All'amore immenso: Music for Virgin Mary & Maria Maddalena

Featuring

Massimo Mazzeo
Josè Maria Lo Monaco
Divino Sospiro
Alessandro Scarlatti
Giovanni Battista Bononcini
Leonardo Leo

Nicola Antonio Porpora
Antonio Caldara
Domenico Scarlatti

Did you know?

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Historical Context

The young Händel was a guest at Palazzo Bonelli ai Santi Apostoli during a performance of Alessandro Scarlatti's Il giardino di rose and took part by playing the harpsichord.

Composer Biography

Alessandro Scarlatti, a counterpoint master, believed his son Domenico Scarlatti's talent was not suited for Naples, forcing him to leave for Lisbon.

Historical Context

Early 18th-century Naples was the third-largest city in Europe, known as 'the city of the five hundred domes' due to its numerous churches, monasteries, and oratories.

Recording & Production

The recording for this album took place in the Capela da Bemposta in Lisbon, Portugal, from November 11-14, 2020.

Composition History

Alessandro Scarlatti's oratorio Il giardino di rose, o sia la Santissima Vergine del Rosario, was commissioned by marquis, patron, and poet Francesco Maria Ruspoli and performed for Roman and foreign nobility.

Compositional Technique

Alessandro Scarlatti, if not the inventor, was the one who brought the da capo form to perfection, which became standard for vocal music until the mid-18th century.

Historical Context

Mary Magdalene was popular at the Habsburg court not only for religious devotion, but also for dynastic reasons, as two empresses named Eleonora Maddalena sat on the throne between 1651 and 1705.