Monteverdi - Madrigals Vol.3: Venezia
£14.20
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Label: Harmonia Mundi - Les Arts Florissants
Cat No: HAF8905278
Format: CD
Number of Discs: 1
Genre: Vocal/Choral
Release Date: 17th February 2017
Contents
Works
Il combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda, SV153Madrigals, Book 7: SV117-145
Artists
Les Arts FlorissantsConductor
Paul AgnewWorks
Il combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda, SV153Madrigals, Book 7: SV117-145
Artists
Les Arts FlorissantsConductor
Paul AgnewAbout
“Choosing an hour of music to represent these two massive collections is a challenge...Like all the music we have made during this extraordinary project, our aim was to convince the listener not only of the beauty of this repertoire but of its astonishing modernity. Monteverdi’s music attempts to marry text and harmony so closely that we are capable of seeing into the protagonists’ hearts, of feeling their state of emotion viscerally whilst hearing their words... I pay tribute to the wonderful singers and instrumentalist who have taken part in our five-year journey and thank them for all that they have taught me.” –Paul Agnew
“One is torn between regret that there is to be only one further volume, and anticipation at what it might bring.” – Gramophone Magazine, July 2015 (AF005)
Sound/Video
Paused
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1Claudio Monteverdi: Madrigals, Book 7, SV 117–145: Sinfonia. Tempro la cetra, SV 117
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2Claudio Monteverdi: Madrigals, Book 7, SV 117–145: Al lume de le stelle, SV 138
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3Claudio Monteverdi: Madrigals, Book 7, SV 117–145: Con che soavita, SV 139
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4Claudio Monteverdi: Madrigals, Book 7, SV 117–145: Chiome d'oro, SV 143
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5Claudio Monteverdi: Madrigals, Book 7, SV 117–145: Interrotte speranze, SV 132
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6Claudio Monteverdi: Madrigals, Book 7, SV 117–145: Lettera amorosa, SV 141
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7Claudio Monteverdi: Madrigals, Book 7, SV 117–145: Ballo: Tirsi e Clori, SV 145
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8Claudio Monteverdi: Madrigals, Book 8, SV 146–167 'Madrigali guerrieri et amorosi': Altri canti d'Amor, SV146
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9Claudio Monteverdi: Madrigals, Book 8, SV 146–167 'Madrigali guerrieri et amorosi': Dolcissimo usignolo, SV 161
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10Claudio Monteverdi: Madrigals, Book 8, SV 146–167 'Madrigali guerrieri et amorosi': Lamento de la ninfa, SV 163
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11Claudio Monteverdi: Madrigals, Book 8, SV 146–167 'Madrigali guerrieri et amorosi': Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda, SV 153
Europadisc Review
From the initial strains of the opening Sinfonia, you just know that, with both Monteverdi and Agnew, you are in safe and welcoming hands. Highlights from the Seventh Book (1619) are the solo madrigal Con che soavità from soprano Miriam Allan and the three distinct groups of instrumentalists that make this piece so memorable: it’s a beautifully-judged performance, and the rich sonorities of the low-string group linger as long in the mind as Allan’s pure, agile but moving voice. Contralto Lucile Richardot is just as impressive in another solo work, the lesser known Lettera amorosa, which comes across here as much more than just an exercise in the recitative-like stile rappresentativo. Of the important two-voice madrigals that are so distinctive in this book, Interrote speranze is intensely moving, tenors Zachary Wilder and Paul Agnew blossoming as if organically from a single unison tone. On the lighter side, the famous duet Chiome d’oro skips along gaily, sopranos Miriam Allan and Mhairi Lawson accompanied by burbling recorders as well as light-toned violins. And the final item from the book, the Ballo: Tirsi e Clori, builds to an appropriately ebullient conclusion.
The four items from the Eighth Book – the celebrated Madrigali guerreri et amorosi (Madrigals of war and love, 1638) – are fewer, and mostly larger in scale. Altri canti d’Amor starts in hushed tones, making the sudden change halfway through to Monteverdi’s new war-like stile concitato all the more startling and bracing. Here the singers really prove their mettle. The more lightly scored Dolcissimo usignolo is delightful, particularly the upper voices, while in the famous Lamento de la ninfa a trio of male voices comment sensitively on the movingly sung (but curiously uncredited) lament of the Nymph, performed in free time as dictated by the singer’s emotions.
How else to end but with the climactic Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda? A miniature dramatic masterpiece, much hinges on the part of the narrator, taken with all the benefits of his vast experience by Agnew himself. The ‘battle’ effects are splendidly vivid, and the affecting close provides a memorable ending to a sumptuous disc.
Throughout, the singers of Les Arts Florissants (and their instrumental colleagues) combine Gallic refinement and grace with Adriatic passion and just a hint of saltiness for good measure. As a single-disc digest of Monteverdi at the pinnacle of his career, this is well-nigh unbeatable. The documentation is generous (including a fine essay from Agnew), and the recording captures the spontaneity of the live performances at Paris’s Cité de la Musique in 2014 and 2015, without any intrusive audience noises. It’s an ideal starting point for newcomers to the the wonders that are Moneteverdi’s madrigals; but seasoned collectors will want it too for the sheer quality of the performances, which excel all but the finest recent Italian-based exponents of this repertoire, and indeed offer a welcome and valid alternative take on the music.
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