Alessandro Scarlatti’s St John Passion was the first to be composed in 17th-century Italy. Scarlatti’s handling of the Evangelist (a mezzo soprano) is very unique and moving. The voice of Christ (bass) is haloed by strings. In this version, Leonardo García Alarcón incorporates three meditations for choir that come from Scarlatti’s little-known polyphonic responsories for Holy Week.
A style of his own
Alessandro Scarlatti’s St John Passion is radical. His compositional technique was opposite to what was being done on the Neapolitan stage at the time. Scarlatti’s voices do not have the brilliance of Veneziano’s, but they are rich in pathos and expressiveness, thanks to the intimate rapport between text and sound.
“The Latin text of Scarlatti’s Passio secundum Joannem and Veneziano’s Passio secundum Joannem follows the Gospel of John (18, 19-37) to the letter. The main characters are the Testo (i.e. the Evangelist, contralto), Christ (bass) and Pilate (tenor), along with the Crowd. The Testo’s part consists of declamation accompanied by basso continuo alone, except for the beginning and end of the oratorio, which act as a musical framework. The opening in the strings, which is then taken up by the Testo, is astonishing for the immediacy of its expressive power. It is like a switch that triggers a light charged with emotion, in perfect harmony with the Gospel narrative. […] The dramatic effect is all the more striking due to the young composer’s restrained compositional approach.” – Luca Della Li
The figure of Christ is treated musically in highly intense passages that feature short phrases with an expressive melodic profile. All of Christ’s interventions are marked as “Largo” and sometimes “Dolce”, which contrasts with the Crowd’s lively and agitated homophonic ensembles. Christ’s role is characterized by “gravitas”, a posture that is typical of sovereigns who refuse to break down in the face of adversity, as Ursula Kirkendale puts forward in a 2007 article.
The Crowd’s first appearance is a brief homophonic incision, responding to Christ’s ‘Quem quaeritis? (“Whom do you seek?”) with ‘Jesum Nazarenum’ (“Jesus of Nazareth”). Its lines are discreetly enriched by the strings. A sombre atmosphere hangs over the first section. Christ’s melodic gestures all descend, almost always in conjunct motion. Scarlatti builds upon them to create moments of great pathos through delays, such as the ninth on “Sinite hos abire”. The Crowd’s brief choral interventions convey the aggressive tone of the text through homorhythmic writing and syllabic singing. Scarlatti’s style comes through in the relationship between the voices and instruments. The latter do not simply double the vocal lines, but are autonomous parts that considerably enrich the timbre as a whole. […]
Luca Della Li
Our partners
This recording was made with the support of the Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles
