Anyone who thinks they’ve heard Bach should think again.
On Jan. 17, The Handel and Haydn Society’s Historically Inspired Performance at Christ Chapel brought the great musical works of the Baroque Era vividly to life. Using only antiques or reproductions of Baroque instruments, the small group of musicians drew out the original beauty and personality of each piece.
Founded in Boston in 1815, the Handel and Haydn Society has performed more consecutive seasons than any other arts organization in the United States. In 1986, under artistic director Christopher Hogwood, they began their tradition of Historically Inspired Performance, choosing to perform Baroque and Classical works with instruments that the composers would have had at the time.
Their performance at Christ Chapel featured work from Baroque composers such as Bach, Vivaldi, Gasparini, and Handel. Staying true to the time period, the musicians used woodwinds actually made of wood, a trumpet without valves, cellos, violins, and violas with gut strings instead of steel strings, and a harpsichord. The most surprising instrument used was a bass lute, which looked like a pear-shaped guitar with an extremely long neck. Some of the musicians, such as Principal Cellist Guy Fishman, performed on antique instruments from the 1700s.
However, Fishman emphasized that it would be impossible to exactly replicate a Baroque performance.
“Everything we do is a compromise,” he said. “Our musical reality did not exist back then.”
Fishman added that diverging ideas of beauty also complicate how modern performers approach Baroque music.
“Our idea of beauty is even and perfect,” Fishman said. “But art is about small imperfections that let you know a human being made this. And composers knew that.”
Sophomore Vika Nunez, a violinist in the Hillsdale College Symphony Orchestra, said that listening to the Society’s violinists during the performance gave her a better understanding of Baroque music.
“Growing up, I’ve always listened to Baroque music, and I’ve always appreciated it, but I haven’t played it that much,” she said. “And so it was very interesting to watch the first and second violinists give life to that music.”
According to Nunez, the violinists’ interaction with each other and the orchestra throughout the performance fascinated her.
“They put a sort of attitude into their playing,” she said. “They played off each other, or the flute and violin would go back and forth, and I’ve never seen that before. It was really cool to see how they handed off the melody and gave it back.”
This seemingly effortless technique is something that each musician had to learn. Jesse Levine, trumpet, said that he grew up playing a modern trumpet but learned to play its Baroque counterpart after being asked to perform in Purcell’s “The Fairy Queen.”
“I was just sitting at home one day and I got a call from somebody saying that a theatre company in town was doing ‘The Fairy Queen’ on period instruments,” Levine said. “I said, ‘I don’t play the Baroque trumpet,’ and she said ‘there are 50 performances.’ And I said, ‘Well, I guess I do play the Baroque trumpet then.’”
Although Levine learned to play Baroque trumpet later in life, he has always loved the music of the era — especially Bach.
“Generally, playing Bach is a really emotional experience for me,” he said. “I actually get teary-eyed sometimes, because I’m confronted with such an incredible genius.”
According to Fishman, some of that magic can be lost when the music is played by modern orchestras, especially when the unique character of an instrument becomes less important than having a standardized sound.
“On a wooden flute, some keys sound better than others, or are louder than others,” he said.
“The development of what we call ‘modern instruments’ followed a desire by players to have more stability and power in every key, and as orchestras got bigger and bigger, they needed to have the same sound and a more powerful sound.”
Fishman said that the key to performing the music as it ought to be performed is to treat it like speech, emphasizing important notes more than lesser ones rather than playing them all monotonously.
“Very little music is meant to be played evenly,” he said. “Like words, not every note gets the same equality of emphasis, or else you sound like a robot. Treat it like speech and make shapes at all times.”
Ultimately, what draws these musicians together is their love for the music.
“Listen to the final chorus of Bach’s ‘St. Matthew Passion.’ It’s a very emotional experience,” Levine said. “Just playing Baroque music is very special for me.”
