susanna_co@j... wrote:
susanna_co@j... wrote:
> May we appreciate the scholarship and dedication of HIP musicians.
> At the same time, music is meant to be enjoyed and it can be
enjoyed with
> modern sensibilities without adhering strictly to HIP guidelines.
If we
> did adhere strictly, how many women would be singing certain types
of
> music?
>
> Susan Nace
Dear Susan,
Hear Hear! Sometimes I feel that it is more important to respect the
*intent* of the composer in a holistic way rather than attempt to
reproduce every insignificant detail (which is of course impossible)
of performance.
In the age of castrati, for instance, Handel used women, castrati,
and uncut men interchangeably for a variety of roles. HIP is not in
mimicking the exact sexes of the casting choices (Sesto female,
Caesar male, and Cleopatra female, for instance), rather, it is in
following Handel's "informed *practicality*" which caused him to cast
the best singer for a role regardles of sex.
It's silly the extent some will go to make sure they cast a so-so
countertenor in place of an excellent mezzo (and in theory, vice
versa, though it is rarer now) for a role in simply because Handel
used a man in his performances - I doubt he would ever have chosen an
inferior singer on such misguided principle.
Tako Oda
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