I wonder how Quantz felt about that. (Does Nicolai say?)
No, he doesn't. The entire passage where this is brought up reads: It is not a little task to create that many concerts for a single lover of the art, and even more so for a lover of the art who is King. Therefore, it is a proof of Quantz' richness of musical inspiration. Every single one of these concerts has a unique character; the uniformity lies only those passages where Quantz had to appease the King who did not wish for something completely new.
However, he also adds just a few paragraphs later that Quantz could be a musical dictator in company himself, brooking no opinion but his. So I suspect that if Quantz' style felt outfashioned at the point where Nicolai is writing, it's also due to Quantz himself not wanting to change with the times. Which, fair enough; there aren't many composers who keep open for experimentation in their old age. (Good old Verdi being one; even laywoman me learned that you can tell in "Falstaff" and "Aida" that Wagner happened.)
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Re: Nicolai Vol. 6
Date: 2021-02-27 12:31 pm (UTC)No, he doesn't. The entire passage where this is brought up reads: It is not a little task to create that many concerts for a single lover of the art, and even more so for a lover of the art who is King. Therefore, it is a proof of Quantz' richness of musical inspiration. Every single one of these concerts has a unique character; the uniformity lies only those passages where Quantz had to appease the King who did not wish for something completely new.
However, he also adds just a few paragraphs later that Quantz could be a musical dictator in company himself, brooking no opinion but his. So I suspect that if Quantz' style felt outfashioned at the point where Nicolai is writing, it's also due to Quantz himself not wanting to change with the times. Which, fair enough; there aren't many composers who keep open for experimentation in their old age. (Good old Verdi being one; even laywoman me learned that you can tell in "Falstaff" and "Aida" that Wagner happened.)