8/10/2019 The Use of the Bow in French Solo Viol Playing of the 17th and 18th Centuries

1/3

he

use

o

the

bow

in

rench

solo

viol

pl ying

o the

7th

and

8th

enturies

JOHN

HSU

Madame

Henriette e France

(daughterf

Louis

XV),paintingby

Jean

MarcNattier

1754),

Versailles.

detail)

Jean

Rousseau,

in his

Traite'dea

Viole,

ays

that

bowing

is

the soul

of

viol

playing.

To

put

it in

less

poetic

language

and

in

more

practical

terms,

we

may

say

that

the essence of French solo

viol

playing

depends

on

the

proper

use of the bow. Yet

in

the

revival of

viol

playing

in

this

century

and

in

the

renewed

interest

in

the

performing

of French

pi&ces

e

viole,

very

little

has

been

done

by

performers

today

to

try

to

define,

reconstruct,

and

recapture

the

basic

approach

of

French viol

bowing

beyond following

the

rules of

bowing given

by

Rousseau,'

and the

notations and

directions

given

by

composers

of

pidces

de viole

in

their

music

and

avertissements.

ranted

that

it is

important

to

recognize

that due to the underhandbow grip of the viol bow the

up-bow

is

the

strong

stroke,

the

opposite

of

violin

bowing

in

which the

down-bow

is

the

strong

stroke,

and that certain

rhythmic patterns

were

customarily

bowed

in

certain

ways by

the French

players,

it

is

even

more

important

for the

present-day

viol

player

to

recognize

the

basic tonal ideal

of French

viol

playing,

in

contrast

to violin

playing

of

that

period

which was

associated

with Italian

music.

Although

both the

viol

and

the

violin

are

played

with

a

bow,

the

mere revers-

ing

of

the

direction

of

bowing

and

the

learning

of

bowing

patterns

for

the

viol

will

not

help

us

to realize

and

capture

the flavour of Frenchviol music unless we

understand

the

tonal

quality

and

inflection

for

which

French

layers

f the

17thand

18thcenturies

trove.

Let

us first

identify

the

basic

bow stroke

of French

viol

playing

and the sound

ideal

of the French

players.

Marin

Mersenne

in his

Harmonie

Universelle

1636)

says,

in

describing

the

spinet,

that

'it

blends

particularly

with the

viols which

have

a

percussive

and resonant

sound

like the

spinet.

One

can

say

the

same

thing

of

the

harpsichord.

.. .'2

Hubert

Le

Blanc

in his

Defense

e

la

basse

de

viole

(1740)

has

this to

say

about the

bow

stroke of the viol, comparing

it

with the

basic

Italian

violin bow

stroke: 'These

bow

strokes are

simple,

with

the

bow

striking

he

viol

string

as the

jacks

pluck

the

harpsichord

trings,

and not

complex

ikethose of

the

Italians,

where the

bow,

by

the

use of smooth and

well-connected

up-

and

down-bows

whose

changes

are

imperceptible,

produces

endless

chains of notes

that

appear

as

a continuous

flow

such

as

those

emanating

from

the

throats of Cossoni

and

Faustina.'3

These

documents

how

us in unmistakable

ermsthat for a

hundred

years

or more French

viol

players

used a basic

bow stroke

that was

in character similar

to the

pluckingof the harpsichordand spinet,and not a

smooth bow stroke without an

initial attack

like that of

the Italian violinist.

The

way

to

pluck

with the bow

is

clearly

described

by

Etienne

Loulid

in his Mithode

pour apprendre

a

jouer

la

viole,

under

coup

de

poignet:

Up-bow

When

you

want to

begin

with an

up-bow,

the wrist

should be bent

somewhat inward.

Pressthe

string

with

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8/10/2019 The Use of the Bow in French Solo Viol Playing of the 17th and 18th Centuries

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the hair at

the

tip

of

the bow

by

leaning

the

middle

finger

rather

heavily

on the hair as

though

you

want

to

grate

or scratch the

string.

As soon as the

string

begins

to

sound,

relieve the tension

on

the

hair,

that is to

say,

do not

press

[the

middle

finger]

as

heavily;

at the

same

time,

reverse

the

wrist

movement so that

it leans

very

slightly

towards

the

right.

Continue

the

up-bow

direction and

keep

the same wrist

position.

The rest of

the

arm,

from the

wrist

to the elbow and from

the

elbow to the

shoulder,

should follow the movement in

succession.

Down-bow

When

you

want to

begin

with

a

down-bow,

the

wrist

should be

bent somewhat

outward

and

turned

very

slightly

towards the

right.

Press the

string

with the hair

of

the bow

very

near the hand

by

leaning

the

middle

finger

rather

heavily

on

the hair as

though

you

want to

scratch

the

string.

As

soon as

the

string begins

to

sound,

relieve

the tension on

the

hair,

that

is

to

say,

do

not

press

[the

middle

finger]

as

heavily;

at

the same

time,

push

and

straighten

the wrist and even lean it

very slightly

towards

the

left.

Continue the

down-bow

direction

and

keep

the same

wrist

position.

The rest of

the

arm,

from the

wrist

to

the

shoulder,

should

follow

as

though

it

were a

single piece yet

without

stiffening.4

Loulie's

direction

for

the

coup

de

poignet

s

meticulous.

It

underscores

the

flexible movement

of the

wrist and

arm

in

drawing

the

bow and the

alert

action

of

the

middle

finger

on

the

hair

in

achieving

the

plucking

character

of

the sound.

Therefore

we can

consider the

coup

de

poignet

the

basic

bow stroke of

French viol

playing. The varying amount of pressure exerted on

the

hair of

the

bow and the

varying speed

with which

that

pressure

is

released

will result in

different

kinds of

plucking.

Using

words as

an

analogy,

we can

say

that

the

basic

bow

stroke

always

enunciates

a word

begin-

ning

with

a

consonant,

though

it

may

be

either hard or

soft.

Jean-Baptiste Forqueray

stresses

that the action

of

the

middle

finger

on

the

hair

is

also

responsible

for

achieving

expressiveness

and

nuance:

It

is

the

action of

the

third

finger

of

the

bow arm

that is

the

prime mover

of

expressive

playing, and that gives

character

to all music.

For this

purpose,

the first

joint

of

the third

finger

should rest

crosswise on the

hair of

the

bow and

always

remain

in

that

position.

The

finger

pushes

the

hair on the

string

in

order

to

draw

more or

less

sound

by

leaning

or

releasing

imperceptibly,

which

results

in

loudness

and

softness. Above

all,

Monseigneur,

be

sure

that the

thumb

lies

gently

on

the

stick. If it

presses

too

hard,

it

makes for

harsh

articula-

tion and

overburdens

the bow on

the

string,

which

one

must

absolutely

avoid.

In

describing

Marais's

playing,

LeBlanc tells us

that

all of Marais's bow strokes were an

outgrowth

of

the

plucking

bow

stroke:

'Using

a

smartly-drawn

and

plain

bow

stroke which resembles

so much

the

plucking

of the

lute and

guitar,

the kind of sound

that

le

Pare

Marais had in mind for his

pieces,

he varied

it

into

six different kinds of bow strokes.

These

encompass

a

range

of

expression

that one

can

reproach

the

harpsichord

for

lacking.'6

How this

basic

bow

stroke can be varied into other bow strokes

is

partially

answered

by

Loulie when

he

says:

'A

bow

stroke-especially

a

long

one-may

be considered to

be

composed

of

three

parts:

the

beginning,

the

middle,

and the end. This is not to

say

that all bow strokeshave

all three

parts.

For

one knows

that there are some that

have

only

the

beginning'.7

Perhaps

the

coupe

or

sec

listed

in

his Mithode

s

the bow

stroke with

'only

the

beginning'.

On the

other

hand,

the

enfli

may

be

considered the bow

stroke without a

beginning,

about

which Loulie says 'one must not scratch the string but

must

begin

by

making

as

little

sound

as

possible

and

increase the

sound while

pushing

or

pulling

the

bow'.*

Marais

s

explicit

in

indicating

where

such a bow stroke

is

wanted

in his music

by placing

the letter

'e'

above

the note or

soon

after

it,

depending

on

where

the

swell

is to

take

place.

The

soutenu

s

a bow

stroke

in

which

'one

sustains

the amount

of

sound

that

is at

the

begin-

ning throughout

the

middle and the end'.9

It is

merely

the basic

bow

stroke with

minimal release

of

the initial

tension after

the

string

begins

to

speak,

and

with the

tension

maintained

throughout

the

entire

length

of

the

bow. How Marais classified his different bow strokes

into six

types

we will

never

know,

but we

do

know

that

they

all have

the

same

origin.

It is

by varying

either

the

beginning,

or the

middle,

or the end

of the basic

bow

stroke

that

other bow strokes are achieved.

The

variety

of

bow

strokes

is

so

great

that

Rousseau

says

that the

bow can

express

all

the

passions

that are associated

with

singing.

Of course

in

this he

is

referring

to

the

French

singing

of

that

period

with

its

subtle and

sensitive enunciation of the words

along

with the

proper

application

of

agr'ments,

and not the Italian

manner of singing where the voice 'produces endless

chains

of

notes that

appear

as a continuous flow

such

as those

emanating

from the throats of

Cossoni

and

Faustina'.

Thus in our

attempts

to

recapture

the

musical

rhetoric of French viol

playing

it

behoves us to

learn

both to

pluck

with the

bow,

and to

control with

care

and

subtlety

the tension and releaseof that

plucking

so

that

it

has the

expressiveness

and

inflection of

singing

527

8/10/2019 The Use of the Bow in French Solo Viol Playing of the 17th and 18th Centuries

3/3

as well

as the

'percussive

and

resonant

sound' of

the

harpsichord

and

spinet.

The

plucking

aspect

is

not

only

different

from the basic bow stroke

of the

violin

family

of

instruments,

but also different from

the

kind

of viol

playing

described

by

Ganassi

in the

16th

century,

and the more

lyrical way

of

playing

English

consort viol music. Of course the smooth bow

stroke

and the

stroke that

begins

with an

imperceptible

silence

are

part

of

the

vocabulary

of

French viol

playing,

and

in

slow and

expressive pieces

they

are

used

with

great

frequency.

However,

they

should not

in

general predominate

over

the

basic

plucking

bow

stroke,

and

pedagogically

should not

be used as a

point

of

departure.

As

with

any

instrument

that

has a

long

history,

evolution of

performing technique

and

style

is

inevitable. It

is

the

performer's

responsibility

to

use

the

proper technique

in

playing

any

given piece

of

music. Violinists

today

who are

knowledgeable

about

the evolution of the technique and style of violin

playing

would think it

inconceivable

to

apply

modern

violin

technique

in

playing

the

baroque

violin,

or

playing

romantic works

on

the modern violin

using

the

technique

expounded

by

Leopold

Mozart.

Should

we then

not

resist the use

of

modern cello

technique

as

well

as

16th-century

viol

technique

in

playing

French

viol music of the

17

h

and 18th

centuries

?

John

Hsu

is

the

Old Dominion

Foundation

Professor of

Humanities and

Music

at

Cornell

University

and

a

resident

artist

at

the

Aston

Magna

Foundation

for Baroque

Music. His

recordings

nclude

Pi&ces

de

viole

(Musical

Heritage

Society,

14

Park

Road,

Tinton

Falls,

New

Jersey

07724),

the

five

Suites

by

Antoine

Forqueray,

MHS

1455-1456

(1972,first

complete

recording);

ive

records

of

works

by

Marin

Marais,

MHS

1809, 3078,

3246,

3298

and

3356

(1973-6);

and

music

by

Marais,

Jacques

Morel,

and

Charles

Dolle,

MHS

3709

(1977).

He

is

at

present

preparing

the

first

modern

edition

of

the

complete

nstrumental

works

of

Marin

Marais

or

Broude

BrothersLtd

ofNew

York.

I

Jean

Rousseau,

Traitede a

viole

Paris, 1687),

pp.

107-115.

2

MarinMersenne,

Harmonie

UniverselleParis,1636),p. 107.

...

elle

se mesle

particulierement

auec

les

Violes,

qui

ont le son de

percussion

&8

e

resonnement comme

l'Epinette.

On

peut

dire la

mesme chose

des Clavecins ..

3

Hubert Le

Blanc,

Defense

de

la

bassede viole

contre

es

entreprises

u

violon

t les

pritentions

u violoncel

Amsterdam,

1740):

... ils

sont

simples

(donnans

leur

coup

sur la corde

de la

viole,

comme

fait

le

sautereau

sur

celle du

clavecin),

et non

pas complexes,

tels

que

ceux i

l'italienne,

ou

l'archet

par

tire

et le

pousse,

unis

et

lies,

sans

qu'on

appercoive

leur

succession,

produit

des

roulades de

sons

multiplies

A

'infini,

qui

n'en

paroissent

qu'une

continuitY,

tels

qu'en

formoient

les

gosiers

de Cossoni et

de

Faustina.

4

Etienne

Loulie,

Mithode

pour

apprendre

jouer

la

viole (Bibl.

Nat.

Paris,

MS fonds

fr.

n.a.

6355,

fol. 210-222):

Pousser

Quand

on ueut commencer

par pousser

il faut

que

le

poignet

soit

a

demi

ouuert,

presser

la corde

que

(sic) auec le

crin

du bout

de

l'Archet en

appuyant

un

peu

fort le

doigt

du milieu

sur

le

crin

comme si

l'on

uouloit ecorcher ou

gratter

a corde fermer le

poignet

en le renuersant tant soit

peu

a droite et tout

cela

presque

dans

le

meme

point

de

temps,

et si tost

que

la corde a commence a

parler

il

faut

soulager

le

crin

c'est a dire ne

pas appuyer

si

fort;

continuer

a

pousser

en

laissant

le

poignet

dans

la scituation ou il

se

trouue;

il

faut

que

tout le reste du bras

depuis

le

poignet jusqu'au

coude

suiue

le

poignet

et

depuis

le coude

jusqu'a l'espaule

c'est a dire

que

le

bras

deueloppe

successiuement.

Tirer

Quand

on

ueut

commencer

par

tirer il faut

que

le

poignet

soit

a

demi

ferme

et

tant soit

peu

renuerse a

droite,

presser

la corde auec

le

crin

de l'Archet tout

proche

de la main en

appuyant

un

peu

fort

le

doigt

du milieu sur le

crin

comme si

l'on

uouloit

gratter

la

corde

auec le

crin,

ouurir le

poignet

en le redressant et meme

le

penchant

tant

soit

peu

a

gauche,

et tout

?ela

dans le meme

point

de

temps,

et

si

tost

que

la Corde a

commence

a

parler

il faut

soulager

le

crin

de

l'Archet

c'est

a dire

ne

pas appuyer

si fort continuer a tirer en

laissant

le

poignet

dans la scituation

ou

il

se trouue il faut

que

le

reste du bras depuis le poignet jusqu'a l'espaule le suiue comme s'il

etoit

tout d'une

piece

sans

pourtant

le

roidir.

5

Yves

Gerard,

'Notes sur la Fabrication de

la

Viole

de Gambe

et

la

Maniare d'en

Jouer.

D'aprbs Correspondence

Inedite de

Jean-

Baptiste

Forqueray

au

Prince

Frederic

de

Prusse',

Recherches

ur

la

Musiquefrancaiselassique

(Paris,

1961-62):

C'est le

jeu

du troisiame

doigt

de

l'archet,

qui

est

le

grand

mobile

de

l'expression,

et

qui

caracterise

toute

la

musique.

I1

faut

pour

cela

que

le

crin

de

l'archet

soit

pose

en

croix sur

la

premiere

jointure

du

troisiame

doigt,

et

qu'il

ne

quitte jamais

cette

position.

Ce

doigt

appuye

le

crin

sur

les cordes

pour

tirer

plus

ou

moins

de

son,

en

l'appuyant

ou

le

relachant

imperceptiblement

ce

qui

fait

l'expression,

le

doux

et le fort.

I1

faut surtout

observer,

Monseigneur,

que

le pouce

de

l'archet

soit

molkment

place

sur

le

bois. S'il est

trop appuye,

il donne

beaucoup

de durete

i

l'execution

et

&crase'archet

sur la

corde,

ce

qu'il

faut absolument eviter.

6

Hubert Le

Blanc,

op

cit:

...

par

les

coups

d'archet enlev s, et tout

en

l'air

qui

tiennent

si

fort

du

pince

du luth

et

de

la

guitarre,

sur le

modle

de

quoi

le' Pre

Marais a

compose

ses

pi&ces,

auxquelles, quoiqu'il

les ait

varibes

de

six

coups

d'archet

diff6rens,

on

peut reprocher

une

partie

du

manque d'expression

du

clavecin

...

In

talking

about

playing

music,

the

word

'enleve'

means to

play

brilliantly,

hence

in

this case it

makes more sense to

translate the

bow

stroke as

'smartly-drawn'

rather than

'raised'. 'Tout en

l'air'

can

be translated

as

'unsupported',

in

this

case

unsupported

by

the

ornaments of the

left hand such as

the

vibrato,

hence a

'plain'

bow

stroke. However

one chooses to

translate these

terms,

the

fact

remains

that Le

Blanc

is

describing

a bow stroke

that

resembles

plucking.

'

Etienne

Loulie,

op

cit:

Un coup d'Archet-particulierement les grands et

long-peut

etre

considerb

comme

compose

de trois

parties;

du

Commencemt,

du

Milieu et de la fin.

Ce n'est

pas

a

dire

que

tous les

Coups

d'Archet

ayant

ces trois

parties

car on uerra

qu'il

y

en a

qui

n'ont

que

la

premiere...

8 ibid:

...

il ne

faut

point

gratter

la corde il

faut

commencer

par

la faire

sonner le

moins

qu'il

est

possible

et

augmenter

la force

du

son

a

mesure

qu'on

continue

a

pousser

ou

tirer l'Archet.

9

ibid:

C'est

soutenir

la force du son

au milieu

et a la

fin

comme

au

commencemt.

529