Dialogue of the keys II

TC: As a professor of harpsichord and basso continuo, you are naturally called upon to tell us a few illuminating words about the genesis of this bass line. Was it an invention of the early Baroque, or do similar compositional patterns already exist in the Renaissance, before 1600?

JAB: You mean the basso continuo as the lowest line of a baroque composition? – That is an exciting question. Towards the end of the 16th century, a bass consciousness developed more and more, i.e. the floating and the equality of the individual voices changed in favor of a more bass and chord oriented way of listening and writing. The first continuous bass lines around 1600 simply follow the lowest voices of a composition as the so-called basso seguente, which then became the basso continuo. Gradually, composers began to consciously conceive such lines and use them as a basis for accompaniment.

TC: In your numerous CD recordings, it is noticeable that you have gladly and frequently dealt with unknown composers of early music. This was certainly not only curiosity, but also rediscovered quality of old works. For the layman, the question arises: how does the connoisseur distinguish the rightly lost from the wrongly forgotten music? Are there objective criteria for this?

JAB: First of all, a childlike curiosity and an unbiased interest in research leads me to the sources and to the libraries. Studying the manuscripts or prints then reveals relatively quickly which pieces immediately appeal and which may seem foreign. Often, however, the exciting lies in the strange, which can only develop its implicit effect with a careful approach to understanding and interpretation. Objective criteria do exist (e.g., analysis of form and composition, aspects of rhetoric, originality), but without the subjective capacity for enthusiasm and mediation, many of the pieces would still be languishing in the archives today.

TC: Elias N. Ammerbach, the German organist of the April program, is considered the first editor of a printed collection of organ music. His somewhat older “almost-named cousin” from Basel, Bonifacius Amerbach, also published an organ tablature book, the “Codex Amerbach”: Now who was the first? Did they know about each other?

JAB: In purely chronological terms, Bonifacius Amerbach (1495-1562) of Basel was the first. His collection originated as a manuscript in the first third of the 16th century. A generation later, St. Thomas organist Elias Nikolaus (1530-1597) had his tablature book (1571) lavishly printed in new German organ tablature in Leipzig. In terms of the reception of the music, it was probably the better known for a long time; J. S. Bach also owned two copies of this print. I don’t know if they knew each other. The print was published only after Bonifacius’ death, and before that the Leipzig Ammerbach had not made a big appearance. It is conceivable, however, that conversely Elias Nikolaus had already heard of Bonifacius as a jurist, composer and humanist. His manuscripts, however, are almost exclusively in the Basel UB.

TC: In the last 40 years, the study, but also the performance practice and frequency of baroque music has experienced an enormous upswing – popularity that has also brought many a baroque opera to the world’s great stages. Do the rich treasures of Renaissance music flourish in a similar scenario, or is the more intimate pre-1600 music reserved for a niche audience?

JAB: I would differentiate a bit. In almost every music there are more intimate and extroverted pieces and styles. But Renaissance music certainly requires a more specialized approach, both for the performers in terms of instruments and playing techniques, and for the listeners. I can quickly grasp a drinking song or a Saltarello dance and let myself be carried away, but the subtle beauty of a Josquin motet or the refinement of an organ diminution can only be understood after a certain preparation, initiation or mediation. I think it’s wonderful that with your ReRenaissance concert series you’ve opened new doors for many in Basel in this regard!