The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1913-11-10
INTEREST In
THE CANTATA
COMMENT CONCERNING THE PRO-
DUCTION TO BE GIVEN AT ST.
MARKS CHURCH..
Public is Promised Splendid Treat
in the ''Daughter Of Jairus"
Thursday Night.


er unusual type of musical compost
tion, short exposition of the charac-
teristics and history of the cantata
may not be uninteresting. The notes
given below were got together from
Groves Dictionary of Music and
Musicians Upton's "Tha Standard
Cantatas," the Century Dictionary, and
some short scattered articles.
The cantata, which dates from 1913,
was originally merely a recitative with
out accompaniment, and was used i'll
church services by chapel-singers to
tell story from the Bible, to declaim
a striking prophecy, or to give expires
sion to a particular and important SEN
timent connected with some special
portions of the ritual. During the 18th
century it made great progress and
became a more elaborate work. The
best examples are the writings of Car
ssimi, chapel-master in Rome. 1t was
he who introduced the melody for the
single voice, and he also employed an
instrument played either by the singer
or another His pupil, Fra Mara An
tonic Cesti, wrote jolly secular can
tatas and received many reprimands
for his devotion to worldly music. AT
little later period the cantata was
defined by Choron. 1T is a little
poem, which, considered in literary
sense, has no very determinate char
acter, though it is usually the recital
of a simple and interesting fact in
terspersed with reflections or the ex
preston of some particular sentiment.
1t may be in all styles and all char
acters-sacred, profane, heroic, comic,
and even ludicrous, representing the
action or feeling of either a single or
assumes the character of the oratorio."
Most Prolific Writer.
Scarlatti, the most prolific writer of
cantatas in Italy, introduced violin and
violin-cello accompaniments.
German writer's approximated the
present form of the cantata. Koch
writes: 1.-The cantata is a lyrical poem
set to music in different alternating
compositions and sung with the ac-
compartment of instrumental music.
The various melodies of which the
whole are composed are the aria, with
its subordinate species, the recitative
or accompaniment, and the arioso, fire.
quently intermiXed with choruses.
Composers far more famous nowadays
for their achievements in other fields
were once we'll known for their fine
cantatas. Bach, when director of mus
ic in Leipsic, wrote nearly four hun
dred. Handel wrote hundred and
fifty. Those left by Hayden are secu-
lar, but it is known that he also com
posed many sacred ones.
Cantata Always Lyrical.
Two more definitions should leave
readers with fairly clear idea of this
musical form. Heyden-
reich says: The cantata is always ly-
rical Its distinctive character lies
in the aptitude of the passions and
feelings which it contains to be rend-
cred by music. The cantata ought to
be harmonious whole of ideas poet
ically expressed, concurring to paint 4
main passion or feeling, susceptible of
kinds and degrees of musical |
expression"
Upton concludes his article with |
the term "cantata" as now used is very |
elastic, and covers range of COM
positions which are too large to be
as dramatic arias or bal
or oratorios 1t is a lyrical narrative
sacred, didactic, or dramatic in char |
acter, set to music for the concert |
stage only 1t is for solo voices, the |
quartet, full chorus, and orchestra,
though it's shortness adapts it to per-
formance by a small chorus and some
times with only piano accompani-
nent."
Thursday evening the performance of
The Daughter of Jairus" at st.
Marks church, the chief things to re-
member are these: that the purpose of
,antata is to tell story imbued with
ceiling and with dramatic interest and
O leave with the hearers a definite and
Jingle impression of particular SEN
iment induced by the story and re-
lections upon it; that the means used
re voices in solo, recitative, and
horus work accompanied by instru-
nents; that the material may be secu-
ar but is most often, as in Stainer's
me work, built on a Gospel narrative,
nd that it is always sung but never
cted.
In 'The Daughter of Jairus" all the {
lost interesting forms suitable to can {
alta music are employed to relate a
eautiful and affective narrative. What I
nose forms are and how they help to 6
I'll the moving story will be explained I
/ the Tuesday evening issue Of this t
aper.