The Formation of Bach's Motifs: Chapter Two of Andr� Pirro's "L'Esth�tique de Jean-S�bastien Bach"

Abstract

The Formation of Bach's Motifs: Chapter Two of André Pirro's L'Esthétique de Jean-Sébastien Bach Translated byJoeArmstrong A Note fromthe Editor As increasingly in the the study field of as sophisticated, text-music facile.Among relations itis these easy inBach's to are dismiss Albert music early Schweitzer's has ventures become increasingly sophisticated, itis easyto dismissearly ventures in the fieldas facile.Amongtheseare AlbertSchweitzer's J.S. Bachlemusicien poète (1905) andAndrePirro'sL'Esthétique de JeanS ébastien Bach(1907).Of thetwo,Schweitzer's isthebetter known, no doubtbecauseitappearedalmostimmediately inbothGermanand English translations (1908 and 1911, respectively) and has been steadily reprinted sincethen. It is unfortunate thatPirrois so litdeknownin the Englishspeaking world. WhilePirro'sdatesforthecantatas mustbe readwith caution,his commentson themusicareinsightful and wellworth consideration bythemodernreader.In 1957,whenMervynSavill translated AndréPirro's1906biography ofJ.S. Bach,hewrote: André Pirro (1869-1943) isconsidered oneofthemost important figures inthefield ofmusicology ofourtime. Born inSaint-Dizier, France, hestudied lawandletters andattended theorgan classes of CésarFranck attheParisConservatory. Latera member ofthe directing committee ofthe Schola Cantorum, in1912hesucceeded Romain Rolland asProfessor ofMusical History attheSorbonne. Of Pirro, Л Dictionary ofModern Music andMusicians says:"The historic andartistic valueofhisworks andthespirit animating them reveal himas oneofthemoststriking personalities among musicologists." 32 Bach's Motifs 33 Pirro's1906biography on Bach grewoutofhisearly interest in organplaying. The verynextyearhe completedL'esthétique deJeanS ébastien Bachas a dissertation forthe University of Paris.Three subsequentbooks confirmed Pirroas a leaderin modernFrench musicology: Dietrich Buxtehude (Paris, 1913/R),Schiit^ (Paris, 1913/R), and Les claveánistes: étude critique (Paris,1924/R).Otherpublications demonstrate an interest inearly music.The lastandmostsignificant oftheseis Histoire dela musique delafinduXlVe siècle à lafinduXVle (Paris,1940). For a timePirro'sL'Esthétique deJean-Sébastien Bachwas out of print;thenitbecame availableagainin theMinkoff Reprintseries (1973).1WhileSchweitzer's workhas been characterized as overly fanciful andevenconfusing,2 Pirro'sworkhasusually beenpraisedby thosewhoarefamiliar with it.As early as 1909EbenezerProutwrote: It is scarcely saying toomuchto saythat M. Pirroseemsto be acquainted with nearly every barofBach'smusic. Inproof ofthis itmaybe saidthat ofBach's190[sic] church cantatas, no fewer than182areeither quotedin theworkor referred to ina way which proves that theauthor isperfectly familiar with them.3 Now anEnglishtranslation isbeingcompleted byjoeArmstrong. To giveour readersa tasteof Armstrong's workto date,we offer Pirro'ssecondchapter, ofwhichSamuelBaronwrites: Typical ofPirro's methods isa study found inthesecond chapter ofL'Esthétique inwhich theauthor traces a cliché ofword-painting through many examples from different Bachcantatas andthereby reveals thebranching process that takes placeinthecomposer's imagination, a process that travels easily from theactual senseof ]Seereview by Paul Brainard, Early Music 14/4 (1986): 587. 2See, for example, Walter Emery's comments in"Bach's Symbolic Language," Music and betters 30/4 (1949): 345-54. André Pirro's 'inesthétique de Jean-Sébastien Bach"' Monthly Musical Recordé (1909): 53 asquoted inSamuel Baron, "Bach's Text Settings: Schweitzer andPirro Revisited," A Bach Tribute : Essays inHonor ofWilliam H. Scheide , eds.PaulBrainard andRay Robinson (Kassel/Chapel Hill: Bärenreiter/ Hinshaw, 1993), 2'š 34 Bach thewords tothefigurative sense, a process whereby a verbal term may bepictured andinterpreted atthesametime.4 Melvin Unger Pirro: L'Esthétique de Jean-Sébastien Bach Chapter Two: The Formation of Motifs The motifsof tonaland consonantcharacter. - Interpretation of themes composed of repeatednotes, of fragments of scales or arpeggios.- The meaningof alteredintervals. - The themesof distressand horror. - Chromaticmotifs. - Descendingchromatic series in seventeenthcenturyworks. - Despair and being overwhelmed.- Ascending chromaticmotifsand the idea of redemption, oftransfiguration through pain.- Longingandtears. In upon this certain chapter the cases ascending we we will have or study descending seenhow a less the notes apparent meanings thatcomprise element ofmotifs of them. depend interIn upon theascending ordescending notesthatcomprisethem.In this chapterwe will studya less apparentelementof interpretation : therelation ofthemes tothegeneral tonality ofthepassages inwhichthey appear.Whether itsnotesbe scale-wise orseparated by larger intervals, eachmotif canbe appreciated andqualified according tothelawthatcommonly governsnotesfollowing a certain orderof modality orharmony. Indeed,somesonorouscategories existwhere notesare foundin regular groupings, and on each notea majoror minorscalecanbe built inthecustomary organization. Motifs canbe formedin such a way thatthe regularelementsof these scales predominate andthenotessucceedeachotheraccording tothesame pitchesofthattonality, consistendy maintaining consonantrelations amongthemselves. Butthey also canbe constructed very differendy, andthecomposermayfrequendy buildthemfrom altered notesand mix dissonantmelodic intervalsinto them.Therefore, we must considertwo typesof motifs:the first, simple,easy to sing,and somehow seemingnatural;and the second, uneasy,unpleasant sounding, andhavinga harsheffect. 4Baron, "Bach's Text...