Our
nonchalantly clever friend, sprezzatura, made his mark not only in conversation
and dress but also in music. As a
pianist, this was exciting to discover. But I wasn’t surprised to find out what its theme-song is: jazz. You can hear it in the music as much as you can see it in the pianist--one hand on the keyboard, eyes wandering around the room, reflecting an ambiance of easiness. The music itself is laid back, seemingly casual,
but paradoxically striking and captivating.
But
that’s not what they played in the 1600s.
Johann
Sebastian Bach was the star of the 1600s and is still a highly-praised musician
today. His music is admirable for its technicalities—it’s
very vertical, systematic, and almost dry. Yet this somehow expressed the culture of the scientific revolution. The music has purpose; it moves progressively forward towards a predetermined destination. (For image of Bach's sheet music, click here).
Playing Bach requires concentration and drilling--there's little room for improvisment because the interpretation is straightforward. It's dull but comfortable. Jazz, on the other hand, is a whole different ball game. A few chords are thrown at you but the music that stares back at you from the piano is more white than black. It's daunting, sometimes petrifying, but also thrilling. It could take you nowhere and it'd still be a great adventure (try it out here).
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| Jazz Piano Sheet Music |
So was sprezzatura re-personified in the 1600s? Or did Bach's music, coupled with other Baroque arts and scientific discoveries take center stage?
Image Sources: "Piano clip art" (via pxhere)
"Jazz Piano" (public domain images via Wikimedia Commons)
I now realise why you put a question mark in your title. I think you're right to ask whether the scientific revolution countered the earlier renaissance or merely adapted them. I think today, however, we can try to see where those roads led -- those who preach sprezzatura (or "chivalry" etc) are considered romantics, and those who don't are considered realistic. Whether this is an improvement or not, I'm not sure..
ReplyDeleteTo appreciate something is to understand the contrary to which you don't appreciate...aka without Bach's straightforward, almost drill-like works, would we have had a Jazz era at all? Would Jazz be considered predetermined music if there was no Bach? I think its interesting to contemplate but it is clear in the history of the world that society always moves in patterns, whether artistically, economically, etc.
ReplyDeleteI like the creativity of your post, as it helps me to think about sprezzatura in another light! It seems that sprezzatura is in anything that is new and creative. As you mentioned, Bach's music was used in its day to convey the scientific discovery and progress of humanity. Though it may not appeal to us as much today, the creativity and uniqueness of his music surely captivated the people of his day. Today, music that allows for more interpretation is what opens people's minds and sparks interest, thus having its own sprezzatura.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very interesting point you have made. I think that Bach exemplified some aspects of sprezzatura, but I also think that his knowledge and skill goes deeper than that of appearing flashy on the surface. Jazz to me definitely seems like a better analogy to sprezzatura, as there is often depth, but the depth is sometimes contrived from the lack of having such a formulaic situation to work with. Jazz musicians fly by the seat of their pants in the same way that someone exercising sprezzatura would if they weren't exactly sure what they were talking about, but had the rhetorical skills to dress it up nice, whereas Bach was more of a through and through expert via the sort of "scientific method" approach you describe.
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