samson: handel's use of variety in texture

8/15/2019 Samson: Handel's use of Variety in Texture

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Matthew Perez

Burnett 761

05/18/15

Samson: Handel's use of Variety in Texture

Composer of both sacred and secular music !eor"e #rideric $andel was a master of

creatin" dramatic and well%paced choruses which are able to &eep their listeners interested

throu"hout' (n this essa) ( will be discussin" his *n"lish oratorio Samson in order to

demonstrate the composer+s abilit) to ,ar) the te-tures of his choral writin" throu"h the

manipulation of rh)thm moti,e harmon) and other such musical elements' .ue to its len"th (

will onl) be able to discuss certain sections of the oratorio but will be sure to e-amine one chorus

from each act' Before we be"in our studies ( will first present a brief narrati,e re"ardin" how

this under%appreciated masterpiece came into bein"'

I. Historical Context

Samson was concei,ed durin" a period in which $andel e-perienced a number of

personal and financial misfortunes' (n 17 7 the composer suffered from a stro&e which disabled

the use of four fin"ers on his ri"ht hand pre,entin" him from performin"' $owe,er he was able

to ma&e a miraculous reco,er) after spendin" onl) si- wee&s at a spa' B) the )ear 17 0 he

essentiall) dropped out of the spotli"ht in ondon and onl) had a few close friends who

continued to encoura"e him in his composin"' 1 $andel completed both Imeneo and Deidamia

that )ear but neither wor& was well recei,ed' 2his was due in part to the fact that he did not ha,e

access to an) stron" sin"ers at the time' 3nfortunatel) the financial losses from these

productions would lea,e him ban&rupt' 4 B) 17 1 he had withdrawn from public life completel)'

1 ewman #lower George Frideric Handel ew or& Charles 9cribner+s 9ons 1: 8; 48 '4 #lower 48 '


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$owe,er it was durin" this time that nd althou"h this particular piece of Milton+s poetr) was ne,er intended for a sta"ed

performance it had been created in the st)le of a classical !ree& tra"ed) which lent itself to the

dramatic shape of an oratorio' ewbur"h $amilton librettist for !lexander's Feast and the

$ccasional $ratorio ; di,ided Milton+s te-t into three acts condensin" it from 1758 lines to onl)

5 6' >lthou"h this sounds li&e an impressi,e feat musicolo"ist


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different shorter poems' 7 >nd so the libretto for Samson was completed and read) for $andel to

be"in settin" in the )ear 17 1'

hen $andel be"an wor&in" on Samson he was able to complete the first act in fifteen

da)s the second in twel,e da)s and the third in ei"hteen da)s' 2hus the initial draft of the wor&

was finished on ctober 4: th of 17 1' 8 >fter tra,elin" to .ublin in order to produce the rather

successful premier of Messia he returned to ondon in late >u"ust of 17 4 and made thorou"h

re,isions to the score in =uestion' : 3pon the oratorio+s completion $andel showed it the *arl of

9haftesbur) who would later write ?Mr $andel has plaid me o,er his 9amson >"onistes' ( thin&( ma) dare ,enture to affirm at once hearin" onl) that it surpasses an) of his "reatest former

performances D 2he whole is ine-pressibl) "reat and pathetic@' 10 2he first performance of this

masterwor& too& place at the Co,ent !arden 2heater on #ebruar) 18 th of 17 and it was so

successful that it ran for ei"ht performances in its first season alone' 11 one of $andel+s other

oratorios were performed as man) times in a sin"le season durin" his lifetime' 2he composition

and production of both Messia and Samson were a maEor turnin" point in the composer+s life in

terms of both financial reco,er) and artistic fulfillment' 14

Fe"ardin" the te-t from which the libretto was adapted Milton+s Samson !gonistes

contains a lot of e-tra%fictional details which were added for the purpose of de,elopin" 9amson

as a character and len"thenin" the stor) presented to us in the si-teenth chapter of the boo& of


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were completel) fabricated in order for the poet to ha,e more fle-ibilit) in terms of stor)tellin"'

ith these considerations in mind let us mo,e forward to a brief summar) of what happens in

this musical adaptation of Milton+s closet drama'

2he stor) be"ins with 9amson alread) ha,in" been captured b) the Philistines blinded

and in chains' 2he once%mi"ht) warrior "rie,es his fate particularl) his loss of si"ht; while the

Philistines worship their "od .a"on' 2he chorus of (sraelites and 9amson+s father obser,e the

prota"onist+s pitiful state and e-press a sense hopelessness re"ardin" the immediate situation' >t

the end of the act the (sraelites comfort 9amson in sa)in" that he will e,entuall) triumph o,er both death and time' 1 2he second act opens with Micah and the chorus of (sraelites callin" upon

fterwards

$arapha moc&s 9amson and challen"es him to a duel but later retracts his re=uest on the "rounds

of it bein" beneath his di"nit) to fi"ht a blind man' Micah then su""ests that the people measure

the power of their "ods and the act concludes with the Philistines and (sraelites sin"in" praises

to .a"on and fterwards an (sraelite messen"er arri,es to tell the audience what has happened'


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the boo& of wa&e the trumpet+s loft) soundH is preceded b) the wor&+s

o,erture alon" with a brief recitati,e from 9amson; which utilizes horns in its orchestration'

2his choice of instrumentation helps to set the scene for the followin" Philistine ritual since

horns are associated with pa"anism in $andel+s wor&s' 16 >nd althou"h this chorus is not

particularl) chromatic or harmonicall) acti,e it does e,entuall) reach phrases in the dominant

and subdominant &e) areas' 9tartin" with a flurr) of si-teenth notes in the orchestra the chorus

features a fanfare%li&e arpe""iation of the tonic triad as sun" b) the altos and tenors in m' *-'

1;' hat is particularl) impressi,e about this musical settin" is how it displa)s $andel+s abilit)

to switch between sta""ered entrances homophon) and unison passa"es as a means of creatin"

,ariet) and e-citement' *,en musicolo"ist inton .ean notes that ?these Philistines are a little

more contrapuntal than most of $andel+s pa"ans@' 17 2he first ,ariation we see is the

fra"mentation of the openin" arpe""iation in the sopranos and basses at m' 7%:; bein" used as a

contrapuntal e-tension a"ainst the phrase ?awa&e the trumpet+s loft) sound@ *-' 4;' hat

follows is a completel) homophonic statement of the second line of te-t in m' 10%14 which

15 .ean 47'16 $erba"e 104'17 .ean 8'


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&xam le ). !*a+e t e trum et's lofty sound, m. )-

&xam le /. !*a+e t e trum et's lofty sound, m. 0-1

utilizes a nearl) identical echo of the ,oice leadin" obser,ed in m' :%10' ote how $andel has

transformed the openin" moti,e in these measures b) redirectin" the arpe""io upwards' (n this


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&xam le . !*a+e t e trum et's lofty sound, m. )0-)1

&xam le 2. !*a+e t e trum et's lofty sound, m. /0-/3

wa) the hi"hest ,oice contains an #I soundin" one octa,e hi"her than it did in the initial

statement at m' ' e then see a unison passa"e whose melodic profile is ta&en from the

orchestral moti,e heard in the first two measures; in m' 1 %15 which is used to stron"l)


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punctuate the final line of te-t in the chorus' 2he composer then introduces a new moti,e in

stretto as sun" b) the lower three ,oices and doubled b) the orchestra in m' 17%18' 2hese three

,oices return to homophon) in m' 1: and are complimented b) the sopranos+ contrapuntal

statement of fra"ments from the openin" moti,e *-' ;' >nother stretto of the new musical

material is presented thou"h now in a new &e); in which we see a similar contrapuntal

interEection from the basses in m' 44 as followed b) another unison passa"e from m' 4 %45'

2hus $andel has switched between four completel) different te-tures o,er the span of onl)

se,en measures' >fter a brief homophonic passa"e in m' 45%46 the sopranos be"in a new strettousin" the arpe""iated moti,e from the openin" of the chorus; which lasts from m' 47%4: *-' ;'

>fter this point the composer rec)cles these homophonic passa"es unison statements and

strettos in order to redirect the harmonic structure of the chorus bac& to the tonic' 2he last thin"

we should obser,e is the wa) $andel brin"s nearl) all of the openin" material bac& startin" in m'

:' 2his techni=ue "i,es the chorus a ?rounded@ feel allowin" for the music to end with a final

statement from the ?loft) trumpets@ and unison si-teenth note passa"e as pla)ed b) the strin"s' (t

is e,ident from this wor& that the composer+s abilit) to create a ,ariet) of te-tures throu"h the

use of de,elopment and transformation was abo,e a,era"e' But before we draw an) conclusions

let us ta&e a loo& at another section of Samson '

2he ne-t chorus we will be dissectin" G$ear particularl) important

18 and"raf and Aic&ers 14 '1: .ean 1'


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similarit) to notice is that both Carissimi+s aeolian modalit) and si-%part scorin" is retained in

G$ear


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&xam le 6. "lorate filiae Israel, m. /)-/0

&xam le 0. Hear, 4aco%'s God, m. /8-/0


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in preparation for the ne-t cadence; is what we hear bein" utilized in G$ear


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&xam le 3. Hear, 4aco%'s God, m. 2/-21

certainl) impressi,e but instead of e-poundin" on these thou"hts we will now mo,e ahead to the

final chorus of the oratorio as a means of understandin" how the composer is able to use ,ariet)in te-ture and techni=ue to end a dramatic wor&'

G et their celestial concerts all uniteH is the final musical settin" of the wor& and $erba"e

notes that this particular chorus ?certainl) concludes Samson in a blaze of "lor) trumpets and


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timpani addin" their fanfares to the broad choral themes@' 40 $owe,er .ean su""ests that the

precedin" re=uiem for 9amson ?was the ori"inal end of the oratorio and after hearin" it one is

tempted to wish it had so remained@ ' 41 9eein" that $andel+s writin" process was interrupted b)

his trip to .ublin and that the composer wrote both G et their celestial concerts all uniteH and the

precedin" aria G et the bri"ht seraphimH before the oratorio+s premier in ondon there is little

reason to su""est that the solemn musical affect e-pressed b) G!lorious heroH was intended to

conclude the wor&' $a,in" that said let us ta&e a close loo& at how the true finale ma&es use of

,ariet) in te-ture for the purposes of "eneratin" interest and complimentin" the drama'2he initial two measures of G et their celestial concerts all uniteH feature a presentation of

the first moti,e hereinafter moti,e ?a@; as sun" b) the sopranos *-' :;' 2his phrase is

completel) without orchestral accompaniment a te-tural idea which will return throu"hout the

chorus' hat follows in m' % is a homophonic restatement of the words ?let their celestial

concerts all unite@ b) all four ,oice parts as complimented b) the orchestra+s first entrance' ote

that the tenors ma&e use of moti,e ?a@ in in,ersion a techni=ue which will be often utilized in

the measures to follow' e ne-t hear the basses sin"in" the first half of the second line of te-t

?e,er to sound his praise@; as set to a new rh)thmic idea hereinafter moti,e ?b@; a"ainst the

faster%mo,in" oboe lines *-' 10;' 2he altos then come in with moti,e ?b@ ha,in" been

transposed up b) an octa,e; at m' 7 in imitation of the basses who are now utilizin" the same

contrapuntal idea with an additional arpe""iated anacrusis hereinafter moti,e ?c@; as used b)

the oboes in the pre,ious measures *-' 11;' 2hese two ,oices continue in counterpoint until the

basses introduce a fourth moti,ic idea hereinafter moti,e ?d@; set to the words ?in endless blaze

40 $erba"e 10 '41 .ean '


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&xam le 1. #et t eir celestial concerts all unite, m. )-/

&xam le )8. #et t eir celestial concerts all unite, m. 5-6

&xam le )). #et t eir celestial concerts all unite, m. 0

&xam le )/. #et t eir celestial concerts all unite, m. 1

>

B

C

B

.


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of li"ht@ in m' 8%10 *-' 14;' 2he ne-t moment of interest occurs at m' 10 in which a stretto of

moti,e ?c@ between the tenors and sopranos be"ins o,er a sustained > ♮ in the altos and basses'

2his te-ture continues until we hear a second four%part homophonic statement of the te-t ?let

their celestial concerts all unite@ in m' 1 %16' 2he basses then help to &eep the momentum of the

chorus up b) reintroducin" moti,e ?c@ at the anacrusis to m' 17 at which point the moti,e has

been in,erted; in which the upper three ,oices present another uni=ue moti,ic te-ture' 2his new

idea as sun" b) the sopranos altos and tenors hereinafter moti,e ?e@; is an out"rowth of

moti,e ?b@ and ma&es use of =uarter notes and ei"hth notes a"ainst the basses+ =uic&l) mo,in"line from m' 17%18 *-' 1 ;' $owe,er it is important to note that the upper three ,oices are not

in complete homophon) as the sopranos ma&e use of fra"ments from moti,e ?c@ as a means of

decoratin" their melodic profile' (t is the basses who moti,ate the end of this passa"e b) usin"

moti,e ?d@ as a wa) to rei"n the ,oices in for a brief moment of homophon) in m' 1:%40 as

followed b) an in,ersion of what we Eust heard' (n m' 41%44 we see that the sopranos are now

utilizin" an in,erted moti,e ?c@ while the other three ,oices compliment it with moti,e ?e@ now

in complete in homophon);' hat follows startin" in m' 4 is a mostl) homophonic cadential

passa"e in which the tenors utilize an in,erted fra"ment of moti,e ?d@ in m' 46; which ser,es as

a lin& to another section of the chorus' 2his ne-t portion be"ins with )et another homophonic

statement of the openin" moti,e as followed b) a new combination of melodic material' hat

happens in m' 4:% is that the sopranos are sin"in" moti,e ?a@ while the tenors are in

counterpoint a"ainst them with moti,e ?c@' 2his is followed b) the imitati,e entrances utilizin"

moti,e ?a@ at different pitch le,els; of the altos and basses at m' 1 and respecti,el)' >

similarl) comple- and contrapuntal passa"e occurs from m' 5% 8 in which the sopranos sin"


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&xam le ) . #et t eir celestial concerts all unite, m. 1

moti,e ?e@ a"ainst imitati,e entrances of moti,e ?c@ in both its ori"inal form and in,ersion;

from the altos tenors and basses in m' 5 6 and 7 respecti,el)' 2his is then followed up with

another homophonic statement of moti,e ?a@ on the words ?let their celestial concerts all unite@'

$owe,er this particular passa"e is different in that the orchestral accompaniment has completel)

dropped out in preparation for its dramatic return at m' 1 *-' 1 ;' 2his e-citin" entr) is set to a

homophonic echo of moti,e ?a@ which has been shifted up to a hi"her pitch le,el' e ne-t see

moti,es ?c@ in in,ersion; and ?e@ bein" pitted a"ainst one another in a two%part te-ture in m' %

as followed b) a stretto of moti,e ?c@ in the upper two ,oices from m' 5% 8' > reintroduction

of the te-ture which features moti,e ?e@ as sun" b) the sopranos altos and tenors in

counterpoint with the basses+ moti,e ?c@ ta&es place in m' :%50' 2his is then followed b) a


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&xam le )2. #et t eir celestial concerts all unite, m. 1-2

powerful homophonic statement set to the words ?in endless blaze of li"ht@ in m' 51%5 which

features the sopranos+ utilization of an in,erted fra"ment of moti,e ?d@ in the cadence precedin"


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the ne-t phrase' 2his ne-t moment in which the altos and tenors sin" in thirds without an)

orchestral accompaniment from m' 55%56 is echoed b) the two trumpets in m' 57%58' 2he

followin" te-ture in,ol,es the upper three ,oices on moti,e ?b@ while the basses are sin"in"

moti,e ?c@ as set to the words ?e,er to sound his praise@ in m' 5:%60' > brief homophonic

passa"e from m' 61%6 brin"s us to an e-act repetition of m' 55%58' hat we see in m' 6: is that

the lower three ,oices are utilizin" moti,e ?e@ while the soprano switches from moti,e ?b@ to an

in,erted fra"ment of moti,e ?c@ ultimatel) Eoinin" to"ether in homophon) for the final si- of

Samson +s "loriousl) orchestrated measures'

III. Conclusions

$andel+s abilit) as a composer of dramatic choruses is unli&e that of an) other and it is

clear that his use of ,ariet) was carefull) calculated in each of his wor&s' (n his oratorio Samson

we ha,e now see that the composer was able to use a lar"e number of te-tures an adaptation of

an older st)le and multiple moti,es which are capable of combinin" in different wa)s as a means

of writin" compellin" and thorou"hl) interestin" choruses' (n li"ht of the fact that this essa)

e-amined onl) three of the composer+s musical settin"s it is ob,ious that $andel+s pallet of

compositional techni=ues was rather e-tensi,e' #urther stud) on the topic would )ield ,aluable

information for musicolo"ists theorists and composers who are interested in "ainin" an insi"ht

into what ma&es for an effecti,e use of ,ariet) in te-ture'


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Biblio"raph)

Burnett $enr) and Fo) itzber"' Composition Chromaticism and the .e,elopmental Process'

Burlin"ton >sh"ate Publishin" Compan) 4007'

nnette and .a,id Aic&ers eds' 2he Cambrid"e $andel *nc)clopedia' Cambrid"e

Cambrid"e 3ni,ersit) Press 400:'

ewman #lower !eor"e #rideric $andel' ew or& Charles 9cribner+s 9ons 1: 8'9edle) 2a)lor 2he (ndebtedness of $andel to or&s b) other Composers' Cambrid"e

Cambrid"e 3ni,ersit) Press 1:06'

inton .ean $andel+s .ramatic ratorios and Mas=ues' ondon -ford 3ni,ersit) Press

1:5:'

samson: handel's use of variety in texture

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