Niccolò Van Westerhout

Unfairly neglected has been so far the production of chamber vocal music, although prominent in the whole career of Niccolò van Westerhout.The 30 lyrics published here for the first time in a modern edition testify to compositional continuity in this genre for nearly fifteen years. The oldest dates back to 1879 (two versions of "Melancholic Singing" on the verses of two scapigliati poets, Emilio Praga and Ugo Tarchetti, respectively), when "Niccolino" was twenty-two and began to become...
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Unfairly neglected has been so far the production of chamber vocal music, although prominent in the whole career of Niccolò van Westerhout.The 30 lyrics published here for the first time in a modern edition testify to compositional continuity in this genre for nearly fifteen years. The oldest dates back to 1879 (two versions of "Melancholic Singing" on the verses of two scapigliati poets, Emilio Praga and Ugo Tarchetti, respectively), when "Niccolino" was twenty-two and began to become acquainted in the Neapolitan setting, also thanks to the favors of esteemed intellectuals who had discovered him. Most of them date back to the last decade of his life, especially the years 1888-1890.At the end of the anthology of romanze da camera, a special "Salve Regina" was opportunely inserted. It is a page explicitly taken from the opera Doña Flor.The composing characteristics of van Westerhout's arie da camera are the syllabic treatment a delicate and hesitant instrumental accompaniment, due to a combined melody motion, and a general atmosphere that is intriguing and permeated of sweet melancholy.