[VIHUELA] Re: Foscarini Passacaglio

[Nelson, Jocelyn]

   Thanks, Ed.
   I find Richard Hudson to be another important source on these grounds.
   Jocelyn
     ___________________________________________________________________

   From: Edward Martin <[1...@gamutstrings.com>
   Date: Sun, 3 Jan 2010 19:03:38 -0500
   To: "Nelson, Jocelyn" <[2]nels...@ecu.edu>, Stuart Walsh
   <[3]s.wa...@ntlworld.com>, Vihuelalist <[4]vihu...@cs.dartmouth.edu>
   Subject: [VIHUELA] Re: Foscarini Passacaglio
   Hello Stuart and Jocelyn,
   The Webster Dictionary gives this translation:
   Pas sa ca glia:  noun [modif. of Sp. passacalle, Fr. pasar = to pass
   + calle=street, Fr. callis path
   1.  a:  an old Italian or Spanish dance tune
            b:  an instrumental musical composition consisting of
   variations on a ground bass in moderately slow triple time
   2.  : an old dance performed to a passacaglia
   The Harvard Dictionary of Music:
   Passacaglia [It.] or passacaille [Fr.] :  See chaconne and passacaglia:
   Chaconne and passacaglia:
   "Two closely related forms of baroque music, each a kind of
   continuous variation in moderately slow triple meter and with a slow
   harmonic rhythm, changing generally with the measure.  There have
   been many futile attempts to change the derivation and original
   meaning of these terms, and just as many attempts, equally futile, to
   make a clear distinction between them.  Actually baroque composers
   used the terms indiscriminately.  This does not mean that they could
   not be put into more apt use today, but unfortunately modern writers
   have not succeeded in deciding on acceptable definitions and the
   literature is full of contradictory and frequently arbitrary
   statements about how the difference between a chaconne and a
   passacaglia."
   It goes on to say, "There is reason to believe that the chaconne
   originally was a wild and sensual Mexican dance that was imported
   into Spain in the 16th century..... The passacaglia was also
   originally a dance or a march.....A primitive stage of development is
   probably represented by passacaglia and chaconne in early 17th
   century books for the Spanish guitar, which consists of a series of
   four-measure phrases."
   As well, the Harvard entry goes on to try to distinguish the
   difference between the chaconne and passacaglia, noting that the
   passacaglia is a variation based on a clearly distinguishable
   ostinato where the line can be either in the bass or an upper
   voice;  the chaconne, on the other hand, is a continuous variation in
   which the "theme" is a scheme of harmonies, where the first and last
   chords are fixed whereas the intervening ones can be replaced by
   substitutes.
   ed
   .At 08:17 AM 1/3/2010, Nelson, Jocelyn wrote:
   >    I remember a conversation with Pat O'Brien on the passacalle where
   he
   >    suggested that the term is more analogous to our (at least in US
   >    English) "around the block" as in a circuit, or loop. He didn't
   claim
   >    that was the literal translation, but this would be his idea of
   the
   >    connotation.
   Edward Martin
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