Monteverdi Teatro d'amore - a puzzle solved
I've commented on this new recording several times. I remain obsessed with it. My one slightly negative comment is that if one is interested in following scores, one has to do lots of work figuring out where the various tracks come from, because the insert booklet is curiously vague about sources. After a fair amount of detective work, I have been able to compile a directory to the recording for score readers:
1. The Toccata is of course the familiar opening music from the opera L'Orfeo. I have the Novello vocal score edited by Denis Stevens, where this appears on pages 1-2 of the music.
2. Ohime ch'io cado. This is one of three songs that Monteverdi contributed to an anthology of songs published by Milanuzi in 1624. A contemporary score containing this song is Claudio Monteverdi "A Voce Sola" published by Ricordi, distributed in the US by Hal Leonard Music. This song is on page 1 of the publication.
3. Pur ti miro. This duet is the finale of the opera, The Coronation of Poppea. I have the Novello vocal score, edited by Alan Curtis, in which it appears starting on page 256.
4. Damigella tutta bella. This is from Scherzi Musicali, page 40 in Vol. X of the Complete Monteverdi edition published by Universal-Edition.
5. Amor - Lamento della Ninfa, Rappresentativo. This is from the 8th Book of Madrigals, on page 306 of the widely-available Dover edition.
6. Si dolce e 'l tormento. This is another solo from the 1624 Milanuzi anthology, and appears in Ricordi's "A Voce Sola" on page 18.
7. Sinfonie & Moresca. This is a suite of instrumental excerpts from Acts II and V of L'Orfeo. In my Novello vocal score, this begins with the Sinfonia at the beginning of Act II, p. 39, continues with instrumental music from the end of bar 54 (p. 42) to bar 64, continues from the end of bar 134 (page 47) to bar 142, then jumps to the Moresca that concludes Act V on pages 147-148. It makes a very lively continuous dance sequence.
8. Interrotte speranze is from the 7th Book of Madrigals, on page 94 in the Universal-Edition publication.
9. Chiome d'oro, also from the 7th Book of Madrigals, appears on page 176.
10. Oblivion soave is a brief solo from The Coronation of Poppea, beginning on page 179 of the Novello vocal score with the brief recitativo followed by the aria.
11. Hor che 'l ciel e la terra. This is from the 8th Book of Madrigals, p. 39 in the Dover score.
12. Tempro la cetra, from the 7th Book of Madrigals, page 1 in the Universal-Edition score, including the extensive instrumental introduction and postlude.
13. Ballo. With no more than the name to go on, this took a bit of detective work. It is the instrumental portion of Ballo delle Ingrate from the 8th Book of Madrigals, beginning on page 350 of the Dover score. Pluhar and L'Arpeggiata do some improvising here based on the bare outline provided in the score. In fact, they do lots of improvising of instrumental accompaniment throughout the recording.
14. Con che soavita is from the 7th Book of Madrigals, p. 137 in the Universal-Edition score.
15. Vago augelletto is from the 8th Book of Madrigals, p. 230 in the Dover score.
16. Zefiro torna - Ciaccona. This is generally labeled as part of the Scherzi Musicali but Universal-Edition does not include it in Vol. 10 of the complete edition, where the bulk of the scherzi musical are published. Instead, it is in the 9th Book of Madrigals, vol. 9 of the Monteverdi Complete Edition published by Universal-Edition, which I have on order. In the meantime, I was able to download a very neat transcription from the internet.
Puzzles solved.
Wow! This had to require a pretty substantial investment in time. Pluhar has carved out quite a niche for herself in this genre. These little gems are a delight. I hope they lead to greater interest in Monteverdi's larger works.
Posted by: William Swain | July 17, 2009 at 10:47 AM
The most difficult research was in tracking down the instrumental music, since the booklet provided not a clue. Although I have a score and two recordings of Poppea, I was not familiar enough with the piece to place the two arias without lots of paging through the score in search of these haunting tunes. I can't imagine any piece of music more dripping with sheer beauty and pathos than Oblivion soave, Arnalta's aria from Poppea.
The madrigals were easier to place, since I have a reference book that lists all the titles of Monteverdi's madrigals organized by which publication they appeared in.
What I was hoping to achieve was the ability to listen through the entire recording with the notes in front of me... and I just arrived there yesterday after sleuthing out the instrumental music from L'Orfeo in track 7 and the Ballo from the 8th Book of Madrigals in track 13!
Posted by: Art Leonard | July 17, 2009 at 03:22 PM
Pur ti miro is not by Monteverdi but by Benedetto Ferrari.
Posted by: David | September 19, 2009 at 04:07 PM
I understand that the authorship of Pur ti miro is the subject of some debate, and that some Monteverdi scholars have suggested it was not by the master but rather borrowed for the finale of Poppea, an opera that is a bit suspect because no original complete score survives in Monteverdi's handwriting. There is the contention that Poppea is a pastiche opera that Monteverdi pieced together combining his own work with others.
If that is true, then we at least have the assurance that Monteverdi himself must have thought this a highly suitable piece to end the opera. I find no discontinuity of style when hearing it in the context of this recording.
By the way, Jaroussky has a terrific disc of Ferrari solos that is worth checking out.
Posted by: Art Leonard | September 19, 2009 at 05:24 PM