In the Renaissance and Baroque periods, the meal was one of the most important occasions for secular music-making. In the courts of the nobility and at the banquets of city leaders, a series of lively, cheerful, and dance-like pieces consisting of short, repetitive passages (known as “table music”) was played almost every evening. The first publications of pieces suitable for the occasion, suitable for any combination of instruments, appeared in Paris in the early 16th century. The Mensa sonora for strings and basso continuo by Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber (1644-1704) relates to this almost two centuries old tradition. The collection of dance suites, published in Salzburg in 1680 with a Latin-German double cover, roughly translates to English as “Sonorous Table”.
The set consists of six Pars (six parts, in modern terminology: six suites). Apart from the third part, each suite begins with an overture-like abstract movement (Sonata, Intrada) and, except for the second suite, each concludes with an epilogue-like piece (Sonatina, Retirada). The overtures and concluding pieces are interspersed with two-part dance movements: later standardized types (Allemande, Courante, Sarabande, Gigue) mixed with more unusual items such as Gagliarda (a fast movement in duple meter, unrelated to the Renaissance dance in triple meter of the same name), Canario (also in duple meter instead of previously common triple), Amener (a kind of proto-minuet that was popular in 17th-century French branles) and Trezza (a fast, triple dance popular in the Habsburg Empire).
Table music did not always represent an outstanding compositional achievement. Composers tended to aim for simplicity and routine to maximize marketability – and because the public did not pay much attention to the music. Biber, however, did not take the task lightly. He combined catchy melodies with accompaniments which are rich in counterpoints, are sensitively harmonized, but are never intrusive. In addition to his compositional skills, his sensitivity to humor is evident in several passages – for example, the hiatuses in the opening movement of the third movement and the absurd conclusion of the whole set – but he also demonstrates his flair for drama in the opening movements and in the Ciacconas of the third and sixth suites. Thus, Mensa sonora is not only a 17th century lounge music of sorts; while easy to listen to, it is also a musically complex composition that can be enjoyed even without the feasts.
After leaving the residence of his former employer, the Archbishop of Olomouc, without permission, Biber arrived at the Salzburg court in the autumn of 1670. In 1679, shortly before the publication of the Mensa sonora, he was appointed as Deputy Kapellmeister of the Duke of Salzburg's diocese. From 1684, he directed the musical life of the court as Kapellmeister. Although his major works were published in print, much of his music survives in manuscript sources. The most important repository of Biber's works is the library of the Castle in Kremsier (now Kroměříž, Czech Republic), which happened to be the summer residence of the Archbishop of Olmütz (now Olomouc, Czech Republic), some 50 kilometers away. As this collection contains many of Biber's compositions dating from after 1670, it can be assumed that the composer remained on good terms with his former master, despite the unclear circumstances of his departure.
Those pieces of this album that are not part of the Mensa Sonora come from this Kremsier collection. The Arien consists of an imaginative opening movement, two short “arias” (short instrumental pieces) and a fast dance movement as a finale. The first track is the middle movement of a seven-movement string serenade, “The Nightwatchman”, in which violins and violas accompany the nightwatchman's song, which was probably originally sung by a musician playing one of the basses, like a lute.
The compositions on this album were written for an ensemble-type, which was popular in the 17th century Habsburg Empire. The upper part, the Violino written in the violin clef does not need much explanation; the two middle parts, the Viola I in soprano clef and the Viola II in alto clef, however, are questionable. Were these instruments held between the legs or instruments held in the arms? If the latter, the next question is whether the Viola I should be played by a viola (with a virtuosity that is striking for the period but omitting the lowest string throughout) or a violin (almost entirely omitting the top string). In the absence of precise contemporary data, there are several valid solutions. In this recording, we have chosen the violin/viola pairing for the middle voices of the Mensa sonora (mainly because, although the second part is essentially in the violin's middle register throughout, it still uses the E string in important contrapuntal sections), while for the Arien we have opted for a performance utilizing two violas. In the case of the Serenade, no such dilemma arose since the manuscript clearly defines the two upper voices as Violino and the two middle voices as Viola da braccio. The instruments intended for the parts in bass clefs are clear: the Violone was the bass viola da gamba of the period, starting in G of the contra and moving in twelve-foot register, while the harpsichord was the keyboard instrument playing the figured bass. It should be noted that the harpsichord part is not always the same as the part of the violone. In the pauses of the actual bass line, according to the notation, the harpsichord always follows the lowest part of the texture. In our performance, we have departed from this concept; we have omitted the keyboard part in some places but enriched the continuo section with plucked instruments.
The Simplicissimus Ensemble was founded in 2012. It has been a regular guest in Budapest's main concert halls, cultural community spaces and churches, it has given a series of concerts at the House of Arts and Literature in Pécs and has performed at numerous music festivals in Hungary. The ensemble was a prize-winner at the Antré Festival 1.0 in 2013 and at the “IV. La Stravaganza Baroque Music Contest” of Cluj-Napoca in 2015. Their first album was released in 2019. The ensemble is flexible in size, and their repertoire mainly includes compositions from the second half of the 17th century and the first half of the 18th century. They play on period instruments. The ensemble's aim is not only to restore the sound and performance style of the period, but also to make the music sound as revelatory in their performances as it did in its own time. The artistic director of this ensemble is violinist-musicologist Zsombor Németh.