Like almost all of the Maestri di Cappella (Kapellmeister) of the Cathedral of Pesaro, Bellinzani gives much attention to the relationship between music and Sacred Text. His deep faith and his musical genius give rise to a complete work in which reign a perfect harmony between the melody and the Sacred Text. The music of the theatre dominated in the first part of the eighteenth century and constituted a serious threat for composers of sacred music, at times brought to unconscious stylistic compromise. Deciding to counteract this problem, Bellinzani understood that it was necessary to find a common element between that of the sacred style and that of the theatre and – after a careful analysis of the fabric of the operatic composition – he succeeded in isolating that unique element, that of Unissoni. Bellinzani sustained that Unissoni became a part of musical theatre, in order to ensure that the force of the thought and the consonance did not become confused by the overlapping of voices. He intuitively knew that their double merit could strengthen – in the theatrical field – dramatic tensions, characterisations of persons, the singular atmosphere, as well as poignancy, emotiveness, the connotation and effects of the scene. He knew also that their wise use in the music of the church could contribute to the Mass, illuminating the Sacred Text, thereby facilitating one’s approach to God. In the Unissoni he saw a natural simplicity capable of moving one’s feelings, a simplicity that derived its origins from the Middle Ages. The formation of the Unissoni was described in Bellinzani’s letter of response to Don Carosi, which became translated into a sort of “Theory of Unissoni”. A work such as this must surely have had ample diffusion in the Italian music panorama during this period, given that even today there are two versions that still survive: one, published around 1733 in Pesaro by Gavelli Printing House; the other, written by hand in the nineteenth century, and placed in the library of the Conservatory of Bologna. The reflections, commentaries and learned citations of this type of mini-treatise (Seneca, Plutarco, Virgilio, Aristotele) are all inclined to illustrate and confirm his theory and allow us to discover the wise and versatile aspect of Bellinzani.
"Non senza fondamento avrete inteso dire che io abbia framischiati gli Unisoni nelle mie Composizioni, particolarmente di Chiesa… perciò si è istituito un modo di comporre passato dagli Stromenti alle voci che sembra a più Cori, non essendo che a voce sola… mi sono lasciato trasportare da un certo non so qual movimento, che faceva nel mio cuore questa sorta di musica semplice, ed all’Unisono; che fattomi ad attentamente esaminarla, e ricorrendo le autorità dè nostri più insigni Autori, ne ho riconosciuta la vera e reale cagione per giustificare me, e l’uso moderato che deve farsene… rimane senza dubbio che le antiche Nazioni avanti l’undecimo secolo, trovarono il mezzo della musica per muovere gli affetti in modo migliore che colle sole parole, e non seppero trovare altro metodo che ridurla ad una studiata semplicità dell’Unisono… Ed in verità, tutta intenta oggi la Musica a dilettare superficialmente l’orrecchio, e nemica di quella naturale semplicità, che sola è capace di commuovere gli animi, pare che nel solo Teatro dovrebbe fare questa sua lusinghevol comparsa, e non mai nella Chiesa santa di Dio, ove particolarmente è ordinata per inspirare venerazione all’Altissimo, ed alle cose sacre secondo l’antica, sola sua prima Instituzione…. nel solo Teatro non si pone verun studio per far contrastare la Voce cogli Stromenti, ma bensì, questi si pongono semplicemente all’Unisono colla Parte per non confondere con altro intreccio la forza del pensiero, e della consonanza. E piacesse a Dio, che questa regola, che noi vediamo ora con troppo effetto adoperarsi per far comparire le Scene, si impiegasse nelle Chiese, ove tutta la cura pare, che si riduca a far pompa più dell’ingegno, e dello studio di chi compone, che a mettere nel suo proprio lume la maestà, ed il decoro delle parole, che si pronunziano…"
(Lettera al Signor Don Angelo Maria Carosi Maestro di Cappella di Sinigaglia al Signor don Paolo Benedetto Bellinzani Maestro di Cappella della Metropolitana di Urbino e risposta del Signor Bellinzani al Signor Carosi)
Pesaro, Cattedrale, Archivio del Capitolo, sezione musiche di Cappella, Cart. 52, Ms 475:
Per San Terenzo Introito In virtute tua, a 4 con Stromenti Musica di Paolo Bened(ett)o Bellinzani.
Si noti la minor accuratezza di grafia nelle musiche sottostanti
Pesaro, Cattedrale, Archivio del Capitolo, sezione musiche di Cappella, Tre anonimi di metà del secolo XVIII
Così si esprime, intorno a queste nuove tecniche espressive, un profondo estimatore di Bellinzani:
LETTERA DEL SIGNOR .. op. cit.
One could, therefore, think of Bellinzani somewhat like that of a Palestrina in the eighteenth century, intent on endowing every melody with devotion, thus obtaining an audio result that was bright and stylized. The counter-reformation of the second half of the sixteenth century modified some of the internal components like the doctrine, the religious orders, spiritual movements, and the corresponding music. In this way Pierluigi Palestrina could improve the comprehension of the Sacred Text, availing himself of the polyphony of the melodic Latin softness to simplify the numerous interwoven Flemish counterpoints. In effect, this music, rough with arid, ingenuous patterns, risks distracting the faithful from the devout meditation towards God. Just as the worship of images remained essential in the spread of the Scriptures to the uneducated, in the same way the music of abroad facilitated, at the “right pace”, the comprehension to all of the faithful. When the Episcopalian Commission had the chance to hear two Masses of Palestrina, it realised it did not need to criticise all of the polyphony, but only the way in which it had been used previously. As well as the Unissoni, Bellinzani makes use of other criteria for the construction of musical style that is simple and in close relationship with the Sacred Text:
- General simplification of the music without the loss of quality and substance.
- Harmonic progression, of which the strong emotional impact helps the faithful in their ascent towards God.
- Musical sections, of which the writing suggests to not be “subjected to the beat”, in the sense that during the execution the rhythm was not necessarily respected and went beyond time and space, bringing about a momentary feeling of the abduction of the soul. This type of temporary suspension was seen in ancient times as an opportunity for a contemplative moment that demanded a spiritual pause.
The evocation of an ancient religious rite suggests profound silence, illumination only by candlelight, an heady perfume of incense and music appropriate to the atmosphere that suspends the observer between heaven and earth. Expressed as such, around this new expressive technique, a great fan of Bellinzani: known to all those who have had the pleasure to see your learned compositions in print, and particularly your madrigals given life afresh, are the purging style with which they are written, the force given to the expression, and the melodic lines sung with such naturalness, even if one notes how much natural aversion you always had to similar types of compositions.
Davide Marsano