Buskaid: Farina's "Capriccio Stravagante"

Capriccio Stravagante - Carlo Farina (c1600 – 1639)

This performance was filmed at a concert given by the Buskaid Soweto String Ensemble directed by Rosemary Nalden, at the Linder Auditorium, Johannesburg, in 2018.

Capriccio Stravagante is fascinating to string players (and others) for the unusual and groundbreaking techniques which Farina used to portray various instruments and animal sounds, specifically hens, a rooster, cats and dogs. The work also contains movements which imitate the hurdy-gurdy, Spanish guitar, church organ, trumpets and flutes. To achieve these sounds, Farina gives specific instructions for the player to double-stop (playing two strings simultaneously to imitate the drone of the hurdy-gurdy) to play sul ponticello (‘on the bridge’) to copy the sound of a flute, to strum like a guitarist, to play col legno (hitting the string delicately with the wood of the bow) and to use bow portato (il tremulo) to create the sound of a church organ. In the latter case, Farina’s humour is clearly portrayed, as the improvising organist clearly gets lost in a bar or two of muddled chromaticism, before thankfully finding his (or her) way back to the original key. All these movements are interspersed with lively contemporary dances. Although the Buskaid musicians do not have the luxury of playing baroque instruments, they are all trained in baroque techniques, and this performance includes some imaginative decorations which would have been very familiar to Farina and his contemporaries.

The Buskaid Music School is situated in Diepkloof Soweto, and offers high quality string tuition to the local, less privileged community. In 2022 Buskaid celebrated its 25th Anniversary.

www.buskaid.org.za