Despite picking up an odd baroque record every now and then when I’m at an antique mall, it’s been tough to find stuff that holds up to the handful of well-curated baroque albums in my dad’s otherwise largely free and/or improvised shelves of LPs. Today’s song comes from an unassuming Nonesuch LP from the 1960s with a couple of absolute BANGERS on it. And while the Bach opener is arguably even better than today’s song, there is a certain driving sinister atmosphere to the Scarlatti number that is rarely matched, even in the most earnestly diabolical of black metal intros:
Scarlatti was a late period Baroque composer who, like Bach was not afraid to throw a few notes into his compositions that didn’t follow the rules everyone else followed. Though, all of the accidentals (of which there are many) in this song (as with Bach’s songs) of course followed rules, but just a more complex set of rules than many of his contemporaries.
The sinister atmosphere I’m marking out over with this one is probably mostly just that raised seventh of the harmonic minor scale that keeps popping up in this song. Throw in a few other “out of place” notes in a song full of minor key tonality and you’ve got me hooked.
There is more to it than that though–the structure of the song itself is quite interesting. The melody ebbs and flows throughout at times almost breaking out of the darkness, but ultimately always winding towards ever more darkly melancholic resolutions…and just when you think it is over those slow purposeful notes start back up, drawing you into its web again.
This particular performance is quite interesting too. Transposed for guitar, and played at an appropriately slow pace on two distinct instruments, one tinny and harsh, one mellifluous and warm–the contrast between the two is its own delight and serves to highlight subtleties of the counterpoint that would easily be lost in the keyboard version.
In all, quite a masterpiece, and a reminder that there are better ways to make compellingly sinister music than just wind sounds and three note synth melodies:
Though, after listening to that Graveland intro for the 900th time here, I suppose I should say “other” ways, not “better” ways, because that shit holds up too.
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