Gesualdo: Sacrae Cantiones, Liber Secundus, a6 e a7, 1603

Listen on Presto Music. Free thirty day trial. Find out more.

we are treated to an amazing kaleidoscope of singing styles and choral effects...this world premiere recording provides an outstanding contribution in the anniversary year of Gesualdo's death. — BBC Music Magazine, May 2013, 4 out of 5 stars More…

Release Date: 11th Feb 2013
Catalogue No: HMC902123
Label: Harmonia Mundi
Length: 69 minutes

Presto Recording of the Week

4th March 2013

Gesualdo: Opening Canticle: Miserere

Work length7:56

$1.20

$1.50

$2.40

Vocalconsort Berlin, James Wood

Gesualdo: Prayers for Salvation

Work length19:11

$7.00

$8.75

$11.20

Vocalconsort Berlin, James Wood

I. Virgo benedicta

Track length2:47

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

V. O oriens

Track length2:36

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

XVI. O beata Mater

Track length2:58

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

XIII. Verba mea

Track length2:26

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

VIII. Veni Creator Spiritus

Track length2:12

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

IV. Ave sanctissima Maria

Track length3:33

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

III. Sana me Domine

Track length2:39

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

Gesualdo: Despair and Weeping

Work length8:33

$3.00

$3.75

$4.80

Vocalconsort Berlin, James Wood

VI. Discedite a me omnes

Track length2:27

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

XIX. O anima sanctissima

Track length3:04

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

XIV. Ardens est cor meum

Track length3:02

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

Gesualdo: Peace and Hope

Work length10:46

$4.00

$5.00

$6.40

Vocalconsort Berlin, James Wood

II. Da pacem Domine

Track length3:19

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

XV. Ne derelinquas me

Track length2:29

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

XVIII. Franciscus humilis et pauper

Track length2:46

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

VII. Gaudeamus omnes

Track length2:12

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

Gesualdo: Praise and Thanks

Work length17:44

$6.00

$7.50

$9.60

Vocalconsort Berlin, James Wood

X. Adoramus te Christe

Track length2:04

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

IX. O sacrum convivium

Track length3:53

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

XVII. Ad te levavi

Track length2:44

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

XII. Assumpta est Maria

Track length3:13

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

XI. Veni sponsa Christi

Track length2:33

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

XX. Illumina nos

Track length3:17

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

Gesualdo: Closing Canticle: Benedictus

Work length4:59

$1.00

$1.25

$1.60

Vocalconsort Berlin, James Wood

About
Reviews
Explore

About

Recording of the Week, Gesualdo - Sacred and Secular

4th March 2013

James Wood directs Vocalconsort berlin in the second book of Sacrae Cantiones, whilst La Compagnia del Madrigale are on flamboyant form in the Sixth Book of Madrigals – dark, disorientating works which could scarcely be more different from their English counterparts.

As we commemorate the 400th anniversary of the death of Gesualdo in 2013, one of his last works still remains to be rediscovered: the second book of Sacrae Cantiones, motets for six and seven voices, of which the bassus and sextus parts have, alas, disappeared. Thanks to his unrelenting and methodical research, James Wood has managed to reconstruct the score for the first time as it might have been sung in 1603. This fascinating investigation took three years to complete; here is the result.

There is an extensive essay in the booklet by James Woods on his labours and an extended version at www.harmoniamundi.com.

"I had little idea at the outset just how difficult the task of reconstruction would be, and indeed there were many moments when I was tempted to concede defeat. However, my determination was fuelled on the one hand by the excitement of bringing these masterful and visionary pieces back to life after four hundred years of oblivion, and on the other by the stimulation which came from discovering so many secrets within a compositional technique of such phenomenal strength and sophistication, and from which I, as a composer even four centuries later, could learn so much. I would like to thank Andrew Parrott for his very great help, advice and constant encouragement throughout my work on this reconstruction." JAMES WOOD, March 2012

Reviews

May 2013

we are treated to an amazing kaleidoscope of singing styles and choral effects...this world premiere recording provides an outstanding contribution in the anniversary year of Gesualdo's death.

Early Music Review August 2013

Harmonic surprise and conventional-if-idiosyncratic counterpoint tend to be knitted seamlessly together in a mature idiom that confirms Gesualdo’s stature as a leading composer of the period.

April 2013

The Vocalconsort Berlin do [Gesualdo] proud, treating some pieces chorally and others with soloists; like the motets themselves, their interpretation stays within certain confines, which allows them to negotiate all but the most demanding situations with confidence.

4th March 2013

the VocalConsort Berlin have also made a conscious decision to take to heart the advice in Wood’s notes – he warns against letting the sensationalised view of Gesualdo colour one’s interpretation of his music. Thus, rather than over-acting at the moments of dramatic harmonic intensity (and there are many!), they adopt a “less-is-more” attitude that focuses on the bigger picture.

28th February 2013

this recording of the complete second book with the superb Vocalconsort Berlin, who ensure that not a single detail of the music is overlooked, demonstrates how convincing it is...It's all beautifully rendered, and creates the perfect showcase for what is by any standards some of the most astonishing music of the late Renaissance, which no one has been able to hear for 400 years.

Gesualdo: Sacrae Cantiones, Liber Secundus, a6 e a7, 1603

Downloads

Contents

Recording of the Week, Gesualdo - Sacred and Secular

Download queue