Domenico Scarlatti, Radical Keyboardist: Piano Sonatas Performance and Lecture
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 8 ก.พ. 2025
- Known primarily as a ground-breaking harpsichordist and composer of 555 Sonatas and "essercizi" for the harpsichord, Domenico Scarlatti was also a prolific vocal and operatic composer in his youth. This video features a portion of Scarlatti's 1715 "Stabat Mater" and a discussion of Scarlatti's life and music by pianist Rick Ferguson. Rick also performs two pairs of Scarlatti's sonatas.
Included in this video is a performance of Scarlatti's "Stabat Mater" performed by Macadam Ensemble: • D.Scarlatti Stabat Mat...
Learn more about Rick at rickfm.com/
I have performed the stabat Mater a 10. So, so hard. So beautiful.
Terrific and very enjoyable presentation, Rick. Thank you! As a harpsichordist myself, I absolutely adore Scarlatti along with Albero, Seixas and Soler amongst the Iberian School. A gentle correction however, if I may. It was actually Queen Maria Barbara who stacked on the weight rather than Scarlatti. An analysis of her portraits from youth to her later years will amply illustrate that, whereas the only portrait we have of Domenico is rather lean for a man pushing late 50s at the time. Congrats to for your sensitive yet energetic performances. I never tire of the Sonatas! Best wishes from Melbourne, Australia 😀🎼😀
Glad to know you’re from Australia. We’re both from South and see the Crux, though I’m in the opposite side: Brazil. I also adore Scarlatti, a lifelong love affair!
Unfortunately, Scarlatti seems to be one of the least known composers of music history, as very little documents on him had survived. What he thought, how he carried on his personal life, his inner sentiments, nobody knows. All we can speculate about his private life lies on his music.
I feel myself indirectly attached to Scarlatti as he had been attached to the Portuguese court (Brazil belonged to Portugal at that time) and had a lifelong music liaison with Portuguese infanta Maria Barbara de Bragança, later Queen of Spain. She remained his music pupil until his death in 1757, and, with no doubt, close friends.
I have a theory: Scarlatti had lived in Portugal for about 10 years, as Barbara’s music teacher and John V court’s maestro di capella. It is very likely that he learned Portuguese during his stay in Portugal, as living for ten years in a country would allow a foreigner to learn its language. When Barbara married Spanish prince Fernando and brought Scarlatti with her, there were two foreigners living in a strange country. Of course Barbara and Scarlatti spoke Spanish socially in Spanish court, but Barbara would feel homesick and tried to speak her native language as much as possible. So, perhaps she and Domenico would probably speak Portuguese privately, when talking to each other. That comforts me, as Portuguese is my mother tongue, and I would feel very happy to be able to talk to them in my own language, were it possible.
By the way, Portuguese Nobel-winner José Saramago included Scarlatti as a character in his novel “Memorial do Convento”, in which he describes the construction of Mafra Convent by King John V of Portugal, during the period Scarlatti lived in Portugal.
Fantastic video!! Thank you for sharing your insight into Scarlatti's oeuvre, he is a completely unique composer among the classics. There is, however, a slight correction to be made: i'm afraid the sonata starting in 14:14 is not K. 102, but K. 430. The former is in G minor.
Thank you, Rick
Enjoyed the mini dissertation. Is also my understanding that Scarlatti would pair Sonatas not only in the same key, but also in the parallel key. I still often do this.
Ah, 491...one of my faves!
Here on TH-cam I keep hearing this wayward version of the crossed hands story. D Scarlatti was always somerhing of a skeletal character; it was well known that as his regal patron and pupil's midriff began to expand along with her skill that Scarlatti tactfully began to lay aside the crossing of hands which had begun to be unwieldy for her to accomplish with her former elegance. (And, now I think of it, as the baroque age was getting tired it was the age of elegance which was gathering pace.) But yes- Scarlatti has been my hero since I first met his sonatas in my early teens. He is in a class of his own!
An enjoyable and informative musical topic on composer Domenico Scarlatti's sonatas compositions. He lived in the period of the Baroque fathers, enriching his harpsichord, guitar, sonatas and coral sacred music. I enjoyed your piano performance, Thank you Rick
Great video. Regards from Weimar, Germany.
Thoroughly enjoyed the video, Rick, thanks! Quite interesting to hear about the many influences of Scarlatti and how they manifested in his music!
This was excellent. Very interesting and informative. Very much enjoyed the performances 😊
Great! I enjoyed.
Thank you. Instant subscription.
that was beautiful thank you so much!
Thank you so much, it was beautiful .
Very much enjoyed this video, thank you. You mention Scarlatti was influenced by guitar which of course he would have been submerged under in Spain. Later Spaniards, Albenz and Granados, would be very influenced by along with Scarlatti, none would (could?) actually write for the instrument. However the music of all three is enormously popular with guitarists today. Perhaps paradoxically, Scarlatti's great keyboard music may be less accessible to players and audiences as it cannot be accessed in manageable groupings that are meaningful.
Great contribution!! Thank you for sharing this.
I didn't know about the guitar elements he has incorporated in his music & I'm a guitarist.:)).
Mohammad, you should definitely explore a few of Scarlatti's sonatas that have been arranged for guitar. Such wonderful music. Cheers!
@@MrRick5461 Oh I am familiar with those arrangements & I've performed a number of them even. I meant I didn't know Scarlatti himself has been so interested & influenced by guitar music & Spanish music in general. I really enjoy watching your videos by the way. Many Thanks.
@@mohammadsabetghadam43 I agree! 😂As the guitar didn't actually exist at that time....perhaps the lute was meant 😊 Playing a transcription is not the same as a piece intended for a particular instrument, in my opinion anyway 😊 ( I also play a number of transcriptions for the guitar) 🎉
@@vayasaberlo8 It sure is. 😊
💗💓💞💕❣️💖💘💝
I thought K had endeavoured to place pairings together in his numbering??
At about 8:40, we stop talking about Scarlatti and start talking about someone called ‘Scarladdi’ (ugh!).
It’s correctly *’esser-chee-tszee,’*
not ‘esser-see-zee’.
A little coaching on Italian pronunciation may have helped in what is otherwise, an interesting and useful video.
Apologies for my verbal missteps...and thanks so much for taking the time to watch and comment!
@@MrRick5461
No problem, some really interesting material which I enjoyed, and a couple of sonatas I did not know, thanks - but just take a quick lesson in Italian!
could you please expain the pairings of the sonatas you executed ? Particularly, the sonatas K.491 and K.102 .
I cannot find any source of these pairings.
The essential read is:
*Domenico Scarlatti by Ralph Kirkpatrick*
A fine biography, analysis of the music, and standard reference work on the composer.
It was Kirkpatrick who also catalogued the 555 sonatas, and he is the K by whom they are identified.
Kirkpatrick identified 388 sonatas conceived as pairs, and 12 as sets of three.
K102 and 103 are a pair in g minor and G major respectively.
K490, K491, and K492 are a set of three, all in D major.