Romantic Traditions in Alessandro Longo's Piano Cycles

Maidanevich Tamara Leonidovna Associate Professor, Department of Music Education, Moscow State Institute of Culture 6 Shturvalnaya str., Moscow, 125364, Russia Tlm_2@rambler.ru Other publications by this author

The piano cycle of the non-sonate type occupies an important place in the musical culture of Western Europe of the XIX century. The traditions of the implementation of this genre, which have developed in the works of F. Chopin, R. Schumann, F. Liszt, have been continued in the piano works of European composers.

The rapid development of piano concert performance at the end of the 19th century contributed to the activation of the work of Italian piano composers who created works in this genre, which was in demand in the professional and amateur environment of that time. Among them are Ferruccio Busoni, Alessandro Longo, Franco Alfano and others. In their work, they continued the traditions laid down by their predecessors in the field of instrumental music, including the implementation of the romantic model of the piano cycle.

The instrumental culture of Italy, after its rise in the Baroque era, was in the historical shadow of the opera genre in the 19th century due to its unprecedented flourishing. Later, the characteristic qualities of Italian vocal art largely manifested themselves in instrumental genres, which were actively developed at the end of the century. Continuing the national traditions, they were enriched with those qualities that Italian culture as a whole was famous for: melodiousness, melodism, emotional saturation, elements of theatricalization. 

Alessandro Longo (1864-1945) was a famous Italian pianist, composer, and teacher. His fate is connected with Naples, where he studied and then taught at the Conservatory of San Pietro a Maiella. Since 1897, A. Longo held the position of professor at this educational institution, and in the last year and a half of his life – director. As a pianist, he most often performed with various chamber ensembles.

In Italy, as in other countries, conferences are regularly held to mark the anniversaries of famous composers. The materials of scientific meetings are reflected in publications covering the most important and relevant issues. Thus, the 50th anniversary of the death and the 130th anniversary of the birth of Alessandro Longo was dedicated to the international conference "Alessandro Longo: l'uomo, il suo tempo, la sua opera" ("Alessandro Longo: a man, his time, his work"), which in December 1995 brought together leading musicologists, engaged in the study of the composer's legacy. In 2001, a collection of articles was published ^[1] summarizing the issues discussed at this forum. They can be grouped into several groups that characterize the problem areas that are most important for the study of Italian musicologists. Scientists discussed the problems of pianism, the peculiarities of the Italian piano school at the turn of the XIX – XX centuries ^[2], highlighted the work of A. Longo on the publication of sonatas by Domenico Scarlatti ^{[3, 4]}, the composer's vocal work, the connection with the Neapolitan tradition ^[5]. Two articles are devoted to the consideration of instrumental compositions in this publication: the report by Antonio Rostagno ^[6] was aimed at highlighting chamber instrumental music at the turn of the XIX and XX centuries, in which the influence of the Neapolitan tradition is revealed; Luca Aversano ^[7] focused on the works of A. Longo for violin and piano. Within the framework of this conference, as in other publications of foreign musicologists, the problem of the implementation of the genre of the piano cycle and its connection with romantic stylistics in the work of Alessandro Longo did not attract the attention of scientists.

The authoritative study by S. N. Bogoyavlensky "Italian music of the first half of the XX century" ^[8] briefly highlights the work of such Italian composers as O. Respighi, I. Pizzetti, J. F. Malipiero, A. Casella. The legacy of A. Longo is not considered in this publication, as well as in other works of Russian authors, to one degree or another devoted to the study of Italian musical culture ^{[9, 10]}.

A significant part of Alessandro Longo's piano work consists of piano cycles of a non-sonate type.  According to R. G. Shitikova, "the genre is a kind of emotional-acoustic code that programs the consciousness of the recipient – composer, performer, listener for a certain type of content and the way it is implemented" ^{[11, p. 40]}. A. Longo's piano cycles continue the romantic traditions, especially of R. Schumann. Referring to the idea of P. I. Tchaikovsky that the whole second half of the XIX century is the Schumann era, and developing this belief, K. V. Zenkin in the article "Romanticism as a historical and cultural revolution" notes that it was during its maturity (1830-40s) that Romanticism "reaches the highest degree of individualization of style, in particular in comparison with which the music of the 1850s and 1890s is a development and a detailed "development"" ^{[12, p. 13]}. And in this regard, A. Longo's cycles are quite indicative.

Alessandro Longo's creative legacy includes suite-type piano cycles, among which are "Five Leaves from the Album" (Op.1), "Six Light Pieces for Piano" (Op. 7), "Romantic Suite" (Op.14), "Lyrical Album" (Op. 16), "12 terts Etudes for piano" (Op. 35), "6 sextological etudes" (Op.42), "40 melodic etudes" (Op.43), "6 octave etudes" (Op.48), "30 small romantic etudes" (Op. 80).

The fixation of the opus numbers indicates that the composer turned to this genre throughout his life.

The title of some cycles directly emphasizes their belonging to the romantic style: "Romantic Suite", "30 little romantic sketches". The genre definitions include the word "album": "Album leaves", "Lyrical album", which is also a characteristic sign of the age of romantics.

The name of a number of cycles "etudes" can be explained both by the focus on practicing certain technical skills (playing in parallel thirds, sexts, octaves), and by the miniaturization, sketchiness of the forms of the pieces included in the cycles. The appeal to piano miniatures is extremely significant in the era of romanticism.

One of the most striking compositions in terms of the problem posed is the piano cycle "30 little romantic etudes" Op. 80. It clearly shows the connection with the romantic traditions of building a cycle, but at the same time innovative trends are revealed, formed under the influence of some national and individual author's characteristics.

30 small romantic etudes Op. 80 is a scattering of piano miniatures, diverse in genre terms, as well as in terms of reflected images and moods. Almost all of them are written in a simple three-part form, in some cases with repeated parts. The brevity of the pieces allows pianists to perform this cycle completely uncut.

In this case, an etude is not so much a genre associated with the development of technical techniques for improving virtuoso skill, as a sketch, sketch, sketch.

Each of the plays has a specific name, and you can even find a plot outline in their sequence. The cycle is tonally open, which is often found in the works of romantic composers: it begins in the key of C-dur, and ends in d-moll. The predominant key is C-dur, the transition from one piece to another is quite smooth. Only two rooms are significantly removed from the main one and its surroundings: No. 22 (es-moll) and No. 23 (Ges-dur). In general, the tonal plan of the cycle is logical. A number of plays form microcycles due to their certain similarity.

In this change of genres, images, moods, and at the same time in creating a vivid holistic picture, the composer's great skill is manifested.

In the organization of the cycle, we note some features. Conciseness and kaleidoscopic in recreating various paintings, life collisions, impressions, the possibility of performing this work by young musicians – all this brings it closer to such piano cycles as, for example, Schumann's "Album for Youth" and Tchaikovsky's "Children's Album".  The work consists of completed, small independent plays, each of which vividly illustrates one or another image, and at the same time, a certain logic is felt in the sequence of numbers, reaching programming: the first three numbers are a joyful morning greeting with the indispensable good news (No. 1 "Morning Greeting", No. 2 "Happy Message", No. 3 "Joyful moment"); a gracefully dancing lady (No. 4 "Lady dancing") is replaced by a frisky "Marching Soldier" (No. 5) to the accompaniment of drumming (No. 6 "Drum roll"). In the second half of the cycle, a number of plays are associated with autumn sketches: harvesting (No. 18 "Harvest Song") is accompanied by a playful, cheerful mood of the participants of the event (No. 19 "Joke"), turns into an energetic picture of hunting (No. 20 "Hunting"), which is replaced by a "Pastoral scene" (No. 21) with the following "Mournful Song" (No. 22), obviously characterizing a boring autumn picture, interrupted by the melodious chime of bells (No. 23 "Melodious Chime") and continuing in another equally "Sad Song" (No. 24), the expressiveness of which is enhanced by a touching statement appearing behind it with specific romantic descending low-second moves that mimic the intonation of a sigh. By a sudden contrast, burlesque (No. 25 "Burlesque") bursts into this autumn-sad atmosphere with its characteristic cheerful, playful character.

Among the plays, there are often humorous, scherzo-dancing ones (№№7, 11, 17, 19, 26), perhaps drawing children's fun and whims (No. 12 "Capricious"). In terms of genre, a number of dance numbers stand out: farandola (No. 28), waltz (No. 29). Signs of the etude can be found in such plays as "Rotation" (No. 10), "Scherzo" (No. 11), "Farandola" (No. 28), "Legend" (No. 30).

A characteristic feature of this piano cycle is the beauty and grace of the melodic lines of most pieces, their vocal origin is often emphasized by the accompaniment characteristic of songs in the form of harmonic or rhythmic figuration. The vocal nature is also found in the titles: "Romance" (No. 13), "Chant" (No. 16), "Harvest Song" (No. 18), "Mournful Song" (No. 22), "Sad Song" (No. 24), "Little Duet" (27).

          Another feature is manifested in the presence of elements of theatricalization, as evidenced, for example, by the introduction of the word "scene" in the title of the play: "Pastoral scene", or literally visualizable described actions in the plays "Dancing Lady", "Marching Soldier", "Hunting".

The piano cycle entitled "40 Melodic Etudes" Op. 43 contains short pieces, also limited to a simple form. They don't have specific names. The author's instructions are reduced to the designation of tempo and, in rare cases, genre. For example, No. 9 is in the tempo of the march (Tempo di Marcia), No. 38 is in the tempo of the waltz (Tempo di Valzer), No. 39 is the canon in the tempo of the gavotte (Tempo di Gavotta), No. 40 is the canon. The binding factor in the cycle is the tonal plan: the composition begins and ends in the key of C-dur. In the ratio of the tonal centers of adjacent numbers, the principle of closest kinship applies. Distant keys appear only twice – H-dur in No. 36 and Des-dur in No. 38. The appeal to the key of Des-dur seems to be no coincidence, because the genre basis of this piece is a romantic waltz. 

In this cycle, there are much more etude-like plays related to the development of certain techniques than in the previous one. This is №№20, 21, 23-26, 28. However, even here the role of bright, expressive melodic lines of a song character is great. It is no coincidence that the composer called these sketches "melodic".

If the cycles discussed above are quite simple and unpretentious from the point of view of musical language, then the "Five Musical Moments" Op. 49 are a vivid example of romantic stylistics, which is reflected in the texture, harmony, structure of the melodic line, and deployment of musical material. Each of the musical moments embodies a certain mood, evoking associations with the compositions and stylistics of Schumann and Chopin.

The first and last musical moments clearly bear the imprint of Schumann's influence: the opening piece of the cycle adjusts to the mode of sadness embodied in a typically romantic refined melody. Its expressiveness is enhanced by harmonic means using the re-harmonisation of motifs, covering a wide range in the accompaniment part, moving fragments of the melodic line into different registers, creating the effect of dialogicity. The last play, with its rapid, agitated and anxious character, resembles similar works by Schumann, such as, for example, "The Rush". 

The second piece switches listeners to the world of Chopin's nocturnes with trills, rhythmic splitting, and the use of special types of rhythmic division, which are characteristic of them.

Despite the fret contrast between the parts, in major pieces the frequent deviation into minor keys contributes to the predominance of the mood of sad reflection in the cycle. At the same time, throughout all five pieces, the principle of contrast, acting on an emotional and figurative level, manifests itself noticeably: the painfully sad first musical moment, the sublimely uplifted second, the agitated third, the pacified fourth, the energetic piercing and disturbing final one.

The factor that binds all five pieces into a single cycle is the tonal plan, which is based on the main key of g-moll.

Of interest from the point of view of the stated problem is the piano cycle "Romantic Suite" Op. 14. It consists of three pieces with the following titles: "Ove sei?" (No. 1), "Intermezzo" (No. 2), "Impromptu" (No. 3). The last two numbers are the genres of intermezzo and impromptu. The first piece is also understandable from the point of view of the genre: it is a love song, as indicated in the subtitle to its title in parentheses (Canto d'amore). Moreover, the composer cites as an epigraph a text written by the Italian poet of the XIX century, Giosue Carducci:

Where are you, my love, that's in the clear view

Did you merge the smile of sweet eyes with the ray?

To whom is the melody of the heart at this hour

Did you give it away in a gentle conversation?

                    (translated by K. Balmont)

This beginning of the cycle sets up a sublime lyrical mood, which is realized in it. The first number is written in the key of Des-dur, often used by romantic composers in such cases. It begins with a six-stroke expressive introduction, represented by a one-voice melodic line in the cello register in the tempo of Lento with a fermata exposed on the first sound (fifth degree of tonality) and with the notation poco accel., dim. e rall. The syncopated rhythmic figure in the accompaniment part resembles the one in Schumann's play “Warum?" from the piano cycle "Fantastic Pieces" Op. 12. In this case, the state of intense expectation is emphasized by the dominant organ point sustained over four bars. An expressive melody consisting of a series of upward-pointing motifs with a dotted rhythm, an emphasis on the first sound and the author's indication con sentimento profondo complements the charming romantic picture of love longing. This is also facilitated by the harmonization of this melody with the use of multi-step chords, alterations, chords with side tones, colorful re-harmonization of motifs, exciting unprepared detentions.

The "Lyrical album" Op. 16 includes 6 pieces, in the combination of which one can also see a certain logic realized in the idea of concentricity: in the center there are two contrasting pieces called "Sadness" (No. 3) and "Ideal!" (No. 4), they are surrounded by numbers with an oriental flavor – "Arabesque" (No. 2) and "Oriental" (No. 5), as a frame, the composer refers to the dance genres – "Mazurka" (No. 1) and "Spanish Dance" (No. 6).

Thus, in each of the piano cycles listed above, A. Longo implements certain ideas for combining the pieces included in them, crystallized in the works of romantic composers. Among the principles of cyclization, the following are noted: tonal logic, the presence of genre, tempo, tonal contrasts, emotional and figurative connections between plays. For the most part, A. Longo's piano cycles demonstrate a non-programmatic suite type; in some of them one can see the features of programmaticity. The musical language of the above cycles is oriented towards a romantic style. However, the noted connection with the works of Schumann and Chopin still does not obscure the characteristic qualities inherent in the composer as a representative of the Italian school, which is manifested in the brightness of the melodic beginning, emotional saturation, and the presence of theatrical features in individual plays.