Three Early 17th Century Discs from Ricercar

Program: #20-43   Air Date: Oct 12, 2020

I. Girolamo Frescobaldi: Il regno d’Amore  (Mariana Flores, s./Clematis/Leonardo García Alarcón). Ricercar CD RIC 149.

Girolamo Frescobaldi was one of the most important and most influential composers of keyboard music of the early 17th century. He attracted many pupils from all over Europe, and in particular through his German pupil Johann Jacob Froberger he had a strong influence on the development of keyboard music throughout the continent. Far lesser known is the fact that he also composed music for instrumental ensemble and vocal works. Whereas his keyboard music was mainly written when he worked in Rome, his vocal works are the result of his stay in Florence.

In March 1628 Ferdinando II, Grand Duke of Tuscany, visited Rome, and in November of that year Frescobaldi was appointed as his organist. In reward Frescobaldi dedicated the collection of Canzoni in one to four parts and basso continuo to Ferdinando. While in Florence Frescobaldi also published two collections of Arie Musicali per cantarsi. The first book was dedicated again to the Grand Duke, the second to Marchese Roberto Obizzi, a nobleman from Ferrara - Frescobaldi's native city - who served as the duke's Master of the Horse.

It can't surprise that these vocal pieces were written during Frescobaldi's stay in Florence. This city was generally considered the birthplace of opera: Jacopo Peri, Giulio Caccini and Emilio de' Cavalieri all had been employed for some time by the Medici court in Florence. With them the stile nuovo was introduced, and much music in this style had been written and performed in Florence during the first decades of the 17th century. Frescobaldi's arias fit in with that tradition.

His vocal music has never been given much attention. The main reason is probably that his oeuvre is so much dominated by his keyboard music, and that this is of such quality and has had so much influence that it overshadowed all other parts of his output. Another reason could be the rather negative assessment of his vocal music by the theorist Giovanni Battista Doni (1595-1647), who told the French theorist Marin Mersenne that Frescobaldi didn't understand poetry and had to ask his wife to explain its meaning to him.

Whether that is true or not is impossible to verify. Listening to this disc of mainly vocal music I can't find any reason to ignore this part of his oeuvre. The fact that I am not that impressed with this disc hasn't much to do with the music but rather with the interpretation.

"The programme as a whole is organised into three sections similar to the three acts of a theatrical performance: Canti d'amor, Canti sacri, Ballo", according to the booklet. After a 'prologo', consisting of only one song, Se l'aura spira, a number of songs and instrumental pieces are performed. Some songs are strophic, and here Mariana Flores takes some rhythmic freedom in the form of rubato. But the application is too rigid and as the same trick is repeated time and again it becomes a bit stereotypical. Strangely enough in the non-strophic pieces, where the singer has naturally more rhythmic freedom, Ms Flores is too strict. Part of a stylistically satisfying performance is also the use of the messa di voce. Ms Flores understands that but only in Ohimé che fur its possibilities are fully explored. In most other pieces she is far too modest in this respect.  

Even so I recommend this disc as there are not many recordings on the market with this kind of vocal pieces by Frescobaldi. 

Johan van Veen

III. KRUMMHORN (Syntagma Amici). Ricercar RIC 146.

Composer Info

Girolamo Frescobaldi, Carlo Farina, Tielman Susato, Petrus Alamire, Heinrich Isaac, Moritz von Hesen, Ludwig Senfl, Pierre de Manchicourt, Thomas Stoltzer, Josquin Despez, Da Nola / Baltasare Donato, Adrian Willaert, Giorgio Mainerio, Francesco Corteccia, Lodovico da Viadana, Johann Hermann Schein, Michaël Praetorius

CD Info

Ricercar CD RIC 149, Ricercar CD RIC 139, Ricercar RIC 146