Period Instrument Ensembles

Haydn's Symphony No.101 'The Clock' First Movement

Period Ensemble - Florilegium
Modern Ensemble - Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra

To enable me to be able to listen carefully to particular instruments, I restricted my listening for this exercise to individual sections the first movement of the symphony. I found that the two different recordings had their own distinct sound and character. The period instrument's recording has quite a thin and delicate sound overall. The flute, which can be heard clearly in this section of the music sounds more 'whispery' compared to the modern ensemble where it has a more refined and 'tidier' tone, leaning more towards the oboe's clarity of tone. In contrast the modern ensemble sounds more full and robust, especially in the bass instruments. In the modern ensemble the strings also have a smoother, more velvety sound.

Once the movement entered the Presto section, I could notice some even more obvious differences between the recordings. In the period ensemble, the flute had great clarity, and could be heard clearly over the rest of the instruments. The brass instruments on the other hand were hardly discernible amongst the texture. The modern ensemble was an almost complete reversal of this situation, with the flute being mostly lost in the texture, while the powerful brass instruments stood out clearly. This of course produced a huge difference in sound between the two recordings.


Mozart's Symphony No.1 First Movement

Period Ensemble - The Academy of Ancient Music
Modern Ensemble - Academy of St. Martin in the Fields

Around 40 seconds into this piece, there are some quick repeated semiquaver notes in the viola and second violins. Comparing the two recordings at this point led me to notice a distinct tonal difference between the instruments. The period instrument ensemble has a difficult-to-describe almost 'papery' quality to the sound in the string instruments, where the modern ensemble again features that 'velvety' quality to the sound, which is very nice on the ear. This is not to say however that the tone of the period instruments is unpleasant, because that would be incorrect.

I also listened specifically to the oboe at the beginning of the piece. In the modern ensemble the instrument seemed more powerful and could be heard more clearly over the other instruments. The sound also seemed to sustain better in this recording. This is slightly at odds with what I have experienced so far, with the period instruments having greater clarity. Near the end of the movement there is an opportunity to listen carefully to the horns, as the viola and basso continuo rests, and they play in rhythmic unison with the violins and oboe. Again, the modern brass is more prominent here than in the period ensemble, although they are clear in both recordings to due the sparse texture at this point in the music.


Beethoven's Piano Concerto No.5 Second Movement, Third Movement

Period Ensemble - The Academy of Ancient Music
Modern Ensemble - London Symphony Orchestra

I was excited to make the comparison for this piece of music, as piano is my instrument and I expected the difference between a period piano and a modern grand would be substantial. I was correct in my assumption, with the modern grand piano having a much more sparkling and 'pure' tone to the notes, as well as conveying more power, even in this delicate movement. On the period instrument, the tone is less pure and 'clean' and gives the impression of a more fragile sound. Despite this, the instrument still projects itself perfectly well over the orchestral instruments.

The opening to the Rondo third movement provided a great opportunity to compare the tonality of both pianos, as it starts the movement unaccompanied. The period instrument clearly doesn't have the resonance that the modern instrument does, having a much 'thinner' sound, without the deep bass. It also sounds much less powerful, which is where the modern instrument benefits in this movement.


My Response

Making a direct comparison between a period ensemble and a modern ensemble really highlights the differences between the two, and it's clear to see why such period ensembles exist. Period ensembles aim to reproduce as close as possible the sound the composer would have heard, and they achieve this in several ways. Firstly, they make use of either period instruments, or faithful reproductions. These instruments used different materials and processes to modern instruments which gives a very different sound; for example different woods being used for string bows, the strings themselves being made of gut rather than steel, and wood rather than metal fixings. This generally gave these instruments less tension than modern ones, which of course substantially affects the sound. Brass instruments often don't feature valves like modern instruments, due to valves being a later invention. Violins and violas don't have chin-rests, and cellists grip their instrument between their legs, rather than resting it on the floor.

Apart from the actual instruments themselves, period ensembles also strive to interpret the music in the way the composer originally intended, and they achieve this by using early publications or autograph copies of the music rather than modern versions which have often been extensively edited over the years. The period ensembles are often not conducted, but are directed by one of the musicians, and less musicians are used, which is also more faithful to practices of the time.

All of this results in a period ensembles music being more delicate, but giving greater clarity to the individual instruments. Modern ensembles benefit from centuries of technological innovations and improvements, in design as well as materials, which gives a more powerful, but softer, more velvety sound.

I have really enjoyed this exercise, and my next step will be to find a period ensemble performing near me, as I think this will be very enlightening, and give me a true window to the past.