Claudio_Di_Veroli_plays_keyboards_using_Baroque_fingerings

New eBook: BAROQUE KEYBOARD MASTERPIECES
                FINGERED WITH BAROQUE TECHNIQUE


This is a comprehensive set of Baroque keyboard pieces, fully fingered according to the principles expounded in the book Baroque Keyboard Fingerings: A Method , a full reconstruction of the very consistent and largely unified mid-to-late Baroque fingering system.

The scores included in the present edition range from easy to advanced, and cover most of the technical difficulties and tonalities found in the Baroque repertoire, especially when playing scales and/or ornaments. A 13-page introductory text provides full details on the edition and on each piece, with suggestions for performance.

This publication is meant for players of all early-model keyboards: harpsichords, virginals, clavichords and organs. A few pieces are specific for the harpsichord. A piece for organ with pedals is also included.

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Contents of BAROQUE KEYBOARD MASTERPIECES FINGERED

  •        LIST OF 32 FINGERED PIECES
  •        CATALOGUE OF FINGERED SCALES
  •        INTRODUCTION
  •        SOURCES AND EDITORIAL PROCESS
  •        FINGERING PRINCIPLES
  •        FINGERING NOTATION
  •        ORNAMENTS
  •        INSTRUMENTS AND REGISTRATION
  •        DETAILS ON THE PERFORMANCE OF EACH PIECE
  •        THE FINGERED SCORES (*)

(*) The title of each piece includes: author, name, source, instruments (when not suitable for any keyboard), suggested registration for the most common harpsichord dispositions, and a few comments on notes inégales. The fingerings and editorial marks are all in red colour, but print in black if the user sets the printer for black printing.

Fingered Pieces

Böhm - Chaconne from the Suite in D, section with scales in semiquavers
Pachelbel - Choral and Variations "Alle Menschen müssen sterben", Partite 2 and 3
d'Anglebert - Variations sur les folies d'Espagne, Couplets 6 and 10
d'Anglebert - Gigue in g minor
F. Couperin - Dialogue sur les Trompettes, Clairon et Tierces ... et le larigot
F. Couperin - Recit de Cornet in G major
F. Couperin - La Favorite, Chaconne a deux tems, Couplet 5
F. Couperin - L'Atalante
F. Couperin - Les Petits Moulins à Vent
F. Couperin - Les Culbutes Ixcxbxnxs
Vivaldi / J.S. Bach - Concerto in G major, II.Adagio in e minor
Rameau - 2e. Allemande in a minor
Rameau - (3e.) Allemande in a minor
J.K.F. Fischer - Passacaglia in d from the Suite Urania, two variations
Handel - Allegro in d minor
Handel - Chaconne in C major with 49 variations, Var. 37 to 40 and 47
Handel - Prelude in G major
Handel - Chaconne in G major, Variations 16 and 37
J.S. Bach - Fantasia sopra “Christ lag in Todes Banden”
J.S. Bach - Little Prelude No.1 in C major
J.S. Bach - Inventio No. 2 in c minor
J.S. Bach - Inventio No. 9 in f minor
J.S. Bach - Sinfonia No. 10 in G major
J.S. Bach - Gigue from the French Suite No. 6 in E major
J.S. Bach - Das Wohltemperirte Clavier, vol.I, Fugue II in c minor
J.S. Bach - Das Wohltemperirte Clavier, vol.I, Fugue XV in G major
J.S. Bach - Das Wohltemperirte Clavier, vol.II, Fugue XII in f minor
J.S. Bach - Goldberg Variation No. 23 "a 2 Clav."
J.S. Bach / Krebs - Fuga sopra il Magnificat pro Organo pleno con pedale
D. Scarlatti - Essercizi, Sonata I in d minor
D. Scarlatti - Essercizi, Sonata XXX in g minor ("Cat's Fugue")
Clementi - Gradus ad Parnassum, Exercise 10 in A major

Important features of the book

—> The fingerings are based on the technique prevalent throughout Europe from the second half of the 17th century till
        18th century, i.e. the heyday of the Baroque musical era.
—> This technique allows playing with old fingerings even the most difficult pieces of the time, including J.S. Bach:
        evidence shows that he is most likely to have played with ancient fingerings.
—> The fingering system has been tested by decades of successful public performance, including technically
        demanding works such as Bach's concertos for harpsichord and strings.

Why an eBook?

This ebook can be read on the screen of a PC, Mac, Kindle, smartphone or any device capable of showing a document in Adobe Acrobat v.6.0 format or later. It is also formatted for conveniently printing on Letter paper and A4. The benefits of buying an eBook vs a ready-printed volume are manifold:
      • PRICE: less than 1/3rd of the equivalent printed volume
      • AVAILABILITY: an eBook is never out of print 
      • SECURITY: the reader can make a backup copy, so that the eBook cannot be lost or stolen
      • PRINTING: the reader can print the fingered scores using any home computer with printer
      • PORTABILITY: the reader can carry the book around in a laptop computer or other portable device
      • TIMELINESS: you buy the eBook and receive it on the spot
This new book is a 30Mbyte document file. It downloads in a couple of minutes using an Internet broadband service.

Note: some of the older versions of Acrobat Reader will produce a initial error message "This file uses a new format that this version of Acrobat does not support. It may not open or display correctly". Nevertheless, this eBook has been tested in all Acrobat versions from 6.0 onwards (last 8 years) and it displays and prints flawlessly and identically in any of them.

Book preview


--- INTRODUCTION

Every keyboard player who has attempted to learn Baroque fingerings knows that the main difficulty lies in complex passages, for example sequences of ornaments and—very especially—scales and accidentals. The older Renaissance music relied heavily on scales, and a player only became proficient after—inevitably—practising scales "ad nauseam", mostly with very few accidentals. Later in the Baroque era, however, other types of passages became more common than scales, and many Baroque pieces have no significant diatonic passage longer than the five notes one can play with the fingers of one hand. Eventually, however, some scales are found: especially if they have accidentals—no longer a rarity in Baroque music—or if the hand has also to play a few notes outside the scale, the player finds a serious technical hurdle. Ornaments are an added difficulty.To help the player to overcome these difficulties, I have selected a set of pieces that I have fingered according to the principles expounded in my Baroque fingering method. . . .

--- FINGERING PRINCIPLES

In the Baroque era, an amateur player would not have in mind the multiple finger crossings in the contemporary technique's palette. She/he would finger a piece not worrying if less-than-adequate finger here and there yielded an irregular rhythm or articulation. A professional and teacher, such as François Couperin, would think differently, and would recommend fingerings that would facilitate—as much as possible—the desired control of performance down to the smallest details. . . . . Our goal here is to improve our own dexterity in Baroque keyboard technique, and for this purpose every piece here has been thoroughly fingered, not just the scales and ornaments. . . .

--- DETAILS ON THE PERFORMANCE OF EACH PIECE

. . . d’Anglebert’s Folies d’Espagne is my favourite among the several extant sets of Baroque variations on this ancient harmonic sequence. d'Anglebert's work is a treasure trove of Baroque keyboard idioms: find here included the 6e Couplet, a true left hand Récit typical of contemporary organ music, and the 10e Couplet, based on scales per contrario motu. Note how the wavering melodic line and the notes inégales dictate the almost-exclusive passage of the 3rd finger, except of course for the 2nd finger that—as usual— crosses over the thumb when ascending with the left hand. In the 10e Couplet, the ascending passages for the right hand (3rd, 5th, 11th and 13th bar) are best played with "alternate staggering", whereby the left hand plays standard—i.e. slight—inégales, while the right hand plays strong—i.e. triplet—inégales. This way, in each pair of inégales, the two hands coincide in the first one (strong beat and long), while in the second one (weak beat and short) the right hand is slightly delayed or "staggered". When judiciously and flexibly applied, this is an excellent effect. Needless to say, it is also historical: examples of notated staggered execution are found in some pieces by F. Couperin, Rameau and Forqueray. . . .

. . . F. Couperin’s Les Petits Moulins à Vent is a deservedly well-known gem. It is also tricky to perform with the required mixture of regularity and a few micro-rubatos. The composer marked some of the latter with "breathing" signs: others are not written out, but are quite obvious, for example after the trill over f#’ in bar 16. If we follow Couperin’s tempo marking, Tres Légérement, this piece is to be played mostly égale, yet it sounds best not faster than 112 crotchets per minute: if so, the passages from the scales up to the end of each section are typical cases for slight inégales and have been fingered as such. . . .

 


BAROQUE KEYBOARD MASTERPIECES FINGERED - Errata and addenda

This eBook is a self-contained work. No additional files are needed to read it, understand it, enjoy it and/or put the advice into practice. As customary in Bray Baroque editions, we will eventually include here an updated Errata and addenda sheet. You are also welcome to visit the website PLAYING THE BAROQUE HARPSICHORD, about our recent book with a full coverage of Baroque music interpretation for the harpsichord and other keyboards.

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Page last updated: 14-Apr-2013