Monteverdi: Vespro della Beata Vergine

Featuring

Edward Higginbottom
Thomas Hobbs
Hugh Cutting
Sebastian Cox
Nicholas Pritchard
Guy Cutting

Nicholas Mulroy
James Swash
Duncan Saunderson
Thomas Edwards
Stephen Taylor
Jonathan Howard
Thomas Raskin
Charivari Agréable
Oxford New College Boys Choir
Claudio Monteverdi

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Album & Artwork

The cover image for this recording is a detail from the late medieval stained glass of New College chapel, depicting the head of Mary, the College's patron saint.

Compositional Technique

Monteverdi's 1610 publication demonstrates his mastery of both the older, conservative 'prima prattica' (exemplified by the Mass setting) and his more advanced 'seconda prattica' (seen in the Vespers).

Composition History

Monteverdi's 1610 publication, including the Vespers, was dedicated to Pope Paul V, indicating the composer's ambition to secure a prestigious church post.

Composition History

Monteverdi assembled the 1610 Vespers as an exemplar of church music composition, hoping to impress potential employers and secure a new position, likely in the church.

Critical Reception

The 1610 publication helped Monteverdi secure the prestigious post of maestro di cappella at St Mark's, Venice, with procurators citing "the quality and virtue of his works found in print."

Compositional Technique

The 1610 Vespers is considered an "encyclopedia of genres, forms and styles" due to its wide range of stylistic techniques, from traditional psalm settings to highly personal sacred concerti.

Interpretation

This recording uses boys' voices, which is rare in Monteverdi discography, and presents a musical text strictly according to the 1610 publication, without replicating a liturgical performance.