Claudio Monteverdi (1567-1643)
Secondo Libro dei Madrigali

01 Non si levava ancor l’alba novella
02 E dicea l’una sospirando allora
03 Bevea Fillide mia
04 Dolcissimi legami
05 Non giacinti o narcisi
06 Intorno a due vermiglie e vaghe labra
07 Non sono in queste rive
08 Tutte le bocche belle
09 Donna, nel mio ritorno
10 Quell’ombra esser vorrei
11 S’andasse Amor a caccia
12 Mentr’io mirava fiso
13 Ecco mormorar l’onde
14 Dolcemente dormiva la mia Clori
15 Se tu mi lassi, perfida, tuo danno
16 La bocca onde l’asprissime parole
17 Crudel, perché mi fuggi?
18 Questo specchio ti dono
19 Non m’è grave il morire
20 Ti spontò l’ali, Amor, la donna mia
21 Cantai un tempo e se fu dolce il canto

Published in 1590, the Second Book of Madrigals represents, within the context of Monteverdi’s total output, the conquest of pure and immediate visual metaphor. No other Monteverdi collection overflows with so many images and descriptions of Nature. Visions of rivers, sunrises, breezes, birds, flowers, skies, fountains...

It is no coincidence that these madrigals, published by Monteverdi in the hopes of securing a position for himself in Milan, drew the attention of the court of Mantua and its duke Vincenzo Gonzaga, a great collector of artworks. A unique and exceptional chapter in the career of a musician who would progressively submerge himself in an analysis of the human spirit, the Second Book establishes the luminous coordinates of the fascinating equation between hearing and seeing. The Baroque was at the door, but these aural pictures seem to look back to the great legacy of Renaissance civilization.

The members of La Venexiana continue their journey through the entire collection of Monteverdi’s madrigals with another absolutely delightful recording, where they reach unparalleled levels of excellence in this most demanding repertoire with an exquisite display of interpretive maturity. Surely, another landmark in Glossa’s Monteverdi Edition, a collection to be completed in 2006.