Thursday, November 14, 2024

The Decorated Madrigal (11/7/24)

Richard Pittsinger ~ tenor; Rafa Prendergast ~ violin; Kevin C. Devine ~ harpsichord; Luce Burrell ~ theorbo

Diminutions on Ancor che col partire – Giovanni Battista Bovicelli (1550–1594)
Ancor che col partire – Cipriani de Rore (ca. 1515/1516–1564)
Diminutions per sonar con ogni sorte d'instrmenti – Riccardo Rognoni ( ca. 1550–1620)
Passacaglia della vita (Bisogna Morire) –Stefano Landi (1587–1639)
Canzone detta Susanne un Jour – Andrea Ga ah, fuhgeddabout it—ask if you're interested ...

OK, I'm going to comment on the music, not the titles and dates.

I bet you're asking 'What are diminutions'? I had never heard of them either. Apparently, they are similar to variations on a theme. But drawn down. I did not experience that.

The tenor sang wonderfully. The violinist contributed a lot. The theorbist (and hers was shorter than most I have seen) was a solid, grounding, rhythmic support, while the harpsichord offered solid support throughout. 

The diminutions took the pieces (or themes from them) and re-imagined them. Sometimes I heard that. Most times I did not.

All in all, I enjoyed the performance, if not the overall concert.

ConcertMeister


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