A GUIDE TO DUO AND TRIO PLAYING Studies in historical fingering and pedalling for the organ Jacques van Oortmerssen Professor of Organ, Sweelinck Conservat tory Amsterdam” Lacquer var Oortmonaen Around oryrrmiiuen aydudilen a dint Forme Zoneuiivcnslt Fertchka leattatdvauade Breest, A930. obtober AC. BOEYENGA - SNEEK-HOLLAND Trcen ie IPREFACE "The correct use of the fingers is inseparably related to the whole manner of execution; more is lost through wrong fingering than can be compensated by all conceivable artistry and good taste. C.P.E, Bach, Versuch diber die wahre Art das Klavier zu spielen, 1753. (Chapter 1:4) The purpose of this book, which should not be viewed as a tutor, is to offer study material to those who wish to master the basic elements of the combined use of hands and feet. At the same time this publication is intended to be a handbook for the practical application of historical fingering and pedalling. Perhaps it is better to speak of ‘good’ fingering and pedalling, since they function properly only when they correspond well to the musical structure of the composition, irrespective of the period. The exercises are based on motifs which occur frequently in Baroque music. The choice of fingering has been guided by general 18th-century practice, with occasional alternatives based on an earlier period. | believe that further nuance would cause confusion in the present context. The bibliography (p. 32) will be of assistanée to those wishing to investigate the subject more fully. In writing these exercises | have assumed that the player possesses sufficient manual and pedal technique. | wish to thank Hans van Nieuwkoop and Stephen Taylor for their critical comments and expert advice. Jacques van Oortmerssen, Professor of Organ, Sweelinck Conservator} Amsterdam. May 1986. Edition Boeyenga - Holland (Order address: Kleinzand 165, 8601 BG Sneek - Holland ‘Music engraving and printing: Nirota, Koedijk - Holland ‘Translation: Stephen Taylor ‘Second impression: October 1987 ‘No pert of this publication may be reproduced in any form, by print, photoprint, microfilm or any other means, without written nermissinn fam the nublisher.INTRODUCTION By way of introduction | wish to touch on a number of matters which form the necessary basis for the performance of Baroque music. FINGERING "At the keyboard almost anything can also be played with a wrong fingering, although with prodigious difficulty and awkwardness.” C.P.E. Bach, Versuch, Chapter 1:3. This and other remarks by C.P.E. Bach demonstrate the value attached to good fingering in the 18th century. The application of historical fingering and pedalling serves not only a technical but, in particular, a musical purpose. Early fingering and pedalling are means towards musical expression, assisting articulation, phrasing and the dynamics of each individual note. Earlier systems attempted to exploit to the utmost the specific individual qualities of the fingers. Modern fingering assumes that all fingers are of equal quality. It speaks for itself, therefore, that the evolution of fingering runs parallel to the development of keyboard music. The systém continually underwent change; the 18th century saw significant renewal "Because almost every figure has its own fingering the present-day manner of thinking, so radically different from that of the past, has introduced a new fingering.’ C.P.E. Bach, Versuch, Chapter 1:5. A different method of tuning enabled the execution of music in keys with more sharps and flats, implying increased use of the thumb, especially in scale passages. 'My late father told me that in his youth he had heard great men play who employed their thumbs ‘only when large stretches made it necessary. Because he lived at a time when a gradual but striking change in musical taste was taking place, he was obliged to devise a far more perfect fingering; the thumbs in particular (which, among other good services, are quite indispensable chiefly in the difficult keys) were to be used as nature had intended. Hereby, they rose at once from their former passivity to the rank of principal finger.’ C.P.E, Bach, Versuch, Chapter 1:7. be In the period prior to this renewal a different technique was employed for playing scale passages. A long finger was passed over a short one: for example, the 3rd over the 4th (ascending r.h. or descending |.h.), or the rd over the 2nd (descending r-h, or ascending I.h.). Too many sharps or flats in more adventurous keys meant that this technique could not be applied. In the simpler keys longer fingers were passed over short ones far into the 18th century. TOUCH The basic touch in the Baroque period was a form of legato, described as ‘ordentliches fortgehen’, in which the notes were always separated from one another. The initial speech of a note may never be smothered by the end of its predecessor. The liveliness of the initial speech is essential for the quality of the tone and increases the clarity of the voices. The value of 2 note on paper is never equal to the value of its sound. Each note consists of two parts: 1) the part which is sounded - ‘tenue’; 2) the part which is not sounded - ‘silence d’articulation’. The relation between these two is variable and dependent on the accent pattern implied by the time signature, and the character of the composition. ‘An accentuated note has shorter ‘silence d’articulation’ than an unaccentuated note. ctenue rsilence> > Ltotal value of the note, accentuated noteTECHNIQUE By Keeping the hand as stil as possible and maintaining a perfect contact between finger and key, it is possible to realise to the utmost the three phases of the touch: attack - sustain - release. The hand is moved chiefly at the moments when the musical figures succeed one another position playing’). Where the figures are identical, the same fingering is used as far as possible, ‘If he understands true fingering and has not acquired the habit of making unnecessary gestures, he will play the most difficult things in such a manner that the motion of his hands will be barely noticeable; in particular, one will hear that it is easy for him too." C.P.E. Bach, Versuch, Chapter 1:12. FINGER SUBSTITUTION Finger substitution was unusual until far into the 18th century. F. Couperin recommended it for the harpsichord in certain cases; C.P.E. Bach was not at all happy with this and only permitted the technique on long notes and where no other possibility was available. When each hand plays a single voice substitution is certainly completely superfluous and obstructive; it impedes control of the attack and does not encourage a good deportment of the hand. PEDALLING The first sources concerning pedalling date from the second half of the 18th century. With a Probability approaching certainty one can claim that in the Baroque period toe-pedalling was primarily employed ‘The toe, comparable to the tip of the finger, is the most suitable part of the foot for executing the complex attack procedure with great precision, USE OF THIS PUBLICATION ~_ Indications for articulation and tempo have been purposely avoided in this edition. They should be chosen in accordance with the principles adhered to in the Baroque period Concerning registration, ! would refer to the Baroque trio registrations known to us (see for instance, G.F. Kaufmann, Harmonische Seelenlust, 1733). 3 Baroque trio registrations are imitations of the instrumental trio. 8" stops are most’ suitable for the imitation of strings, wind-instruments or a combination of the two. The pedal is usually based on 16° pitch. ‘The abbreviations |.h., r.h. and ped. in this edition stand for left-hand, right-hand and pedal respectively. A fingering in brackets, for instance (3), indicates an alternative. ~ To avoid confusion, fingering is also given for all tied notes. The manual part in the duos has fingering for both the right- and left-hand, It is recommended that use of these exercises should be as creative as possible. Some suggestions: ‘transposition (including octave transposition with adaptation of the stop pitch), addition of ‘ornaments and the introduction of rhythmic variation (inégalité, for instance).SSK EK nN o 34 3 152 asty Im2104 4 gn2 310 he fer ten bet be ol== 4ases = zy a181618 Bias Cv AYA—— ==" *21 fl — >wy i i is24q26og wergs e ye Ft30BIBLIOGRAPHY Carl Ph. E. Bach Versuch aber die wahre Art das Clavier zu spielen. Berlin 1753. Facs. Leipzig, 3rd impression 1976 English translation, Cassell & Co, Ltd., London 1949, Friedrich W. Marpurg Anleitung zum Clavierspielen - Facs. Hildesheim 1970 (Reprint of the 2nd improved impression, Berlin 1765.) Johann S. Petri Anleitung zur praktischen Musick. Lauban 1767, Facs. Gieburg 1969. Quentin Faulkner 4.8. Bach's Keyboard Technique: A Historical Introduction. Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis 1984. Ludger Lohmann Studien zu Artikulationsproblemen bei den Tasteninstrumenten des 16. - 18. Jahrhunderts. Gustav Bosse Verlag, Regensburg 1982.1 i I I I I l | | | 1 10, 19. 32, COMMENTARY Figures in thirds, in whatever form, are played preferably wih the 2* and 4 fingers. The 2%, 39 and 4 fingers are employed for a third, which is fled in (tierce coulée). Where the figures'are Union, 28 inthis exercise, the fingering should also be as unfomn as posable, Accareful approach 20 fhe aculaton ' of grat importance in these exercises. | would point otc arfcular the Such a fundamental role (see preface). It is important here to use the 3 finger, just as the other {00d fingers" 1 and 5, as much as possible on the “good” (accentuated) beats of the bar i the 3° finger folows the 4, the fingers shoukin' he crossed, the entie reac should be quickly ‘minimum amount of movement. In the Baroque period this technique is employed in particular in laying scales (see exs 10, 15, 26) [ES fngeting often gies rise to an inoomect, cricatue-ike articulation, The reason for this is a legato touch between the 3% and the 4 fingers and the large space cores by the 3° finger Figaro This can be avoided by carefuly articulating the frst note or the group (3 finger). The 3 and 4* fngers are aricuiated aimost dentally, Shifing the hand is then suffcient {0 obtain a natural accentuation on the fst note ofeach group. ne should not spread the fingers for big leaps, but shit the entke hand, (see ex 3) Zhe first of each pair of qaurers is good, accentuated and thus longer than the second one, which 's bad, unaocentuaied and shorter, The terms shorter and longer can cause Confusion here, It has ‘The changing of fingers on repeated notes, already seen in ‘Comparable situations in very early Sources, can be very useful here. Finally | would point out that a distinction between repeated and lunrepeated notes arise only at the fingers @, 3,4) nthe r. 4. the same finger can be used tw h eucencr since a rest must be bserved a the moment indicated by the dot. Again the deviations rine fingering are caused by the upper keys. A very useful altematve for his exercise based on the fierce coulée fingering. In pieces in which bolh hands pay the same figures, a symmetcalfngerg fs highly vatsole son technically and musically