Jul 13, 2020
What a great thrill to be joined by a very special guest, Professor Rosa Cafiero of the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, the department of History, Archaeology and Art History. She is here to talk about her latest book La didattica del partimento (a collection of nine essays, revisited and adjourned for the digital era). She is one of the great, early pioneers of Partimento research!
-----
0:55 The word for department in Italian is dipartimento
1:23 On being a graduate of the San Pietro a Majella, Naples
1:56 Was the training there similar to the 18th century version of
the conservatory?
3:16 Was partimento extinct?
3:59 Did you still get to learn partimenti in any way?
4:48 When did you get interested in exploring the Neapolitan
methods?
5:46 Describe the history of Partimento research in the 20th
century
8:39 How many documents and manuscripts were there in the
library?
9:54 Have all the manuscripts been researched?
10:51 Are these expensive paper manuscripts free from mistakes?
12:44 What does sulla fortuna mean?
13:11 How did you revise your 1993 Carlo Cotumacci article?
14:30 Who was Carlo Cotumacci and why is he important?
16:48 How is Cotumacci’s “3rd Way” different from Leo and
Durante?
17:31 The regole del contrappunto by Nicola Sala
19:37 On Nicola’s legacy and his reputation in counterpoint but
also some criticism about his melodic ability
20:22 Francesco Durante’s harmonic theories
21:35 How did you revise the essay?
21:55 How hard was it to get these manuscripts today vs previous
years
23:37 “Music of a new kind, music composed without rules” -
Fenaroli
25:40 Did Fenaroli complain about mistakes in his publications
26:17 Was Naples aware of musical developments in other continents,
such as the popularity of Haydn
27:56 Do we full biographies of these Neapolitans or do we just
have scraps of information
29:35 How about letters?
31:04 Emmanuele Imbimbo in Paris
33:27 What does Practica mean?
35:10 But wasn’t Zarlino a theorist? How does that relate to
practica?
36:32 Bianchi’s treatise on harmony
38:45 Was his treatise like Fenaroli’s regole?
40:45 How did Bianchi teach young children?
41:17 The criticisms of the Neapolitan school in the 19th
century
43:49 The Neapolitan method vs the 20th century vertical approach
to harmony
47:40 Are Harmony and Counterpoint two separate subjects?
48:30 Is the Neapolitan method only for the 18th century, or can
the principles be applied to modern settings?
49:33 What mysteries still remain that interest you about this
field of research?
51:10 Do you have a favorite composer from this period?
52:48 What’s your reaction to surge in interest in partimento
today?
53:30 How about among your colleagues and peers?
55:04 Wrapping Up
55:52 When is the english version of your book coming out?