Music, men and manners in France and Italy, 1770 / Charles Burney

urn:iso:std:iso:639:ed-3:eng

208-9

text excerpt

...Signor Colista...being entreated to let me hear the great organ [of St John Lateran] very obligingly complied... ‘Tis a 32 ft. organ and the largest in Rome... It has 36 stops, 2 sets of keys, has long 8ths an octave below double F. and goes up to E in altissimo. It has pedals, in the use of which Signor Colista is very dextrous. His manner of playing this instrument seems to be the true organ style, tho' at present his taste is a little passé - indeed the organ style seems better preserved in general through Italy than with us, as the harpsichord is not sufficiently cultivated to encroach upon that instrument. Signor Colista played several fugues in which the subjects were frequently introduced in the pedals in a very masterly manner. It seems as if every virtue in music was to border upon some vice, for this style of full playing seems to preclude all grace taste and melody, while the light airy harpsichord kind of playing destroys the sostenuto and richness of harmony and contrivance of which this divine instrument is so peculiarly capable. It is very extraordinary that the swell, which has been known in England more than 50 years, and which is so capable of expression and pleasing effects, that it may well be said to have been the greatest and most important improvement that ever was made in any keyed instrument, should be still utterly unknown in Italy. It is the same with the beat from the octave or 5th of any note on the violin instead of the old close shake.

excerpt from 'Music, men and manners in France and Italy, 1770 / Charles Burney' pp. 208-9 (265 words)

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