Bella Incognita: The Imagination of Marco dall'Aquila
6/7/2019, 24 Tracks, 53:40
Featuring
Lukas Henning
Marco Dall'Aquila
Did you know?
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Historical Context
The survival of Marco dall'Aquila's work is linked to the Fondaco dei Tedeschi, a building in Venice that was rebuilt after a fire in 1504 and later housed the Herwart collection, a private library containing his compositions.
Composer Biography
Marco dall'Aquila, a lutenist and composer, was granted a privilege by the Doge's Palace in Venice in 1505 to print lute tablature, at the age of 25.
Instruments
Lukas Henning performs on a 6-course Renaissance lute, a replica of a Georg Gerle (1520-1591) instrument, made by Martin Shepherd in 2014.
Compositional Technique
Marco dall'Aquila's ricercari combined and modified borrowed themes and fragments from vocal polyphony, a departure from earlier virtuosos who clung to known melodies.
Composition History
Despite receiving a printing privilege, Marco dall'Aquila's own compositions remained unpublished at the time, with only three Fantasias appearing in a Milanese anthology almost thirty years later.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Lukas Henning, the performer, also composed some of the pieces on this album, indicated by an asterisk in the tracklist.
Recording & Production
This album was recorded in Schlatt (St. Sebastian), Germany, in July 2018, with Alex Fostier as the engineer.
