stylus phantasticus
Latin composer
Definition
The 'fantastic style' — Athanasius Kircher's term for the most free and unrestrained keyboard style of the 17th century, typified by Froberger's toccatas. Characterised by unpredictable changes of texture, free improvisatory passages alternating with imitative counterpoint, extreme dissonances, unexpected harmonic turns, and a sense of restless invention.
Interpretive Guidance
In the stylus phantasticus the performer's own expressivity is invited. The written notes are a framework for interpretation rather than a fixed score — ornament freely, vary articulation between sections, and allow the improvisatory passages to breathe and expand. Kircher described it as 'bound to nothing, neither to words nor to a harmonious subject.'