Other notes - Handel

Composed in 1707, this intriguing work for solo soprano, two violins, obbligato organ and cello, and basso continuo dates from Handel’s time in Italy in his twenties. The Salve Regina is the Marian hymn included in the daily minor services (i.e., non-Mass) of the Roman Catholic liturgy during the long season of Trinity, which begins at Pentecost and lasts until the start of Advent. The hymn is usually sung at Compline, the last of the liturgical day’s eight services. The work begins with a pulsing, bass line as the heartbeat, while above pleading violin interjections suggest the merciful Mother of Christ. The soprano prays the words, “Mater misericordiae”, with an anguished, chromatic pulling apart in tandem with the violins who adopt an almost vocal role. "Ad te clamamus" moves into triple meter with some remarkable melodic writing. Three highlights stand out: the word “clamamus” (we cry) comes with a gloriously sunny, major harmony that radiates for a longer time than expected; the setting of “suspiramus” with literal breathlessness leaves complete silences which must have seemed most romantic in a sacred work; and the cascading canonic texture among the violins and the voice as the falling tears in the valley (“lacrimarum valle”) and the ensuing echo that decays to a unison, lonely, final note. All is far from constant gloom as the "Eia ergo" bursts into a section which is little short of a concertante movement with every combination of joyful interaction for solo organ, cello, the violins and the voice. Handel surprises us, using economical but virtuosic forces, and doubtlessly enjoying his own organ showcase. Nevertheless, the masterstroke is the engineering of the final, meditative section "O clemens." Returning to the context of prayerful supplication, the exuberance of the previous movement is paired down, as in the beginning, to a final, unison note.