WEEK 6
G. P. Telemann: Canary Cantata
Dear MBE Fans,
This week we are wrapping up our emotional cat-bird-drama rollercoaster. With the aria “Ihr lieblichen Kanarienvögel” (You lovely canaries), our protagonist asks all canaries to join him in mourning the beloved bird: “Beklaget meine Freud’ und eure Zier” (bewail my joy and your beauty). It is yet another angle of expressing grief, this time in the melancholic key of a-minor. The bass line is moving relatively swiftly, so it feels too fast for a dirge…(but then again, it is a tiny bird we are mourning here, so the pace corresponds to the speed of bird hops).
The middle section is a tribute to birdsong in general: “Ihr Vögel, die sonst so wunderschön…” (you birds who are so wonderful…). Interestingly, Telemann instructs the musicians to perform this section “tasto solo”: play the continuo line without harmony (cello/bass only, without harpsichord). The effect literally highlights the “song”, with only the solo voice and the bass line present.
To cap things off, we feature the hilarious final recitativo. The grief-stricken bird lover describes the burial for the little creature with much sadness. However, while reading the inscription on the tombstone, he erupts in anger and frustration, spelling out eternal damnation for the violent offender (I want to throw something at you). These final lines are written in Plattdeutsch (Low German), as opposed to the standard High German used in the rest of the cantata. Plattdeutsch was a dialect widely used in North Germany (where Telemann lived for much of his career), before it receded to the more sophisticated High German during the 18th and 19th centuries.
Telemann’s Canary Cantata is an extended internal monologue, covering a wide range of emotions and creating a dramaturgical arc across its arias and recitativos. It is essentially a mini-one-man-opera. Enjoy!
Mischa Santora, MBE artistic director
You lovely canaries, bewail
My joy and your beauty.
You birds, who are so wonderful,
Artfully, lovingly do
Our keen ears some good.
Translation
3. Aria
Ihr lieblichen Kanarienvögel, beklaget
Meine Freud’ und eure Zier.
Ihr Vögel, die ihr sonst so wunderschön,
Mit künstlich lieblichem Getön
Den muntren Ohren pflegt zu dienen.
Now then take the tiny limbs in your hand,
And put the bird softly down in the cool earth.
See that he lies in safely.
To assuage my sorrow,
Let us pay our last respects,
By writing on his tombstone:
Because of a devil!
Here lies a bird!
Who could sing so prettily
And brought joy to eberyone!
You alleycat!
Because you ate this little animal
I want to
throw something at you!
8. Recitativo
Nun dann, so nehmt die kleinen Glieder in eure Hand,
Und setzt den Vogel sanfte nieder in kühlen Sand.
Macht, daß er sicher möge liegen,
Um mich bei meinem Leide zu vergnügen,
So lasset dieses noch die letzte Ehre sein,
Daß ihr schreibt auf den Leichenstein:
Dat de der Hagel!
Hie liegt ein Vogel,
de koenn mann neerteck quinqueleeren
und alle Menschen konnten heren
Du Strekkebeen!
Als du willst düssen Vogel treten
So wull ick,
dat du wär wat an Hals geschmeten!
WEEK 5
G. P. Telemann: Canary Cantata
Dear Lovers of Birdsong,
Welcome back to another week of dramatic storytelling, pairing a recitative with the ensuing aria. Recitatives in general are movements that precede an aria, containing a dialogue/action (like in an opera), or an explanation/clarification of a situation (like in this case). While recitatives are composed in a musical meter (e.g. 4/4), they leave space for much interpretive freedom. Ideally, the performer(s) will absorb the ebb and flow of the lyrics and let the content dictate the speed of each phrase.
In this recitative, the grieving bird lover elaborates on the virtues of the lost creature, highlighting its wonderful “vocal” qualities. After a few lines the attention turns to the canary’s grim death. The final line“…den teuren Bissen weg gefressen” (…devoured the precious little thing) implicates our feline antagonist and its ravenous appetite.
This makes a perfect segue into the aria with its rant against the cruel cat. The opening word “Friß” (eat; devour) with its hissing sharp “s” is repeated many times, expressing the pent-up anger and frustration. The multitude of hissing rhymes (“zerrisse”, “zerbisse”) and Telemann’s breathless, angular music kick this aria into operatic high gear. It includes a bloody description of imaginary revenge, in which the bird tears apart the cat: “Dass dich der Vogel zerkratze, zerrisse“ (Let the bird scratch you, tear you to pieces). The final lines get increasingly violent, without mercy or redemption for the aggressor.
TRIGGER WARNING: this aria might be deeply upsetting to all lovers of domesticated cats. Please listen with caution!
Mischa Santora, MBE artistic director
Translation
4. Revitative
What more should I sing to your praise,
Oh noble canary?
You could extend your clear voice,
So that all ears, hearts and minds,
Of those who heard you, were moved.
Only you, cruel death alone, were unmoved
By the delightful sound;
For you have cruelly and arrogantly
Devoured the precious little thing.
Was soll ich mehr zu deinem Lobe singen,
O edler Canarin?
Du konnst deine helles Kelchen also zwingen,
Daß aller Ohren, Herr und Sinn, die dich gehört,
Beweget wurden.
Nur dir, dir grausamer Tod allein,
Konnt der verliebte Ton doch nicht beweglich sein;
Den du hast grob und vermessen,
Den teuren Bissen weg gefressen.
5. Aria
Eat so that your neck swells up, eat,
You impudent intruder (guest)!
Eat!
Let the bird scratch you, tear you to pieces,
And at your stomach and intestines bite,
Until you spew them out;
Eat and burst on the spot! Eat!
Friß, daß dir der Hals anschwelle, friß,
Du unverschämter Gast!
Friß!
Daß dich der Vogel zerkratze, zerrisse,
Und dir den Magen und Därme zerbisse,
Bis du ihn gespien hast;
Friß und berste auf der Stelle! Friß!
Week 4
G. P. Telemann: Canary Cantata
Dear MBE Fans,
Today we are moving away from the sacred towards the secular sphere. The prolific baroque composer Georg Philipp Telemann wrote this tragic-comic piece as a commission from a music lover, saddened by the sudden death of his beloved canary. The bird was apparently well trained in the art of singing, so a “cantata” (literally a sung piece of music) is the most appropriate obituary. Cause of death was a hungry, unscrupulous cat, another pet in the household.
This week we are featuring two movements from this piece. The opening aria is a lament. Its text is is set against a lightly undulating texture in minor, with a number of unexpected turns, especially in the middle section. The final operatic exclamation “Wem klag’ ich diese Not?” (To whom can I lament my loss?) seems to sum up the near comic juxtaposition of music and lyrics throughout this piece.
The second aria is the penultimate movement. It is a lovely “Goodnight” song, a final lullaby for the beloved creature. This is a truly beautiful piece of music, reminiscent of Handel’s expressive simplicity and nobility in his operatic works. Telemann clearly must have felt genuine empathy with the commissioner of this work!
The cantata is scored for solo voice and orchestra.
Mischa Santora, MBE artistic director
1. Aria
Oh woe, oh woe, my canary is dead,
To whom can I lament my loss,
To whom can I lament my bitter pain,
Who shares my suffering in their heart
To whom can I lament my loss?
7. Aria
My canary, goodnight!
Before my little feathered friend goes away for good,
I mustn’t think of your true diligence,
You made everything so nice for me.
Translation
1. Arie
O Weh, oh weh, mein Canarin ist tot,
Wem klag’ ich meine Not,
Wem klag’ ich meine bittre Schmerzen,
Wer nimmt dies Leid mit mir zu Herzen?
Wem klag’ ich diese Not?
7. Arie
Mein Canarin gute Nacht!
Eh wird das Federvieh sich in die See versenken,
Als ich an deinen Fleiß nicht sollte denken;
So gut hast du’s bei mir gemacht.
MBE performed the Canary Cantata in October 2014, with the following artists:
Andrew Wilkowske, baritone
www.andrewwilkowske.com
Andrew Altenbach, conductor
We are deeply grateful for everyone’s permission to release these recordings.