Muera Cupido
The labels we use to classify artistic styles often conceal worlds so rich and diverse that they sometimes mean very little. A good example is the use of the word “Baroque” for music composed in the 17th and 18th centuries, and the Spanish case is particularly revealing.
Paradoxically, it was the accession to the throne of the French Bourbon family that brought to Madrid, in 1701, the tidal wave then sweeping across musical Europe: the Italian style. Until then Spanish music had been governed by its own traditions and rules, with characteristic harmonies, instrumental writing that was at times not very idiomatic, highly syllabic vocal writing and even a special notation for its singular rhythms somewhere between duple and triple – very flamenco rhythms, we would say today. These features can still be recognised in Durón’s Sosieguen, descansen and in the contemporary dances that serve as our instrumental interludes.
The Italian cantatas in the National Library of Spain (All’assalto de pensieri and Pastorella che tra le selve), on the other hand, serve as examples of the arrival of what North was already calling “the fire and fury of the Italian style”. The coming of the Bourbons also meant Durón’s rise to maestro de capilla (chapel master) – although, curiously, Durón ended his days in exile, unmasked as an enthusiastic supporter of the Habsburg cause. Titles such as arietta ytaliana reveal his unmistakable attempts to adapt to the new times, which decades later would see him accused of Italianising by Father Feijoo in Música de los templos (Teatro crítico universal, 1726):
This is the music of our times, with which the Italians have regaled us through the hand of their devotee, maestro Durón, who was the one who introduced foreign fashions into the music of Spain. It is true that since then these have been pushed so far that, were Durón to rise from the dead, he would not recognise them; but he can always be blamed for all these novelties, for having been the first to open the door to them.
Feijoo was probably aghast when, in the years immediately following that text, he heard the operas and zarzuelas of José de Nebra, who had already fully and masterfully embraced the fiery Italian style, with its secco recitatives full of daring modulations, its da capo arias, its specific instrumental writing and its demanding coloratura in the vocal lines… By skilfully combining these with then-popular forms and rhythms such as the fandango or the seguidilla, Nebra pursued a successful career in the effervescent world of Madrid stage music in the first half of the 18th century, without giving up the qualities that make him, in the view of many, the finest Spanish composer of his century.
Juan Ramón Lara
MUERA CUPIDO
Theatre music in Spain, c. 1700
Núria Rial, soprano
Fahmi Alqhai, quinton & direction
ACCADEMIA DEL PIACERE
Rodney Prada, quinton
Johanna Rose, viola da gamba (track 9 only)
Rami Alqhai, violone
Miguel Rincón, archlute & baroque guitar
Francisco Javier Núñez, harpsichord
Recorded in Seville in 2018
Adaptations: Fahmi Alqhai
Jordi Gil (Sputnik), recording
Álvaro Torrente, musicological advice.
Juan Ramón Lara, musical advice
1. Pavana 4:35
Francisco Guerau (1649-c. 1722), arranged by Fahmi Alqhai
2. Y, pues consentir no debo (recitado) 3:05
3. Yo hermosísima Ninfa (aria) 3:29
From “El imposible mayor en amor le vence Amor”, attributed to Sebastián Durón (1660-1716) and José de Torres (c. 1670-1738)
4. Quantos teméis al rigor 5:38
Arietta ytaliana – Rezitado [Brioso] – [Vibo] from “Las nuevas armas de Amor”, by Sebastián Durón
5. Marionas 5:18
Fahmi Alqhai
6. Pastorella che tra le selve 3:39
Giovanni Bononcini (1670-1747) (Ms. 2245 of the Biblioteca Nacional de España)
7. All’assalto de pensieri 4:55
Anonymous “Cantada” (Ms. 2246 of the Biblioteca Nacional de España)
8. Xácara 4:26
Francisco Guerau – Fahmi Alqhai
9. Sosieguen, descansen 6:16
Solo humano, from “Salir el Amor del Mundo”, by Sebastián Durón
10. Selva Florida 7:31
Aria from “Viento es la dicha de Amor”, by José de Nebra (1702-1768)
11. Fandango 2:16
José de Nebra & Francisco Javier Núñez
12. Tempestad grande, amigo 3:18
Fandango from “Vendado es amor, no es ciego”, by José de Nebra
13. Adiós, prenda de mi amor 9:38
Aria from “Amor aumenta el valor”, by José de Nebra
TEXTS
Y, pues consentir no debo
Recitado
Yo hermosísima Ninfa
Aria
from “El imposible mayor en amor le vence Amor”
Attributed to Sebastián Durón and José de Torres (c. 1670-1738)
[AMOR]
Y, pues consentir no debo
ultrajes a mi deidad,
cuando tan libre blasonas
que mis flechas burlarás,
esta, cuya punta de oro
tocada al benigno imán
de mi hechizo,
es solo indicio
del poder de las demás,
puesta en la tirante cuerda,
mi impulso haciendo juntar
las puntas del arco,
el viento tan veloz penetrará
que áspid alado se deje
sentir sin verse volar.
Y, cuando gimas al duro
tirano golpe fatal,
no de mis iras te quejes
pues lo que pides, te dan.
[JUPITER]
¡Oye… escucha… aguarda… espera!
fementido desleal, traidor
mas, ¡ay de mí!,
¿Qué áspid cruel y tenaz
es este que muerde el pecho,
cuyo tósigo se va
poco a poco apoderando
del sentido racional?
Sin uso la voz, el pecho sin aliento,
a tanto afán ni puedo el dolor huir,
ni acierto un eco a formar.
[ARIA]
Yo, hermosísima ninfa
de cuya luz aprehenden
otra vida las selvas
que las rejuvenece,
soy el Dios que, rigiendo
ese eterno zafir transparente,
desde el punto que vio tu belleza,
ni en sí mandar puede.
Jove soy, cuyos rayos
se queman en la nieve
de tu semblante hermoso,
en quien, perfectamente,
maridajes de púrpura y nácar
vertiendo claveles,
el incendio que arrojan
tus ojos o templan o vencen.
Y pues a tus plantas
por víctima ofrece
el Dios de los dioses
su vida y su muerte,
sepa de ti si tus ojos merece,
no más apacibles,
sí menos crueles.
[CUPID]
I must not consent
outrages to my deity,
as you do, so free, when you boast
of evading my arrows;
this one, whose golden tip
touched the benign magnet
of my spell,
it’s just a sign
of the power of the others.
I’ll put it on the taut string;
my strength will bring together
the tip and the bow,
and the wind so fast will penetrate
that you will hear this winged asp
without seeing it fly.
And, when you moan
after its deadly blow,
do not complain about my anger:
what you ask, they give you.
[JUPITER]
Hear me…listen to me…wait…await!
disloyal liar, traitor,
but… alas!
What is this cruel and tenacious asp
that bites my chest,
whose venom is slowly
taking over my reason?
Without voice, my chest without air,
despite my effort I cannot escape the pain,
nor can I form an echo.
[ARIA]
Beautiful nymph
from whose light
the jungles acquire a new life
that rejuvenates them:
I am the God who, ruling
that eternal, transparent sapphire,
since the moment I saw your beauty
I cannot even rule myself.
I am Jupiter, whose rays
are burned in the snow
of your beautiful countenance,
on which, perfectly,
purple and nacre pairings
—pouring carnations—
temper or conquer the fire
thrown by your eyes.
And since the God of the gods,
as a victim, offers
His life and His death
at your feet,
He wants to know if He deserves
that your eyes are,
maybe not more peaceful,
but at least less cruel.
Quantos teméis al rigor
Arietta ytaliana – Rezitado [Brioso] – [Vibo]
from “Las nuevas armas de Amor”
Sebastián Durón
Quantos teméis al rigor
llorad conmigo, llorad,
que en muriendo el amor
ha de reinar la impiedad.
Mas, ¿qu’es esto, iras mías?
Yo desmayo,
¿no soy yo el rayo
a cuyo ardor violento es inútil
pavesa el firmamento? Pues
denande vengarme
invocaré a Diana
con cuya altiva fuerza soberana
haré que el Dios tonante llore su mal
cuando mi ruina cante.
Claras fuentes, puros cielos,
plantas bellas, tiernas aves,
que con hojas, con matices,
con reflejos, con cristales,
unidos murmurad de mis ultrajes:
atended y veréis
que a mis voces fabrico
heroicas venganzas, débiles desaires.
¡Ha del palacio sumo,
ha del bello homenaje,
reverenciado templo
de célebres deidades!
Oídme, qu’amor viene
a que en Diana le armen
dulces obstinaciones
de esquivas libertades
se d’una vez piadosas;
mas ya a mi voz se abren
del desdeñoso alcazar
las puertas de diamante;
y aun dividiendo el día
en astros materiales
Diana con sus ninfas
diciendo acordes salen.
Claras fuentes (…)
You, who fear the vigour,
cry with me, cry:
if love dies
impiety will reign.
But… what is this, oh, my anger?
I faint!
Is it not I the burning, violent ray
in front of which the firmament
is only a useless ash?
To get revenge
I will invoke Diana
with whose haughty, sovereign strength
I’ll make the thundering God cry his misfortune
when he sings my wreck.
Clear fountains, pure heavens,
beautiful plants, tender birds,
that with leaves, with nuances,
with reflections, with crystals,
all together you murmur my outrage:
listen and you will see
how I can make heroic revenge
and weak rebuffs.
Supreme palace!
Beautiful tribute!
Revered temple
of famous deities!
Listen to me: love is coming
where Diana is, to be armed
with sweet obstinacy,
with elusive freedom
sometimes merciful.
But now, at my command,
they open the diamond doors
of the disdainful castle;
and dividing the day
by celestial bodies,
Diana and her nymphs come out
singing chords.
Clear fountains…
Pastorella che tra le selve
[ms 2245 de la Biblioteca Nacional de España]
Giovanni Bononcini (1670-1747)
Pastorella che tra le selve
i suoi giorni passando va;
e trà boschi e trà le selve
vò cantando
quanto è bella la fedeltà.
A shepherdess spends
her days in the forests:
in the woods and in the forests
I’m singing
how beautiful is fidelity!
Cantada “All’assalto de pensieri”
[ms. 2246 de la Biblioteca Nacional de España]
Anonymous
All’ assalto de pensieri
l’alma mia non cederà.
In un mar d’afanni e pene
ben che temi, ben che speri,
saldo il cor trionferà.
My soul will not surrender
to the attack of my thoughts.
In a sea of grief and pain,
no matter feeling fear or hope,
the resolute heart will triumph.
Sosieguen, descansen
Solo humano, from “Salir el Amor del mundo”
Sebastián Durón
Sosieguen, descansen,
las tímidas penas, los tristes afanes,
y sirvan los males de alivio en los males.
Sosieguen, descansen.
¿No soy yo aquel ciego voraz, encendido volcán intratable,
en quien aun las mismas heladas pavesas o queman o arden?
Pues, ¿cómo es fácil
que haya nieve que apague el incendio de tantos volcanes?
¿No soy quien al sacro dosel de los dioses deshizo arrogante,
su púrpura ajando los fueros sagrados de tantas deidades?
Pues, ¿cómo es fácil
que en mi oprobio, tirana, sus leyes mi culto profanen?
En fin, ¿no soy yo de las iras de Venus sagrado coraje,
en cuyos alientos respira castigo su hoz o su imagen?
Pues, ¿cómo es fácil
que deidad que fabrica mi imperio permita mi ultraje?
Pero ya que a la fatiga tan rendido el pecho yace,
que un desaliento palpita en cada temor que late,
y ya que en el verde centro de enmarañado boscaje,
que compone la frondosa tenacidad de los sauces,
seguro estoy de que puedan las cóleras alcanzarme
de Diana: firmen treguas mis repetidos afanes.
Y en este risco a quien hoy, para que sobre él descanse,
hizo el acaso que siendo escollo sirva de catre,
entreguemos a esta dulce lisonja de los mortales
la vida, pues a este efecto dijeron mis voces antes:
Sosieguen, descansen (…)
Calm, rest,
timid sorrows, sad worries,
and let ills serve as relief amongst ills.
Calm, rest.
Is it not I that blind man, fiery, voracious, intractable volcano
in whom the same frozen embers still burn or flame?
For, is it maybe easy
that there be snow to put out the fire of so many volcanoes?
Is it not I the one who arrogantly destroyed the sacred altar of the gods,
the one whose purple ruined the sacred laws of so many deities?
For, is it maybe easy
that, shame on me, the laws of the tyrant can profane my cult?
In the end, is it not I the sacred courage opposing of the wrath of Venus,
her voice or her image breathing punishment in front of my breathing?
For, is it maybe easy
that the deity who builds my empire allows my outrage?
But since fatigue makes my breast so exhausted,
since discouragement palpitates in the beating of each fear,
since, I am sure, I may incur Diana’s wrath
even amidst the green center of the entangled wood
which contains the leafy strong willows,
I want that my repeated worries beg for a truce.
And on this cliff upon which I will rest today,
that will serve as my bed despite being an obstacle,
let us deliver our lives to this sweet flattery of mortals,
since this is the intended effect of my previously uttered words.
Calm, rest (…)
Selva Florida
Aria, from “Viento es la dicha de Amor”
José de Nebra (1702-1768)
Selva florida,
tronco frondoso,
cristal undoso,
cándida flor,
decidle a mi bien
que muero de amor.
Decidle que mude
su fiero desdén,
que amando yo bien,
merezco el favor.
Selva florida (…)
Flowery forest,
leafy trunk,
wavy glass,
innocent flower:
tell my sweetheart
I’m dying of love
Tell her to change
her fierce disdain;
that I love well,
so I deserve her favor.
Flowery forest (…)
Tempestad grande, amigo
Fandango, from “Vendado es amor, no es ciego”
José de Nebra
Tempestad grande, amigo, se armó en la selva.
¡Muchas tempestades arman las suegras!
¡Ay, qué Brújula, Brújula, Brújula!
¡Ay, qué páparo, páparo, páparo!
¡Que es tu Títiro, Títiro, Títiro!
¡Es mi zángano, zángano, zángano!
Y en bailando este son fandanguítico,
se les da de estos ruidos un rábano.
A great storm, my friend, raised in the jungle.
Many storms are kicked up by mothers-in-law!
Oh Brújula, Brújula, Brújula!
Oh stupid, stupid, stupid!
Oh Títiro, Títiro, Títiro!
He’s my drone.
And dancing this kind of fandango
they do not give a monkey’s about all these noises.
Adiós, prenda de mi amor
Aria, from “Amor aumenta el valor”
José de Nebra
Adiós, prenda de mi amor
que tú lograrás vencer,
pues mi alma has de tener
y ella te dará valor.
Tu esposo pretendí ser,
no lo quiso hado traidor;
con morir, con fallecer,
satisfaré su rigor.
Adiós, prenda de mi amor (…)
Goodbye, pledge of my love
that you will manage to win,
since you must possess my soul
and it will give you courage.
I hoped to be your husband,
but the treacherous fate did not want it.
Dying, passing away,
I will satisfy its rigour
ENGLISH
