In 1737 he made a secret agreement with Jean-Noël Marchand for the latter to obtain a privilege to engrave, print and sell a work as Vivaldi's Il pastor fido, op.13, but in a notarial act dated 17 September 1749 Marchand declared that Chédeville was the composer, also revealing that Chédeville had provided the money for the publication and was receiving the emoluments. It is not certain why Chédeville chose to have his own work attributed to Vivaldi and issued under the privilege of Marchand, but perhaps, as Lescat has suggested, he was trying to give the musette, his favourite instrument, the endorsement of a great composer that it had lacked up until then.
But Chédeville, Vivaldi, whoever: what counts is the dancing vitality and simple, beguiling charm of these sonatas, which are played here by an experienced Italian early-music ensemble, whose previous recordings on Brilliant have met with warm critical response. These include concertos by Fiorenza and Mele (BC93956), Sammartini (BC94157), CPE Bach, Telemann – and even some authentic Vivaldi.
The Baroque recorder sonatas on this CD bear the title “Il pastor fido”, a hugely popular play by Giovanni Guarini, which inspired many composers with its sensuous, pastoral and “romantic” atmosphere. The sonatas were attributed to Antonio Vivaldi (because of the commercial power of his fame) till in 1990 proof was found they have been written by the French composer Nicolas Chédeville, who borrowed material from Vivaldi and other composers, and developed it in the same idiom.
Excellent performances by the Ensemble Pro Musica, elite players from the Italian Early Music scene: Stefano Bagliano (recorder), Andrea Coen (harpsichord and organ).
Extensive liner notes on the history of this exquisite and charming music in English and Italian in the booklet.
Nicolas Chédeville (20 February 1705 – 6 August 1782) was a French composer, musette player and musette maker.
Il Pastor Fido Vivaldi
Biography[edit]
Contrary to who’s listed as composer here, the real author of this set of six sonatas, subtitled Il pastor fido, may not have been Vivaldi but a French contemporary named Nicolas Chedeville, who was known to borrow often from the master (type Q8431 is Search Reviews). Listen to Vivaldi: Six Sonatas, 'Il pastor fido' on Spotify. Antonio Vivaldi Album 2013 28 songs. Vivaldi: Sonatas (6) for Flute & Continuo, Op. 13 'Il pastor fido' Bela Drahos (flute), Pal Kelemen (viola), Zsuzsa Pertis (harpsichord) A highly attractive collection of piano miniatures played in infectious style by Monique Duphil. Il Pastor Fido – 6 Sonatas Composed by Chedeville Attributed to Antonio Vivaldi Edited by Federico Maria Sardelli Published by Barenreiter Includes score, flute part, and basso continuo part. Instrumentation: Flute (or Violin or Oboe) and Basso Continuo (or Piano) Attributed to Antonio Vivaldi.
Nicolas Chédeville was born in Serez, Normandy; musicians Pierre Chédeville (1694–1725) and Esprit Philippe Chédeville (1696–1762) were his brothers. Louis Hotteterre was his great uncle and godfather, and may have given him instruction in music and turning instruments. He began playing the oboe and musette (a bagpipe-like instrument commonly used in French baroque music) in the Paris Opera orchestra in the 1720s. After Jean Hotteterre's death in 1732, he took over his post in Les Grands Hautbois, the royal oboe band. He retired from the opera in July 1748, though returned occasionally to play the musette there. When he was nearly 70, he married the younger daughter of a valet who had once worked for the Duc d'Orléans, and was still describing himself as musette player to the king. In his last years he experienced financial difficulties. His ten houses were signed over to creditors in 1774, following which he separated from his wife. He resigned from Les Grands Hautbois in 1777, petitioned for bankruptcy in 1778 and died in Paris four years later. Lawyers were still trying to settle his affairs in 1790.
Jean-Benjamin de la Borde called him 'the most celebrated musette player France had ever had', though he mistakenly held the opinion that he was dead by 1780, two years before he met his end. He taught the musette to Princess Victoire from about 1750, and became a popular teacher among the aristocracy, eventually attaining the title of maître de musette de Mesdames de France. He was also a musette maker, and extended the instrument's compass in the bass down to c' (middle C).
Works[edit]
Chédeville's compositions were intended for the amusement and pleasure of wealthy amateur musicians; the French aristocracy of the time found pleasure in playing rustic instruments while living a romantic fantasy of peasant life (before the French revolution presented a rather different perspective).
His first published works were collections of pieces for musette or hurdy-gurdy, entitled Amusements champêtres (pastoral amusements), published in December 1729. He called himself 'Chedeville le jeune', and in later compositions referred to himself as 'Chedeville le cadet'. Another collection of Amusements champêtres followed, which were of a more advanced technical and musical substance. Some variety was found in op. 6, with pieces named after battles and expressing 'war-like images'; it was inspired by a military campaign he had gone on with the Prince of Conti. He turned briefly to more serious music with Italian influences in op. 7, which is his only collection written specifically for the flute, oboe or violin.
Impersonation of Vivaldi[edit]
In 1737 he made a secret agreement with Jean-Noël Marchand to publish a collection of his own compositions as Antonio Vivaldi's op. 13, entitled Il pastor fido. Chédeville supplied the money and received the profits, all of which was attested to in a notarial act by Marchand in 1749.[1] This may have been an attempt to give his instrument, the musette, the endorsement of a great composer which it lacked.
His interest in Italian music led to his receiving, in August 1739, a privilege to publish arrangements for the musette, hurdy-gurdy or flute of concertos and sonatas by ten specific Italian composers, in addition to Johann Joachim Quantz and Antoine Mahaut. Le printems, ou Les saisons amusantes (1739) is a particularly amusing result of this privilege; it is an arrangement of Vivaldi's The Four Seasons for hurdy-gurdy or musette, violin, and flute (though the French flute could also mean the recorder). He replaced Vivaldi's original Summer with his op. 8 no. 9 concerto, transferred the middle movement of Winter to Autumn, and replaced Winter op. 8 no. 12. All this was quite freely arranged and combined with some added Vivaldian material by Chédeville.
Compositions[edit]
Published in Paris. All solo works are accompanied by continuo. '/' indicates alternative instrumentation.
Opuses[edit]
- Op.[1]: Amusements champêtres, livre 1er (1729); for 1 and 2 musettes/hurdy-gurdies.
- Op.[2]: Amusements champêtres, livre 2e (1731); for 1 and 2 musettes/hurdy-gurdies/flutes/oboes.
- Op.[3]: Troisième livre d'amusements champêtres (1733); for musette/hurdy-gurdy/flute/oboe/violin.
- Op.4: Les danses amuzantes mellées de vaudeville (1733); for 2 musettes/hurdy-gurdies/flutes/oboes/violin.
- Op.5: Sonates amusantes (1734); for 1 and 2 musettes/hurdy-gurdies/flutes/oboes/violin.
- Op.6: Amusemens de Bellone, ou Les plaisirs de Mars (1736); for 1 and 2 musettes/hurdy-gurdies/flutes/oboes.
- Op.7: 6 sonates (1739); for flute/oboe/violin.
- Op.8: Les galanteries amusantes (1739); for 2 musettes/hurdy-gurdies/flutes/violins.
- Op.9: Les Deffis, ou L'étude amusante; for musette/hurdy-gurdy.
- Op.10: Les idées françoises, ou Les délices de Chambray (1750); for 2 musettes/hurdy-gurdies/flutes/oboes/violins.
- Op.11: lost
- Op.12: Les impromptus de Fontainebleau (1750); for 2 musettes/hurdy-gurdies/violins/pardessus de viole/flutes/oboes.
- Op.13: lost
- Op.14: Les variations amusantes: pièces de différents auteurs ornés d'agrémens (includes variations on Les folies d'Espagne); for 2 musettes/hurdy-gurdies/pardessus de viole/flutes/oboes.
Arrangements and other works[edit]
- Il pastor fido, sonates ... del sigr Antonio Vivaldi [by Nicolas Chédeville] (1737); for musette/hurdy-gurdy/flute/oboe/violin.
- LE PRINTEMS / ou / LES SAISONS / AMUSANTES / concertos / DANTONIO VIVALDY / Mis pour les Musettes et Vielles / avec accompagnement de Violon / Fluste et Basse continue. / PAR MR CHEDEVILLE LE CADET / Hautbois De la Chambre du Roy / et Muſette ordinaire De l'Academie Royalle / De Muſique. Opera ottava. [arrangement of Vivaldi's The Four Seasons by Nicolas Chédeville] (1739); for musette/hurdy-gurdy, violin, flute, and continuo.
- La feste d'Iphise [arrangement of airs from Montéclair's Jephté] (1742); for 2 musettes/hurdy-gurdies.
- Les pantomimes italiennes dansées à l'Académie royale de musique (1742); for 1 and 2 musettes/hurdy-gurdies/flutes/oboes.
- Nouveaux menuets champêtres; for musette/hurdy-gurdy/violin/flute/oboe.
- [Dall']Abaco, op.4, arrangement for musette/hurdy-gurdy/flute/oboe.
- La feste de Cleopatre (1751); for 2 musettes/hurdy-gurdies.
Notes[edit]
- ^Vivaldi's music for flute and recorder – Federico Maria Sardelli, p. 76, at Google Books
References[edit]
Il Pastor Fido Vivaldi Youtube
- Jane M. Bowers: 'Chédeville', Grove Music Online ed. L. Macy (Accessed 2007-06-11), http://www.grovemusic.com/
Further reading[edit]
- E. Thoinan: Les Hotteterre et les Chédeville: célèbres joueurs et facteurs de flûtes, hautbois, bassons et musettes des XVIIe et XVIIIe siècles (Paris, 1894)
- R. Leppert: Arcadia et Versailles (Amsterdam, 1978)
- P. Lescat: Introduction to N. Chédeville: Il Pastor Fido (oeuvre attribuée à Antonio Vivaldi) 1737 (Paris, 1994)
- R. Green: The Hurdy-Gurdy in Eighteenth-Century France (Bloomington, Indiana, 1995)
External links[edit]
- Free scores by Nicolas Chédeville at the International Music Score Library Project (IMSLP)