MONTEVERDI: Madrigals, Book 2

Delitiæ Musicæ;
Longhini, Marco

8.555308

After hearing the excellent Book 3 in this series from Marco Longhini and his Delitiae Musicae, I had to go back and hear the recording of Book 2—and just like its successor, this one is another winner. You have only to hear the opening two-part Non si levav’ancor l’alba novella to understand how a work in this genre could be called a masterpiece.

And while the singing on this disc and in these madrigals is sometimes more aggressive and emphatic than in Book 3, some of this can be attributed to the engineering (and perhaps the different venue), with its closer perspective and higher recording level. The rest is simply due to the different character of the music, which the ensemble captures with nothing less than exemplary style and captivating, scintillating vocalism. These unusual all-male Monteverdi madrigal performances are turning out to be the versions of choice—definitely worth serious attention. • © ClassicsToday.com

CD

Muzyka klasyczna

Naxos

02-09-2003

747313530823