#basso continuo

Sticking with early Baroque for another day, let’s all enjoy this delicious cantata by the incomparable Barbara Strozzi, who said eff you to the 17th century boys’ club by publishing more secular music in print than any other composer of the day—without the support of the church or the wealthy establishment. One example is Sino alla morte from Strozzi’s Diporti di Euterpe, sung here by soprano Roberta Invernizzi with Elena Russo on cello continuo. 

It’s quite well known in my friends circle, that when it comes to classical music, I am a sucker for old music. Meaning Renaissance and Baroque. Motets, madrigals, complex pieces for choirs of 8-16 voices and such. Renaissance music can sometimes feel a bit too calculated, too predictable, a little stale. But back then it was not uncommon to use mathematical principles when composing music. And then came Baroque as a gust of fresh air and the music suddenly felt wilder, more free and carried more emotions: affection, anger, fear, sorrow and even love and lust. At the center of this huge stylistic shift is Claudio Monteverdi. Claudio Zuan Antonio Monteverdi (1567- 1643), son of an apothecary from Cremona in northern Italy (belonged to Spanish Empire at that point), composer and in later life also a priest, spent most of his life employed as a court musician and choirmaster by Duke of the nearby Mantua and later by the Venician Republic as the maestro di cappella at the basilica of San Marco. Having started his career within the established renaissance musical forms and then incorporated new musical ideas from other musicians and composers (rejection of polyphonic style), he then developed his style even further by the groundbreaking basso continuo technique (bassline and a chord progression) and truly landed music in Baroque. And although he played a part in developing the new style, he was not the only composer responsible for making that leap into that new Baroque style. But he certainly is the most visible of this generation of north Italian musical pioneers of his generation. Just purely due to the fact that his music reached the furthest. In both geographical sense as well as in time. His is the ultimate bridge between Renaissance and Baroque.

As for his work, he composed both sacral and secular music. He wrote a huge variety of music for masses and other sacred occasions, but also 10 operas which were a completely new emerging genre at that time. Unfortunately only 3 of them survived ( L'Orfeo, Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria,  L'incoronazione di Poppea), from 2 other ones we only have fragments and for further 4 we have only the libretto. He is not the founder of Italian Opera, as he is sometimes called, that title belongs to Jacopo Peri, but the new genre was indeed popularized and spread through Europe by Monteverdi’s works. His other secular works included 8 series of madrigals.

Christina Pluhar, a soloist and continuo player originally from Graz, Austria, found a deep passion for old music during her studies. In 2000 she founded the Arpeggiata ensemble. They are based in Paris and their particular focus is on Italian music of the 17th century. They are known for daring instrumental improvisations, exploiting rich textures created by the blending a variety of plucked instruments, and a vocal style strongly influenced by traditional music. Pluhar’s arrangements are driven more by the emotions and feel of each piece rather then the precise instrumentation directed by the score. On this album, Pluhar and her ensemble focus on Monteverdi and his secular compositions. It’s a showcase of the early use of ostinato and walking bass. And since these principles are also heavily used on jazz, this whole album does have a distinctive “classic meets jazz“ quality about it. It’s playful and lush. In the words of Charlote Gardener: “The technical perfection, and the easy informality with each other and the music, with which these pieces are performed, makes for a captivating listen. It's back to those ostinato and walking basses, though, for the disc's trump card. A walking bass is a bass line that moves step by step, and it is an ostinato bass if repeated over and over; they are often associated with jazz musicians, an example being the opening repeated downward bass line of Nina Simone's My Baby Just Cares For Me. Monteverdi, Christina Pluhar points out, actually invented such things as early as 1607. Here, on the tracks featuring a walking bass, the musicians have injected a swing (or, as Pluhar puts it, a 'scherzo musicale') that has turned these pieces into an extraordinary fusion of Baroque and Jazz. The first track on which it appears, Ohime ch'io cado, feels as though Miles Davis has swapped his trumpet for a Baroque cornett and time-travelled back with his band for a jamming session with Monteverdi.  Meld Philippe Jarroussky's sweet countertenor into the mix (who is also letting his hair down), and you've got something that is very special, and very surprising. A Must Listen.” (1)

From the five tracks I have selected, two are taken from Monteverdi’s operas:   L’Orfeo (Orpheus) and L’ incoronazione di Poppea (The Coronation of Poppaea). Ballo is a madrigal from Monteverdi’s Eighth Book of Madrigals, which was titled Madrigali guerrieri et amorosi (“Madrigals of Love and War”). It was was published in 1638, four years before the composer’s death. The Ballo was originally written for the 1608 wedding of Francesco Gonzaga, son and heir apparent of the Duke of Mantua, and Margaret of Savoy, but it remained unpublished until 1638. Zefiro Torna is a madrigal for 2 tenors and a basso continuo celebrating the return of spring. The lyrics are adapted from a poem written by Ottavio Rinuccini and describe the Greek god Zephyrus who brings spring to the mountains and valleys, filling them with sunlight, blossoming fields, and joy. Chiome d'oro, bel thesoro is a madrigal for 2 sopranos, 2 violins and lute/harpsichord from Monteverdi’s Seventh Book of Madrigals (published 1619).

Happy Sunday, relax and enjoy.

Album highlights: - L’Orfeo, Act 5: Sinfonie & Moresca (SV 318), Arr. Pluhar - Chiome d'oro, bel thesoro (SV 143) - L’ incoronazione di Poppea, Act 3: Pur Ti Miro (SV 308) - Ballo (Book of Madrigals 8, SV 154b) - Zefiro Torna (SV 251), Arr. Pluhar Playlist: https://spoti.fi/37EGELb

basso continuo