Viadana

On the transition of renaissance and early baroque this music is a synthesis of the polyphonic instrumental music for 2 (instrumental) choirs as developed in Venice. The symphoniae already have a basso continuo, but are polyphonic composed for 2 choirs. Alberto Rasi, with Academis Strumentale and two other consorts has understood the basis of the music perfectly. His approach is to render the canzonas in accordance with the style of late renaissance instrumental dance music, using contempory instruments.

In 1614, Lodovico Grossi da Viadana (1560– 1627) published his most important collection of monodies. A truly monumental contribution to the vocal solo repertoire, it comprises one hundred motets with basso continuo, twenty-five for each of the four main vocal registers. This collection survives today in only two copies of its 1615 German print with the title Centum sacri concentus ab una voce sola.

There is no shortage of discs around featuring transcriptions of Renaissance music for brass. Whilst played on modern instruments the main difference here however is that London Brass, several of whom play period instruments in other ensembles, have enlisted the specialist knowledge of Philip Pickett to direct them.

Modern scholars began to investigate possible links between polychoral techniques and the practice of spatial positioning of performaers after realizing the extent to which composers in the 1600s were influenced by the architectural spaces they were coposing for, and by the concept of space in terms of an actual physical dimension whose every detail they could explore and relate to.

By combining the highly skilled Royal Academy of Music Brass and the Juilliard School Brass, trumpeter and director Reinhold Friedrich has created a virtuoso super group that is perfectly suited to the glorious antiphonal music of Giovanni Gabrieli. Not only is such a large contingent of exceptional brass players capable of producing the rich and resonant sound that is characteristic of Gabrieli's music, it also produces a credible impression of the performance space, which is usually quite difficult to convey on a standard recording. This album was made in St. Jude-on-the-Hill, Hampstead Garden Suburb, whose barrel-vaulted ceiling and brick-and-marble floor produce fantastic acoustics with a depth and breadth reminiscent of the spacious Byzantine interior of San Marco Cathedral, where Gabrieli served as maestro di cappella.

Giulio Mazzarino, better known as Cardinal Mazarin, played an important part in the dissemination of Italian music in France in the 17th century. From 1643, when he was appointed prime minister, to his death in 1661, he carried out an astute policy in favour of Italian culture, inviting the most famous Italian composers and performers to the French court. This disc presents a number of pieces, mainly by Italian composers, which became well known in France in the 17th century through Mazarin’s support.