Trio sonata

The trio sonata is a genre, typically consisting of several movements (Bonta and Zohn 2003) with two melody instruments and continuo. Originating in the early seventeenth-century, the trio sonata was a favorite chamber ensemble combination in the Baroque era (Mangsen 2001).

Basic structure

The trio sonata typically consisted of three parts, two violins and a continuo (Van Boer 2012, 466). However, the two violins could be substituted with pairs of flutes, recorders, or oboes (Vetter n.d.). The second part, the basso continuo, has two parts (Vetter n.d.). First, it includes the bass line, which most commonly was provided with a bass viol, violone, violoncello, or bassoon (Vetter n.d.). Second, it includes a harmony-producing instrument, such as a small organ, a harpsichord, or a theorbo (Vetter n.d.). The (basso) continuo could be performed by two or more performers; a cellist to play the bass line and a harpsichordist or organist to focus on the harmonies (Bonta and Zohn 2003). Because there normally are two people playing the continuo part, there are usually four players in all (Bonta and Zohn 2003). This can be misleading to some as the "trio" of the trio sonata refers to the three parts and not the number of players (). From about the middle of the 17th century two distinct types of sonatas appeared: sonata da camera (chamber sonata) and sonata da chiesa (church sonata) (Bonta and Zohn 2003). The chamber sonata was considered a group of stylized dances and church sonatas were much more serious and typically arranged into a slow-fast-slow-fast sequence (Vetter n.d.).

Composers, compositions and variant formats

The genre originated as instrumental adaptation of the three-part texture common in Italian vocal music in the late 16th century. The earliest published trio sonatas appeared in Venice (Salamone Rossi Il primo libro delle sinfonie e gagliarde, 1607) and in Milan (Giovanni Paolo Cima, Sonata a tre for violin, cornett and continuo in the collection Concerti ecclesiastici, 1610) (Bonta and Zohn 2003).

Arcangelo Corelli

Italian composer Arcangelo Corelli was one of most influential composers of the trio sonata. The published trio sonatas by Corelli are (Deas 1953, 6):

An additional collection of Trio Sonatas, for two violins, cello, and organ, was published as "Op. post." in Amsterdam, in 1714 (Talbot 2001b). Corelli's trios would serve as models for other composers well into the 18th century (Mattheson 1739, 345: §8).

Johann Sebastian Bach

German composer Johann Sebastian Bach is another notable composer of the trio sonata, but he was known for shying away from the traditional structure of the sonata. He typically played the three parts with fewer than three instruments. One part could be played by a violin and the other two parts could be played by a keyboard, or all three parts could be played on the organ (Britannica 2007).

Trio sonatas by Bach include:

Other composers
  • Tomaso Albinoni, 12 sonatas da chiesa Op. 1, twelve balletti a tre Op. 3, six sonatas da camera as part of Op. 8, six unpublished trio sonatas Op. 11, and a further six trio sonatas without opus number in a manuscript in Vienna, Österreichische Nationalbibliothek, Musiksammlung (Talbot 2001a).
  • Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach wrote at least 44 trio sonatas, including one for flute, viola, and piano, said to have been given its world premiere by the Society for Forgotten Music at the New York Public Library on 30 January 1949 (Anon. 1949). His best-known work in the genre is the programmatic Trio ("Sanguineus und Melancholicus"), in C minor, composed in 1749 and published in Nuremberg in 1751, which exists in two versions: one for obbligato keyboard and violin, the other for two violins and continuo (Wolff and Leisinger 2001).
  • William Boyce, 12 Trio Sonatas for two violins and continuo (1747) (Boyce 1747)
  • Dieterich Buxtehude, Op. 1, six sonatas, and Op. 2, seven sonatas, scored for violin, viola da gamba and basso continuo. These were the only works by Buxtehude that were published during his lifetime. Though real trio texture does occur from time to time, these are really sonate a due for violin and viola da gamba, with the continuo often being a simplification of the gamba part. There are however four genuine trio sonatas by Buxtehude surviving in manuscript, two for two violins, viola da gamba and continuo in C and G major (BuxWV 266 and 271), one for two violins and continuo in F major (BuxWV 270, fragmentary), and one for viola da gamba, viola, and continuo in D major (BuxWV 267) (Snyder 2001).
  • François Couperin published a number of trio sonatas: Le Parnasse, ou L’apothéose de Corelli, grande sonade en trio, for two violins and continuo (Paris, 1724); Concert instrumental sous le titre d’Apothéose composé à la mémoire immortelle de l’incomparable Monsieur de Lully, for two violins (two flutes, or other unspecified instruments), and continuo (Paris, 1725); and the collection Les nations: sonades et suites de simphonies en trio, for two violins and continuo (Paris, 1726), consisting of La Françoise [La pucelle], L’Espagnole [La visionnaire], L’impériale, and La Piemontoise [L’astrée]. In addition, two trio sonatas have survived in manuscript: La Steinquerque and La superbe, both for two violins and continuo (Higginbottom 2001).
  • Johann Gottlieb Goldberg, a student of J. S. Bach, composed at least six trio sonatas (Dürr 1954, pp. 56–57). Four of these are for 2 violins and continuo, one of which used to be attributed to J. S. Bach, as BWV 1037 (Dürr 1954). Two trio sonatas for flute, violin, and continuo are listed in a Breitkopf catalogue, but have gone missing (Dürr 1954, p. 56)(Rubin 2001).
  • George Frideric Handel, trio sonatas Opp. 2 and 5, all in sonata da chiesa form. The attribution to Handel of a set of trios for two oboes and continuo is false, and the authenticity of the three trios HWV 393, 394, and 395 is doubtful or uncertain. A trio sonata in F for two recorders and continuo, HWV 405, appears to be authentic (Hicks 2001).
  • Jacques-Martin Hotteterre, Sonates en trio pour les flûtes traversières et a bec, violon, hautbois, Op. 3 (1712) (Giannini 2001).
  • Pietro Antonio Locatelli, six Trio Sonatas, Op. 5, for two violins or two traversos and continuo (1736) (Locatelli 1736).
  • Johann Pachelbel, Musikalische Ergötzung ("Musical Delight"), containing six suites for two violins and basso continuo, each commencing with a sonata, followed by a succession of dances. The violin parts use scordatura tuning. The sonatas are of two types. Nos. 1 and 3 are marked Allegro, and are fughettas. The remaining four are Adagio movements and are similar to French overtures, in two sections (Nolte, Butt, and Butler 2001).
  • Henry Purcell, Twelve sonatas of three parts, 1683, ten sonatas in four parts, 1697, but both sets are scored for two violins, bass viol, and organ or harpsichord. In terms of style, Purcell's trio sonatas are conservative, modeled on the older generation of Italians (Giovanni Legrenzi, Lelio Colista, and Giovanni Battista Vitali) rather than Corelli or Giovanni Battista Bassani (Holman, Thompson, and Humphreys 2001).
  • Gottfried Heinrich Stölzel, over 25 extant trio sonatas, including two for solo organ. Others for continuo (sometimes indicated as harpsichord) and diverse combinations of flute(s), violin(s), oboes or unspecified instruments (Stölzel & c.1750; Stölzel & c.1720–50; Stölzel & c.1740; Stölzel & c.1760a; Stölzel & c.1760b Stölzel & c.1770; Stölzel n.d.; Stölzel & c.1700–1799a; Stölzel & c.1700–1799b)
  • Georg Philipp Telemann, around 150 trio sonatas (Anon. n.d.). The earliest sonatas exhibit the Corelli style most clearly, while later works anticipate the mid-century Empfindsamkeit and galant styles, or mix Italian, French, and Polish styles (Zohn 2001).
  • Antonio Vivaldi, 12 trio sonatas da camera Op. 1, two trio sonatas mixed with solo sonatas in Op. 5, and thirteen unpublished trios. One further trio sonata, RV 80, in G major, for two flutes and continuo, is attributed to Vivaldi but is probably spurious (Talbot 2001c).
  • Jan Dismas Zelenka, six sonatas, ZWV 181, composed around 1721–1722 (Zelenka & [1721–22]).
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References
  • Anon. 1949. "Bach Trio Sonata Heard". New York Times (31 January): 15.
  • Anon. n.d. “Georg Philipp Telemann (1681–1767), Catalogue TWV: 42: Musique de chambre pour 2 instruments avec basse continue”. Musique et Musiciens / Music and Musicians, at Organlive.com (accessed 31 October 2016).(in French)
  • Bach, Johann Sebastian 1740–1760. Sonaten. Arr.; vl, vlc, b; C-Dur ("Concerto"; nach BWV 525 und 1032), Ms. Mus. ms. Bach St 345 (olim: Mus. ms. Bach P 914) at Berlin State Library. Bach Digital Source 00002542 – RISM No. 467234500.
  • Bonta, Stephen, and Steven Zohn. 2003. "Trio Sonata". The Harvard Dictionary of Music, fourth edition, edited by Don Michael Randal. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press ISBN 0-674-01163-5.
  • Boyce, William. 1747. Twelve Sonatas for Two Violins; With a Bass for the Violoncello or Harpsicord. London: John Walsh.
  • Breig, Werner. 1997. "Ensemble Sonatas", pp. 128–131 in The Cambridge Companion to Bach edited by John Butt. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521587808.
  • Deas, Stewart. 1953. "Arcangelo Corelli". Music & Letters 34, no. 1 (January): 1–10.
  • Dürr, Alfred (1954). "Johann Gottlieb Goldberg und die Triosonate BWV 1037" [Johann Gottlieb Goldberg and the trio sonata BWV 1037]. In Dürr, Alfred; Neumann, Werner (eds.). Bach-Jahrbuch 1953 [Bach Yearbook 1953]. Bach-Jahrbuch (in German). 40. Neue Bachgesellschaft. Berlin: Evangelische Verlagsanstalt. pp. 51–80. doi:10.13141/bjb.v1953.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Dürr, Alfred (ed.). 1987. Eight Short Preludes and Fugues BWV 553–560: Formerly Ascribed to Johann Sebastian Bach. Kassel: Bärenreiter. BA 6497. ISMN 9790006480098.
  • Dürr, Alfred, and Yoshitake Kobayashi (ed.). Bach Werke Verzeichnis: Kleine Ausgabe – Nach der von Wolfgang Schmieder vorgelegten 2. Ausgabe (Bach Works Catalogue: Small Edition – After Wolfgang Schmieder's 2nd edition), with a preface in English and German, Kirsten Beißwenger, collaborator. BWV2a. Wiesbaden: Breitkopf & Härtel. ISBN 9783765102493.
  • Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. 2007. "Trio Sonata". Encyclopædia Britannica (March 29). Britannica.com. Retrieved July 21, 2017.
  • Giannini, Tula. "Hotteterre family [Haulteterre, Hauterre, Hauteterre, Hoteterre, Hoterre, Obterre, etc.]: (4) Jacques(-Martin) Hotteterre (ii) ['le Romain']". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell. London: Macmillan Publishers.
  • Hicks, Anthony. 2001. "Handel [Händel, Hendel], George Frideric [Georg Friederich]". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell. London: Macmillan Publishers.
  • Higginbottom, Edward. 2001. "Couperin [le grand], François(ii)". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell. London: Macmillan Publishers.
  • Hofmann, Klaus. 2006. New Bach Edition, Series VI: Chamber Music, Vol. 5: Various Chamber Music Works, Critical Commentary, p. 98, cited in Bach Digital Work 01718 at Bach Digital website
  • Holman, Peter, Robert Thompson, and Mark Humphreys. 2001. "Purcell, § 3: Henry Purcell (ii)". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell. London: Macmillan Publishers.
  • Locatelli, Pietro Antonio. 1736. Sei Sonate à Trè, o Due Violini, o Due Flauti Traversi, è Basso per il Cembalo. Amsterdam: (published by the composer).
  • Mangsen, Sandra. 2001. "Trio Sonata". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell. London: Macmillan Publishers.
  • Mattheson, Johann. 1739. Der Vollkommene Capellmeister. Hamburg: Christian Herold.
  • Nolte, Ewald V., John Butt, and H. Joseph Butler. 2001. "Pachelbel: (1) Johann Pachelbel [Bachelbel]". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell. London: Macmillan Publishers.
  • Rubin, Norman. 2001. "Goldberg [Gollberg, Goltberg, etc.], Johann Gottlieb [Théophile]". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell. London: Macmillan Publishers.
  • Snyder, Kerala J. 2001. "Buxtehude, Dieterich". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell. London: Macmillan Publishers.
  • Stölzel, Gottfried Heinrich. c.1700–1799a. Sonata 1 (−2) à 3. / Due Flauti traversi. / Con il / Fondamento, Ms. Instr. mus. i hs. 59:11–12 at Uppsala University Library (Carolina Rediviva). RISM No. 190025778.
  • Stölzel, Gottfried Heinrich. c.1700–1799b. Sonata 3 (−4) à 3. / Flauto traverso / Violino / con il / Fondamento. Ms. Instr. mus. i hs. 59:13–14 at Uppsala University Library (Carolina Rediviva). RISM No. 190025781.
  • Stölzel, Gottfried Heinrich. c.1720–50. Sonata / a / Oboe / Violino / con / Cembalo, Ms. Mus.2450-Q-6 (olim: Mus.c.Cx 842, Schrank II/23/7, Rötel 7) at Saxon State and University Library Dresden (Königliche Privat-Musikaliensammlung, Sonatas). RISM No. 212002969.
  • Stölzel, Gottfried Heinrich. c.1740. Zwei Trio-Sonaten, Ms. Am.B 411c at Berlin State Library (Amalien-Bibliothek). RISM No. 452505437.
  • Stölzel, Gottfried Heinrich. c.1750. Sechs, (corrected in pencil): Elf Trio-Sonaten/ in / Partitur / für die Orgel, Ms. Am.B 411a at Berlin State Library (Amalien-Bibliothek). RISM No. 452505424.
  • Stölzel, Gottfried Heinrich. c.1760a. Nro. 50. 51. und 52. / III. / Trio. / Violino. & Fl. Traverso. 1. / Violino. & Fl. Traverso 2. / et / Cembalo. Ms. Am.B 411d at Berlin State Library (Amalien-Bibliothek). RISM No. 452505440.
  • Stölzel, Gottfried Heinrich. c.1760b. Two Sonatas for violin, flute, and continuo, Ms. Am.B 500 at Berlin State Library (Amalien-Bibliothek). RISM No. 452506216.
  • Stölzel, Gottfried Heinrich. ca.1770. Trio / dal / Sigre / Stoel / zel. Ms. Am.B 469 at Berlin State Library (Amalien-Bibliothek). RISM No. 452505898.
  • Stölzel, Gottfried Heinrich. n.d. Sonata a tre for two violins and continuo, Ms. XXXIV B 342 at Národní muzeum, Prague (České muzeum hudby, hudebně-historické oddělení). RISM No. 550041276.
  • Talbot, Michael. 2001a. "Albinoni, Tomaso Giovanni [Zuane]". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell. London: Macmillan Publishers.
  • Talbot, Michael. 2001b. "Corelli, Arcangelo". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell. London: Macmillan Publishers.
  • Talbot, Michael. 2001c. "Vivaldi, Antonio (Lucio)". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell. London: Macmillan Publishers.
  • Van Boer, Bertil H. 2012. Historical Dictionary of Music of the Classical Period. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press ISBN 978-0-8108-7183-0.
  • Vetter, Roger. n.d.. "Baroque Trio Sonata". Retrieved from https://omeka-s.grinnell.edu/s/MusicalInstruments/page/trio on 7 May 2020.
  • Wolff, Christoph, and Ulrich Leisinger. 2001. "Bach, Carl Philipp Emanuel". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell. London: Macmillan Publishers.
  • Zelenka, Jan Dismas (autograph). [1721–22]. 6 Sonatas, Ms. Mus.2358-Q-1 at Saxon State and University Library Dresden (Königliche Privat-Musikaliensammlung). RISM No. 211010356.
  • Zohn, Steven. 2001. "Telemann, Georg Philipp, § 8: Instrumental Music". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell. London: Macmillan Publishers.

Further reading
  • Allsop, Peter. 1992. The Italian "Trio" Sonata: From Its Origins until Corelli. Oxford Monographs on Music. Oxford: Clarendon Press; New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-816229-4.
  • Apel, Willi. 1990. Italian Violin Music of the Seventeenth Century, edited by Thomas Binkley. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. ISBN 0-253-30683-3.
  • Defant, Christine. 1985. Kammermusik und Stylus phantasticus: Studien zu Dietrich Buxtehudes Triosonaten. Europäische Hochschulschriften / European University Studies / Études Universitaires Européennes. Frankfurt: Peter Lang. ISBN 9783820485141.
  • Hogwood, Christopher. 1979. The Trio Sonata. BBC Music Guides. London: British Broadcasting Corporation. ISBN 0-563-17095-6.
  • Kamien, Roger. 2008. Music an Appreciation, sixth brief edition. Boston: McGraw-Hill. ISBN 978-0073326375 (annotated instructor's edition); ISBN 9780073265452 (student edition)
  • Mangsen, Sandra. 2001. "Trio Sonata". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell. London: Macmillan Publishers.
  • Schenk, Erich. 2005. Die Triosonate. Das Musikwerk, eine Beispielsammlung zur Musikgeschichte, Neuausgabe 20. Laaber: Laaber Verlag. ISBN 3-89007-623-8.
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