In Celebration of the Human Voice - The Essential Musical Instrument

La Venexiana

Mixed Choral Ensemble from Terra del Sole , Italy.

The name La Venexiana is taken from an anonymous Renaissance comedy, one of the cardinal points of reference in Italian theatre both for its use of language, a combination of Italian and dialect, and for its acute rendering of a society and its manners. In styling itself after this glorious tradition, La Venexiana aims to incorporate into its musical interpretations an attention to language in all of its subtlety, and an exultation of contrasts between the refined and the popular, the sacred and the profane. This ensemble has established a new style in Italian early music performance: a warm, truly Mediterranean blend of textual declamation, rhetorical colour and harmonic refinement. Born of the collaboration between soprano Rossana Bertini and countertenor Claudio Cavina, its current musical director, La Venexiana makes a careful use of the original sources, keeping the activity of the ensemble always stimulating and full of enjoyable surprises.

The members of La Venexiana are some of the most experienced European performers in the early music field, especially in the Italian madrigal repertoire. They have sung together in the most famous festivals and concert series throughout the word: from the MusikVerein'Golden Hall in Vienna to De Singel in Antwerpen, from the Brugge Festival to Barcellona, Bruxelles, Utrecht, Strasbourg, Amiens, passing through San Sebastian, Mexico City, Tokyo, New York, Bogota, San Francisco, Tucson, San Diego, Seattle, they have everywhere been highly praised.

Discography

Displaying 1-2 of 2 items.

La Venexiana : Claudio Monteverdi

Review: 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.

Songlist: La giovinetta pianta, O come e gran martire, Sovra tenere erbette, O dolce anima mia, Stracciami pur il core, O rossignol, Se per estremo ardore, Vattene pur crudel, O Primavera, Perfidissimo volto, Ch'io non t'ami cor mio, Occhi un tempo mia vita, Vivro fra i miei tormenti, Lumi miei cari, Rimanti in pace

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La Venexiana : Luca Marenzio

Review: This Gramophone award-winning group continues their invaluable series devoted to the Italian madrigal school. With this volume they perform this book, published by Luca Marenzio in 1594. It signaled a turning point in Marenzio's musical creativity as his work became more internally connected with a selection of poetic texts dwelling on intimate reflections about love, remembrance, sorrow, and death.

Songlist: S'io parto, I' moro e pur partir conviene, Clori nel mio partire, Donna de l'alma mia, de la mia vita, Udite, lagrimosi, Stillo l'anima in pianto, Ah, dolente partita!, Ben'ho del car'oggetto I sensi privi, Amor, se giusto sei, Hor chi, clori beata, Deh Tirsi, Tiri, anima mia, perdona, Clori mia, Clori dolce, oh sempre nuove, Mntre qual vive pietra, Voi bramate ch' io moia, (Rimanti in pace) a la dolente e bella, Ecco Maggio seren, chi l'hha vestito, Cantiam la bella Clori

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