Les Arts Florissants – Gesualdo – Madrigali, Libri terzo & quarto (2021) [FLAC 24bit/48kHz]

Following the acclaim which met their double-album set devoted to the first two books of Gesualdo’s madrigals (2020 Gramophone Award), Paul Agnew and Les Arts Florissants now focus on the composer’s Ferrara period. ‘The sheer inquisitive delight that these singers bring to Gesualdo’s extraordinary world indicates a very exciting series ahead.’ Gramophone

The facts of Carlo Gesualdo’s life are perhaps as well known as his music: he caught his wife and her lover in the act, brutally murdered them both, fled her enraged family, and entered a life of seclusion where he pursued increasingly arcane and extreme musical experiments. A source of controversy with the present release may be that Les Arts Florissants director Paul Agnew argues in the booklet that the wildly experimental qualities of the last books of Gesualdo’s madrigals, even found in the Book IV pieces included here, actually shouldn’t be connected to the murder but were rather in the cards at the end of the long Italian madrigal tradition. Agnew has a certain amount of evidence on his side; other composers such as Luca Marenzio and the melodiously named Luzzasco Luzzaschi pursued the same kinds of innovations as Gesualdo did. Whatever one’s position, these are unusually strong Gesualdo performances. What Agnew and his singers do that often eludes others is to pay attention to the texts, avoiding the agonized mannerisms common in the repertory and deploying just a hint of inflection toward speech instead of sung pitch where it’s appropriate. The range of dynamics and phrasing is large — listen to the deliciously quiet “Dolcissimo sospiro” — and the listener’s interest never flags over the substantial program. Les Arts Florissants have performed Gesualdo frequently, and they are well attuned to the tremendous tension in his music, the feeling of having no idea where the music will go next, no matter where that tension may actually have been coming from. If your Gesualdo collection is in need of a refresh from the classic recordings of Stravinsky’s day, this is a fine choice; it is also a good place to start with Gesualdo for anybody.

Tracklist

1. Les Arts Florissants – Voi volete ch’io mora: I. Voi volete ch’io mora
2. Les Arts Florissants – Voi volete ch’io mora: II. Moro, o non moro?
3. Les Arts Florissants – Ahi, disperata vita
4. Les Arts Florissants – Languisco, e moro, ahi, cruda!
5. Les Arts Florissants – Del bel de’ bei vostri occhi
6. Les Arts Florissants – Ahi, dispietata e cruda
7. Les Arts Florissants – Dolce spirto d’amore
8. Les Arts Florissants – Sospirava il mio core: I. Sospirava il mio core
9. Les Arts Florissants – Sospirava il mio core: II. O mal nati messaggi e mal intesi
10. Les Arts Florissants – Veggio sì dal mio sole
11. Les Arts Florissants – Non t’amo, o voce ingrata
12. Les Arts Florissants – Meraviglia d’amore: I. Meraviglia d’amore
13. Les Arts Florissants – Meraviglia d’amore: II. Ed ardo e vivo, dolc’aura gradita
14. Les Arts Florissants – Crudelissima doglia
15. Les Arts Florissants – Se piange ohimè la donna del mio core
16. Les Arts Florissants – Ancidetemi pur, grievi martiri
17. Les Arts Florissants – Se vi miro pietosa
18. Les Arts Florissants – Deh, se già fu crudele al mio martire
19. Les Arts Florissants – Dolcissimo sospiro
20. Les Arts Florissants – Donna, se m’ancidete
21. Les Arts Florissants – Luci serene, e chiare
22. Les Arts Florissants – Tal’hor sano desio
23. Les Arts Florissants – Io tacerò, ma nel silentio mio: I. Io tacerò, ma nel silentio mio
24. Les Arts Florissants – Io tacerò, ma nel silentio mio: II. In van dunque, o crudele
25. Les Arts Florissants – Che fai meco, mio cor misero e solo
26. Les Arts Florissants – Questa crudele, e pia
27. Les Arts Florissants – Hor ch’in gioia credea viver contento: I. Hor ch’in gioia credea viver contento
28. Les Arts Florissants – Hor ch’in gioia credea viver contento: II. O sempre crudo Amore
29. Les Arts Florissants – Cor mio, deh, non piangete: I. Cor mio, deh, non piangete
30. Les Arts Florissants – Cor mio, deh, non piangete: II. Dunque non m’offendete
31. Les Arts Florissants – Sparge la morte al mio signor nel viso
32. Les Arts Florissants – Moro, e mentre sospiro: I. Moro, e mentre sospiro
33. Les Arts Florissants – Moro, e mentre sospiro: II. Quando di lui la sospirata vita
34. Les Arts Florissants – Mentre gira costei
35. Les Arts Florissants – A voi, mentre il mio core
36. Les Arts Florissants – Ecco, morirò dunque: I. Ecco, morirò dunque
37. Les Arts Florissants – Ecco, morirò dunque: II. Ahi! già mi discoloro
38. Les Arts Florissants – Arde ‘l mio cor, ed è sì dolce il foco
39. Les Arts Florissants – Se chiudete nel core
40. Les Arts Florissants – Il sol, qual hor più splende: I. Il sol, qual hor più splende
41. Les Arts Florissants – Il sol, qual hor più splende: II. Volgi mia luce, volgi entro ‘l mio seno

Download:

mqs.link_LesArtsFl0rissantsGesuald0MadrigaliLibriterz0quart020212448.part1.rar
mqs.link_LesArtsFl0rissantsGesuald0MadrigaliLibriterz0quart020212448.part2.rar

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