Johann Mattheson's "Das Lied des Lammes": Progressive tendencies in the evangelist recitatives.

• Main Author: Peter, Timothy Layne.
• Other Authors: Knott, Josef
• Language: en
• Published: The University of Arizona. 1993
• Subjects: Passion music > History and criticism.; Vocal music; 18th century > History and criticism.; Recitative.
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10150/186414

This document examines the compositional style of Johann Mattheson's passion, Das Lied des Lammes. Specifically, this document will examine the stile recitativo of Italian opera seria in Hamburg during Mattheson's years at the Domkirche. Mattheson's ideas regarding the role of the recitative in his passions are verified in Mattheson's article entitled "Des fragenden Componist" (1724), which appeared in the fifth volume of his journal Critica Musica, thus giving clear evidence supporting a non-emotional approach with the evangelist recitatives. These new approaches found in Critica Musica, derived from Italian opera in connection with Mattheson's writings, are in comparison to the musical devices in recitatives used by Mattheson's predecessors Schutz, Bernhard, Theile, and Keiser. The results of these comparisons show a natural progression of stylistic changes in recitatives in passion settings up to Mattheson's years at the Domkirche in Hamburg.