Antonio Soler
Encyclopedia
Antonio Francisco Javier José Soler Ramos, usually known as Padre
Antonio Soler, known in Catalan
as Antoni Soler i Ramos (baptized 3 December 1729, died 20 December 1783) was a Spanish
Catalan
composer
whose works span the late Baroque
and early Classical music eras. He is best known for his keyboard
sonata
s, an important contribution to the harpsichord
, fortepiano
and organ
repertoire.
(Catalonia
, Spain
) in the historical County of Besalú
. In 1736, when he was six, he entered the Escolania
of the Monastery of Montserrat where he studied music with the resident maestro Benito Esteve and organist
Benito Valls. In 1744 he was appointed organist at the Cathedral of La Seu d'Urgell
and appointed as a subdeacon at the same time. Later in life, he held posts as chapel
master in Lleida
and at the Royal Court in El Escorial
.
at the age of 23 and his routine as a Hieronymite in El Escorial, Madrid
was extremely busy. His 20 hour days were filled, yet Soler managed to produce more than 500 musical works. Amongst these were around 150 keyboard sonatas, many believed to have been written as sheet music
for his pupil, the Infante Don Gabriel
, a son of King Carlos III. Other pieces include Christmas
villancico
s and Latin church music including mass
es. He died at the monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial
. No portraits of him are known to exist.
sonatas, which are comparable to those composed by Domenico Scarlatti
(with whom he may have studied). However, Soler's works are more varied in form than those of Scarlatti, with some pieces in three or four movements; Scarlatti's pieces are in one or two movements. Fortunately, Soler's sonatas were catalogued in the early twentieth century by Fr. Samuel Rubio and so all have 'R' numbers assigned.
Soler also composed concerto
s, quintet
s for organ and strings
, motet
s, mass
es and pieces for solo organ. He also wrote a treatise
, Llave de la modulación ("The Key to Modulation
", 1762).
Soler's "Six Concertos for Two Organs" are still very much in the repertoire and have been often recorded. A fandango once attributed to Soler, and probably more often performed than any other work of his, is now thought by some to be of doubtful authorship.
Padre
Padre may refer to:* Partnership for Acid Drainage Remediation in Europe PADRE* An IDE for the Perl programming language, see Padre * A Military Chaplain* A member of the San Diego Padres baseball team...
Antonio Soler, known in Catalan
Catalan language
Catalan is a Romance language, the national and only official language of Andorra and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Catalonia, the Balearic Islands and Valencian Community, where it is known as Valencian , as well as in the city of Alghero, on the Italian island...
as Antoni Soler i Ramos (baptized 3 December 1729, died 20 December 1783) was a Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
Catalan
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
whose works span the late Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
and early Classical music eras. He is best known for his keyboard
Keyboard instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
sonata
Sonata
Sonata , in music, literally means a piece played as opposed to a cantata , a piece sung. The term, being vague, naturally evolved through the history of music, designating a variety of forms prior to the Classical era...
s, an important contribution to the harpsichord
Harpsichord
A harpsichord is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It produces sound by plucking a string when a key is pressed.In the narrow sense, "harpsichord" designates only the large wing-shaped instruments in which the strings are perpendicular to the keyboard...
, fortepiano
Fortepiano
Fortepiano designates the early version of the piano, from its invention by the Italian instrument maker Bartolomeo Cristofori around 1700 up to the early 19th century. It was the instrument for which Haydn, Mozart, and the early Beethoven wrote their piano music...
and organ
Pipe organ
The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through pipes selected via a keyboard. Because each organ pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ranks, each of which has a common timbre and volume throughout the keyboard compass...
repertoire.
Early life
Soler was born in OlotOlot
Olot is the capital of the comarca of the Garrotxa, in the province of Girona, Catalonia, Spain.- Etymology :The etymology of Olot is not clear and there are several hypotheses...
(Catalonia
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
) in the historical County of Besalú
County of Besalú
The County of Besalú was one of the landlocked medieval Catalan counties near the Mediterranean coastline. It was roughly coterminous with the modern comarca of Garrotxa and at various times extended as far north as Corbières, Aude, now in France. Its capital was the village of Besalú...
. In 1736, when he was six, he entered the Escolania
L'Escolania
L'Escolania choir school is a boys' choir of sopranos and altos based at the Benedictine abbey Santa Maria de Montserrat near Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain...
of the Monastery of Montserrat where he studied music with the resident maestro Benito Esteve and organist
Organist
An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ. An organist may play solo organ works, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumental soloists...
Benito Valls. In 1744 he was appointed organist at the Cathedral of La Seu d'Urgell
La Seu d'Urgell
La Seu d'Urgell is a town located in the Catalan Pyrenees in Spain. La Seu d'Urgell is also the capital of the comarca Alt Urgell, head of the judicial district of la Seu d'Urgell and the seat of Bishop of Urgell, one of the Andorra co-princes...
and appointed as a subdeacon at the same time. Later in life, he held posts as chapel
Chapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
master in Lleida
Lleida
Lleida is a city in the west of Catalonia, Spain. It is the capital city of the province of Lleida, as well as the largest city in the province and it had 137,387 inhabitants , including the contiguous municipalities of Raimat and Sucs. The metro area has about 250,000 inhabitants...
and at the Royal Court in El Escorial
El Escorial
The Royal Seat of San Lorenzo de El Escorial is a historical residence of the king of Spain, in the town of San Lorenzo de El Escorial, about 45 kilometres northwest of the capital, Madrid, in Spain. It is one of the Spanish royal sites and functions as a monastery, royal palace, museum, and...
.
Ministerial lifestyle
Soler took Holy OrdersHoly Orders
The term Holy Orders is used by many Christian churches to refer to ordination or to those individuals ordained for a special role or ministry....
at the age of 23 and his routine as a Hieronymite in El Escorial, Madrid
El Escorial, Madrid
El Escorial is a municipality in the Autonomous Community of Madrid, located 45 km northwest of the Spanish capital Madrid. Its population in 2009 was 14,979.The territory of El Escorial is home to the park of La Granjilla de la Fresneda...
was extremely busy. His 20 hour days were filled, yet Soler managed to produce more than 500 musical works. Amongst these were around 150 keyboard sonatas, many believed to have been written as sheet music
Sheet music
Sheet music is a hand-written or printed form of music notation that uses modern musical symbols; like its analogs—books, pamphlets, etc.—the medium of sheet music typically is paper , although the access to musical notation in recent years includes also presentation on computer screens...
for his pupil, the Infante Don Gabriel
Infante Gabriel of Spain
Infante Gabriel of Spain was an Infante of Spain.-Biography:Born at the Palace of Portici outside Naples, he was named Prince Gabriel Antonio Francisco Javier Juan Nepomuceno José Serafin Pascual Salvador of Naples and Sicily; he was the fourth son of King Charles VII and V and Maria Amalia of...
, a son of King Carlos III. Other pieces include Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
villancico
Villancico
The villancico was a common poetic and musical form of the Iberian Peninsula and Latin America popular from the late 15th to 18th centuries. With the decline in popularity of the villancicos in the 20th century, the term became reduced to mean merely "Christmas carol"...
s and Latin church music including mass
Mass (music)
The Mass, a form of sacred musical composition, is a choral composition that sets the invariable portions of the Eucharistic liturgy to music...
es. He died at the monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial
El Escorial, Madrid
El Escorial is a municipality in the Autonomous Community of Madrid, located 45 km northwest of the Spanish capital Madrid. Its population in 2009 was 14,979.The territory of El Escorial is home to the park of La Granjilla de la Fresneda...
. No portraits of him are known to exist.
Compositions
Padre Soler's most celebrated works are his keyboardKeyboard instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
sonatas, which are comparable to those composed by Domenico Scarlatti
Domenico Scarlatti
Giuseppe Domenico Scarlatti was an Italian composer who spent much of his life in the service of the Portuguese and Spanish royal families. He is classified as a Baroque composer chronologically, although his music was influential in the development of the Classical style...
(with whom he may have studied). However, Soler's works are more varied in form than those of Scarlatti, with some pieces in three or four movements; Scarlatti's pieces are in one or two movements. Fortunately, Soler's sonatas were catalogued in the early twentieth century by Fr. Samuel Rubio and so all have 'R' numbers assigned.
Soler also composed concerto
Concerto
A concerto is a musical work usually composed in three parts or movements, in which one solo instrument is accompanied by an orchestra.The etymology is uncertain, but the word seems to have originated from the conjunction of the two Latin words...
s, quintet
Quintet
A quintet is a group containing five members.It is commonly associated with musical groups, such as a string quintet, or a group of five singers, but can be applied to any situation where five similar or related objects are considered a single unit....
s for organ and strings
String instrument
A string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones...
, motet
Motet
In classical music, motet is a word that is applied to a number of highly varied choral musical compositions.-Etymology:The name comes either from the Latin movere, or a Latinized version of Old French mot, "word" or "verbal utterance." The Medieval Latin for "motet" is motectum, and the Italian...
s, mass
Mass (music)
The Mass, a form of sacred musical composition, is a choral composition that sets the invariable portions of the Eucharistic liturgy to music...
es and pieces for solo organ. He also wrote a treatise
Treatise
A treatise is a formal and systematic written discourse on some subject, generally longer and treating it in greater depth than an essay, and more concerned with investigating or exposing the principles of the subject.-Noteworthy treatises:...
, Llave de la modulación ("The Key to Modulation
Modulation (music)
In music, modulation is most commonly the act or process of changing from one key to another. This may or may not be accompanied by a change in key signature. Modulations articulate or create the structure or form of many pieces, as well as add interest...
", 1762).
Soler's "Six Concertos for Two Organs" are still very much in the repertoire and have been often recorded. A fandango once attributed to Soler, and probably more often performed than any other work of his, is now thought by some to be of doubtful authorship.
Selected discography
- Recordings of works solely by Soler
- Soler: 8 Sonatas, Fandango. Played by harpsichordist Nicolau de Figueiredo. Passacaille 943
- Soler: Fandango, 9 Sonatas. Played by harpsichordistHarpsichordistA harpsichordist is a person who plays the harpsichord.Many baroque composers played the harpsichord, including Johann Sebastian Bach, Domenico Scarlatti, George Frideric Handel, François Couperin and Jean-Philippe Rameau...
Scott Ross. Erato - Soler: Fandango & Sonatas. Played by harpsichordistHarpsichordistA harpsichordist is a person who plays the harpsichord.Many baroque composers played the harpsichord, including Johann Sebastian Bach, Domenico Scarlatti, George Frideric Handel, François Couperin and Jean-Philippe Rameau...
David Schrader. Cedille 004 - Soler: Harpsichord Sonatas, vol. II. Played by harpsichordist David Schrader. Cedille 009
- Soler: Sonatas. Played by pianistPianistA pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
Elena Riu. Ensayo 9818 - Soler: Complete Harpsichord Works. Played by Bob van AsperenBob van AsperenBob van Asperen is a harpsichordist, organist, conductor, clavichordist and early music-specialist.After completing a conventional music course at university, in 1967 he studied under the harpsichord master Gustav Leonhardt. In 1968 he joined the group Quadro Hotteterre, of which he was a member...
(12 disks). Astrée - Soler: Sonatas para piano. Played by pianistPianistA pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
Alicia de LarrochaAlicia de LarrochaAlicia de Larrocha y de la Calle was a Spanish pianist from Catalonia. One of the great piano legends of the 20th century, Reuters called her "the greatest Spanish pianist in history", Time "one of the world's most outstanding pianists" and The Guardian "the leading Spanish pianist of her...
. EMI CLASSICS - Soler: Los 6 Quintetos para clave y cuerda. Played by harpsichordistHarpsichordistA harpsichordist is a person who plays the harpsichord.Many baroque composers played the harpsichord, including Johann Sebastian Bach, Domenico Scarlatti, George Frideric Handel, François Couperin and Jean-Philippe Rameau...
Genoveva Gálvez and the string quartetString quartetA string quartet is a musical ensemble of four string players – usually two violin players, a violist and a cellist – or a piece written to be performed by such a group...
Agrupación Nacional de Música de Cámara. EMI CLASSICS - Soler: Sonatas for Harpsichord. Played by Gilbert RowlandGilbert RowlandGilbert Rowland is a Scottish harpsichordist. His father was second in command to the Viceroy of India during the days of the British Empire....
. A multi-volume project on Naxos RecordsNaxos RecordsNaxos Records is a record label specializing in classical music. Through a number of imprints, Naxos also releases genres including Chinese music, jazz, world music, and early rock & roll. The company was founded in 1987 by Klaus Heymann, a German-born resident of Hong Kong.Naxos is the largest...
. - Soler: Six Concertos for Two Keyboard Instruments. Played by Kenneth GilbertKenneth GilbertKenneth Gilbert, OC is a Canadian harpsichordist, organist, musicologist and music educator.Gilbert was trained at the Conservatoire de musique du Québec à Montréal where he was a pupil of Yvonne Hubert and Gabriel Cusson . He also studied the organ privately with Conrad Letendre in Montréal...
and Trevor PinnockTrevor PinnockTrevor David Pinnock CBE is an English conductor, harpsichordist, and occasional organist and pianist.He is best known for his association with the period-performance orchestra The English Concert which he helped found and directed from the keyboard for over 30 years in baroque and early classical...
. Archiv Produktion 453171-2 - Soler: Six Concertos for Two Organs. Played by Mathot and Koopman. Warner WEA/Atlantic/Erato ZK45741
- Soler: Six Concertos for Two Organs. Played by E. Power Biggs (Flentrop organ on the left) and Daniel Pinkham (Hess organ on the right). Recorded at the Busch-Reisinger Museum, Harvard University, 1961. LP: Columbia Masterworks Stereo MS 6208 (Library of Congress catalog card number R60-1383)
- Soler: 19 Sonatas. Played by Anna Malikova. Classical Records CR-049
- Soler: Keyboard Sonatas and the "Fandango". Played by Maggie Cole. Virgin Classics
- Recordings of works by Soler & other composers
- Favourite Spanish Encores. Played by pianist Alicia de LarrochaAlicia de LarrochaAlicia de Larrocha y de la Calle was a Spanish pianist from Catalonia. One of the great piano legends of the 20th century, Reuters called her "the greatest Spanish pianist in history", Time "one of the world's most outstanding pianists" and The Guardian "the leading Spanish pianist of her...
with Rafael Frühbeck de BurgosRafael Frühbeck de BurgosRafael Frühbeck de Burgos is a Spanish conductor and composer.Frühbeck studied violin, piano, and composition at the conservatories of Bilbao and Madrid...
conducting the Royal Philharmonic OrchestraRoyal Philharmonic OrchestraThe Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London. It tours widely, and is sometimes referred to as "Britain's national orchestra"...
. London/Decca Legends 467687 - Grandes Pianistas Españoles. Played by pianist Alicia De Larrocha. Rtve 65235
- Piano Español. Played by pianist Jorge Federico Osorio. Cedille 075
- The Emperor's Fanfare. pljayed by Michael MurrayMichael Murray (organist)Michael Murray is an American-born organist and writer.- Biography :Murray studied at Butler University and the Oberlin College Conservatory of Music, before private study with Marcel Dupré in Paris...
on his organ blaster cd.
- Favourite Spanish Encores. Played by pianist Alicia de Larrocha
Sources
- Soler, Antonio (Father)
- The Life and Times of Soler (includes audio and sheet music of Soler's keyboard works)