Tu parti idolo mio
Editor: Edited by Michael Hofmeister
for alto (b-d''), recorder, two violins and bc
We have little information about the origins of the cantata Tu parti idolo mio. The source of the manuscript tells us that Greber already was Kapellmeister of Karl Philipp – see below. Krüger suggests, relying on the watermarks, that the cantata was composed during the Neuburg period around 1717. The flute part of Tu parti idolo mio definitely was written for a particular flute virtuoso. It might, for instance, have been composed for one of his colleagues - the later Mannheim list of 1723 shows nine oboe- (and flute!) players in the Elector’s orchestra.. It is certain, though, that the flute part is remarkably virtuosic. Strangely, however, the text does not seem to be quite compatible with the music. The theme of the abandoned woman (donna abbandonata) usually finds its expression either in a Lamento or a Furioso. The text also gives no hint of pastoral or arcadian scenery and no bird-metaphors justify the fluttering figures of the flute, which on the other hand make this cantata a very appealing and unique piece. Tu parti idolo mio has the most typical structure of an Italian cantata of the early 18th century: Recitativo - Aria - Recitativo - Aria.