=Oratorio in Italy after Carissimi=.—After the beginning made by
Carissimi, the next work of importance in Oratorio is that of
=Alessandro Scarlatti=, who established the Aria form as explained in
the study of the Opera. The composers of the Italian school of the
last part of the 17th and the early part of the 18th century used
practically the same methods in Opera and Oratorio, the difference
being mainly in the character of the text, and in the earnestness or
religious feeling of the composer. Scarlatti is also signalized by
his improvements in the Recitative, which resulted in several forms
made use of by his successors, _Recitativo Secco_ and Accompanied
Recitative. He wrote ten oratorios. Contemporaries whose work should
be mentioned are =Antonio Caldara= (1678-1763) and =Leonardo Leo=
(1694-1746), a pupil of Scarlatti, who wrote nearly a hundred works for
the church, the chief one being the oratorio, _Santa Elena al Calvario_
and a _Miserere_ for a double choir. He was strong in his writing for
chorus, making splendid use of the fugal style. Another contemporary of
the first rank was =Alessandro Stradella= (1645-1681), whose oratorio,
_San Giovanni Battista_ (St. John the Baptist) is a most beautiful
work. It contains a free treatment of the accompanying instruments,
the arias are clear and well-designed, the chorus writing for five
parts is effective as well as ingenious, and the work as a whole shows
considerable power of dramatic expression, forming a sort of transition
between Scarlatti and Handel. Stradella is said to have been a pupil of
Carissimi.
=Oratorio in Germany=.—In Oratorio as in Opera, the style spread to
other countries, there, in the case of the Oratorio, ultimately to
find a more congenial home; for the Oratorio, in Italy after the time
of Stradella, seemed to lose hold on composers and public. The latter
did not grasp the fact that the Oratorio had within it one element,
the chorus, to give to it a definite individuality. They submitted to
the public’s preference for solo singing and made up their oratorios
largely of conventional arias—thus inviting comparison with the Opera,
and reserved their writing in choral form for their works for the
Church service, such as psalms, magnificats, masses and motets. In
Germany, the attitude of the people toward religious music, doubtless
owing to the Reformation as well as to the serious nature of the
people, was much more favorable than in Italy. This temperament is
shown by the fact that when German composers cast about for themes
for their oratorios they seemed to choose the story of the Passion.
The oldest example of the German Oratorio is “The Resurrection of
Christ,” written by =Heinrich Schuetz= (1585-1672), a pupil of Giovanni
Gabrieli, which was produced at Dresden in 1623. The narrative portions
were committed almost entirely to the chorus. We mention also a setting
of the Passion, by =Johann Sebastiani=, published in 1672, which
contains interspersed chorales, sung as arias by one voice with violin
accompaniment, and by =Reinhard Keiser= (1674-1739).
=Use of the Chorale=.—A step in advance was taken when German composers
began to use the chorale of the German Protestant Church as the
subject for contrapuntal elaboration, a tendency shown in the work
of Sebastiani referred to in the preceding paragraph. The Chorale
had absorbed into itself the spirit of the Volkslied, and its use
supplied the medium for the public to enter fully into the spirit of
the oratorio. Two composers who developed the “Passion Music” idea to
its height, =Karl Heinrich Graun= (1701-1759) and =Johann Sebastian
Bach=, made the Chorale an integral part of their works. The greatest
work in oratorio form written by Graun was called _Der Tod Jesu_ (The
Death of Jesus), which was first produced in the Cathedral at Berlin in
1755. This work consists of recitatives, airs and choruses, the fugal
treatment of the latter being admirable in point of clearness of design
and breadth of form. Graun used in this oratorio six chorales. _Der Tod
Jesu_, owing to a bequest, is still given in Berlin.
=Bach=.—The greatest of all the settings of the Passion are those by
=Johann Sebastian Bach= (1685-1750). The first work in this style by
Bach was the one according to “St. John,” in 1723, first performed on
Good Friday, 1724, at Leipzig. This work, fine as it is, must yield to
the second setting, according to “St. Matthew,” first produced on Good
Friday, 1729, afterward revised and given again in 1740. A few notes
on the “Passion according to St. Matthew” will serve for both works.
The characters introduced are Jesus, Judas, Peter, Pilate, the Apostles
and the People. Certain reflections on the narrative are interpreted
by a chorus. The text which furnishes the narrative is assigned to
the principal tenor. Fifteen chorales of the Lutheran Church are
introduced, and in the singing of these the general congregation
was expected to join. The choruses contain powerful and dramatic
vocal effects, and though not strictly fugal are intricate in their
part-writing. A double chorus is used, each chorus having a separate
orchestra and organ accompaniment. The performance of this work (St.
Matthew Passion) was restricted to Leipzig in the 18th century, and was
discontinued altogether in the 19th until Mendelssohn revived it in
1829. It is given very frequently at the present day during the Lenten
season, in part or in full. The “Christmas Oratorio” (1734) is really
a series of cantatas for each of the first days of the Christmas week,
and contains no new ideas so far as form is concerned.
=Stabat Mater=.—In connection with the “Passion” reference should
be made to the Latin hymn, “Stabat Mater,” which has been made the
subject of treatment in oratorio form, by =Palestrina=, =Giovanni
Battista Pergolesi= (1710-1736) for soprano and contralto accompanied
by strings and organ, =Emanuele d’Astorga= (1681-1736) for four
voices with instrumental accompaniment, the more modern work, in
large form, by =Gioacchino Rossini= (1792-1868), most beautiful as
music if partaking too much, as critics say, of the sensuous, and the
magnificent setting of =Antonin Dvořák= (1841-1904). This work has been
placed, by musicians and the public, in the category of the world’s
masterpieces of choral writing.
=George Friedrich Handel= (1685-1759).—We now come to Bach’s
contemporary, the greatest name in the history of the Oratorio, to
the composer who brought to his work a musical learning equal to that
of Bach, German earnestness and mastery of contrapuntal science,
tempered by knowledge of and experience in Italian vocal methods,
producing simple, clear melody supported by rich, firm harmonies, a
complete mastery of the orchestra of the day, a clear understanding
of the value of the chorus in working out dramatic effects; and this
combination was offered a congenial field for labor in England, one
of the great Protestant countries of Europe, with a deep reverence
for religion and for the narratives of the Bible and the truths and
lessons they enforce. This latter point is strikingly present in the
texts of Handel’s oratorios; the symbolic meaning of the narrative is
clearly indicated and made the central thought of the work, producing
a remarkable effect of Unity. As a writer has said: “Handel preaches
through the voices of his chorus.” The orchestra for which Handel
wrote was smaller than the full orchestra to which we are accustomed
today. The proportion of string players to the whole number of players
was smaller, but on the other side, more than two oboes and bassoons
were used; flutes were most frequently used as solo instruments or to
double the part of the oboes; the clarinet Handel never used, doubtless
because of its imperfections, which were not remedied until later;
the brass instruments used were trumpets with kettle drums for their
natural bass, horns and the three trombones, alto, tenor and bass;
other instruments of a soft-voiced quality, like the harp, viola da
gamba, were occasionally used for obligato accompaniments. The organ
was always used, the part being written according to the figured bass
system, and the harpsichord was used by the conductor. The reader who
is able to analyze one of Handel’s oratorio scores will be surprised to
note the superb effects he makes with comparatively small resources.
Compared with the polyphonic writing of his predecessors and his great
contemporary, Bach, his fugues seem light and simple, but that very
thing gives them their admirable clearness and purity; compared with
later works, his diatonic progressions and harmonies based on common
chords seem colorless, especially so in contrast with the kaleidoscopic
chromatic figures and strongly dissonant harmonies of the newer school;
yet in this point is the strength of Handel’s works with the public;
simplicity is valued more highly than complexity, naturalness rather
than the indications of science.
Handel wrote seventeen works that can be classed as oratorios. The
first of these was “Esther,” in 1720, revised and brought out anew
in 1732. In 1733 “Deborah,” perhaps best-known for a powerful double
chorus, was offered to the public; “Athaliah” in the same year. In
1739 came “Saul” and “Israel in Egypt,” the former best-known today
for its famous “Dead March,” the latter for the music descriptive of
the plagues. In 1741, he wrote his greatest oratorio “The Messiah,”
which was first performed publicly, April 13, 1742, in Dublin. In this
we find a certain reflective character which recalls the Passion music
of the German school. The only other oratorio which is still given in
anything like entirety is “Judas Maccabæus” (1747); other works from
which certain portions are still in use are “Samson” (1743), “Solomon”
(1749), “Theodora” (1750), a work which Handel considered his best, and
“Jephtha” (1752). Great as was Handel’s fame in England, the character
of his works and the forms he used made little or no impression upon
German and Italian composers. =Johann Adolph Hasse= (1699-1783),
=Niccolo Porpora= (1686-1767), =Antonio Sacchini= (1734-1786),
=Giovanni Paisiello= (1741-1816), =Niccolo Jommelli= (1714-1774)
and =Pietro Guglielmi= (1727-1804) wrote in the Italian style, and
their works are, properly speaking, concert oratorios, scarcely
distinguishable from the opera save by the text.
=Franz Joseph Haydn=.—The next name of importance is that of Haydn
(1732-1809), who wrote “The Creation” and “The Seasons” toward the
end of a long life, after his work as a composer had given him a
command of musical resources excelled only by Beethoven, who did not
equal him in skill in writing effectively and suitably for voices. It
was in 1798 that “The Creation” was first given in Vienna. The score
abounds in effective writing for the solo voices, in the florid style
and in the conventional aria form, and in brilliant choruses which,
however, cannot compare in dignity and breadth with those of Handel.
The orchestral accompaniments are much more elaborate than those used
by Handel, as can naturally be expected from a composer who had given
his greatest efforts to the development of instrumental music. “The
Seasons” was first performed in Vienna in 1801. It proved as successful
as “The Creation.” Haydn’s simple, genial nature is apparent in this
beautiful work, really too light to bear the name of oratorio, which
has such close association with works of a deep, religious character.
=Mozart and Beethoven=.—As the orchestra developed under the masters
of tone and dramatic effects, Mozart, Gluck and Beethoven, so the
works in oratorio form took on a different texture. In the earlier
periods, the accompaniments were subordinate, the interest was centred
in the voices. But as composers realized the possibilities of the
constantly-improving orchestra and the opportunities for effective
combinations of voices and instruments, the tendency became more and
more marked to elaborate the instrumental parts and to create an
ensemble more complicated and gorgeous, based upon the orchestra and
its tone-color scheme rather than on pure vocal effects. =Mozart’s=
“Requiem” (1791), written just before the composer’s death, brings
into use the most powerful dramatic resources of orchestra and voices
to portray the spirit of the “mass for the dead.” In oratorio, as
in opera, =Beethoven= wrote but one work, “The Mount of Olives”
(1803). The style is florid and operatic, somewhat in the style of
the Italian composers; the resources of the orchestra are drawn upon
more extensively than marked the methods of Haydn. The chorus is
freely used, the “Hallelujah” being the strongest movement. The choral
movements in the Ninth Symphony suggest what Beethoven might have done
had he set himself to writing an oratorio in greater submission to the
capacity of the human voice.
=Spohr=.—From now on, oratorio composition is associated with the
masters of instrumental music, the orchestra is drawn upon for
its richest and most powerful resources to work out the emotional
and dramatic qualities of the texts; it is now no longer a mere
accompanying instrument; it is in the highest degree essential to
the effects designed by the composer. =Ludwig Spohr= (1784-1859), a
great violinist, wrote his first oratorio, “_Das Jüngste Gericht_”
(The Last Judgment), when he was but twenty-eight years old. A later
work produced in 1826, goes by the English name “The Last Judgment,”
although that is not the literal translation of the German title _Die
Letzten Dinge_. In this work we find the romantic idea clearly in
evidence. The composer’s style had been developed and individualized
by his long experience as player and conductor; he was a master of the
resources of instrumentation, conversant both as composer and conductor
with the limitations of voices—he wrote a number of operas—so that
he was prepared for the creation of a work which has a character of
its own. A striking feature of this oratorio is the frequent use of
chromatic progressions, which is indeed a characteristic of Spohr’s
writing.
=Mendelssohn=.—The next great composer in Oratorio was a German; like
him also his works had their greatest reception in England, =Felix
Mendelssohn Bartholdy= (1809-1847). His first work, “St. Paul,” was
given at Düsseldorf in 1836. His greatest oratorio, one that ranks with
Handel’s “Messiah” in public favor, is “Elijah,” which was written for
the Birmingham, England, Festival. It was first produced in 1846. As
a diligent and enthusiastic student of Bach, it seems natural that
Mendelssohn should have adopted the great master’s methods. In style
“St. Paul” and “Elijah” show leanings toward Bach and the German
oratorio rather than toward Handel. Mendelssohn, who produced Bach’s
“Passion according to St. Matthew” in Berlin, in 1827, was thoroughly
familiar with the plan of the German oratorio, a mingling of narrative,
dramatic and meditative or reflective elements, and especially the
Chorale to represent the Church, the chorus being, properly speaking,
a part of the _dramatis personæ_, representing masses of people who
share in the action, while the congregation represents the reflective
element. He uses a fugal style quite freely in his choruses, but a
strict fugue, in the style of Handel, is rare, as the composer’s
feeling for emotional effects demands a freer style; the accompaniments
are elaborate, partaking of the dramatic element and drawing upon
the fullest resources of the orchestra. Mendelssohn had started the
composition of another oratorio, “Christus,” on the lines of the
“Passion” music of Bach, but died before the work was completed. His
“Hymn of Praise” (1840), a large choral work that is occasionally sung,
well represents Mendelssohn’s skill in combining vocal and orchestral
effect. Riemann calls it a symphony-cantata, Parry says it “combines
the qualities of a symphony and of an oratorio.”