Falsobordone, the Miserere of Allegri, and a most bizarre musicological error
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 13 มิ.ย. 2024
- For the footnotes and other extra information see the following link:
www.earlymusicsources.com/you...
Created by Elam Rotem
www.earlymusicsources.com
Singing: Jacob Lawrence, Doron Schlefier, Elam Rotem
Many thanks to Enrico Correggia and Marc Lewon for their knowledgeable contributions, and to Jörg-Andreas Bötticher and the Predigerkirche Basel for allowing us to film with the anonymous Italian organs (late 18. century).
Special thanks to Anne Smith And Alon Schab.
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The Miserere high C is the most beautiful musical mistake ever. Well worth it.
Soprano C, we like to keep it on a high note.
It's probably the most beautiful mistake of any kind , ever 😊
Can't agree with you more!
I couldn't agree more. It moves me beyond words and is what makes this piece so beautiful for me.
@@user_g41b4t91yy do you mean couldn't agree more? If you can't agree more it means you're in disagreement with the statement.i'm not being a grammar nazi, I have autism and I'm genuinely interested in your point of view.
Are we going to ignore the rendition that the tenor did? That was mind bowing
Alejandro M. He was great hey
Incredible, indeed!
Indeed.
Agreed!
That was breathtaking! (For him especially...:)
I am staggered by the quality of your videos. So aesthetically pleasing, the sheet and music placed so well as to explain and elaborate on your points, a very pleasant talking speed with great pronunciation of the different languages. Your videos are extremely informative, well written and entertaining. Thank you for the immense work you put into your creations!
Elam is a fantastically gifted man and communicates it all so humbly.
Show your support!! 🌺😊
That "generic falsobordone" you wrote was gorgeous. Well done!
I agree 100%. I should try my hand at writing my own generic falsobordone (which will be crappy), and add it to the generic falsobordone beautifully written by Dr. Rotem. In the future, both versions will be performed as a single and favored generic falsobordone ever written, and only someone smart will be able to decipher the one not original to Dr. Rotem.
@@Tubomiro Just shift it up by a third. It seems to work.
Came here to say the exact same thing. I've even revisited this video a few times specifically to hear it again.
4:30
Pure Thomas Tallis... gave me shivers all right.
"This is a generic falsobordone I wrote" (A sublime excerpt of music is heard)
Mr. Rotem, if a were a Church prelate, you would be hands-down my maestro di cappella.
And this was a superb video. As usual! You are producing one of the best online musicological resources available on the web. If not the best!
Or, if an authentic « early » prelate, drive him away as a non christian and burn his books…
Dr.* Rotem
who else would listen to a complete rotem's miserere? that generic falsobordone was beautiful!
And who will write down some embellishments to be inserted in the wrong key? ;-)
I much rather listen to his magnificent counterpoint on Hebrew texts.
I always thought the "modulation" was a brilliant piece of creativity by Allegri - now it seems it was one of the first"remixes" that (may) sound better then the original !!
Hats of for your research, and (amazingly) clear explanation of the subject ...
Same, I thought it was a brilliant early flat II. That was a beautiful mistake, though.
And an accidental remix at that.
@BVale Asserting with confidence that Bach did not compose the most famous toccata attributed to him is nothing but people being overly eager to show "secret knowledge" that the vast majority of people don't know, making them sound smart and knowledgeable.
On the other hand, asserting with confidence the converse is not proper either. As far as I understand, there's no absolute certainty among historians and musicologists whether it was indeed composed by Bach, or just attributed to him later (something that has demonstrably happened with other pieces of music many, many times, with many composers). It's in essence no different from attributing a saying to the wrong person, or in the modern world attributing photographs and videos to the wrong event and place (it may be a genuine mistake, or a deliberate attempt at deception, but the end result is that millions of people believe the wrong thing.)
Some doubt has been cast onto the authorship of the piece because it cannot be established with absolute certainty, and the style doesn't seem to mach any of the other Bach's compositions. It would be strange that he would compose one single piece using this particular style, and no others. On the other hand, it cannot be stated with certainty that he did not compose it, either.
@@WarpRulez Maybe the first, certainly not the last ;)
A "stroke of genius" is actually a mistake. Reminds me of that maxim: if something is too good to be true, it's probably not true.
I could listen to an entire concert sung in that manner by that virtuoso at 7:56.
Here are some more TH-cam videos in which Jacob Lawrence is singing: th-cam.com/users/results?search_query="jacob+lawrence"+tenor
Be sure to listen to the two from the 2020 Bovicelli Competition (which he won).
7:59 I can't get over how good this is
The TH-cam algorithm brought me to this video somehow. I don’t want to leave now. What a wonderful educational video describing a piece of music that I never knew contained an error. Love that high C.
Since Mendelssohn most probably had perfect pitch, this means the high C version might actually be faithful to what was heard in the sixtine chapel after all.
The mistake does indeed has a "certain bizarre beauty in it" - which makes it highly memorable.
Thank you for explaining the history of the Miserere of Allegri.
It looks like with time, people were playing a game of Chinese Whispers.
I'm fortunate to sing a lot of falsobordone with Cantores Sancti Gregorii during tridentine masses here in the Netherlands. I love doing this, especially when improvised!
"Here in the Netherlands" - not in the Duomo di Monreale? That would be wonderful (and I wonder how it would sound - I'd come to listen, even if it's 2000 miles away).
@@dlevi67 since his name is Monrealese...
@@patriksabo1141 Precisely the reason for my comment.
My mother comes from Monreale but is living in the Netherlands for almost 50 years now. I have a deep connection with the place, trying to go on a regular basis. I even had the opportunity to play the organ in the Duomo some years ago (it has 6! manuals)
@@Monrealese Lucky you! Enjoy, and keep making good music, no matter where!
When I first time sing it as Bass, I leap from F# to C in the second part falsobordone . “Fancy, a tritone in renaissance music!”
The organ that you use for the examples has one of the most beautiful 8' principals I have ever heard.
Best musicological video ever seen on TH-cam: please, post more of this!!!
I like the "wrong version" most.
Thank you with a big smile.
the mistake is amazing though
Yet another wonderful episode. Thanks so much!
Ah, finally the video that I was expecting for. Thanks for your efford Elam!
Can't state how amazing this video is. Thank you so much!
WOW, that was so fascinating. I grew up listening to one particular recording of the Miserere on the radio, a British one probably from the 1960's (I would have to go in search for the recording). Anyway, it was always the same recording because the high treble voice was sung by a young boy who had an angelic voice range and it always made the hair on the back of your neck rise up and goosebumps on the body as well. Why tamper with such a sound? And the Mozart story you are now implying was probably not reliable? Oh no.....I would hope to hear more about that legend. Such an intellectually stimulating essay you have posted. Loved it.
In the footnote page I included some links to performances. You might refer to this recording by The Choir of King's College / David Willcocks (1963)
th-cam.com/video/piPiVndX7kw/w-d-xo.html
@@EarlyMusicSources You know, that might be the recording I had heard so many times. What I had not noticed, if this is the one, is that it was sung in English; had never noticed that before. The version sung by Pro Cantione Antiqua is extraordinarily beautiful. I might be wrong but it seems to me that poor Allegri created such a phenomenal piece of music that the result over the centuries is that it alone eclipsed all the rest of his output. That's an injustice to his art but it just happened that way, I suppose.
@@fredhoupt4078 Pachelbel and Canon in D, even worse...
The Mozart story is almost certainly made up - at least according to modern biographies of Mozart.
@@dlevi67 unsure about your Pachelbel comment.
@@fredhoupt4078 you said: "poor Allegri created such a phenomenal piece of music that the result over the centuries is that it alone eclipsed all the rest of his output."
I said: "Pachelbel and Canon in D, even worse..."
Does this explain what I meant?
Man I love this channel! Always educational, inspiring, thought provoking, and entertaining.
The way you present the information is really professional, yet easy to understand! :-)
Brilliant program and analysis. Thanks!
The superb historical and textual background you provide is outstanding but on a diff note, I loved your accent and pronunciation.
The way you spoke words like _faalsoborrdone_, _virtuosic_, _actual_ & _genre_ inter alia was medicinal. I tried to pronounce _genre_ like you did but I couldn't do it.
And the whole video was made fabulously. The quality and presentation was superb with the voiceover and the visual in total coherence.
Thanks a lot again for this video.
This is one of my favourite videos I have ever watched. I was able to learn so much, from the way you explained everything. I cannot find words to thank you enough for sharing this. Thank you so much.
Absolutely fascinating and beautifully illustrated. Grazie mille, dottore!
Wow, not only is this highly informative and easy to understand, but excellent video production value too. Great job on making this video.
Thank you for your very educational videos. As someone learning about music on her own, they're immensely useful and interesting.
So richly done. Amazing video. And what a wonderful performance and demonstration by the tenor. Incredible, thanks!
This is one of the best channels on TH-cam, I hope you keep making these videos for a long time
Great videos Elam, love learning new stuff!
This channel and channels like it are why TH-cam is special. Thanks for all you do. ❤
Thank you so much for the work you do! It's very helpful
Thank you! Awesome discovery. Very well done, and helpful to those of us are far less knowledgeable.
A truly fascinating history ! Thank you for sharing. Incidentally, I think your composed falsobordone was quite a beautiful example of the technique. Bravo !
Sehr gut erklärt, once again bravo Elam Rotem!
Thank you for this enlightenment, in standard music history textbook these differences has never been explained *this concise and yet precise*
That was incredible. I don’t know nothing about music theory but I sent riveted by your clear explanation and graphics. I think I actually followed most of that. I am so impressed though with your use of graphics. This piece should win some sort of documentary pedagogical award. Thank you very much. I can only imagine the hundreds and hundreds of hours that went into it.
That was absolutely fascinating. Thank you so much!
Wow!! Wonderful video, the first one I've ever seen from this channel. I've sung "Allegri's" Miserere and though I'd been told that some of the ornaments were added from the "original" sheet music I had no idea that the whole famous high C part wasn't even supposed to be there! I also liked your explanation about falsobordorne and the singing at 08:00 was sublime!
Complimenti Elam, ho trovato particolarmente interessante e stimolante questo Movie, oltre al fatto che tutti i tuoi lavori sono di altissimo livello.
Extraordinario muchas gracias Early Music !
I just found your page and now I love it!
Felicitaciones por el canal! es absolutamente maravilloso. Gracias!!
Magnificent work!!! I learn a lot from you, thanks!!
Jacob Lawrence did a fascinating rendition of that psalm by Francesco Severi (8:00), which, as far as I've seen, hasn't ever been recorded before.
Probably one of the most beautiful vocal pieces i've heard too.
The video creator doesn't seem to agree that it was great, but many people here (including me) liked it a lot.
What is most interesting about it is the fact that the soloist sounds almost like a hazzan (Jewish cantor).
Great video! Thanks so much
Thanks Elam! This was highly informative and super interesting!
Fascinating, thank you! Also, refreshingly good Italian and French pronunciation (with a lovely tinge of Hebrew). Love it.
One of the most interesting and well done video about music! Bravi!
This is such a great channel
Another short lecture, another masterpiece! I heart this channel so much....! Thanks for uploading and sharing!
Thank you Elam.
Wow, this is such an eye opener for me! :)
Bravo!! Thank You for the Master Class!!
Great explanation! Well done.
Thank you so much for this clear explanation!!
Fascinating! I happened to listen to the Dumestre/Le Poème Harmonique recording the other day, and wondered why it was so different from the "classic" Tallis Scholars version I've enjoyed for decades haha! One of those odd coincidences that I would stumble upon your video so soon afterward that explains the issue :D Thank you very much for the excellent explanation!
I like the thought of composers over the years coming to the Sistine Chapel and furiously transcribing the piece as it was being performed. Perhaps an 'authentic performance' of the piece should be scored for nine voices and quill-scratching :P
Incredible video, thank you!!!
This is highly interesting - and yes, your own "falsobordone" is gorgeous! Thank you.
Me encantó su video... Muchas gracias😊
Amazing content!
Thank you!
Love these historically musical vignettes.. Merci !
Wonderful video. Thank you.
Beautiful and informative. Bravo.
What a thrilling and informative video. Thanks for enlightening us! I agree with other commentators that the transcription mistake is the piece's x-factor today.
Had the honour to be part of singing this mistake once. Truly special and awesome. Listening to the high part makes me forget my own part.... just beautiful. And like nothing else.
Informative and eye opening!
Thank you so much for all your work: I learn a lot as I was trained as a pianist for many years....Thank you very much from Sankt Petersbourg.
I just found this channel and I am glad.
Excellent! Thank you!
As many have commented, the quality of your work is superb. I'm also a music educator and I can only aspire to emulate the clarity of your explanations. But I'll never compose a falsobordone like yours.
Excellent! Thank you very much!
I never knew this, that's quite... shocking. I've always assumed the high C was the original version, because I've listened a lot of different recording, and they all, all are performance of the "wrong" edition. I'm just realizing that on IMSLP there are dozen of editions, and basically no on e has that high C.
Does someone know how can I find a recording of a more philological performance? I've never hear the Miserere sang differently.
Stefano Paparozzi - Score Videos Hello Stefano. Thank you for the work you put into your channel, I enjoy your videos. Try listening to Le Poeme Harmonique’s version on their recent album. I think it has the high C in it too but that may have been their choice as an ornament and not the edition. They are very authentic and studious otherwise.
Try : th-cam.com/users/results?search_query=believe+sas+bai+wattiez+miserere (in bits) or th-cam.com/video/DFtmSGpkA2c/w-d-xo.html&start_radio=1 It's completely different to all the others.
HI, the one linked by Grabyrdy (by the William Byrd ensemble) is a gorgeous recording but it presents the Miserere in something close to how it had evolved by the nineteenth century as possibly heard by Mendelssohn. It doesn't have the 'mistake' in it, but it is done at very high pitch (just as Mendelsohn must have heard), leading some to make the same mistake on hearing it as Rockstro made, because even the high G sounds almost liks a high C at this pitch!
There is a fantastic recording by Andrew Parrott's Taverner Consort at a somewhat lower pitch; Verses 1 and 3 are exactly as published by Allegri, with no abblimenti at all, and then the abblimenti become progressively more and more elaborate as the verses go on. It also doesn't have 'the mistake' and there is no high C anywhere; I think it is exactly what you are looking for, hope that helps:
th-cam.com/video/3Wzyagv3uc8/w-d-xo.html
@@alistairkirk3264 Thank you! I just listened to recording you linked, and I must say that if I didn't watched this video we're commenting now, I wouldn't even recognized that as Allegri, but just someone imititating him!
@@SPscorevideos Well you're not wrong. It's Bai (mostly), not Allegri. But this is what the Papal Chapel was singing mostly from mid-18th century on. The "Allegri Miserere" is a performance construct, with very little to do with Allegri. And there was a high C (or a B or a B flat, or even once, a D flat) because the choir sang it at very high pitch. That's where Mendelssohn's mistake comes from, as Elam explained.
Fantastic video as always. Could you please make a video on the impact of the Concilio di Trento on the music scene (Italian and European)? Thank you and your team for these beautiful, useful and inspiring videos
Absolutely amazing
Really, really well explained; thank you.
I absolutely loved watching this. Thank you for your thorough research and the care with which you presented the findings! Subscribed!
Amazing explanations... Thank you!
Love your online-school! Very addictive, as learning could be, but too often is not.
This is one of those videos that I find mind blowing but can share it with anyone. Because no one I know will appreciate it as much as I do.
Can't believe I never noticed such an out-of-place key change. There's even a tritone in the bass.
Fantastic! Bravo!
Thank you very much for this insightful video. The mentioned passage is so heavenly beautiful, that I really would miss it if the more original version would become standard. Maybe at the end it is fine to know about the error but perform it with it.
Genius enlightens everything.
Excellent work!
This made me look at the famous Miserere in a different perspective. Thank you for this!
Woooooow, an excellent video... thank you ver much...
Thank you sooooo much.
I love this channel
The algorithm brought me here from the Marian Consort video on the 3 versions of the Miserere. If that was Allegri 101, this is Allegri 501. Now I understand not just that Rockstro made a boo-boo, but why and how. Thank you for sharing your deep and wide understanding of the elements of early music which informs your enlightening treatments of specific works, composers, and techniques.
Cadences are so special to me that I can just focus on the cadences of songs and find enjoyment there
הסבר ברור שמוגש באופן נעים גם להדיוט שכמותי. מעולה!
8:43 plus and minus, I know nothing about music other than what I think sounds good, or at least what I can appreciate, this to me sounded a tint Arabic, and I would have never thought how well it fitted.
amazing video!
Excellent!
Great video!