Curiose et Moderne Invenzioni
Music of Monteverdi & Schütz

St. Mark's Lutheran, San Francisco 01.10.14 8:00PM
St. Mark's Episcopal, Berkeley 01.11.14 8:00PM
Le Petit Trianon, San Jose 01.12.14 7:00PM

Laura Heimes, soprano Jennifer Ellis Kampani, soprano Rob Diggins, violin Jolianne von Einem, violin Warren Stewart, violoncello Michael Leopold, theorbo Jillon Stoppels Dupree, harpsichord & organ

In August 1628, Heinrich Schütz escaped war-ravaged Dresden and travelled to Venice, where he had studied with Gabrieli almost twenty years before. In a letter written after his return in late the next year, Schütz remembered “staying in Venice as the guest of old friends, I learned that the long unchanged art of composition had changed somewhat: the ancient rhythms were partly set aside to tickle the ears of today with fresh devices.”

During his visit, he certainly heard the madrigals and motets of Monteverdi as well as virtuoso sonatas by Biagio Marini and Dario Castello. Marini’s eighth set of sonatas, subtitled "Curiose e Moderne Invenzioni" was published in Venice during Schütz’s visit, as was the Dresden Kappelmeister’s own collection of motets, the first set of his Symphoniæ Sacræ.  The spirit of the “new music” he heard in Venice remained an inspiration throughout his life and Magnificat’s program offers a taste of these innovative, expressive and curious inventions.

The program will feature Monteverdi’s madrigals, Armato il cor and Zefiro torna, his motet Exulta filia Sion, Alessandro Grandi's motet Bone Iesu, verbum patris and Schütz's setting of the Song of Song text Anima mea liquefacta es, and his motets, Exultavit cor meum and Es steh Gott auf. Sonatas by Marini, Castello and the Dresden court violinist Carlo Farina and toccatas by Alessandro Piccinini and Johann Jacob Froberger will be interwoven into this kaleidoscopic journey from Dresden to Venice and back.

Note that Magnificat will perform this program in San Francisco on Friday evening, January 10 and that the Sunday evening performance in San Jose is presented by the San Jose Chamber Music Society. 

Program Monteverdi: Zefiro torna Marini: Corrente Seconda Monteverdi: Armato il cor Castello: Sonata Prima Monteverdi: Exulta filia Sion Marini: Sonata Prima a doi violini MGrandi: Bone Iesu, verbum patris Piccinini: Toccata Monteverdi/Schütz: Chiome d'oro Froberger: Toccata Schütz: Anima mea liquefacta es/Adjuro vos Farina: Sonata detta la Cingara Schütz: Exultavit cor meum Farina: Sonata detta la Fiama Schütz: Es steh Gott auf, daß seine Feind zerstreuet werden

Background image by Nika Korniyenko.