A quest'olmo, a quest'ombre, madrigal for 6 voices, 2 violins and 2 recorders/flutes (from Book 7), SV 119

• Date: ca. 1619
• Composer: Claudio Monteverdi
• Period: Baroque (1600-1749)

Review

The manner and texture of this piece is basically that of a concerted Italian madrigal. When the voices are present, we hear either solo voice over instrumental backing or decorated homophony or polyphony based entirely on repetition, and canon-like sequencing of short vigorous motives. When the voices stop, as they often do, the polyphony is built back up voice by voice in fairly routine point by point reentries, then turns to homophony as the section is played out.

This is also the only piece in Monteverdi's Book 7 in which the recorders are really allowed to speak, despite their being present in several of the compositions. They occur in a lovely duet with the bass that contains surprising harmonic inflections and ends when the two tenors shove their way in, backed by viols.

Because of the presence of the instruments, the voice lines don't have the burden of carrying the harmonic momentum. Their splendid function is basically to decorate the instrumental, harmonic texture. But theirs is the kind of decoration that overwhelms what it purports to decorate, in this case, a combination of basso continuo and occasional instrumental refrains composed in a similar, but slightly elaborated, melodic style as the vocal lines.

Overall, the music is powerfully rich, with a great dissonant expressivity; the instrumental backing gives it, at moments, nearly the intensity of direct sunlight. ~ Donato Mancini, Rovi

Albums with Complete Performances of the Work

Title	Date
Claudio Monteverdi: Concerto (1619)
Festa Teatrale: Carnival in Venice & Florence	2000
Italiano Barocco	2005
Monterverdi: Chants guerriers et amoureux (Box Set)
Monteverdi: L'incoronazione di Poppea; Madrigals	2000
Settimo Libro De Madrigali

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