Paperback : $72.55
Claudio Monteverdi is one of the most important figures of 'early' music, a composer whose music speaks powerfully and directly to modern audiences. This book, first published in 2007, provides an authoritative treatment of Monteverdi and his music, complementing Paolo Fabbri's standard biography of the composer. Written by leading specialists in the field, it is aimed at students, performers and music-lovers in general and adds significantly to our understanding of Monteverdi's music, his life, and the contexts in which he worked. Chapters offering overviews of his output of sacred, secular and dramatic music are complemented by 'intermedi', in which contributors examine individual works, or sections of works in detail. The book draws extensively on Monteverdi's letters and includes a select discography/videography and a complete list of Monteverdi's works together with an index of first lines and titles.
Claudio Monteverdi is one of the most important figures of 'early' music, a composer whose music speaks powerfully and directly to modern audiences. This book, first published in 2007, provides an authoritative treatment of Monteverdi and his music, complementing Paolo Fabbri's standard biography of the composer. Written by leading specialists in the field, it is aimed at students, performers and music-lovers in general and adds significantly to our understanding of Monteverdi's music, his life, and the contexts in which he worked. Chapters offering overviews of his output of sacred, secular and dramatic music are complemented by 'intermedi', in which contributors examine individual works, or sections of works in detail. The book draws extensively on Monteverdi's letters and includes a select discography/videography and a complete list of Monteverdi's works together with an index of first lines and titles.
Preface; Chronology; 1. Approaching Monteverdi: his cultures and ours Anthony Pryer; 2. Musical sources Tim Carter; 3. A model musical education: Monteverdi's early works Geoffrey Chew; Intermedio I: 'Ecco mormorar l'onde' (1590) Geoffrey Chew; 4. Monteverdi at Mantua 1590–1612 Roger Bowers; 5. Spaces for music in late Renaissance Mantua Paola Besutti; 6. The Mantuan madrigals and Scherzi musicali Massimo Ossi; Intermedio II: 'Ahi come a un vago sol cortese giro' (1605) Massimo Ossi; 7. Orfeo (1607) Joachim Steinheuer; 8. The Mantuan sacred music Jeffrey Kurtzman; Intermedio III: 'Laetatus sum' (1610) Jeffrey Kurtzman; 9. Music in Monteverdi's Venice Iain Fenlon; 10. The Venetian secular music Tim Carter; Intermedio IV: Lamento della Ninfa (1638) Tim Carter; 11. The Venetian sacred music John Whenham; Intermedio V: Magnificat SV281 (1641) John Whenham; 12. Monteverdi's late operas Ellen Rosand; Intermedio VI: Il ritorno d'Ulisse (1640), Act V, scene 10 Ellen Rosand; 13. Monteverdi studies and 'new' musicologies Suzanne Cusick; 14. Monteverdi in performance Richard Wistreich; Bibliography; Selected discography Richard Wistreich; The works of Monteverdi: catalogue and index John Whenham; Index of titles and first lines.
A contributory volume, first published in 2007, providing extensive treatment of Monteverdi, his music and his life.
John Whenham is Professor of Music History and Head of the Department of Music, University of Birmingham. Richard Wistreich is Senior Lecturer and Head of Performance at the International Centre for Music Studies, Newcastle University.
'The book is not only informative but genuinely illuminating,
particularly since it elegantly tackles details and complexities in
the historical evidence …' Nicholas Anderson, BBC Music
magazine
'One can hardly imagine a more satisfactory book dealing with the
life, works, and cultural environment of Montverdi … In contrast to
stitched-together collections of essays written in ghastly prose
full of unreadable jargon, this is the real thing. The contributors
are the right ones, experts all … the topics are well chosen; and
the essays are rich in detail – the whole is the very model of how
to present the best contemporary scholarship to a wide audience. …
All will delight in chapters that illuminate late Renaissance/early
Baroque musical life and cultures … Summing up: highly recommended.
All readers, all levels.' Choice
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