Cello Concerto No. 1 (Haydn)
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The Cello Concerto No.1 in C Major by Joseph Haydn was composed around 1761–1765 for longtime friend Joseph Weigl, then the principal cellist of Prince Nicolaus's Esterházy Orchestra.
The work was presumed lost until 1961, that musicologist Oldrich Pulkert, when a copy of the score was discovered in Prague. Though some doubts have been raised about the authenticity of the work, most experts believe that Haydn did compose this concerto.
This early work (it is contemporaneous with symphonies 6, 7 and 8) already shows Haydn as a master of instrumental writing. The solo cello part is thoroughly idiomatic. The concerto reflects the ritournello form of the baroque concerto as well as the emerging structure of the sonata-allegro form. As in the baroque concerto grosso, the accompanying ensemble is small: strings, two oboes, and two horns. It is possible that Weigl was the only cellist in the Esterházy Orchestra when Haydn composed the concerto, since there is only one cello line in the score, marked alternately “solo” and “tutti.” There is also, however, a basso continuo line, that might have been played by another cellist, or by Haydn himself on the harpsichord, or by a string bass player.
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[edit] Movements
All three movements of this work are written in Sonata Form, unlike the Second Concerto, where Rondo Form is used in second and third movements. This Concerto is more related to Haydn's Violin Concerti than its follower, holding very close resemblance to the A major Violin Concerto (No.3, so-called Melker): The first movement's etched rhythms, and flowing second themes, a peaceful slow movement, and a brisk finale. Both concerti were composed in the same period of time.
The soloist’s virtuosity is exploited as soon as the cello enters.
After the orchestral exposition, the solo instrument plays the opening theme with full chords that use all four strings. Virtuosity is developed further in the use of rapidly repeating notes, the very high range, and quick contrasts of register. Haydn entrusted his soloist with a solo cadenza toward the end of the first movement. This movement is dominated by a single theme, although the theme itself includes several motives that Haydn develops separately. Haydn, who was always looking for ways to spice up conventional forms, begins rather sedately here until the cadenza, which includes unusual modulations and virtuosic tricks.
In the slow movement (scored without winds),
the cello enters
dramatically on a long note, played while the orchestral strings relaunch the opening theme. Two measures later the cello goes on to imitate this melody. Haydn was fond of this gesture: several times in the movement the cello enters on a sustained pitch. This movement, like the first, calls for a cadenza toward the end. This lyrical second movement contains a certain pathos we have come to associate more with Mozart than Haydn. It seems entirely likely that the richness of the voice of the solo instrument may have inspired in the composer a more intense emotional outpouring.[1]
The breezy, good-natured finale also has the cello enter on a
long note, after an extended orchestral introduction.
After playing
this tone, the cello seems to get stuck on that pitch, returning to it again and again. This is an early example of Haydn’s sly wit. This spirited Finale, written in sonata allegro form, represented another chance for Haydn to show what he could do in spinning out a single theme into a series of short motives and a large variety of rapidly changing moods. The entire movement is also a real showpiece for the soloist, especially in its rapid, staccato bowings. The virtuosity of the solo instrument is exploited in this movement, especially in passages where the cello alternates rapidly from low to high, so that it seems to be two instruments playing in counterpoint. Haydn uses the sustained-note entrance several times, the final one on a very high, penetrating G.
Keynotes by Jonathan D. Kramer [2]
Haydn's C Major Cello Concerto has become a staple of the cello repertoire, after its 20th century premiere by Milos Sadlo and the Czechoslovak Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Charles Mackerras, on May 19, 1962. Many famous artists, such as Jacqueline du Pré, Yo-Yo Ma, Truls Mørk and Mstislav Rostropovich, have recorded this Concerto.
[edit] Notes
- ^ http://www.bellevuephil.org/concerts/notes-MW-4_07.htm
- ^ Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra Program Notes 113 Edition
[edit] Score
[edit] External links
- Cello Concerto No. 1 was available at the International Music Score Library Project.
