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The attested presence of a Vivaldi aria in the anonymous and generously proportioned serenata has catapulted Andromeda into the limelight of musical topicality, and the question on everyone’s lips is whether the Red Priest could have written the entire work. An impassioned and sometimes even tumultuous debate has animated Vivaldian musicology for over two years, with the opposing sides defending radically different positions. The official opinion of the Venetian Instituto Italiano Antonio Vivaldi, the heart and soul of Vivaldi research is, according to Professor Michael Talbot, its principal researcher, that only “Sovvente il sole” was composed by Vivaldi. Talbot, who is also known for his work on Albinoni, clearly perceives the hand of that composer - Vivaldi’s Venetian ‘ancestor’ - in Andromeda, as well as that of Giovanni Porta, a reputed choir master and prolific composer. The Instituto Vivaldi holds that Andromeda is a simple pasticcio, a compilation of works by a variety of composers, of which Vivaldi’s contribution is but one element. Olivier Fourès, on the other hand, who carried out a painstaking and fascinating study on the subject, believes that Vivaldi’s participation in the work was much more extensive. In his view the piece was composed for the triumphal return of Cardinal Ottoboni to Venice in 1726, and could be the Vivaldi vocal complement to the so-called “Manchester Sonatas”, which were dedicated to Ottoboni the same year. Fourès, to support his position, cites numerous typically Vivaldian marks in the score; paper dating has shown that the same paper was used for both the Manchester Sonatas and Andromeda.
Andrea Marcon and the Venice Baroque Orchestra decided, in the midst of this intensive debate, to record their flamboyant interpretation of the work. The album’s release on Archiv will allow listeners to make up their own minds about the controversy, records in hand. They will doubtless conclude when listening to the work that the musical truth probably lies somewhere between the two opposing positions. Andrea Marcon expressed himself on this debate and other questions in conversation with Frédéric Delaméa.
Your Andromeda liberata recording has raised a great deal of controversy about the work’s authorship. Is it by Vivaldi? Porta? Albinoni? Or is it a pasticcio? Contradictory theses have sprung up, and the scientific debate has sometimes been overshadowed by passionate feelings on both sides. The controversy should not, however, mask the fact that the score is a major and splendid discovery that illustrates the art of the Venetian serenata in the 1720s, quite apart from the issue of its authorship. Before going into that question, however, could you explain your reasons for deciding to record Andromeda?
When Olivier Fourès first mentioned Andromeda to me in Japan in January 2003, I was surprised that no one seemed to have noticed that it included a Vivaldi aria. Andromeda was indeed known to Vivaldi specialists, but Olivier Fourès was the first person to realise that this wonderful aria, which is also part of a separate autograph kept in the same library, was part of the Andromeda score. It’s actually quite interesting that “Sovvente il sole” is the only authentic Vivaldi score in all of Venice! As soon as I saw a copy of Andromeda, I realised it was a large-scale serenata with a whole string of magnificent, inspired arias.
How does Andromeda differ from other Venetian serenatas in terms of vocal registration, orchestration, and the role of the chorus? How does it compare to Vivaldi’s La Senna festegiante and Albinoni’s Il concilio de’pianeti, both of which date from the same period?
The structure of the Venetian serenata was extremely varied, depending upon the person for whom it was written or the event it celebrated. There is a clear structural difference, for example, between the lavish Senna festegiante and the sober serenata which Vivaldi wrote for the wedding of the French king Louis XV. Andromeda has many elements in common with the large-scale La Senna, for instance, including its bipartite form, the use and composition of the chorus and the distribution of its arias. The work calls for five singers, on the other hand, as compared to the three required for both La Senna and Albinoni’s Climene. Andromeda was certainly composed to commemorate an exceptional event: Cardinal Ottoboni’s ceremonious visit to Venice after a long period of exile. His stay began on 25 July 1726 and ended on 4 December of the same year. The Andromeda score is dated 18 September 1726.
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