Born shortly after Handel wrote his oratorio Jephtha
and dead shortly after Berlioz wrote his Symphonie
fantastique, Muzio Clementi failed to write anything
equal to the originality of those two composers -- or,
certainly, equal to the best of his closer
contemporaries, Mozart and Haydn. Yet Clementi remains
a significant figure for his pioneering work on behalf
of the newfangled piano, that percussive, expressive
instrument that quickly displaced the harpsichord at
the end of the eighteenth cen...(+)
Born shortly after Handel wrote his oratorio Jephtha
and dead shortly after Berlioz wrote his Symphonie
fantastique, Muzio Clementi failed to write anything
equal to the originality of those two composers -- or,
certainly, equal to the best of his closer
contemporaries, Mozart and Haydn. Yet Clementi remains
a significant figure for his pioneering work on behalf
of the newfangled piano, that percussive, expressive
instrument that quickly displaced the harpsichord at
the end of the eighteenth century. His full-scale
sonatas and small studies exploited the possibilities
of the early piano and groomed the technique of early
pianists, and led him to be known as "the father of the
piano." His influence on Beethoven has likely been
underestimated.
Clementi was a child prodigy, with an appointment as an
organist at age 9 and an oratorio to his credit by the
time he was 12. In 1766 Clementi's father was persuaded
to take the boy to study in England, the country that
would remain Clementi's base for the rest of his life.
In the English countryside the youth undertook a rigid
course of studies, emerging in 1773 for a spectacular
debut in London as a composer and pianist. Had Clementi
matured anywhere else in Europe, he might have limited
himself to the organ and harpsichord; but the piano was
enormously popular in England, and Clementi furthered
his career by capitalizing on the instrument's expanded
capabilities. In 1780, he went on tour to the
Continental capitals; in Vienna, Emperor Joseph II
instigated a friendly musical duel between Clementi and
Mozart.
Etudes and exercises -- the musical equivalent of the
multiplication tables -- have two extremes: either they
are too repetitive and boring even for the performer to
practice or they are so musical sounding that it's hard
to believe the performer is learning anything from
them. The latter type would be exemplified by the piano
etudes of Chopin and Debussy; the former by Hanon.
Muzio Clementi's celebrated and didactic Gradus ad
Parnassum contains 44 exercises, and most listeners,
and pianists definitely, will be happy to hear that
they fall closer to the musical end of the spectrum.
Clementi is obviously training the pianist in a
particular technique through repetition, but there is
always some melodic element and often an element of
compositional structure as well. Nos. 9-11 and Nos.
12-15 are suites, and each has a piece using fugal
counterpoint. Nos. 16 and 17 are perpetual motion
exercises that mirror each other by changing the
dominant hand. While Clementi's etudes do not approach
the level of appeal or memorability those of Chopin or
Debussy, they are able to capture the player's
interest. They are also quite substantive, as Marangoni
seems to dig right into them as if he were tackling a
large project that needs to be finished. Often, he
sounds as if he is enjoying himself and the fact that
he's able to handle the challenges, although there are
spots, such as in No. 17, where he momentarily loses
steam..
Although originally created for Piano, I created this
Interpretation of the Fugue in D Minor from "Gradus ad
Parnassum" (Op. 44 No 54) for String Quartet (2
Violins, Viola & Cello).
PARTITION