The start of a new academic year seems an appropriate time to introduce new guest writers and several exciting new series.
Regular readers will no doubt know harpsichordist and teacher Katharine May, who has already contributed a couple of very well-received posts to this blog. She is now compiling a series, adding to her popular article ‘Harpsichord Basics’, which you can read here. Katharine’s posts will be styled in a teaching notes format: she will select works of various levels, play the piece and offer interpretative ideas as well as technical suggestions. She begins with a charming elementary work by Henry Purcell.
Prelude in G major from Suite No 1 Z.660 (1696)
If you’re looking for some lovely yet relatively simple pieces to get you started on the harpsichord then the wonderful 17th century English composer Henry Purcell (1659-1695) has so much to offer. Full of variety and musical interest, his works for the harpsichord includes A Choice Collection of Lessons for the Harpsichord or Spinet, comprising eight suites which were published by Purcell`s widow Frances, in 1696, a year after the composer`s death. A second volume contains a variety of miscellaneous single dance movements and settings of popular tunes. They capture the essence of many baroque dances in a succinct and compelling way, enabling the player to learn about historical performance practices without being too technically demanding.
Assuming you already have an elementary knowledge of note reading, rhythm and coordination from your piano studies why not start with the gently flowing Prelude from the Suite no 1 in G major Z 660, previously set as an ABRSM Grade 1 piece. The idea of a prelude grew from the French lutenists of the 17th century who would often improvise a little piece before playing a longer composition comprising several varied movements. Its purpose was to check the instrument`s tuning and warm up his or her fingers.
This piece is in 2 time (note the alla breve time signature) so it`s important to keep the tempo flowing once notes are secure – aim for minim=c52, though some flexibility within this is stylish. Notice the many triad shapes that feature in each hand and use the standard 1-3-5 fingering wherever possible. Quavers should generally be kept legato, slightly overholding each chord pattern to increase resonance – keep fingers close to the keys and release gently when you reach a rest, to avoid blurring one harmony into another. Varying the length of some notes on the harpsichord is an essential expressive tool and can help to shape phrases. For instance, slightly lengthening the first right-hand note will give it a little more importance and is a pattern that can be repeated, often to highlight important structural places: bar 5 marks the start of the second phrase so the first right hand C can also be slightly lengthened, while bar 6 introduces an inversion of the right-hand opening figure, so here, the first G can be a little longer too. The phrase from bar 8 leads to the final cadence so lengthen the right-hand B at the beginning of this bar and articulate the right -hand quavers in groups of four. Note the overlapping left-hand notes at this point and keep these really sustained. Some articulation over the bar-lines (between single quavers and those in groups of four) is stylish and will give harmonic clarity. These articulations are in fact miniscule – try practising moving in the right hand from a G to an A as smoothly as possible with the same finger to hear how this ideally should sound.
The ornament found on the 3rd and 4th beat of bar 9, the penultimate bar, (a plain note and shake) begins with an appoggiatura A which should be a quaver in length, followed by a 3-note mordent (to occupy the 2nd and 3rd quaver beat) and finished by the final F# quaver, as follows:
Overhold all the notes in the final bar as indicated, lengthening the right-hand G before continuing with the rest of the downward chord, gradually slowing down as you go.
You can download the score, here.
And listen to my performance on YouTube by clicking the link below:
