Louis de Caix d'Hervelois, ed. Jennifer Paull

This suite is taken from "Pièces de viole avec basse continue" in five books, published between 1715 and 1751.

Louis de Caix d'Hervelois (c. 1680 - c. 1760) was one of the greatest performer-composers of the French school of the bass viol. Although no proof exists, he most probably studied with Sainte-Colombe and Marin Marais. He was in essence a miniaturist, at his best in brief dance movements and character pieces so typical of the French style.

According to the custom of the time, the performer was free to adapt the "Pièces de viole" to his own instrument and its inherent possibilities of interpretation. From the wealth of material available, I have selected a variety of movements ideally suited to the Oboe d'Amore. My choice to repeat one of these or to use it as a "leitmotif" with differing ornamentation, is entirely within the compass of possibilities open to the performer at the time. The titles of the movements are original, I have simply chosen one to give an overall colour to the ensemble.

The double dot was not yet in existence at the time of the French period of baroque music. The dotted note was customarily held longer and the following 16th or 32nd notes were played as an up-beat to the next note of importance. I have found that today's technically correct notations with the necessary figure 3 to indicate a triplet, are as incorrect to the interpretation as the placing of double dots would be. I have chosen to use the style of the time whereby a dotted quarter followed by three sixteenths gives one the feeling of a held note from which one goes forward rather than the double dotted quarter followed by triplet thirty-seconds which is how it sounds but which is a psychological barrier to the flowing style of the ornamentation of the time.

To quote M. De l'Affilard in his Principes (1705) on ornamentation, "one learns better by example than by any written dissertation." Christine Sartoretti and I have recorded this, our version of these charming pieces, on the Amoris Recording label, AR 1001. We trust that our nuances of inégalité and ornamentation will be more easily followed by the listener than by lengthy, technical explanation on this page.

Jennifer Paull
1997

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