Read on to discover cellist Christian Pierre La Marca's 7 favourite musical declarations of love...
Musical declarations of love... Gustav Mahler and Alma Schindler
Mahler Fifth Symphony - Adagietto
This is one of the most intense and profound expressions of love in music. From what I gather, Mahler’s relationship with his wife Alma was quite complex, and this piece is a real mixture of emotions, from happiness and brilliance to pain and fear. We often use the Adagietto from Mahler's Fifth Symphony to accompany sad moments, yet there is something more transcendent than sad about the work. And as with many great pieces, it is both harmonically and musically sophisticated, while remaining completely accessible.
Musical declarations of love... JS Bach and Anna Magdalena Wilcke
Bach Cello Suites
Since the original manuscripts of JS Bach’s Cello Suites have been lost, the most authentic versions we have are by the hand of Anna Magdalena Bach, the composer’s second wife. It’s beautiful to think that the Cello Suites – which are like the bible to us cellists – are connected to the relationship between this man and woman, and the obvious trust that existed between them. It’s wonderful to imagine Anna Magdalena being involved in these iconic pieces.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Constanze Weber
Mozart Vesperae Solennes K339 – Laudate Dominum
This piece from 1780 doesn’t exactly illustrate Mozart’s feelings for Constanze. For one thing, it predates their marriage; for another, you don’t get the sense that Mozart’s real-life loves had any direct influence on his work. What we do know, however, is that from the moment he met Constanze, Mozart became fascinated by the timbre of clear soprano voices such as hers. In this piece, which he wrote while still in a relationship with Constanze’s sister Aloysia, that high sound plays a very important role.
Musical declarations of love... Robert Schumann and Clara Wieck
Schumann Cello Concerto
Schumann’s Cello Concerto is probably the last love letter that the composer ever wrote to his wife, Clara. Not only does every phrase find a new way of saying ‘I love you’, but there is also the recurring ‘Clara motif’, so called because its descending interval of a fifth is similar in inflection to the sound of his wife’s name. This piece is a very honest declaration – not transcendent in the Mahlerian sense, but a direct expression of love.
Richard Wagner and Cosima Liszt
Wagner Tannhaüser Overture
Hans von Bülow – a German composer-conductor and huge Wagner fan – played this piece to the teenage Cosima Liszt in an effort to seduce her. It worked and she did marry Bülow, but ended up leaving him for his idol. So, I like to think of the Tannhäuser Overture as the first thread that connected Cosima to Wagner. It’s a seductive work, with a confidence and vigour that makes you feel on top of the world. So, I’m not surprised it had such an effect on Cosima.
Musical declarations of love... Hector Berlioz and Harriet Smithson
Berlioz Symphonie fantastique
The inspiration behind this work was Berlioz’s love for the Shakespearean actress Harriet Smithson. Convinced that she wasn’t interested in him, the composer created this confessional that builds from a lover’s sense of dejection to a dreamy, phantasmagorical vision. He invited Harriet to the work’s first performance, but she didn’t show up! Later she got back in contact, before eventually becoming his wife. I love this story about a romance that so nearly didn’t happen.
Musical declarations of love... Benjamin Britten and Peter Pears
Britten War Requiem
Ostensibly about war, this piece, I sense, is also about Britten’s inner war – to be accepted at a time when homosexuality was forbidden. There is a darkness to this music, and a sense of something frozen – strange because Britten always came across as such a warm musician. But something in the War Requiem is stifled and not totally open. And it creates a very interesting tension.
'A perfect gay marriage before the concept was invented': Britten and Pears, gay pioneers
Who is Christian-Pierre La Marca?
Hailing from Aix-en-Provence, Christian-Pierre La Marca is a prize-winning cellist who has performed with ensembles ranging from the Orchestre National de France to the Philharmonia. He often collaborates with contemporary composers but is equally passionate about historically informed performance. His first recording for the Naïve label, Cello 360, took the listener on a journey from Dowland to The Beatles. His latest album, Legacy, which comes out this Autumn, is a survey of musical love letters.