News

(Some of this post was pilfered from my previous note on the subject in 2022.)

‍ The upcoming Winter Baroque concert is played in full “historical performance” mode. No, this does not mean the musicians will be dressed in 18^th century costumes. It means the musicians will perform in a style that is “authentic” to how things were done back then, even to the point of playing on retrofitted instruments.

Starting in the 18^th century, as music moved out of churches and salons into large concert halls, instruments evolved to become more powerful. Metal strings replaced sheep gut (yes, and eyech….) creating a louder and more brilliant sound, violins had to be reinforced for the increased tension they were under, and the shape of the violin bow changed drastically allowing for an emphasis on power.  

Let’s get specific.

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The contrast is extreme: one concave, one convex. Furthermore, the tip on a modern bow is chiseled; a baroque bow ends in a sharp point. Such differences have an enormous effect on how the bow sounds and what you can do with it. A modern bow is designed for sustained power, enough to cut through a full symphony orchestra, and for flashy virtuoso techniques. You can’t play Sibelius or Brahms on a baroque bow; it would be like trying to cut down a tree with a steak knife.

But just because a modern bow can do much that a baroque bow can’t, doesn’t mean it always has the upper hand. Baroque music was written by Bach and Vivaldi for an instrument with a very specific quality in mind: a nimble and shimmery sound with a few tricks of its own.  

Imagine a 1965 and 2025 Mustang side-by-side. A ’65 fastback has a 4-speed manual gearbox, a top speed of 105 mph, no power steering, does 0 – 60 in a lumbering 10 seconds and you’ll feel every pothole in your teeth. A stock 2025 Mustang has a top speed of 155, a full electric suite including GPS and modern suspension, and does 0 – 60 in 3.9 seconds.

Yet, despite all the bells and whistles in a 2025, there are fierce advocates for the ’65. Speed and power doesn’t tell the whole story. The older car has a feeling and character wholly different from its modern equivalent. You can drive the same road for a completely different experience in the two vehicles.  

Apart from physical changes to the bow, strings, and body of a violin, even the pitch is different in historical performances. Over time, as the instruments changed, so too the default pitch crept upwards. The note musicians tuned to back then (which they called an “A,”) sounds like what we would call today an “A-Flat.” Subsequently, our modern “A” to them would sound painfully high.

How different does this actually sound? Compare two recordings of a Bach cello suite. Yo Yo Ma set the modern standard for generations of cellists with his luxurious, singing tone.

But I was gobsmacked when I first happened upon a recording of Anner Bylsma’s fleet-footed, “period” (historical performance) approach. He doesn’t sing like Yo Yo - he speaks.  

Bylsma, on his unmodified period cello with gut strings and baroque bow, plays Bach close to how he would have heard it in his own lifetime. But just because it is more “authentic” does that make it better? Personally, I love both performances, as different as they are. I find it wonderful that two performances of the same work can be so different yet still claim to hew carefully to the original score.  

See you at Winter Baroque on Sunday, December 21^st at Immaculate Conception. And let me know which one you prefer, Yo Yo or Bylsma.

‍David Yang, Artistic Director

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