MUSICAL MUSINGS

away – this is Monteverdi with no holds barred in the hands of a renowned present day Monteverdi interpreter, Luca Pianca. Speed, dynamics, a freshness of approach, a certain improvisatory freedom in ornamentation, all are hallmarks of the album and all are present from the start. The instrumental opening (with tambourine) literally sets your toes tapping. The voice of Anna Lucia Richter erupts into this, focused and supple, and pleasingly and unashamedly varied in timbre throughout the vocal interludes, soft, strident, whispered, exuberant. Each verse is nuanced, drawing us into the depths of human emotion in the vocal storytelling Monteverdi excelled at, along with his amazing ability to align his vocal lines to the inflections and phrasing of speech.

In “Zefiro torna”, a ‘musical joke’, the countertenor voice of Dmitry Sinkovsky is introduced and blends perfectly with Richter’s light soprano. Both are capable of virtuosic displays, both play with the music in what could be characterized as a goodnatured vocal duel, interrupted briefly towards the end by a slower more reflective recitative. “La mia Turca” enters with ‘exotic’ Turkish instrumental colour and Oriental scales, something later composers were also to play with.

But it is the “Lamento d’Arianna”, here given in its entirety and taking up tracks 4–7, that is the centrepiece of the album. The scena, the only part of the opera to have survived, is a lengthy solo vocal performance which apparently originally included interjections by the chorus (similarly to the “Lamento della ninfa”), though these are now lost. Once again, Richter’s control over different vocal timbres and addition of expressive details makes this a compelling and impassioned performance. She knows just when to add vibrato to a note to heighten its affect. Nor is she afraid of sinking into a whisper. All in all the piece demonstrates just how well operatic expression is suited to conveying powerful moods and emotions as it alternates between lament, anger, pleading, fury, pain, sadness – a whole kaleidoscope of emotions which are here masterfully conveyed.

“Pur ti miro”, the closing love duet for Nero and Poppea from L’incoronazione di Poppea follows. These were both bloodthirsty plotters yet are given some of the most exquisitely beautiful duet music ever written. Sinkovsky’s countertenor again complements Richter’s soprano, their voices interweaving in cascades of ornamentation and held close harmonies, bearing testimony to the boldness of Monteverdi’s harmonic language.

Another ‘musical joke’ lightens the mood, followed by a sacred song that sets a more solemn tone without, however, letting up on vocal virtuosity, giving us a kind of foretaste of the vocal roulades of Handel, Mozart, Vivaldi.