The album's title, 'Versi d'amore' (verses of love), is derived from the text of the first canzonetta, 'Voglia mi vien', and reflects the program's exploration of love's full spectrum.
Compositional Technique
Wert's setting of Petrarch's sonnet 'Datemi pace o duri miei pensieri' features highly virtuosic writing, including three upper voices in canon underpinned by two lower voices also in canon, creating dissonant double counterpoint.
Interpretation
The performers chose two distinct approaches for this album: a cappella for Wert's Petrarch settings to highlight the interplay between music and poetry, and instrumental accompaniment for lighter canzonette.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Alfred Einstein, a monumental scholar of the Italian Madrigal, considered Wert's late madrigals, alongside those of Marenzio, Gesualdo, and early Monteverdi, foundational to early 17th-century Italian music.
Recording & Production
Some canzonette, originally published with only one strophe, were arranged by Thor-Harald Johnsen with new introductions and refrains in the Renaissance canzonetta-style for this recording.
Composer Biography
Giaches de Wert, a Flemish composer, was the most valued musician at the Mantuan court but wrote comparatively little sacred music, focusing instead on madrigals.
Composition History
Wert's Nono libro of 1588, the first collection after Vincenzo Gonzaga's accession as Duke of Mantua, includes 'Or si rallegra il ciel' to celebrate his investiture.
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