MonteverdiMadrigali Libri I-IX

Complete Madrigals

Le Nuove Musiche · Krijn Koetsveld

Claudio Monteverdi 1567-1643Madrigali Libri I-IX, Complete Madrigals

Madrigali Libro I1 Ch’ami la vita mia nel tuo bel nome

(Anon.) (a, b, c, d, g) 2’002 Se per avervi ohimé donato il core

(Anon.) (a, b, c, d, g) 1’223 A che tormi il ben mio (Anon.) (a, b, c, d, g) 2’124 Amor, per tua mercè vatten’a quella

(Bonardo) (a, b, c, d, f) 1’305 Baci soavi e cari (Guarini) (a, b, c, d, g) 2’366 Se pur non mi consenti (Groto) (a, b, c, d, g) 1’457 Filli cara et amata (Parma) (b, c, d, f, g) 1’508 Poi che del mio dolore (Anon.) (a, b, c, d, g) 1’579 Fumia la pastorella (Allegretti) (a, b, c, d, f) 0’3910 Almo divino raggio 1’0911 Allora i pastor tutti 1’3212 Se nel partir da voi, vita mia, sento

(Bonardo) (a, b, c, d, f) 1’5913 Tra mille fiamme e tra mille catene

(Anon.) (a, b, c, d, f) 2’0014 Usciam, ninfe, omai fuor di questi boschi

(Anon.) (a, b, c, d, f) 2’1415 Questa ordí il laccio (Strozzi) (a, b, c, d, g) 1’5016 La vaga pastorella (Anon.) (a, b, c, d, f) 2’2517 Amor, s’il tuo ferire (Anon.) (a, b, c, d, f) 1’4718 Donna, s’io miro voi giaccio divengo

(Anon.) (a, b, c, d, f) 1’1719 Ardo, sì, ma non t’amo

(Guarini) (a, b, c, d, f) 1’1720 Ardi o gela a tua voglia 1’1521 Arsi et alsi a mia voglia 1’34

Madrigali Libro II22 Non si levav’ancor l’alba novella

(Tasso) (a, b, c, d, g) 4’0823 E dicea l’una sospirando allora 3’5724 Bevea Fillide mia (Casoni) (a, b, c, d, g) 2’2325 Dolcissimi legami (Tasso) (a, b, c, d, g) 2’4626 Non giacinti o narcisi (Casoni) (a, b, c, d, g) 2’4627 Intorno a due vermiglie e vaghe labbra

(Anon.) (a, b, c, d, g) 3’1028 Non sono in queste rive (Tasso) (a, b, c, d, g) 2’1029 Tutte le bocche belle (Alberti) (a, b, c, d, g) 2’1430 Donna, nel mio ritorno (Tasso) (b, c, d, e, g) 3’2631 Quell’ombr’esser vorrei (Casoni) (c, d, e, f, g) 2’4432 S’andasse Amor a caccia (Tasso) (a, b, c, d, g) 2’0433 Mentr’io miravo fiso (Tasso) (a, b, c, d, g) 3’0234 Se tu mi lassi, perfida, tuo danno

(Tasso) (a, b, c, d, g) 2’1235 Ecco mormorar l’onde (Tasso) (a, b, c, d, g) 3’1236 La bocca onde l’asprissime parole

(Bentivoglio) (a, b, c, d, g) 2’0337 Dolcemente dormiva la mia Clori

(Tasso) (a, b, c, d, g) 2’4838 Crudel, perché mi fuggi

(Guarini) (a, b, c, d, g) 2’21

73 A un giro sol de bell’occhi lucenti (Guarini) 2’2274 Ohimé, se tanto amate (Guarini) 2’2075 Io mi son giovinetta (Guarini) 2’3976 Quell’augellin che canta (Guarini) 2’1977 Non piú guerra, pietate (Guarini) 2’3078 Sí ch’io vorrei morire (Moro) 2’5679 Anima dolorosa che vivendo (Guarini) 2’2980 Anima del cor mio (Anon.) 2’0481 Longe da te, cor mio (Anon.) 2’0782 Piagne e sospira (Tasso) 3’55

Le Nuove Musiche · Krijn Koetsveld harpsichord & artistic leaderJennifer van der Hart, Wendy Roobol sopranosHugo Naessens alto, Gerben van der Werf alto*Falco van Loon tenor · Bas Ramselaar bass

Madrigali Libro V83 Cruda Amarilli (Battista Guarini) (a, b, f, g, h) 2’2384 O Mirtillo, Mirtill’anima mia

(Guarini) (a, b, d, f, h) 2’3485 Era l’anima mia (Guarini) (a, b, d, f, h, n, o, p) 2’56

Ecco, Silvio, colei che in odio hai tanto (Guarini) (a, b, d, f, h, p)86 Prima parte Ecco, Silvio, colei

che in odio hai tanto 2’5687 Seconda parte Ma, se con la

pietà non è in te spenta 2’3388 Terza parte Dorinda, ah, dirò

mia, se mia non sei 2’0689 Quarta parte Ecco, piegando

le genocchie a terra 2’1890 Quinta e ultima parte Ferir

quel petto, Silvio? 3’34

Ch’io t’ami, e t’ami più de la mia vita (Guarini) (a, b, d, f, h, n, o, p)91 Prima parte Ch’io t’ami,

e t’ami più de la mia vita 1’4592 Seconda parte Deh, bella e cara

e sì soave un tempo 2’1393 Terza e ultima parte

Ma tu, più che mai dura 2’52

94 Che dar più vi poss’io? (Anon.) (a, b, d, f, h, p) 2’3795 M’è più dolce il penar per Amarilli

(Guarini) (a, b, d, f, h) 2’5896 Ahi, come a un vago sol cortese giro

(Guarini) (a, b, d , f, g, h, n, o, p) 4’0897 Troppo ben può questo tiranno Amore! (Guarini)

(b, c, d, f, h, n, o, p) 3’0698 Amor, se giusto sei (Anon.) (a, b, d, f, h, n, o, p) 3’1799 T’amo, mia vita! (Guarini) (a, b, d, f, h, n, o, p) 2’21100 E così, a poco a poco (Guarini)

(a, b, d, f, g, h, n, o, p) 3’06101 Questi vaghi concenti (Guarini)

(a, b, c d, e, f, h, j, k l, m, n, o, p) 6’15

39 Questo specchio ti dono (Casoni) (b, c, d, e, g) 3’07

40 Non m’è grave il morire (Gottifredi) (a, b, c, d, g) 2’46

41 Ti spontò l’ali, Amor, la donna mia (Alberti) (a, b, c, d, g) 3’04

42 Cantai un tempo, e se fu dolce il canto (Bembo) (c, d, e, f, g) 3’42

Le Nuove Musiche · Krijn Koetsveld artistic leaderJennifer van der Hart (a), Wendy Roobol sopranos (b)Hugo Naessens alto (c), Falco van Loon (d),Joost van Velzen tenors (e), Jasper Scheppe baritone (f) Bas Ramselaar bass (g)

Madrigali Libro III 43 La giovinetta pianta (Anon.) 3’1844 O come è gran martire (Guarini) 2’5645 Sovra tenere erbette e bianchi fiori (Anon.) 3’0646 O dolce anima mia, dunque è pur vero

(Guarini) 3’2247 Stracciami pur il core (Guarini) 3’2248 O rossignuol che in queste verdi fronde

(Bembo) 3’5849 Se per estremo ardore (?Guarini) 3’1550 Vattene pur, crudel, con quella pace

(Tasso) 1’5151 Là tra ’l sangue e le morti egro giacente

(Tasso) 2’2652 Poi ch’ella in sé tornò, deserto e muto

(Tasso) 3’0053 O primavera, gioventú de l’anno (Guarini) 2’4354 Perfidissimo volto (Guarini) 3’2255 Ch’io non t’ami, cor mio (Guarini) 3’4156 Occhi, un tempo mia vita (Guarini) 2’5057 Vivrò fra i miei tormenti e le mie cure

(Tasso) 1’4058 Ma dove, o lasso me, dove restaro (Tasso) 2’3859 Io pur verrò là dove sete, e voi (Tasso) 2’1760 Lumi, miei cari lumi (Guarini) 2’2561 Rimanti in pace (Celiano) 3’3062 Ond’ei di morte la sua faccia impressa

(Celiano) 3’31

Madrigali Libro IV63 Ah dolente partita (Anon.) 3’2964 Cor mio, mentre vi miro (Guarini) 1’5265 Cor mio, non mori? E mori (Anon.) 2’3366 Sfogava con le stelle (?Rinuccini) 2’4167 Volgea l’anima mia soavemente (Guarini) 3’0668 Anima mia, perdona (Anon.) 2’3069 Che se tu se’ il cor mio* (Anon.) 2’2170 Luci serene e chiare (Arlotti) 3’0671 La piaga c’ho nel core (Gatti) 1’5872 Voi pur da me partite, anima dura (Guarini) 3’06

Madrigali Libro VILamento d’Arianna(Ottavio Rinuccini) (a, b, d, f, h, n, o, p)102 Prima parte Lasciatemi morire 1’30103 Seconda parte O Teseo, o Teseo mio! 4’16104 Terza parte Dove, dove è la fede 2’15105 Quarta e ultima parte

Ahi, che non pur risponde! 2’56

106 Zefiro torna e ’l bel tempo rimena (Francesco Petrarca) (a, b, d, f, h, n, o, p) 3’06

107 Una donna fra l’altre onesta e bella (Anon.) (a, b, d, f, h, n, o, p) 2’58

108 A dio, Florida bella (Giambattista Marino) (a, b, d, f, h, n, o, p) 3’29

Lagrime d’Amante al sepolcro dell’Amata (Scipione Agnelli) (a, b, d, f, h, p)109 Prima parte Incenerite spoglie, avara tomba 2’05110 Seconda parte Ditelo, o fiumi,

e voi, ch’udiste Glauco 1’47111 Terza parte Darà la notte il

sol lume alla terra 2’08112 Quarta parte Ma te raccoglie,

o Ninfa, in grembo ’l cielo 2’23113 Quinta parte O chiome d’or,

neve gentil del seno 2’11114 Sesta e ultima parte Dunque,

amate reliquie, un mar di pianto 3’01

115 Oimè il bel viso (Petrarca) (a, b, d, f, h, n, o, p) 3’58116 Qui rise, o Tirsi (Marino) (a, b, d, f, g, h, n, o, p) 5’57117 Misero Alceo (Marino) (a, b, d, f, h, n, p) 3’50118 Batto, qui pianse Ergasto

(Marino) (a, b, d, f, h, n, o, p) 3’33119 Presso un fiume tranquillo

(Marino) (a, b, c, d, f, g, h, n, o, p) 4’42

Le Nuove Musiche · Krijn Koetsveld artistic leaderJennifer van der Hart (a), Wendy Roobol (b),Andrea Tjäder (c) sopranosHugo Naessens (d), Edward Horsman (e) altosFalco van Loon (f), Jonatan Alvarado (g) tenorsBas Ramselaar bass (h), Jasper Scheppe baritone (i)Kees Hulsmann (j), Evert Jan Schuur (k) violinsNiek Iedema (l), Arwen Bouw (m) violasCassandra Luckhardt viola da gamba (n)Arjen Verhade theorbo (o) · Krijn Koetsveld harpsichord (p)

Madrigali Libro VII120 Sinfonia – Tempro la cetra

(Marino) (e, i, l, m, n, o, p) 8’06121 A quest’olmo, a quest’ombre

(Marino) (a, b, c, e, f, h, i, l, m, p) 5’46122 Non è di gentil core (?degl’Atti) (a, b, i, p) 3’41123 O come sei gentile, caro augellino

(Guarini) (a, b, i) 3’54124 Io son pur vezzosetta pastorella

(Anon.) (a, b, i, p) 3’12

125 O viva fiamma, o miei sospiri ardenti (?Gesualdo) (a, b, i, k) 3’02

126 Vorrei baciarti, o Fili (Marino) (c, d, i) 4’14127 Dice la mia bellissima Licori

(Guarini) (e, f, i, p) 2’24128 Non vedrò mai le stelle (Anon.) (e, f, i, k, p) 3’50129 Ah, che non si conviene romper la fede

(Anon.) (e, f, i) 3’07130 Ecco vicine, o bella tigre, l’ore

(Achillini) (e, f, i, k) 3’57131 Perché fuggi tra’ salci (Marino) (e, f, i, k, p) 3’12132 Tornate, o cari baci (Marino) (e, f, i, k, p) 2’33133 Soave libertate (Chiabrera) (e, f, i, k, p) 3’22134 Se ’l vostro cor, madonna

(Guarini) (e, h, i, k, p) 2’57135 Interrotte speranze, eterna fede

(Guarini) (e, f, i, k, p) 2’32136 Augellin, che la voce al canto spieghi

(Anon.) (a, b, h, i, k, p) 3’23137 Vaga su spina ascosa

(Chiabrera) (e, f, h, i, k, p) 2’47138 Eccomi pronta ai baci

(Marino) (e, f, h, i, k, p) 2’27139 Parlo, miser, o taccio?

(Guarini) (a, b, h, i, p) 4’23140 Tu dormi, ah crudo core!

(Anon.) (b, c, e, h, i, p) 3’06141 Al lume de le stelle (Tasso) (a, b, e, h, i) 3’57142 Con che soavità, labbra adorate

(Guarini) (b, i, j, k, l, m, n, o, p, q, r, s, t) 4’26143 Ohimé, dov’è il mio ben, dov’è il mio core?

(Tasso) (a, b, h, i, p) 4’36144 Se i languidi miei sguardi 7’42 (‘Lettera amorosa in genere rapresentativo’)

(Achillini) (a, i)145 Se pur destina e vole 8’49 (‘Partenza amorosa … in genere rapresentativo’)

(?Rinuccini) (g, i)146 Chiome d’oro (Anon.) (a, b, i, k, l, m, p) 3’02147 Amor, che deggio far?

(Anon.) (a, b, e, h, i, l, m, p) 4’38148 Tirsi e Clori (Ballo) (?Striggio)

(a, b, c, e, h, i, k, l, m, p) 11’37

Le Nuove Musiche · Krijn Koetsveld artistic leaderJennifer van der Hart (a), Wendy Roobol (b) sopranosHugo Naessens (c), Kaspar Kröner (d) countertenorsFalco van Loon (e), Gerben Houba (f) tenorsJasper Schweppe baritone (g) · Bas Ramselaar bass (h)Krijn Koetsveld organ & harpsichord (i)Elly Meijer harpsichord (j) · Arjen Verhage theorbo (k)Kees Hülsmann (l), Evert-Jan Schuur (m) violinsBernadette Verhagen (n), Sven Rotteveel Mansveld (o) violasCassandra Luckhardt viola da gamba & violoncello (p)Lotte Beukman violoncello (q)Ricardo Rodríguez Mirando viola da gamba (r)Zaynab Martin (s), Robert Smith (t) violones

178 Ogni amante è guerrier (Rinuccini) (d, e, h, p, r, s, t) 4’56

179 Io che nell’otio nacqui e d’otio vissi 7’24180 Ma per quel ampio Egeo 0’40181 Riedi, ch’al nostro ardor 1’04182 Non partir, ritrosetta

(Anon.) (d, e, h, t) 3’21183 Su, su, su pastorelli vezzosi

(Anon.) (a, b, d, t) 3’08184 Ballo – Movete al mio ben suon

(Rinuccini) (a, b, c, d, e, h, j, k, p, r, t) 9’09

Le Nuove Musiche · Krijn Koetsveld artistic leaderJennifer van der Hart (a), Wendy Roobol (b) sopranosHugo Naessens alto (c) · Falco van Loon tenor (d)Bas Ramselaar bass (e) · Andrea Tjäder soprano (f)Gerben van der Werf alto (g) · João Moreira tenor (h)Pieter Hendriks bass (i) · Kees Hülsmann (j),Evert Jan Schuur violins (k) · Bernadette Verhagen viola (l)Niek Idema viola (m) · Jan Willem Vis viola (n)Elisabeth Ingenhousz viola (o)Cassandra Luckhardt cello/gamba (p)Zaynab Martin violone (q) · Arjen Verhage (r),Israel Golani theorbos (s)Krijn Koetsveld organ/harpsichord (t)

Madrigali Libro IX185 Bel pastor (Rinuccini) (b, e, h, i, j) 4’30186 Zefiro torna (Rinuccini) (e, f, h, i, j) 5’59187 Se vittorie sí belle (Testi) (e, f, h, i, j) 3’00188 Armato il cor (Anon.) (e, f, h, i, j) 2’50189 Ardo e scoprir (Anon.) (e, f, h, i, j) 3’18190 O sia tranquill’il mare (Anon.) (e, f, h, i, j) 3’54191 Alcun non mi consigli (Anon.) (d, e, g, h, i, j) 3’32192 Di far sempre gioire (Anon.) (d, e, g, h, i, j) 2’28193 Quando dentro al tuo seno (Anon.) (e, f, j) 2’16194 Non voglio amare (Anon.) (e, f, j) 2’42195 Come dolce hoggi l’auretta

(Strozzi) (a, b, c, j) 0’45196 Gl’amoretti l’aura fanno 0’41197 Ride il bosco 0’40198 Entri pur nel nostro petto 0’56199 Alle danze (Anon.) (e, f, g, h, i, j) 3’26200 Perchè se m’odiavi (Anon.) (e, f, g, h, i, j) 2’46201 Sì, sì, ch’io v’amo (Anon.) (e, f, g, h) 4’56202 Su, su, su, pastorelli vezzosi

(Anon.) (e, f, g, i, j) 4’06203 O mio bene (Anon.) (e, f, g, h, i, j) 4’04

Le Nuove Musiche · Krijn Koetsveld artistic leaderJennifer van der Hart (a),Wendy Roobol (b),Andrea Tjader (c) sopranos, Hugo Naessens alto (d)Falco van Loon (e), João Moreiro (f) tenors · Bas Ramselaar bass (g), Arjen Verhade theorbo (h)Cassandra Luckhardt cello/viola da gamba (i)Krijn Koetsveld organ/harpsichord (j)

Madrigali Libro VIII149 Altri canti d’Amor

(Anon.) (a, b, c, d, e, h, p, r, t) 9’39150 Or che ’l ciel e la terra e ’l vento tace

(Petrarca) (a, b, c, d, e, h, p, r, t) 4’21151 Cosí sol d’una chiara fonte viva 3’35152 Gira il nemico insidioso Amore

(Strozzi) (d, e, h, p, r, t) 1’10153 Nol lasciamo accostar, ch’egli non saglia 0’34154 Armi false non son, ch’ei s’avvicina 0’46155 Vuol degli occhi attaccar il baloardo 1’08156 Non è piú tempo, ohimè 0’43157 Cor mio, non val fuggir 1’14158 Se vittorie sí belle (Testi) (d, h, p, s, t) 2’58159 Armato il cor d’adamantina fede

(Anon.) (d, h, s, t) 2’50160 Ardo, avvampo, mi struggo

(Anon.) (a, b, c, d, e, g, h, i, j, k, l, p, r, t) 4’08161 Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda

(Tasso) (j, k, m, p, r, t) 19’56 Falco van Loon Testo [narrator] Arnout Lems Tancredi Wendy Roobol Clorinda

162 Altri canti di Marte (Marino) (a, b, c, d, e, h, j, k, l, p, r, t) 3’55

163 Due belli occhi fur l’armi, onde traffito 3’40164 Vago augelletto che cantando vai

(Petrarca) (a, b, c, d, e, h, i, p, r, t) 4’30165 Ardo e scoprir, ahi lasso, io non ardisco

(Anon.) (d, h, p, s, t) 3’13166 Ninfa che scalza il piede e sciolto il crine

(Anon.) (d, e, h, p, s, t) 1’21167 Qui deh meco t’arresta 1’30168 De l’usate mie corde al suon potrai 2’12169 Dolcissimo uscignolo

(Guarini) (a, b, c, d, e, p, r, t) 3’07170 Ballo delle ingrate

(Rinuccini) (c, d, j, k, m, n, p, r, t) 33’51 Jennifer van der Hart Amor, una delle ingrate Wendy Roobol Venere Bas Ramselaar Plutone

Lamento della ninfa (Rinuccini) (d, e, h, p, s, t)

171 Non avea Febo ancora 1’09172 ‘Amor’, dicea, il ciel 3’23173 Sì tra sdegnosi pianti 0’35 Wendy Roobol La ninfa

174 Perché te’n fuggi, o Fillide? (Rinuccini) (c, d, e, p, r, t) 4’20

175 Mentre vaga angioletta (Guarini) (a, b, p, r, t) 8’13

176 O sia tranquillo il mare, o pien d’orgoglio (Anon.) (d, h, p, s, t) 3’51

177 Chi vole aver felice e lieto il core (Guarini) (a, b, c, d, e, p, r, t) 2’03

MONTEVERDI Madrigali Book I-IX Libro 1The first two books of Madrigals by Claudio Monteverdi date from the period in which he lived and worked in his native town of Cremona. Here we see the young composer, obviously still under the influence of his teacher Marc’Antonio Ingegneri, engaged in the trade of writing madrigals during the Renaissance. The texts of his contemporaries, including Giovanni Battista Guarini, Torquato Tasso, Girolamo Casoni and Antonio Allegretti, serve as poetic sources of inspiration. The madrigal art was widespread and popular at all courts, and found its way in print all over Italy, as well as abroad. The fact that Monteverdi dedicates Books I and II to the Duke of Verona, Marco Verità, and the Milanese nobleman Giacomo Riccardi respectively, shows his ambition to spread his wings, in which he succeeded when he got an appointment at the House of Gonzaga in Mantua.

We now know that Monteverdi would earn his great name in musical history as a special composer of the seconda prattica, the heralding sign for a new era, the Baroque, and the actual conclusion of the Renaissance. It makes it all the more fascinating to see how the young musician, during the closing phase of the Renaissance, adds something to the existing body of works which we know from all his predecessors and partly from his contemporaries like Ingegneri, Luca Marenzio, Philippe de Monte, Giaches de Wert, Orlande de Lassus and countless others. Is he exploring the boundaries at an early age already, or are they just fine examples of the prima prattica, written as they should be? Is the emerging talent already perceptible, or should we rather wait patiently for the Third and Fourth Book, on the eve of the seconda prattica? The rules for writing madrigals were fairly straightforward. Recitation of the text came first. Affects were made audible by melody, rhythm, and by playing with repetitions, strengths and harmony. Book I shows the dexterity of Monteverdi’s craft. We see it in the first madrigal already, where the first phrase, ‘Ch’ami la vita mia’, follows the natural rhythm of the declamation in a beautiful way, with a simple harmonic setting. The phrase ‘il cor afflitto’, (the afflicted heart), gives us a reason to literally stop dead in our tracks, with double-length notes and very poignant harmonies. This was the way to do it, so this was the way Monteverdi did it.

In Baci soavi e cari, though largely a homophonous setting, we see that Monteverdi is already revealing his penchant for the development of consonance. The very phrase ‘Baci soavi e cari’ (‘kisses, sweet and lovely’) has a beautiful, simple and tender harmony. The madrigal can be counted among one of the highlights of the First Book.

Libro IIIt makes one curious to see whether the same goes for Book II, which was, after all, published in Venice only three years later, in 1590. The first madrigal is a marvellous example of painting with words: dawn is expressed by rising lines in the voices. Through the rhythmical proportions we can share the happiness of the night the lovers enjoy. It seems as if Monteverdi is already evoking those images with more ease, with more tonal painting, for instance in Non sono in queste rive and Tutte le bocche belle, but also with the enchanting, tranquil affects in works like Donna, nel mio ritorno.

In the beautiful madrigal La bocca onde l’asprissime parole, we feel how the bitterness of the words is emphasised by the initial harmonies, which shed a new light on almost every syllable and thus express the uncertainty in those words.

It is clear that Monteverdi’s works had to gain a foothold among the plethora of madrigal books that were published at the time. We can see that he was ambitious and that his appointment in Mantua was a great leap forward. We can also see that he had the audacity to leave his own hallmark on a style that had already been well developed. Before long, he would leave this style behind forever. The heralding sign for a new era had sounded.

Libro IIIIn 1591, Claudio Monteverdi was appointed to the court of the Gonzagas in Mantua. It was a farewell to his musical childhood and to his great teacher at the Cathedral of Cremona, Marc’Antonio Ingegneri, to whom he had dedicated his first two books of madrigals. One year after the move, the third book was published by Ricciardo Amadino in Venice and became a commercial success, judging by the reprints that were issued in 1594 and 1611. There was even a reprint made in Antwerp in 1615, which

clearly proves there was something special about the maestro from Mantua – later, of course, from Venice.

Many of the madrigals in this third book bear witness to the style of the teacher. The beautiful declamatory Renaissance style in, among others, La giovinetta pianta and Sovra tenere erbette e bianchi fiori will certainly have elicited a benevolent nod of approval from Ingegneri. But there is more to this book. This volume was well received for a reason, and Monteverdi’s qualities were recognised by his later employers in Mantua for that same reason.

The way in which Claudio Monteverdi lets the voices render the drama one by one in O come è gran martire, ‘O what suffering it is’, to continue as a small narrative group later on, serves to illustrate how painstakingly Monteverdi transforms lyrics into sound. With the triptych Vattene pur crudel, setting lyrics by Torquato Tasso, Monteverdi paints in beautiful musical rhetorics the tragedy of lovers who are about to lose one another. Monteverdi makes Armida’s cry of loneliness, ‘Ito se n’è pur’, ‘Is he then gone’, cut through our souls. The young grandmaster has embarked upon his own path, which will make him one of the most significant composers on the threshold between Renaissance and Baroque.

Libro IVIn 1603, Book IV was issued by the same publishing house, featuring works that apparently had been performed before and had caused some sensation. Giovanni Maria Artusi, in his famous essay Delle imperfettioni della moderna musica ragionamenti dui (Venice, 1600), gives two musical examples of their unprecedented modernity. Indeed, in Anima mia, perdona and the second movement Che se tu se’ il cor mio, to which Artusi refers, there are many harmonic and melodic inventions to enjoy. Dissonances appear where old rules have been broken and new rhetoric possibilities are created. All these resources serve only one, simple goal: to create more space for the musical rhetorics, to create more space for individual expression. In short: hopeful glimmers the light of a new age. The ensuing disputes are as obvious as they are entertaining. At the same time, Monteverdi demonstrates that he never tried to discard his formerly

acquired craftsmanship. Carefully and with an unprecedented precision he gives voice to the natural declamation of the words. And he frequently chooses those words from the then popular epic I pastor fido by Giovanni Battista Guarini (1590). Silvio, Amarilli, Dorinda and Mirtillo are the main protagonists from this tragicomedy, which blissfully ends with two couples loving each other forever. This kind of poetry was hugely popular, maybe even more so than the more literary formats of the much earlier Petrarch and the contemporary Tasso. Obviously the sales figures were positively influenced by Guarini’s lyrics, but Monteverdi seems to make a statement by concluding with Piang’e sospira, ‘She wept and sighed’, setting beautiful, dramatic words by Torquato Tasso with notes so enchanting and so intense, with chromatic lines and miraculous harmonies to halt any criticism dead in its tracks, music that makes us yearn for the next volumes, the next opera. That same year Orfeo is performed in Mantua.

Libro VIt must have had the impact of a bomb. The discussion about musica moderna was in full swing, and suddenly, on the first page of Claudio Monteverdi’s fifth book of Madrigals (1605), it exploded. In Cruda Amarilli, the explosion was the completely unprepared dissonance on the word Cruda, emphasising the meaning, cruel. It was as if Monteverdi, without needing many words, wanted to demonstrate through his music: Dear Artusi, you can claim what you like, you can exaggerate the discussion as far as is possible, but this is how I do it. The seconda prattica is born and its laws are known, and those laws are decided by me, Claudio Monteverdi.

The discussion about musica moderna was already longstanding. Around 1550 Nicola Vicentino and Vicente Lusitano carried the banner, followed by the conservative Gioseffo Zarlino and the modernist Galileo Galilei, members of the Camerata, the elite Florentine club that decided the course that art should take.

Giovanni Maria Artusi was a student of Zarlino and took up the battle in defence of his teacher. In 1600 he wrote a treatise, L’Artusi, overo delle imperfettioni della moderna musica, where without mentioning names, he critically assessed a number of madrigals from Monteverdi’s fourth book. The pure style dictated that the harmony must be in

unfortunately the only surviving piece from the entire opera. Monteverdi reworked the original solo into a 5-voice madrigal. Also here, there is already with the second note an explosion: a tremendous dissonance makes clear how unmeasurably large Arianna’s pain is. This is how it’s done. This is the dramatic language of this modern music.

In the Lagrime d’Amante al sepolcro dell’Amata, a breathtaking 6-part cycle of madrigals, we find everything that Monteverdi promised to state in words about the technical basis of this new music. Each word, every single subjective emotional meaning is tightly set in harmony, rhythm and melody. This is the basis of everything the seconda prattica has to offer us. This is where music history was written. Not in words, but in astoundingly beautiful sounds.

Libro VIIClaudio Monteverdi became famous with the publication of his fifth book of madrigals in 1605. The subtitle of the book says it loud and clear: ‘col basso continuo per il clavicembalo, chittarone o altro’ (‘with basso continuo on harpsichord, chitarrone or other instrument’). With this he heralded a new era: that of the seconda pratica, the era of the basso continuo, the Baroque. The lively debate to which this gave rise, which involved, among others, Giovanni Maria Artusi, was according to Monteverdi’s brother to be dealt with once and for all in the preface to the Scherzo musicali of 1607 by means of a tract by the great master himself. That tract has been lost or was in fact never written, and there is not much that can be done about that.

We can imagine that Monteverdi’s contemporaries must have eagerly awaited his new books and the development of this new pathway they brought. Libro VI of the madrigals from 1614 elaborated this new route further, without any new surprises, featuring monodies within the familiar five-part madrigal format.

In 1613 Monteverdi was appointed as maestro di capella of San Marco, heralded by the impressive sounds of the Vespro della Beate Vergine. His first surviving opera, Orfeo, had been heard a decade earlier in Mantua, his former home town. These two works must have made an enormous impression on his contemporaries, and they still resonate to this day. Everything is present in these two pieces: new concerti, independent

service of the text and that only one mode may be used in a piece. He declared this, however, without mentioning the name of the accursed Monteverdi.

Monteverdi’s response was cautious. In a fairly short foreword to Book 5 he wrote that he would of course return to the questions and objections of Artusi, and he promised a theoretical justification for this new music, which he called the seconda prattica. That treatise either never appeared or it has been lost. This was a smart move by Monteverdi. By naming his style seconda prattica, he defined a new style with new rules, different from the prima prattica, thus neatly avoiding controversy.

Nonetheless, the controversy raged on. Treatises appeared under pseudonyms, Antonio Braccino da Todi amongst others, likely in fact Artusi himself. In 1607 Claudio Monteverdi left it to his younger brother Giulio Cesare to make the defence and justification in the foreword to his Scherzi musicali in a Dichiartione. This was again a fairly unusual and smart move. In this way he kept himself downwind from the controversy, and kept his position as a young and promising talent at the court of Mantua from being in jeopardy.

Meanwhile, he made his point clear in the madrigals from the fifth book. The texts determine the harmony, and the harmony is underlined by the basso continuo that is written out for all the madrigals. Sometimes it is a reinforcement of what is there in all the voices and is in essence a doubling of the bass voice, but as in Ahi, come a un vago sol, the continuo is essential in the accompaniment of the beautiful tenor duets, or as in Amor, se giusto sei, as a support for the delicate soprano solo.

Solo with basso continuo, monody, appears little by little in the madrigals. The new possibilities in music begin to blossom, not only by the emphasis on supporting the text, the introduction of new harmonies, the expressive loading given to the text, but also by monody, a defining characteristic of all the revolutions of the seconda prattica.

Libro VIBook 6 was published in 1614. Monteverdi was by that time already appointed to St Mark’s in Venice. This new book begins immediately with a forceful statement. The Lamento d’Arianna was part of the opera Arianna from 1608. A beautiful monody,

At the end of the book is the closing number: the ballo Tirsi e Clori, the well-known love duet with a five-part accompaniment, with discretionary instruments added as a statement. It is as if Monteverdi is giving us a little wink at the end of the book, as much as to say that five-part writing is still perfectly in order.

The book is otherwise a magnificent collection with many expressive duets, here and there with two violins in an infectious concertante style. The basso continuo has set a definitive course towards the new era where individual expression takes the lead, and the straitjacket of the five-part ensemble is swapped for a looser fitting expressive jacket.

Libro VIIIIn 1638, Claudio Monteverdi’s eighth book of madrigals – evocatively entitled Madrigali guerrieri e amorosi, or ‘Madrigals of love and of war’ – was published. Nearly 19 years had passed since the seventh book had appeared in print. The Venetian economy had taken a few serious blows in the intervening period, partly due to the disease epidemics that were sweeping the country at the time. It was hardly the right moment for Monteverdi to publish yet another book of madrigals, even as he sought to build on his fame both in Italy and abroad. Moreover, the popularity of the madrigal as we know it from the Renaissance up to the sixth book seemed to be on the wane. The seventh book had already revealed major changes both in form and content. The title of that book contained the term ‘concerto’, and with that the path of the traditional madrigal had been abandoned already. Monteverdi was searching for new ways to create his subjective, personal expression of a ‘madrigal’ within the new musical context of the basso continuo.

The development heralded by the opera, the seconda prattica, slowly but inevitably surpassed the madrigal. Its main characteristic was a high degree of individual expression; this was known as the stile rappresentativo (forerunner of what we today call recitativo), where the singer could sing freely over a basso continuo. But the popularity of the madrigal, which was apparently still there or at least expected by the public, not to mention its resulting commercial value, prompted Monteverdi to name the books at hand ‘madrigals’, in spite of their departure from the old form of text, music and affect that had elevated the madrigal art to such grandiose heights.

instrumental music and ensembles of every shape and size, making the works a milestone in music history.

But the books of madrigals would grow in number yet again, and in 1619 Ricciardo Amadino published Libro VII in Venice. The title makes it clear from the start: ‘Concerto’ is followed by ‘Settimo Libro di madrigali 1, 2, 3, 4 e sei voci con altri generi de Canti’ (‘seventh book of madrigals for one, two, three, four and six voices, and other types of songs’). The old format of the five-part madrigal may have been replaced, but it still says ‘madrigali’ for various settings. There are texts by contemporaries such as Marino and Guarini, as well as some by Tasso. When we read the texts, the content seems somewhat simplified; the courtly literary lyricism gives way to a more colloquial feel, probably closer to the language Monteverdi’s contemporaries used and understood.

We can only guess as to the background to all this. The musical choice is clear: this is new and breaks away from the madrigal which had proved its worth as the Renaissance form par excellence. The path is now open for much more individual expression, with the book containing several duets with more instrumental ritornellos, the growing importance of the basso continuo, and pieces with an ostinato bass and vocal ornamentation around the bass part, which serves as an effective foundation for the whole piece.

It is certainly not unlikely that the commercial interest of the publication was served with the title Libro VII of madrigals. The fact that we find vocal part books in widely varying locations nowadays testifies to the great success of the preceding books, which were much talked about, praised and occasionally even maligned.

It is hard to find a sense of uniformity in the book. It is a magnificent collection of all sorts of extraordinary pieces, perhaps compiled as material for small scale performances in the palaces of Venice and Mantua, judging by the fact that the book is dedicated to Caterina de’ Medici and Margherita, Duchessa di Mantova e di Monferrato in Piemonte.

Leafing through the book we can see Tempro la cetra framed by sinfonie and ritornellos, with the monody for tenor and basso continuo setting a sonnet by Marino. A remarkable intro. Analogous is Con che soavità, labbra adorate, where the canto is surrounded by two instrumental choirs of violins and gambas.

for love, birds, stars and rays of light. Alla francese (‘in the French style’), Monteverdi writes on top of Dolcissimo uscignolo and Chi vole aver felice e lieto il core. French metrics dominate the poetic form; the stanzas drape around the text and the metre has a free and flowing form. The recital is clear and natural in its juxtaposition of soli and homophonous polyphony.

In the short preamble to the breathtaking Lamento della ninfa, Monteverdi explains how the piece should be performed, both in its spatial positioning – separately – and in its way of performing: sung by the nymph, freely according to the affect rather than to a regular beat. Thus, both parties form a natural balance between observation (the three men) and personal involvement (the woman).

The book ends with the wedding piece Ballo delle ingrate, conceived for Francesco Gonzaga and Margaret of Savoy. The piece was written in 1607 during Monteverdi’s stay in Mantua, together with the tragedy Arianna, which, save for its Lamento, was lost. Written in the stile rappresentativo, the preface clearly calls for a free recitativo over an accompanying basso continuo. It also includes a very practical suggestion to double the instruments if needed and desired in the space available. It is an impressive piece, which includes a few ballets to remind us that it was written for a festive occasion. But there is also Pluto, who as a friendly but very strict and passionate moralist imbues the women of Mantua with their marital duties. When these duties are neglected, the underworld beckons. To emphasise his words, the ingrate – the damned – appear in order to impress upon the wedding guests their inescapable fate.

Monteverdi had reached an advanced age when these books appeared in print. Perhaps he wanted to publish one last, magnificent opus, as a signature under everything he did during his long life. We owe him much gratitude.

Libro IXIn 1643 Claudio Monteverdi died. He lived to be 76, a very advanced age in those days. Judging by the fact that printed scores of his music have been found in many different locations, he was an acclaimed composer both throughout Italy and abroad. Yet many of his works, both sacred and secular, had not yet been published at the time of his death.

A superficial glance at these two books may show us that Monteverdi had brought together new pieces, placing them into two main subjects: those that are guerrieri (of war) and those that are amorosi (of love). Yet the book turns out to include many works that had been written long before: the Ballo delle ingrate, for example, stems from 1607, and the Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda is from 1624. In other words, the book is actually in the same vein as the Selva Morale, a collection of sacred music published a few years later, in 1640.

The first part, the Madrigali guerrieri, opens with Altri canti d’Amor, preceded by a delicate sinfonia. ‘Others may sing of Amor; I sing of Mars, God of battle.’ The clash of arms is evident in the text, but even more so in the music, revealing a powerful new element in Monteverdi’s works. The duality is always there: love as opposed to battle, the fight for the beloved one, for life, for happiness; elements that even in their tangible proximity remain apart.

Further on, we encounter pieces that are direct successors of the concerti from Book VII, such as Se vittorie sí belle and Armato il cor d’adamantina fede. With Ardo, avvampo, mi struggo Monteverdi opens a new chapter. In a magnificent setting of eight voices, strings and continuo, he unleashes an enormous force, depicting a scene of battle, arms, death and victory.

Of course the crown jewel from this collection is the Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda. It is a shocking tale, written by Torquato Tasso in his magnificent opus Gerusalemme Liberata, largely told by Testo, the narrator, not as a neutral spectator but as a participant, who sees fate inescapably descending upon him. The instrumental parts contribute to the power of this mini-opera, which is deemed one of the highlights of Monteverdi’s body of works. A striking feature are the instructions that refer to the gesti, the gestures, whereby the recitative style pronunciation and meaning must form a unity. But the composer also indicates that the piece can be preceded by pieces without those gesti, and thus form one unity with other musical forms, like a fitting madrigal from one of the earlier books.

In the second part, the Madrigali amorosi, Monteverdi picks up the thread with the Altri canti di Marte. Now the alleged battle tilts towards Amor, and metaphors appear

From then onwards, counterpoint would never disappear from musical history. Through Johann Sebastian Bach and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and up to Johannes Brahms we see a fascination for the contrapuntal style and its use and development. It is striking that Monteverdi leaves this path, heeding a possibly subconscious wish to depart from the complex polyphony in which he had excelled with the first six books of madrigals.

We discern a different genre in the first and last piece of this book. Bel pastor is a duet, a dialogue between two lovers, and the last piece, O mio bene, o mia vita for two tenors and a bass, marks the end of an era while at the same time opening a perspective on a new one.

Nine books of madrigals, all of them unique, contributing to the transition from the Renaissance to the baroque, a musical history in sound. And all composed by one single genius: Claudio Monteverdi.© Krijn Koetsveld

It remains a matter of conjecture whether the lack of commercial revenue or the notion that there was so much more, were the main reason for the posthumous publication of the Messa a quatro voci and other works.

The preface seems to suggest that Monteverdi himself compiled the ninth book of madrigals, printed by his Venetian publisher Alessandro Vincenti. Monteverdi called it Madrigali e canzonette a due e tre voci. It is an echo of the madrigals of olden times and canzonettas which were all the rage by then.

In opera, accompanied solo pieces was gaining importance, whereas the five-part madrigal with counterpoint of the prima prattica and seconda prattica of the fifth and sixth books gradually gave way to the popular genre of the canzonetta.

With some imagination we can still call some of the pieces madrigals, albeit in two or three voices at most. In this form each voice still follows its own path, sometimes alone, as a monody, sometimes in unison and monophonic, but also in the more contrapuntal texture of voices prescribed by the madrigal form. Needless to say it always came with a matching basso continuo, which by then had become an integral part of the emerging baroque style. Numbers 3 to 6, which had previously been included in Book 8, still have those features.

But new forms are emerging. In Alcun non mi consigli, each of the three voices has its own text and melody on a given bass. The three voices merge in the unison refrain. Di far sempre gioire follows the same pattern. Neatly arranged, with simple melodic lines and a ternary rhythm, which, together with a repetitive bass, lends the piece a strong sense of familiarity.

Non voglio amare, Perché se m’odiavi and Su su su pastorelli are true canzonette, like the ones that had appeared in print in Scherzi Musicali in 1632. At an advanced age. Monteverdi was still an innovator. This ninth book was a last effort to elaborate on new forms, and a contribution to the search for new ways that needed to be found. The canzonette were the pop music of their day, uncomplicated and easily recognizable. The monodic style, with an accompanied soloist, was blazing a trail that would lead to the greatly extended possibilities of individual expression of the solo singer with accompaniment.

The daring project of recording all 9 books with Madrigals of Monteverdi is finished. New projects coming up are recordings of the Selva Morale and the re-creation of the lost opera Arianna by Monteverdi.

Krijn Koetsveld knew at young age he was going to be a musician. Once at the Conservatory in The Hague, he studied organ, choral conducting, piano, orchestral conducting and church music. Later on followed the harpsichord, on which he is self taught.

During and after his conservatory he attended masterclasses with pioniers in the field of authentic performance practice, including Gustav Leonhardt and Nicolaus Harnoncourt. At the Monteverdi Week in 1972 in The Hague he came into contact with the, then almost unknown, music by Claudio Monteverdi. Love at first sight, which never passed.

He conducts a lot of Bach, as well as Mozart, Brahms and Poulenc, in the Netherlands and abroad. He has worked with the Nederlands Kamerkoor, the Groot Omroepkoor, the Radio Chamber Orchestra, the conservatories of Malmö, Turin, Wroclaw and Lugano.

He was the founder and conductor of The Netherlands Bach Ensemble, now conductor of the Nieuw Bach Ensemble. For several years he taught choral conducting at the Conservatory of Utrecht, where he became artistic director, followed by the same function in Enschede.

He was the initiator of the van Wassenaer Concours, where he is artistic director.In 2004, Monteverdi again came into focus and he founded Le Nuove Musiche

with a select group of singers. With these he embarked on the project of recording the complete Madrigals.

Inspired by these recordings, he founded the MonteverdiXL Festival, which is already hosting its fourth edition in 2019.

Le Nuove MusicheThe ensemble Le Nuove Musiche was formed in December 2004 with the aim of performing vocal music from the first half of the 17th century at the highest level. The best singers and instrumentalists immerse themselves in performance practice and allow the texts to penetrate to their core in order to captivate the 21st-century listener.

It is not just the music from this time of musical, political and religious turbulence that still resonates 400 years on. Le Nuove Musiche Ensemble seeks a confrontation with the present. The MonteverdiXL Festival, which has already seen 3 editions, is a stage created to inspire the audience and musicians with that old beauty with other arts, with educational programs and surprising theatrical discoveries.

Le Nuove Musiche Ensemble got off to a flying start with their debut performance as part of the International Van Wassenaer Competition in 2007. They have given concerts throughout the Netherlands and plans have been forged for their first foreign tours, starting in Cremona, birthplace of Claudio Monteverdi. The climax so far has been a concert in the small hall of the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam.

Recording: 2013-2017, The NetherlandsRecording producer: Peter Arts, Arts Music Recording, RotterdamLanguage Coach: Daniela FasoglioEnglish Translation of sung texts: Susannah Howe, Books V & VI, licensed courtesy of Naxos Music GroupArtist photo by Jip WarmerdamCover: Monteverdi, by Bernardo Strozzi (c.1581-1644)p 2015-2018 Brilliant Classics © 2019 Brilliant Classics