Playing the Early Baroque

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The 17th century is a turning point in the West. The élan provided by the Renaissance is dissipating and the reactionary forces are at work, consider for example the Counter-Reformation.

Nevertheless the human spirit prevails in spite of. This was a time of experimentation with new forms and new ideas. As the saying goes, it got better just before it got much worse and, hélas, finis.

Some "obscure" composers from Italy were among the most audacious musical tinkerers of the Early Baroque. They were a multitude at the service of the minor courts throughout all of the peninsula.

Yes, it is very elaborated music, demanding for both the performer and the listener. There are some that mantain that such music wasn't meant to be heard in a sitting of more than 1 hour, such as the bourgeois concert model we have today proposes, but rather to be savoured in small doses, one or two pieces each time. The slow absorption favours a better digestion of the meal. Indeed I say, but you may differ. Try it out: stay healthy.

Dario Castello (ca. 1590-ca. 1630): Sonata Ottava

Francesco Rognoni (fl. 1570-1626): Vestiva e Colli

Le Je ne Scay Quoy

• Mafalda Nejmeddine: harpsichord
• Javier Aguirre: viola da gamba
• Raquel Pinheiro: cello
• Hugo Sanches: baroque guitar
• António Carrilho: recorder

A solo piece from Jacob Van Eyck's Der Fluyten Lust-hof (1646-1656). This comes a dear project of mine that goes by the name of Che Chosa è quest'Amor. The nightingale has a wonderful singing but is also a fleeting bird. To be blunt:

You can't have your cake and eat too.

Have I been understood?

Jacob Van Eyck (ca.1590-1657): The Nightingale