church Music, pp. 4-6. The Rost manuscript (F-Pn: Rés. Vm7 673) is
discussed in Marmee Alexandra Eddy, The Rost Manuscript of Seventeenth-Century Chamber
Music: A Thematic Catalogue, 'Detroit Studies in Music Bibliography' 63 (Michigan: Harmonie
Park Press, 1989). An edition of the Schmelzer version appears as Konrad Ruhiand (ed.), Johann
Heinrich Schmelzer: Sonata 'Pastorella': für zwei Violinen und Basso continuo, 'Coppenraths
kleine Reihe' 22 (Allotting: Coppenrath, 1994).
piece is a trio sonata (using two violins), Biber's is scored for solo violin and
bass, and Schmelzer's version is a tone lower than Biber's.
Schmelzer's Pastorella is not the only work to have musical connections with
Biber's work, however. Two other works are the offertory Venito ocyus de
nativitate D[omi]ni (ca. 1670) by Schmelzer, 489 and an anonymous, Polish
Pastorella (from Lowicz) dated 1699.° The two vocal models are more closely
linked with Schmelzer' s instrumental Pastorella in that they all share the same
final (G), and make similar use of thematic material. Biber's work is more
complex, and develops the material more extensively than any of the others.491
The principal figuration used in all these Pastorelle is the opening theme (bars 1-
6 in Biber's version), which must have been associated with the Pastorella at the
Vienna and KromëI courts. Biber (like Schmelzer) uses this theme in the
manner of a ritornello in his Pastorella, in that it starts and ends the work, and
marks the internal section divisions also. This has a specific function in the
anonymous, Polish version, where it is used with the text Parvule pupule, dormi
Jesule at the start and again at the end when the text returns. It is used in a
similar fashion in Schmelzer' s offertory Venito ocyus with the text 'Poscimus,
489
CZ-KRa: MS A 246 I B II 88. This work also survives in Dresden and Uppsala (Sweden). For
a discussion of the various models for the Pastorelle by Schmelzer and Biber see Charles Brewer,
The Fantastical Style: The Instrumental Music of Schmelzer, Biber, Muffat, and Their
Contemporaries (London: Ashgate Press, forthcoming). I am grateful to Professor Brewer for
making available the text of his discussion to me prior to publication and after I had written my
own thoughts on Biber's Pastorella.
an edition see Anna Szweykowska and Zygmunt M. Szweykowski, Pastorele staropoiskie

na zespoly wokalno-instrumentalne I, 'Zródla do historii muzyki polskiej' 12 (Krakow: Polskie
Wydawnictwo Muzyczne, 1967), pp. 23-26.
491
For more specific comments on this aspect see Chafe, The Church Music, pp. 5-6.
timi sit cura nostri pecoris'. Such a usage in Biber's (and Schmelzer's) purely
instrumental versions does not serve the same function, however, but perhaps
suggests the probability of one of the vocal versions being the model on which
the instrumental versions were based. 492 The text of the Polish vocal version
refers to rocking the Christ child and the text of Schmelzer's offertory describes
the shepherds going to Bethlehem to see the Christ child in the manger. Both
may well have been intended for one of the crib rocking ceremonies described
above. Biber's instrumental version could well have been used in one such
ceremony.
Biber also draws music from Prinner's song Nambli wol kann ich jetzt
glauben,493 a short, simple folk song, with a text about doves, dogs, village life
and the countryside (although not the Christmas story), and Biber makes use of
this material in the triple-time conclusion to the Pastorella (bars 91-117 of the
edition).
It seems difficult to reconcile the text of this rather trivial folk song to any
aspects of the Christmas story and the crib rocking ceremony for which the
Pastorella would have most likely been used. On a general level, the folk-music
aspect of the piece is what is important, and was an important aspect of pastoral
in music: 'Baroque pastorellas are 'pastoral' by virtue of more or less emphatic
492
Brewer, The Fantastical Style, argues the case for Schmelzer's offertory being the model on
which the other versions were based.
An edition of the song appears in Paul Netti, Das Wiener Lied irn Zeitalter des Barock (Vienna
and Leipzig: Verlag Dr. RoIf Passer, 1934), 'Notenanhang', pp. 11-12. The text of verse one is
printed with the music, and the text of verses 2-3 are printed on p. 28 of the text of the book.
Prinner's songs are discussed in pp. 22-28. The entire text, with an English translation, is printed
in Brewer, The Fantastical Style.
allusions to a so-called stylus rusticanus, no doubt based on aspects of
contemporary folk music; they are often comic in tone, and were often designed
to appear to an unsophisticated audience.'494
This brings us to a consideration of the style of the music in the work. Chew
discusses the stylus rusticanus—a 'peasant' or 'folk' style—in the genre of the
Pastorella, and its use of 'local colouring' One obvious example of this in
Biber's Pastorella, then, is the use of the opening ritornello throughout the piece,
which seems to have been a theme closely linked to the genre in the region. The
other example is the use of the folk-song melody by Prinner—who was active at
the Viennese court—in the final movement of Biber's piece. Biber's use of
musical material by these two Viennese composers to allude to pastoral and folk
elements is also an example of the use of the 'allusive cliché': a term coined by
Chew to describe the way in which particular musical devices were made to
stand out in order to emphasise particular ideas associated with them. 496 He
points to 'a succession of unoriginal musical units, which alluded to ideas
connected with popular Christmas belief'. 497 Indeed, the sectional structure of
ui Chew, 'Pastorella',
p. 226.
.
495 The stylus rusticanus . .
is defined in Geoffrey Chew, The Austrian Pastorella and the Stylus
rusticanus: Comic and Pastoral Elements in Austrian Music', 1750-1800', in David Wyn Jones
(ed.), Music in Eighteenth-Century Austria (Cambridge: CUP, 1996), pp. 133-193; especially pp.
140-143. See also Geoffrey Chew, 'Die Vorgeschichte der mitteleuropäischen Pastorella und des
Stylus Rusticanus im 17. Jahrhundert', in JifI Sehnal (ed.), Musik des 17. Jahrhunderts und Pavel
Vejvanovsk): Referate von dem gleichnamigen internationalen Symposium in KroméN
(Kremsier), 6.-9. September 1993 (Brno: Osterreichisches Ost- und SUdosteuropa-Institut, 1994),
pp. 79-85.
496
Chew, 'The Christmas Pastorella', pp. 189-240, defines the 'allusive cliché' and lists them in
detail.
Ibid., p. 189
Biber's piece, punctuated by the principal 'allusive cliché' (the ritornello), and
also the extent to which it uses unoriginal material is clear:
Table 5.2: Principal Themes and their Derivation in the Past orella (A-Wm:
MS 726/79)
BAR PRINCIPAL SOURCE OF THEMATIC

NUMBERS THEMES MMATERIAL
1-6 Theme A (Ritornello) Schmelzer
7-54 Theme B Loosely based on Ritornello
55-5 8 Theme A (Ritornello) Schmelzer
59-88 Theme C Schmelzer
91-111 ThemeD Prinner
In Biber's Pastorella the ritornello alludes to Schmelzer's instrumental and vocal
versions and the Polish version, and therefore the text of the lullaby used in the
latter, and the use of Prinner's song evokes the folk element. Other specific
features of the piece associated with the stylus rusticanus and the Pastorella
include drones and pedal points (bars 26-28, 49-5 1 82-87), melodies
harmonised in thirds and sixths (the ritornello and bars 91-111), and fanfare
motives (the ritornello). Such a rhetorical procedure has particular importance in
this purely instrumental piece, and we must assume that the various musical
models were sufficiently well known in Vienna for Biber to be able to do this.
Indeed, that the work survives only in the Vienna manuscript may well suggest
that Biber wrote the piece specifically for the Viennese court. Using the 'allusive
cliché' to evoke particular images associated with Christmas is similar to one
aspect of the stylus phantasticus, which (as was shown in Chapter 1, and the
discussion of the Sonata violino solo representativa above) was used to represent
specific ideas and images to the imagination. The locus topicus of the piece is
made clear by the title, and Biber represents this by using the 'allusive cliché'.
Brewer points to one potential problem regarding the performance context of the
Pastorella, however. As he says, the instruction on the title page of the KromëfI
Sonata Mayalis by the composer known only as 'C.M', to omit the Pastoritia
section of the work if it is performed in church—which is stylisticaly similar to
the Biber and Schmelzer Pastorellas—should raise one or two questions.498
However, we cannot assume that Biber's Pastorella was not intended to be
performed in church simply on this basis, as the local practices of Kromëfi or
indeed those of 'C.M.' (wherever he came from) were not necessarily the same
as those at the Imperial court in Vienna for where it seems most likely that Biber
wrote his Pastorella to be performed. A distinction should be made between
liturgical and non-liturgical, and the possibility that the Pastorella was performed
as part of a non-liturgical event in a side chapel in church should also be
considered. A piece can be sacred in intent even if it was not intended for
performance during the liturgy.
It is apparent that when this work is considered in the contexts of both the
Pastorella tradition and the models for the work by Schmelzer and Prinner, it is
not appropriate to dismiss it as merely a secular piece. Whilst the piece alludes to
498
Brewer, The Fantastical Style. The source for the Sonata Mayalis is CZ-KRa: MS A 508 / B
IV 58. Nothing further is known about the composer 'C.M.' other than his initials.
certain folk or 'secular' aspects, the Pastorella genre was clearly religious with
regard to its function, whilst also alluding to certain non-religious elements. Such
a blurring of the distinction between the religous and non-religious reflects the
practices of central Europe at this time, when many of the Prince-Bishop rulers
served both religous and secular functions, and the two were not always kept
completely separate as was shown in the discussion of Biber's Mystery Sonatas
in Chapter 3.
5.3.4 No. 80: Turkish Sonata
The so-called Turkish Sonata—headed 'Sonata' in the manuscript—is largely the
same as Mystery Sonata X ('The Crucifixion'), but sounding a tone higher, with
an additional final movement. 499 The violin part is notated at the same pitch as in
the Mystery Sonata version, but the scordatura is set a tone higher; the bass is
notated a tone higher also.500 In the manuscript the piece is listed under the name
'Schmelzer', and some of the movements have new titles, which were not in the
Mystery Sonata version (see Table 5.3).
Table 5.3: Comparison of Mystery Sonata X with the Turkish Sonata (A-
WM: MS 726/80)
MYSTERY SONATA X MINORITENKONVENT MS 726/80

Prludium Der Tiircken Einmarch
Aria Sonata: Der Turcken Belagerung der Stadt Wien
[Var. I—Var. II] Aria Adagio: Der Turcken stürmen
[Var. III] Adagio Einmarch der Christen
[Var. IV] Treffen der Christen
______________________ Victori der Christen
' A-Wm: MS 726/80, fols 162r—l63r.

500
There are some minor textual differences, and one extra bar: these are outlined in Haberl,
'Ordo arithmeticus', pp. 169-173. There is no modern edition of this piece, and as the music is
almost identical to Mystery Sonata X, it was not felt necessary to produce one here. The short
additional movement in the Vienna source is found in Chafe, The Church Music, p. 191.
These titles appear to relate to the siege of Vienna by the Turks which took place
in 1683,501 and they seem to bear no relation to Mystery Sonata X, which is
assumed to be an earlier source for the composition. 502 Hence, the sonata has
become known as the Turkish Sonata. How the titles came about has never been
satisfactorily explained, nor has the composer of the additional movement in MS
726. Although there is an attribution to Schmelzer in the source, it cannot be the
elder Johann Schmelzer (ca. 1620/1623-1680) as he died before 1683 siege;
scholars have therefore assumed that it was his son, Andreas Anton Schmelzer
(1653-1701), who was an 'official member' of the Vienna court orchestra from
1671, and 'official composer of ballet music' from 1680 to 1693. Moreover,
general consensus of musicological opinion distances Biber from involvement
with the Turkish Sonata, other than as the composer of the original music (of
Mystery Sonata X):503
There is no dispute over the authorship of this sonata; Schmelzer died three years
before the defeat of the Turks and the program titles are not really appropriate to
the styles of most of the movements . . . . It hardly seems possible that Biber
himself supplied the titles; if we compare the Vienna copy [MS 726] with a well-
known battle piece of his, the Battalia, or Sonata di marche, we find that Biber
had developed a set of techniques for the military style, none of which appears
here.
Many of these problems relating to the Turkish Sonata can be explained,
however, through an examination of seventeenth-century, central-European
501
David Maland, Europe in the Seventeenth Century (London: Macmillan, 1966), pp. 370-374.
For a discussion of the relationship and conflicts between the Turks and Austria during this
period, see Karl Vocelka, 'Osterreich und die Türken', in Heinrich Pleticha (ed.), Deutsche
Geschichte, vol. 7, Drej/3igjahriger Krieg und Absolutismus 1618-1740 (Gütersloh: Lexikothek,
1983), pp. 254-266.
502
Received opinion is that, on the basis of style, the Mystery Sonatas pre-date the Sonat violino
solo of 1681, and MS 726 was copied around the end of the seventeenth century. See Riedel, Das
Musikarchiv, pp. 80-82.
503
Chafe, The Church Music, p. 191
rosary psalters. It seems that the numerous sieges of the Christians by the Turks
had a long-established connection with rosary devotion. The important Battle of
Lepanto which took place in 1571—in which the Turks were famously defeated
by the Christians—was celebrated as an example of the use of rosary devotion to
win victory for the Christians, and a special celebration was founded to take
place in connection with rosary devotions on the first Sunday in October. 504 This
is reflected in many rosary books from the period. 505 This, therefore, offers an
explanation as to why one of Biber's sonatas on the mysteries of the rosary
should appear in another source, with extra-musical titles relating to the victory
of the Christians over the Turks. Thus, exploration of the historical and
devotional context strengthens the link between the two versions of this sonata.
Although in MS 726 no mention is made specifically of the 1683 siege, the
reference to Vienna in one of the movement titles ('Der Türcken Belagerung der
Stadt Wien') makes it clear that the siege referred to is that of Vienna and not
Lepanto, which occurred in the Gulf of Lepanto (now the Gulf of Corinth). The
choice of this 1683 event rather than the earlier one serves to make the music
more topical, whilst still maintaining historical traditions and practices of rosary
devotion.506
504
Anon., Anther des Heils oder Jesu Marks Rosenkrantz das ist Kurtzer bericht von grossen
privilegie freiheitten gnaden und AblaJi so in der gnadenreichen Ertzbruiderschaffi des H.
Rosenkrantz wie auch des süssen namen Jesu und heilsnamen Exercitio des Ewigen rosenkrantz
zufinden (Augsburg: Andrea Aperger, 1643) [D-Mb: Asc.128], pp. 101-102.
505
See for example Balthasar Bebell, Bericht und Betrachtung vom rosen-Krantz Oder PATER
NOSTER. . . (Zullichow: Michael Schwartzen, 1687) [D-Mb: Asc.393e], p. 35; anon., Anther des
Heils oder Jesu Marie Rosenkrantz, pp. 101-106; anon., Schatz-Kanzmer deji H. Rosenkrantz..
(Stift Kempten, n.p., 1690) [D-Mb: Asc.950], pp. 244-249.
506
This is not the only musical work taking the 1683 siege of Vienna as its subject matter. In
1686, the German composer Johann Wolfgang Franck (1644—ca. 1710) wrote an opera on the
subject called Der gluckliche Grossvesier Cara Mustapha: erster Theil, nebenst der grausigen
Belagerung und Besturmung der Kaiserlichen residenzstadt Wien; anderer Theil, nebenst dem
freulichen Entsatze der Kaiserlichen Residenzstadt Wien (von Bostel). See Andrew D. McCredie,
'Franck, Johann Wolfgang', in NG II, vol. 9, pp. 186-187.
Regarding the question of why Mystery Sonata X in particular was chosen as the
model for this work, we find a central European rosary psalter tells us how the
victory of the Christians at the Battle of Lepanto was commemorated in a special
devotion on the first Sunday of October. It then develops parallels between the
two: just as Christ's blood was shed for the salvation of humanity, so too was the
blood of the Christians shed at the battle of Lepanto for their salvation. 507 This
analogy between the Crucifixion and the victory of the Christians over the Turks
tells us why Mystery Sonata X was chosen as a model for the Turkish Sonata: the
events of the latter event seem to have been viewed as an allegory for the events
of the former, and thus Mystery Sonata X was an obvious choice for a model.
This interpretation of an allegorical relationship between the Vienna and the
Munich versions of the piece is confirmed by the paintings in the Aula
Academica in the University of Salzburg. As was mentioned in Chapter 3, in the
ninth painting (depicting Christ carrying the cross) the central figures are in the
midst of a battle involving many soldiers. As Hahnl points out, the soldiers
appear to be Turks—with their turbans, curved sabres, and half-moon signs.508
Thus, the painter at least (Zacharias Miller) seemed to view the ongoing wars
between the Ottoman Turks and the Christians of the west as an allegory for
Christ's ongoing battle carrying the cross. Hence, Christ carrying the cross
appears to have been an allegory for the struggle between the Christians and the
Turks, and the Crucifixion an allegory for the culmination of that struggle and
eventual victory of the Christians. The two events thus form a kind of sequential
507
Anon., Anther des Heils oder Jesu Marüv Rosenkrantz, pp. 106-107.
508
Hahn!, 'Die Aula Acadenjica' , p. 736.
narrative. There is no doubt that Biber would have known the paintings well, and
could therefore have been alluding to these metaphors in the Turkish Sonata.509
This raises the question of 'narrative' and meaning in the two works. If we are to
view the events described by the movement headings in the Turkish Sonata as a
form of rhetorical allegory for the biblical events of the Crucifixion evoked in
Mystery Sonata X (as reflected in the rosary psalter cited above), then any
musical 'narrative' content or meaning of the latter is not negated by the former,
but rather complemented by its existence. The allegorical relationship would
explain the fact that the movement headings of the Turkish Sonata do not seem
particularly well suited to the style of the music with regard to any kind of
pictorial or representative features which one finds in some of Biber's secular
violin compositions such as the Battalia and the Sonata violino solo
representativa. Furthermore, there is a need to draw a distinction here between
works such as Biber's Battalia and the numerous other battle pieces of the
seventeenth century which were clearly secular in content and style and often
written for performance in operas, 51 ° and the Turkish Sonata, which avoids the
technical and musical devices used in such battle pieces, probably due to the
sacred allegory which the work appears to evoke. Therefore, we need not assume
(as does Chafe) that Biber had no responsibility for the choice of titles for the
piece. Most of the pieces in MS 726 are copies of pieces from other sources—
both printed and manuscript—and the only extant concordance for this piece is
Indeed, the representation of Christ's enemies in sacred art as Turkish soldiers appears to have
been commonplace in the region, as was the theme of the battles between the Turks and the West
in general.
510
Regarding the operatic connection, see Werner Braun, Die Musik des 17. Jahrhunderts, pp.
123-126.
by Biber (not Schmelzer). The attribution in the manuscript of the Turkish
Sonata to Schmelzer is chronologically problematic because the older Schmelzer
died before 1683, and the consequent (and less likely) necessity of assuming the
Schmelzer referred to, to be the younger Schmelzer. Since Mystery Sonata X
appears to predate the Turkish Sonata, there is little doubt that the musical text is
by Biber. We cannot be certain about who transcribed and transposed the piece,
added an extra movement and new movement titles, but (despite the attribution
in MS 726) it is as possible that this was Biber as it was Andreas Schmelzer. This
notion is supported by the fact that the events of the 1683 siege also effected
Salzburg. Maximilian Gandolph sent 800 men to Vienna to offer support, as well
as other provisions, and during the period of danger, daily at seven o'clock a
'Turkish bell' would ring in Salzburg, at which time everyone had to fall to their
knees, and processions were also organised. After the Christians had won victory
there was a religious service, and the authorities from Vienna who had taken
sanctuary in Salzburg, spent large sums of money on offerings of thanks for the
Church of Maria Plain—the church associated with the rosary and the Virgin
Mary. 511 Biber may well have been asked to provide music for some such
service, which could have been the Turkish Sonata now extant only in Vienna.
Mention must be made here of an article by Friedrich Wilhelm Riedel which
discusses musical representations of the Turkish siege of Vienna in 1683, among
them, Biber's Turkish Sonata. 512 Riedel relates the Turkish Sonata (and other
5h1
Franz Martin, Salzburgs FUrsten in der Barockzeit: 1587 bis 1812 (Salzburg: Verlag das
Bergland-Buch, 1949; repr. 1966), p. 133.
512
Friedrich Wilhelm Riedel, 'Musikalische Darstellungen der Turkenbelagerung Wiens im Jahre
1683', in Manfred Angerer and Othmar Wessely (eds), Festschrift Oth,nar Wessely zum 60.
Geburstag (Tutzing: Hans Schneider, 1982), pp. 457-483.
such works) to the text of a contemporary account of the siege, and relates
particular passages of the account to each movement or section of these works.513
Ultimately, Riedel's analysis is unconvincing because of its attempt to relate a
text to the music which does not seem to be supported by the character of the
music itself. For example, he claims that the dotted triplet multiple stopping in
the first movement ('Der Türcken Anmarsch')—often said to evoke the
hammering of nails in the Mystery Sonata version (see Chapter 3)—is imitating
the galloping Turks. This, however, is the only such pictorialism he finds in the
work. He relates all the other movement headings to sections of the
Glaubwllrdiges Diarium, but fails to relate the music to either, or explain how
these events are evoked in the music. Variation 3 in the Turkish Sonata—which
has important 'narrative' implications as a quotation from Mystery Sonata IV in
the Mystery Sonata version—has the title 'Anmarsch der Christen' which Riedel
relates accordingly to a section from the Glaubwllrdiges Diarium. Such an
analysis is problematic when no reference is made to the Mystery Sonata version,
and Riedel makes no mention of the Mystery Sonata version of this piece and the
questions it raises when discussing narrative in the Turkish Sonata anywhere in
his article. This work, then, is better viewed as a rhetorical allegory in general
terms as outlined above, rather than as a programmatic composition representing
a specific chain of 'narrative' events, and it is clear from this that it cannot be
understood in isolation from its only extant concordance.
513
The work in question is the anonymous Glaubwurdiges Diariu,n und Beschreibung dessen
was Zeit wäh render Tllrckischen Bela gerung der ... Stadt Wienn vorgangen. Von einem Kayserl.
Officier... warhafftig verzeichnet, etc. (Regenspurg: Dalnsteiner, 1683) [GB-LB1: 1315.c.54.(1.)].
Thought must also be given to how the Turkish Sonata would have been used in
a sacred context. Regarding the final (additional) movement of the work, Chafe
suggests that it 'might well have been a setting of a popular melody of the time,
one perhaps associated with the defeat of the Turks; it is marked to be repeated
three times, an indication, perhaps, of a strophic text' •514 The musical style is
indeed largely homophonic, in the manner of a chorale, and there would be little
purpose in these repeats in performance, unless some or all members of the
congregation or choir were expected to sing the text which might have been
associated with it. Perhaps, therefore, the movement headings relating to the
siege of the Turks were not intended to reflect pictorial elements in the music,
but were intended to inform the performer when to perform each movement
during the service, as the narrative drama (perhaps in the form of prayers)
unfolded during the devotion. In this way, perhaps each movement was used for
meditation, in a similar fashion to the way in which the Mystery Sonatas may
have been used.
Above all, owing to an exploration of the historical and devotional contexts, we
now have a logical explanation as to the reasons for the genesis of the Turkish
Sonata, even if we are unsure as to who compiled it in the form it is found in MS
726. Moreover, the exploration of these contexts throws light on the rhetorical
and allegorical facets of the composition, most notably with regard to the way in
which it relates to its musical counterpart (Mystery Sonata X), and probable
model. This also demonstrates the necessity of discussing this work not only
within these contexts, but more importantly in relation to Mystery Sonata X,
514
which seems to be a more important source for our understanding of the Turkish
Sonata than has hitherto been acknowledged. 515 In this light, it is no longer
acceptable to view the Turkish Sonata as a curious arrangement bearing little
similarity regarding musical meaning with its exemplar. Once more, it also
serves to further weaken the notion of a clear distinction between sacred and
secular in the music of this time, which is likewise reflected by the dual roles
occupied by many nobility of this period in central Europe (including Biber's
employers) who often occupied positions of office in which sacred and secular
overlapped.
5.3.5 No. 84: Sonata
This composition—the last of the pieces in the Vienna manuscript known to be
by Biber—is perhaps the longest and most technically demanding of all his violin
sonatas. 516 This work—an edition of which can be found in Appendix B—is
another which has received little attention in the literature. Cursory comment by
Chafe refers to its technical demands and highlights its form, but without giving
any real interpretation of its unusual structure (see below). 517 The work begins
and ends with improvisatory movements over pedal notes in the bass, and the
three central movements are all variation movements of different kinds. The
prominence of variations—and indeed not one, but three sets—is extraordinary
even for Biber, and suggests the stylus phantasticus.
515
Generally this sonata has been viewed as a curiosity, and—with the exception of discussion of
textual and philological relationships—the relationship between it and Mystery Sonata X has not
been studied.
516
A-Wm: MS 726/84, fols 172v-175v.
Chafe, The Church Music, pp. 205-207.

The 56-bar opening movement (Adagio) is a good (and probably the longest)
example of the rhetorical proem model, which was described in Chapter 1 as was
its relationship with music. In this opening movement the violin plays a series of
scales and arpeggios covering the full range of the instrument. As Chafe remarks,
'the violin indulges in virtuoso figuration (mainly thirty-second notes)
encompassing a three-octave range that extends to the sixth position. Not even
the Sonatce Violino Solo offer such extravagant swirling and sweeping
patterns.' 518 The movement is extraordinary not only for its length, and
virtuosity—the latter of which evokes the stylus phantasticus—but also for the
way in which the violin figuration is constantly changing and the rapidity with
which the violin goes from one extreme of the violin register and back again with
ease. In bar 38 (of the edition) the frantic violin figuration comes to a halt and a
ne'c, slo'et, passage using extTeme chromaticism is introduced. The slower
pace, sliding chromatic line (using all chromatic forms of the notes from e" to at,
and b' to d' [bars 38-41]) forms a marked and abrupt contrast to what came
before it and what follows. The chromatic line of these two bars is not dissimilar
to the rhetorical figure passus duriusculus, although the order of the notes is
different. After only two bars, the drama begins again with the demisemiquavers
which preceded the two bars of chromaticism, and the music of that brief section
is never returned to again throughout the long Sonata. All of these details evoke
the freeness of style associated with the stylus phantasticus.
The first of the variation movements—in need of further comment here—takes
the form of a [Gigue] consisting of two halves (four bars and seven bars
518
Ibid., p. 206.
respectively) followed by variations. When the variations begin, the bass is the
same as the opening of the [Gigue] suggesting a variation movement based on
the whole of the [Gigue]. Instead, however, the work presents a 'mixture of the
ground-bass and aria-with-variations types', 519 making use of various parts of the
bass from the [Gigue]. The bass of the first four bars of the variations (bars 68-
71 in the edition) is loosely based on that of the opening of the first section of the
[Gigue], and is used in the manner of a four-bar ground bass sounding three and
a half times with violin variations above, before the whole section is repeated.
After the repeat (at the end of bar 81 in the edition) the second half of this ground
bass is heard, followed by two further repetitions with increasingly virtuosic
violin figuration above. At the start of bar 91 (of the edition), however, the music
from the end of the second half of the [Gigue] (bar 64) returns in the violin, and
then in the bass in the second half of the bar with which the movement
concludes. Biber, then, merges the two different forms of variation movement,
setting up patterns which are not carried through to completion and also
producing various, uneven musical units leaving the listener with a sense of
uncertainty about where the music is leading. This sense of uncertainty with its
changes of direction was an important feature of the stylus phantasticus.
The next two variation movements also make use of 'variations' on variation
forms. The [Aria]—the opening eight bars of which form one of the central
variations in the Aria from Mystery Sonata XIV (see Example 5.3)—opens and
concludes with the main theme of the [Aria] formed of two (repeated) halves (8
bars and 11 bars respectively). The two central variations (each of which is
519
Ibid.
repeated immediately) use the first half of the [Aria] bass (bars 96-103) as a
ground. In the [Allegro], the four-bar ground bass and theme which opens the
piece—comprised of two bars followed by another two which are a variation on
the first two—recurs throughout the piece in the manner of a ritornello,
alternating with variations on the four-bar ground. Although these two variations
do not display the quirkiness of the two earlier movements, the three different
approaches to variation technique in this work as a whole demonstrate a constant
use of invention and reinvention typical of the freeness of form of the stylus
phantasticus as outlined in many contemporary definitions.
Example 5.3: (a) Mystery Sonata XIV, Aria, bb. 97-104, (b) Sonata (MS
726/84), bb. 96-103.
(a)
-- I
(b)
5.4 Summary
When discussing the Sonata (MS 726/84) and the KromëII Sonata violino solo
(MS A 479b), Chafe raises an important issue regarding the relationship between
style and function. He writes, 'it seems hardly possible that such a work [the
Kromëfl Sonata violino solo] would have been heard in church, and in this and
the preceding composition [the Vienna Sonata MS 726/84] we are on the border
of the church and chamber sonata.' 520 As was argued in Chapter 4, the full use of
those stylistic traits associated with the stylus phantasticus in Biber's solo violin
520
Ibid., p. 207.
music—such as abrupt changes of style, tempo and texture, extended variation
movements, extreme virtuosity, unpredictability—does indeed result in music
which seems not to be appropriate to church use. As was seen in Chapter 1, also,
in contemporary theory at least, the stylus phantasticus was associated
principally with music for the stage. The Mystery Sonatas, discussed in Chapter
3, are an interesting problem in this regard, in that they make full use of musical-
rhetorical techniques, many associated with the stylus phantasticus. As was
shown in Chapter 3, however, they occupy a curious position between sacred and
secular—not least exemplified by the performance venue of the works (the Aula
Academica) and the 'secular' or human aspect of Christ emphasised in the
devotional context—which (along with several other features) makes them works
occupying an exceptional position. What is interesting with regard to the works
discussed in this chapter, however, is their use of variation movements. Among
Biber's instrumental sonatas which we know he considered suitable for church
(as well as court)—the twenty-four sonatas constituting Sonake tam aris quam
aulis servientes (1676) and the Fidicinium sacro-profanum (1682/1683)—there
is only one example of variation technique, which is in Sonata VII from the
Sonatas tam aris quam aulis servientes. This demonstrates that variation
movements, although not considered completely inappropriate by Biber for
church use, were certainly not commonplace in his sonatas for church. Moreover,
variation movements do occupy a central place in his music written specifically
for court performance: in the Mensa sonora (1680), for example, Pars III and
Pars VI are both concluded by lengthy variation movements. Furthermore, the
variation technique in Sonata VII (from the Sonatas tam aris quam aulis
servientes) is completely regular, comprising straightforward variations over a

four-bar ground bass repeated without alteration. This forms a marked contrast to
the irregular use of variation technique in Sonata 84 discussed above, the
principal difference being not only the use of irregular (as oppose to regular)
variation procedure, but the combination of it with those aspects of the stylus
phantasticus outlined above within the same sonata (both the KromèI Sonata
violino solo and the Vienna Sonata no. 84). Whilst we have seen examples of
secular elements being introduced into works which are clearly of sacred origin
and function—such as the Pastorella and the Turkish Sonata—neither of these
works uses these extreme forms of variation technique coupled with the full
gamut of stylus phantasticus features used in the two sonatas just mentioned.
Throughout the thesis, a recurring theme has been the blurring of the distinctions
between sacred and secular in Biber's music and the need to interpret these
problems and issues in the historical and stylistic contexts in which the music
took shape. It seems clear from this that a better understanding of these works is
gained through such a procedure and through considering the style of the music
rather than by making judgements on its apparently sacred or secular elements
which may be misleading and is no longer appropriate.

Conclusion Page 288
Conclusion
The summaries which conclude each chapter of the thesis are intended to serve
the function of individual conclusions to those chapters, thus enabling each to be
used as an independent unit if need be. The purpose of this conclusion, then, is to
draw together the thesis and its methodological approach, its place in Biber
scholarship and its implications, and the possibilities for further research.
Chapter 1 began with a definition of rhetoric from the Oxford English Dictionary
which highlighted the main problems of present-day scholars when talking about
the subject: the lack of a clear and concise definition, the fact that rhetoric was
often viewed in a pejorative light, and the fact that rhetoric no longer plays a
conscious role in daily life. It was clear from this, that in order to study the
importance or otherwise of rhetoric in any art form, it is first necessary to
reconstruct the rhetorical context, and in this sense, redefine rhetoric as it might
have been understood in the period in question. Thus, in order to study rhetorical
aspects of Biber's violin music, it was first necessary to establish the rhetorical
background in which it took shape. This was done in this thesis by using a two-
pronged approach: first, by establishing the rhetorical context and the traditions
in which Biber was working (Chapter 1), and second, by exploring Biber's own
writings about music—his dedications (Chapter 2).
During the evaluation of the rhetorical background in Chapter 1, it was possible
not only to reveal aspects of the type of education Biber might have received in
general terms and the important role rhetoric would have occupied in it, but also
Conclusion Page 289
to show the importance of rhetoric in contemporary musical-theoretical writings,
particularly of those theorist-composers with whom Biber was in contact. The
extent to which both of these were informed by, and drew from, classical
concepts on rhetoric was evident. The next logical step was to analyse the extant
writings on music by Biber (Chapter 2), and likewise, this revealed a strong
dependence on classical texts, notably those relating to rhetoric.
The analysis of the dedications undertaken in Chapter 2 was not only to be a
necessary and logical step in the progression from consideration of the rhetorical
background to close commentary on the music, but also proved to be an
informative precursor to analysis of the music itself. It informed us not only
about Biber's use of rhetorical devices in his written prose, but also shed light on
numerous ideas central to the music collections themselves. This was a two-way
process: not only was rhetorical analysis the main entry point, and a means to
identifying the important rhetorical figures, it also highlighted that these main
rhetorical figures were being used by Biber to draw attention to his most
important themes and ideas, many of which spanned across all his dedications.
This not only showed that rhetoric was a central structuring device in Biber's
written Latin and German dedications—for highlighting both the meaning, and
specific ideas about the collections they prefaced—but it also gave an insight into
Biber's ideas on music and musical rhetoric. It also confirmed the type of
education Biber would have received, as outlined in Chapter 1.
The focus of attention then turned to the music (Chapters 3-5), in order to try to
reconstruct the possible compositional procedures Biber might have used, the
Conclusion Page 290
extent to which rhetoric could be said to have informed this, and how it could be
used as an interpretative tool. With regard to the Mystery Sonatas, this required a
broader exploration of devotional practices and ideas, as well as contemporary
ideas about Christian art, since both were central to the traditions in which the
genesis of the Mystery Sonatas took place. Many of the rhetorical signs and
symbols associated with these—some alluded to in the dedication from the
collection, some not—were prominent in the music, often expressed through the
use of musical-rhetorical figures. Most importantly, a rhetorical approach
permitted a less narrow interpretation of this music than had previously been
possible. This feature was particularly important in the discussions of the other
instrumental music in Chapters 4 and 5—much of which had previously only
been discussed in terms of its use or otherwise of virtuosity. By using rhetoric as
an access point, it was possible to construct a broader, and more historically-
accurate interpretation, bringing together a variety of different aspects of the
music—register, mode, style (particularly the stylus phantasticus), use of
rhetorical figures, texture, and form, for example—and to view the pieces as part
of a larger aesthetic. Moreover—as with the analysis of the Mystery Sonatas—
this often proved to reflect closely the ideas and notions expressed in the
dedications. Repeatedly it became clear that many of those ideas were not
restricted to a modern-day distinction between 'sacred' or 'secular', and the
historically-correct emphasis on style permitted inclusion of both, rather than
having to choose merely one or the other which has proved unsatisfactory in
certain earlier analyses. Throughout the discussion of the music, it was necessary
to continually refer back to Chapters 1 and 2 to show how the music related to
the contexts in which it was created.

Conclusion Page 291
Whilst it has been argued in the thesis that a rhetorical approach is an important
and useful access point for discussing the majority of Biber's violin music and
reconstructing the likely creative processes of the composer, there are a few
compositions among Biber's violin output in which rhetoric appears not to have
been so important. This might be because these pieces were not conceived in
rhetorical terms, or because some of these rhetorical procedures and concepts
have been lost and are not recoverable or easily identifiable today. However, the
consideration of each composition individually in the thesis (although with
continual reference to others in each collection and throughout Biber's auvre)
permitted these exceptions to be made explicit, thus ensuring a balanced
approach and interpretation. Discussing those compositions for which the
methodology has not elucidated (for whatever reason) a rhetorical conception, is
as important as discussing those compositions for which rhetoric clearly forms an
integral part in order to ensure the presentation of a balanced view.
The context-based analysis undertaken in this thesis—an approach not widely
used previously in Biber studies (see the Introduction)—represents only a
starting point. At this point it is useful to consider various elements of the title of
the thesis:
Aspects
This reflects the fact that a dissertation on this topic must, by its very nature, be
selective, yet at the same time all-inclusive. It is selective in that one has had to
select all those elements which seem to reflect rhetorical processes, although no
attempt has been made to hide those aspects of the music and the dedications
2onclusion Page 292
which do not reflect the use of rhetoric for the reasons outlined above.
Furthermore, owing to the need to reconstruct in part both the approach to
rhetorical analysis and the rhetorical context as they apply to Biber, it is evident
that some of the rhetorical procedures might be missed or not understood by
modern-day researchers. It is all-inclusive in the sense that the approach permits
the bringing into consideration of a whole variety of elements integral to the
music as part of the larger aesthetic, which may not have been considered
together previously.
• of the Ars rhetorica
This term was purposefully chosen as a broad-based, all encompassing term. It
allows the focus to go beyond only musical rhetoric, to include written rhetoric,
and, furthermore, classical rhetoric. It has generally been acknowledged that the
former was based on (to a large extent) a reinterpretation of the latter, and this
has been shown to be the case particularly in Biber's written and musical
compositions discussed in this thesis. It also reflects the notion that music did not
exist in isolation, but instead was informed by (and informed) rhetorical
procedures in the other art forms.
• . in the Violin Music
For reasons set out in the Preface it was necessary to limit the scope of this thesis
to Biber's violin music, although that is by no means supposed to imply that
rhetoric did not inform, or is not a useful access point in Biber's other music.
Indeed, throughout the thesis it has been necessary to make comparisons with his
other instrumental and vocal music, and it has been shown that there is much
Conclusion 293
common ground between them. This aspect might form the basis of further
research.
of Heinrich Biber (1644-1704)
Likewise, whilst there are clear reasons for studying the use of rhetoric in Biber's
music, that is not to say that it is not also relevant to the music of other
composers. Studies of musical rhetoric in other seventeenth- and eighteenth-
century composers—such as Bach, Buxtehude and Schütz—have already been
undertaken, and the way in which these correlate might be a useful starting point
for further study, and a way of gaining a clearer understanding of the notion of
Musica poetica in practice, rather than merely in music theory.

ppendix A: The Dedications from Biber's Music Collections Page 294
Appendix A
The Dedications from Biber's Music Collections
rhis appendix includes all Biber's dedications written to his employers in
Salzburg—Archbishop Maximilian Gandoiph von Khuenberg, and Archbishop
Johann Ernst von Thun—with parallel English translations. These include the
unpublished dedication from the Mystery Sonatas, the five dedications from the
published sets of instrumental music, and the dedication from Biber's published
vespers (1693). These translations should be viewed as one interpretation only,
and not as definitive versions. For many words or phrases alternative meanings
exist, and it seems that such ambiguity was central to Biber's prose style. To
avoid cluttering the page with alternative meanings, only one meaning—usually
the musical meaning (where appropriate)—is given here; alternatives being
discussed in Chapter 2. The transcriptions follow the page layout of the originals
regarding paragraphing, although it has not been possible to maintain the same
line endings; these are indicated by a forward oblique (I) in the transcriptions.
Furthermore, headers (addresses to the Patron) and footers which may have been
centred and in a larger font in the original versions, use the same font size as the
text body and are adjusted to the left-hand margin in the transcriptions.
Punctuation, spelling, capitalisation and other matters of orthography (ligatures,
diacritics etc.) remain the same, however. Insertions in the translations are placed
in square brackets, and expanded abbreviations are placed in parentheses.
Original capitalisation has been maintained in the translations, and punctuation is
only altered in those instances in which the meaning would otherwise have been
unclear. The dedications are presented in chronological order.

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Appendix B: Music Editions 303
Appendix B
Music Editions
Editorial Method
This Appendix contains editions of four violin compositions discussed in Chapter 5 for which there are no
published modern editions. The editorial policy has been for the most part to translate the notation in the
sources into modern notation. In an attempt not to clutter the score and to leave certain issues of
performance to the discretion of the performer, bass figures have not been added in exhaustive detail. Not
every chord which is not in root position, which is not indicated as such in the source, has been amended
in the edition for example. The seventeenth-century practice of using sharp signs to indicate a raised
(major) third above the bass and a flat sign to indicate a lowered (minor) third above the bass has been
maintained in the figuring in the editions. Modern key signatures have been adopted, and original
signatures are indicated in the commentary. As a result, many accidentals in the sources have become
redundant and have therefore been removed tacitly in the editions. The practice of cancelling a sharp sign
in the violin part in the sources with a flat sign has not been maintained as this would be misleading in
modern notation. In all such instances natural signs have been used, and no mention of this has been made
in the commentary. Beaming has been modernised throughout.
All additions to the music which are not present in the sources are indicated in the editions in square
brackets. Information about such additions is not duplicated in the commentary given for each work
below. Cautionary accidentals (those not strictly necessary) added in the edition are placed in round
brackets. Specific details of the variant readings are given in the commentary below, although these are
few in number owing to the fact that the sources are extremely accurate. The original readings of all the
emendations to the text in the sources that have been made in the editions presented here are listed below
for each composition in the appendix. The format of each entry is as follows: 'bar number, instrument,
position in bar: original reading'. Hence, the hypothetical entry 'B. 16, yIn, note 8: g', indicates that in
bar 16, note 8 of the violin part is a g in the source. In this system, notes and rests are referred to by
numbers counting from the beginning of the bar; rests, however, are not counted as 'notes' but are
counted separately, also from the beginning of the bar. The following abbreviations are used: B(b) =
bar(s); be = basso continuo; yin = violin
Fantasia
Source: A-Wm: MS 726/3 (fols. 3v-5r)

Original signature: 3 sharps (yin), 2 sharps (bass)
Notes
• This work is another version of Sonata IV from the published set of Sonata violino solo (1681).
• The piece uses scordatura. The scordatura violin part (as written in the source) is given at the top of
the score. A version of this part at concert pitch is given in this edition between this part and the bass.
Consistent with Biber' s use of scordatura elsewhere, the accidentals in the three-sharp signature of the
scordatura violin part only apply to the octave in which they are written. Hence, when these notes are
used in other octaves they are naturals unless otherwise indicated.
• In those sections in which the bass uses clefs other than the bass clef, it is suggested—on the basis of
Biber's use of such clefs in other compositions in the bass—that such sections be played tasto solo.
Such sections do not have bass figuring in the source.
Appendix B: Music Editions Page 304
Sonata
Source: A-Wm: MS 726/75 (fols. 153v-155v)

Original signature: 2 flats (yin and bass)
Notes
• The first movement of this work is almost identical to the first movement of Sonata VI from the
published set of Sonatce violino solo (1681).
• In the source, the flat signs in the signature only apply to those octaves at which they are notated; any
necessary accidentals in other octaves are written in the score. These become redundant with the use
of a modern key signature in the edition, and have been removed tacitly.
Pastorella
Source: A-Wm: MS 726/79 (fois. 160v-162r)

Original signature: 3 sharps (yin and bass)
Notes
• Biber's name is given in the source in the format 'Franc. Henr. Ignat. Biber.'
• The first section of the work uses much material from a Pastorella by Schmelzer, and the conclusion
uses material from Prinner' s song 'Nambli wol kann ich jetzt glauben'.
Sonata
Source: A-Wm: MS 726/84 (fols. 172v-175v)

Original signature: 3 sharps (vin and bass)
Notes
• Biber's name is given in the source in the format 'J. H. Biber.'
Commentary
B. 210, yin, note 8: d'
Fantasia
[Praeludium}
nrtn
B: Music Editions Page 306
IT
Virtin
Minuet
Appendix B: Music Editions Page 3 12
Sonata
Adagio
A
Appendix B: Music Edi6ons Page 316
142
202
Pastorella
AR
'5
p
Sonata
Adagio
FGiue1
1Av1 I
11 -
Appendix B: Niusic Ediltions
Bibliography Page 333
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Woliny, Peter, 'Heinrich Ignaz Franz Bibers "Harmonia artficioso-ariosa": Zur

Druckgeschichte und Werkgestalt', Schlltz-Jahrbuch (Kassel, 1988), pp.
126-132.
Zink, Gary, 'Athanasius Kircher's Styus Phantasticus and the Viennese Ensemble
Sonata of the Seventeenth Century', Schlltz Society Reports 7/2 (1991),
pp. 6-13.
Errata
Page references are given in the following format: 'page number/line number' (including
quotations, where applicable) or 'page number/footnote (fh) number'
Page For Read

17/3 & 27/1 focussed focused
26/9 focussing focusing
58/3 sometimes accessively sometimes eccessively
5 8/2 1-22 Kircher cites a passage Mattheson cites a passage from
he believed to be from
58/fn128 Kircher actually Matiheson actually
60/3 a aulos-player's an aulos-player's
64/1 collections 'pure' violin music collections of 'pure' violin music
90/11 but is may but it may
104/14 hard to explain is hard to explain as
113/16 through by rhetorical through rhetorical
113/quotation For the reference see 11 8/fn243
118/17 accounts of the accounts for the
118/1 & 121/24 cabbalistic cabalistic
130/10 all these word all these words
133/fh279 are use to indicated finals are used to indicate finals
153/14 focussed focused
167/16 in it entirety in its entirety
175/5 (Figure 1) (Illustration 3.1)
215/16 and the work and the movement
218/fti428 weather whether
220/fn43 2 feint faint
225/22 presenece presence
25 2/22 Guilio Caccini Giulio Caccini
260/9 thenn therein
2 75/7 before 1683 siege before the 1683 siege
279/9 effected affected
uw.

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Abstract Page 2

Discussions of Heinrich Biber's violin music to date have focused predominantly

Listof Abbreviations ................................................................................................6

Listof illustrations, Figures and Tables ...................................................................7

Introduction: Literature Survey ........................................................................... 12

1 The Rhetorical Background.................................................................... 30

1.1 Rhetoric and Society..................................................................................31

1.2 Rhetoric and Music....................................................................................39

2 Rhetoric, Style, and Meaning in Biber's Written Dedications............63

2.1 The Dedications.........................................................................................63

2.2 Analysis of the Dedications.......................................................................64

3 The 'Sacred' Violin Music: The Mystery Sonatas (1670s)...................116

3.1 The Historical, Stylistic, and Devotional Background.............................116

3.1.4 Imagery, Narrative, Scordatura, and the Stylus phantasticus:

3.2 Analysisof the Mystery Sonatas............................................................... 133

4.1 The Sonatce violino solo (1681)................................................................181

4.2 The Harmonia artz:ficioso ariosa (1696) ..................................................219

5 Miscellaneous Manuscript Violin Compositions ..................................249

5.2 Manuscript Violin Sonatas from KromëN ..............................................249

Conclusion ............................................................................................................. 288

Appendix A: The Dedications from Biber's Music Collections.............................294

AppendixB: Music Editions...................................................................................303

Bibliography .......................................................................................................... 333

List of Illustrations, Figures and Tables

Illustrations (Reproduced by kind permission)

2.1: Fidicinium sacro-profanum, Violone part book, ornament [p. 26]

1.1: Comparison of the figurce supeificiales of Bernhard and Samber

of Heinrich Biber's violin music which I undertook as an undergraduate. 1 This

revealed the problems in much of the secondary literature which focused on

individual aspects of the music such as virtuosity or narrative elements, almost

were often approached anachronistically in Biber's music resulting in somewhat

one-sided interpretations of the music. There were important historiographical

extraneous to, but formed an integral part of the rhetorical process.

English-language study of Biber's music to have appeared to date. 2 It quickly

ensemble music which included other instruments in addition to one or more

vocal compositions from time to time in the thesis as appropriate by way of

comparison. It is indeed in the violin music that musical-rhetorical devices are

seemed essential also to include examination of Biber's highly rhetorical written

importance of rhetorical techniques that the dedications display, and also to

music in general as exemplified by these important sources.

I should like to record my indebtedness to all those who have assisted me in

Arcibiskupsk zámek a zahrady v KromëIIi (Archiepiscopal Castle and Gardens

in KromèH, Czech Republic); Dr Ernst Hintermaier of the Erzbischöfliches

Konsistorialarchiv, Salzburg; Fr. Karl Lustenberger OFM Con y, of the

Bibliothek und Archiv, Minoritenkonvent Wien; Frau Christa Ritzinger of the

Salzburger Barockmuseum, Sammiung Rossacher, Salzburg; Dr Rainer

Birkendorf of the Deutsches Musikgeschichtliches Archiv, Kassel; Frau Dr

Frohmut Dangel-Hofmann of the Musiksammlung des Grafen von Schönborn-

Wiesentheid, Wiesentheid; Dr Karl Wilhelm Geck of the Sächsische

Landesbibliothek, Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Dresden; Frau Brigitte

Geyer of the Musikbibliothek der Stadt Leipzig; Dr Helmut Hell of the

Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin Preussischer Kulturbesitz; Frau Barbel Mund of the

Niedersächsische Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek, Gottingen; Frau Uta

Schaumberg of the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, Munich; Mr Hugo Chapman of

Library of Durham Cathedral.

I should like to offer thanks to my supervisor, Dr Geoffrey Chew of the

Department of Music of Royal Holloway, University of London for his

comments and advice, and to my advisor, Dr James Dack of the Department of

my thanks to Professor John Rink, whose support and encouragement were of

William Jones of the Department of German, Royal Holloway, University of

London; Professor Jonathan Powell of the Classics Department, Royal Holloway,

University of London; Professor John L. Flood of the Institute of Germanic

Studies of the University of London School of Advanced Study; Dr John