CLAUDIO MONTEVERDI
Il Terzo Libro di Madrigali, 1592

1 La giovinetta pianta
2 O come è gran martire
3 Sovra tenere erbette
4 O dolce anima mia
5 Stracciami pur il core
6 O rossignol
7 Se per estremo ardore
8 Vattene pur crudel
9 O Primavera
10 Perfidissimo volto
11 Ch’io non t’ami cor mio
12 Occhi un tempo mia vita
13 Vivrò fra i miei tormenti
14 Lumi miei cari
15 Rimanti in pace

After nearly a year’s silence, during which time the group received distinctions such as the Gramophone Award, the Cannes Classical Award and the CD Compact Prize, La Venexiana presents its latest recording achievement, a set of madrigal interpretations of a work that is a jewel and a success by any standard: the Third Book of Claudio Monteverdi, undoubtedly the greatest composer of the genre.

The reason why this book of madrigals enjoyed such success is soon told. The Third Book is a colourful sequence of styles and forms. We find virtuosic works (with two or three soprano voices), works in chromatic style, madrigals in concitato, declamatory style and courtly madrigals. Briefly put, it is the summa of what at that period one would have understood by the word “madrigal” and its most representative forms. Moreover, Monteverdi’s choice of poets in this book is typical of those of the nuovo stile, including Torquato Tasso and Battista Guarini, ideal to display “serious” emotions and feelings.

An additional attraction of this CD is the return to the group of soprano Rossana Bertini, who has recently become a mother. Her contribution to the inimitable sound of La Venexiana is decisive. Bertini’s unique vocal timbre is perfectly suited to the declamatory style of the madrigals of the nuovo stile or seconda pratica.