La Petite Bande

Vespro della Beata Vergine

Format: SACD
Label: Challenge Classics
UPC: 0608917231120
Catnr: CC 72311
Release date: 03 October 2008
2 SACD
 
Label
Challenge Classics
UPC
0608917231120
Catalogue number
CC 72311
Release date
03 October 2008
Album
Artist(s)
Composer(s)
EN
NL
DE

About the album

Monteverdi’s “Vespro della Beata Vergine” was published in 1610, together with his “Missa in illo tempore”. This edition is his first important collection of music for the Catholic service.
There is much uncertainty about how this “Vespro” came into being. In fact, this is a collection of various pieces which were most likely not conceived together with the goal of creating a self-contained unity; there are for example two Magnificat compositions in a row; of course only one of these should be chosen by the performer.

The manner of performance of this sort of music could vary strongly in the time, even within the prevailing conventions; however, in his 1610 edition, Monteverdi gave many concrete instructions regarding vocal and instrumental setting, which actually makes the choices more limited in this case. In our performance, I have chosen to follow these instructions completely; even if that means for example that some instruments are seldom used. (In fact, this also seems to indicate a certain degree of independence among the musical fragments.) The vocal parts are therefore always in a solo setting, one per part; the ten vocalists each have a specific individual role. A performance with a choir (wherein the parts would be doubled or trebled in the polyphonic pieces) is certainly a possibility – although Monteverdi’s instructions in the score seem to indicate a setting for solo voices, which in my opinion also can facilitate more pronounced and individualized expression.

Consistent with the composer’s instructions about instrumentation, many fragments are accompanied only by the organ. Some fragments indicate precise instrumental combinations, and others have only the summary indication “con stromenti” (“with instruments”, without precise indications about which), or even “con stromenti, si placet” (with instuments, as one wishes); these last two directions require the performer to make his own choices, which is completely in keeping with the spirit of the times.
‘Vespro della Beata Vergine’ volgens de aanwijzingen van de componist
‘Vespro della Beata Vergine’ werd samen met ‘Missa in illo tempore’ uitgegeven in 1610. Deze uitgave is Monteverdi’s eerste collectie muziek voor de Katholieke dienst. Het is niet duidelijk hoe de ‘Vespro’ is ontstaan. Het is eigenlijk een verzameling van losse stukken die niet als doel hebben om een eenheid te vormen.

Wat wel duidelijk is aan dit werk, zijn Monteverdi’s instructies over de vocale en instrumentale bezetting. La Petite Bande heeft ervoor gekozen om deze instructies op te volgen, ook al heeft dit tot gevolg dat sommige instrumenten zelden gebruikt worden. Er wordt slechts een zanger per partij ingezet, wat de muziek een geïndividualiseerde uitdrukking geeft. De tien zangers hebben elk een eigen rol. Veel fragmenten worden slechts door orgel begeleid, wat ook in lijn is met de aanwijzingen van Monteverdi. Door de instructies te volgen, krijgt het werk zijn oorspronkelijke klank terug.
Monteverdis ?Vespro della Beata Vergine? (1610) ist seine erste wichtige Komposition für den katholischen Gottesdienst. Seine Partitur-Anweisungen weisen eher auf eine einstimmige Besetzung hin, daher werden die Sänger hier stets solistisch eingesetzt. Dies verleiht der Musik einen charakteristischeren und persönlicheren Ausdruck und soll den ursprünglichen Klang wieder einfangen und deren Kern so direkt wie möglich erfassen.

Artist(s)

La Petite Bande

La Petite Bande (Belgium) was founded in 1972 by Sigiswald Kuijken at the request of the record company Harmonia Mundi (Germany) in order to record Lully's Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme, under the direction of Gustav Leonhardt. The orchestra takes its name and constitution from Lully's own orchestra at the court of Louis XIV. All its members are internationally renowned specialists in the early music field. Although originally La Petite Bande was not meant to become a permanent orchestra, the success of the recordings was such that they began to give concerts regularly. Having initially concentrated mainly on French music, the orchestra's repertoire has expanded over the years to include music by the Italian masters and that of Bach, Handel, Gluck, Haydn, Mozart...
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La Petite Bande (Belgium) was founded in 1972 by Sigiswald Kuijken at the request of the record company Harmonia Mundi (Germany) in order to record Lully's Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme, under the direction of Gustav Leonhardt. The orchestra takes its name and constitution from Lully's own orchestra at the court of Louis XIV. All its members are internationally renowned specialists in the early music field.

Although originally La Petite Bande was not meant to become a permanent orchestra, the success of the recordings was such that they began to give concerts regularly. Having initially concentrated mainly on French music, the orchestra's repertoire has expanded over the years to include music by the Italian masters and that of Bach, Handel, Gluck, Haydn, Mozart and others.

The 18-part CD series 'Cantatas of J.S. Bach' (ACCENT) is complete since February 2014. Sigiswald Kuijken

applies the latest findings in Bach research: no choir, but rather a vocal quartet together with a minimal instrumental scoring. In this way, the fine musical texture of these cantatas can be much better (and more naturally) revealed.

La Petite Bande has recorded instrumental as well as vocal music, including operas and oratorios from the Baroque and Classical periods. La Petite Bande currently makes recordings for Accent, Challenge, Deutsche Harmonia Mundi, Denon, Seon/Virgin and Hyperion.

La Petite Bande has performed in a multitude of international festivals and concert series, in Europe, Japan, Australia, South America and China.

From 1997 to 2018, La Petite Bande was resident in the city of Leuven.


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Sigiswald Kuijken

Sigiswald Kuijken was born in 1944 close to Brussels. He studied violin at the conservatories of Bruges and Brussels, completing his studies at the latter institution with Maurice Raskin in 1964. He came into contact with early music at a very young age, together with his brother Wieland. Studying on his own, he gained a thorough knowledge of specific 17th- and 18th-century performance techniques and conventions of interpretation on violin and viola da gamba. This led to the introduction, in 1969, of a more authentic way of playing the violin, whereby the instrument was no longer held under the chin, but lay freely on the shoulder;  this was to have a crucial influence on the approach to the violin repertoire...
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Sigiswald Kuijken was born in 1944 close to Brussels. He studied violin at the conservatories of Bruges and Brussels, completing his studies at the latter institution with Maurice Raskin in 1964. He came into contact with early music at a very young age, together with his brother Wieland. Studying on his own, he gained a thorough knowledge of specific 17th- and 18th-century performance techniques and conventions of interpretation on violin and viola da gamba. This led to the introduction, in 1969, of a more authentic way of playing the violin, whereby the instrument was no longer held under the chin, but lay freely on the shoulder; this was to have a crucial influence on the approach to the violin repertoire and was consequently adopted by many players starting in the early 1970s.
From 1964 to 1972, Sigiswald Kuijken was a member of the Brussels-based Alarius Ensemble (with Wieland Kuijken, Robert Kohnen and Janine Rubinlicht), which performed throughout Europe and in the United States. He subsequently undertook individual chamber music projects with a number of Baroque music specialists, chief among which were his brothers Wieland and Barthold and Robert Kohnen, as well as Gustav Leonhardt, Frans Brüggen, Anner Bylsma and René Jacobs.
In 1972, with the encouragement of Deutsche Harmonia Mundi and Gustav Leonhardt, he founded the Baroque orchestra La Petite Bande, which since then has given innumerable concerts throughout Europe, Australia, South America, China and Japan, and has made many recordings for a number of labels (including Deutsche Harmonia Mundi, Seon, Virgin, Accent, Denon, Hyperion and Challenge.
In 1986 he founded the Kuijken String Quartet (with François Fernandez, Marleen Thiers and Wieland Kuijken), which specialises in the quartets and quintets of the Classical period. Recordings of quartets and quintets by Mozart and Haydn have appeared on Denon and Challenge.
Since 1998 Sigiswald Kuijken occasionally brings together two generations Kuijken (his daughters Veronica and Sara and his brother Wieland) to perform string quartets of later periods (Debussy, Schumann, Beethoven, Schubert) often combined with Lieder by Marie Kuijken, soprano and also daughter of Sigiswald, and Veronica Kuijken, piano. Recordings of the two generations have been made for Arcana and Challenge Records.
In 2004 Sigiswald Kuijken reintroduced in practical performance the violoncello da spalla (shoulder cello) very probably the instrument Bach had in mind when writing his six suites for violoncello solo.
From 1971 to 1996, Sigiswald Kuijken taught Baroque violin at the Koninklijk Conservatorium in The Hague and from 1993 to 2009 at the Koninklijk Muziekconservatorium in Brussels.
For many years he was a guest teacher at institutions such as the Royal College of Music in London, Salamanca University, the Accademia Chigiana in Siena, the Conservatoire of Geneva and the Musikhochschule of Leipzig. Since 1998, Sigiswald Kuijken occasionally conducts “modern” symphonic orchestras in romantic programs ( Beethoven, Schumann, Brahms, Mendelssohn).

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Marie Kuijken

Marie Kuijken studied Piano, Chamber Music and Keyboard Accompaniment at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Brussels. In this same period she studied voice with Louis Devos, Margreet Honig (Amsterdam) and with Lena Lootens. As a soprano, Marie Kuijken works often together with La Petite Bande,  in productions such as the Passions of J.S.Bach, Vesperi della beata Vergine Maria  of Monteverdi and some intermezzi buffi in which she sings de female part. As pianist she specializes in the Mozart repertoire on pianoforte  (copy of Stein). In the Lied repertoire she is accompanied by her sister  Veronica; recently they performed Schumanns 'Frauenliebe und Leben'. In Italy, where she lives, Marie Kuijken is part of the baroque ensemble Il Fabbro Armonioso. She...
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Marie Kuijken studied Piano, Chamber Music and Keyboard Accompaniment at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Brussels. In this same period she studied voice with Louis Devos, Margreet Honig (Amsterdam) and with Lena Lootens. As a soprano, Marie Kuijken works often together with La Petite Bande, in productions such as the Passions of J.S.Bach, Vesperi della beata Vergine Maria of Monteverdi and some intermezzi buffi in which she sings de female part. As pianist she specializes in the Mozart repertoire on pianoforte (copy of Stein). In the Lied repertoire she is accompanied by her sister Veronica; recently they performed Schumanns "Frauenliebe und Leben". In Italy, where she lives, Marie Kuijken is part of the baroque ensemble Il Fabbro Armonioso. She also continues the vocal study with L.Napoli. She was a guest of the Festival Barocco di Viterbo and the Festival 900 in Pescara. With cembalo player G.Catalucci she frequently performs in Amelia. She has been assigned to the Conservatory of Salerno as teacher in diction of foreign languages.

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Composer(s)

Claudio Monteverdi

Claudio Monteverdi was an Italian composer and conductor, whose work marked the transition from the Renaissance to the Baroque. Moreover, he composed the earliest operas that are still regularly performed today. Monteverdi worked as maestro di capella at the court of the duke of Mantua and at the San Marco in Venice. He was a famous musician during his lifetime, but his compositions also provoked opposition. The conservative theorist Giovanni Maria Artusi criticized the technical flaws in some of Monteverdis madrigals. The composer defended himself by making a distinction between two styles of composition, the prima prattica, in which the harmony is dominant, and the seconda prattica , in which the music is subordinate to the text. Monteverdi championed the seconda prattica, and eventually broke with traditional...
more
Claudio Monteverdi was an Italian composer and conductor, whose work marked the transition from the Renaissance to the Baroque. Moreover, he composed the earliest operas that are still regularly performed today.
Monteverdi worked as maestro di capella at the court of the duke of Mantua and at the San Marco in Venice. He was a famous musician during his lifetime, but his compositions also provoked opposition. The conservative theorist Giovanni Maria Artusi criticized the technical flaws in some of Monteverdis madrigals. The composer defended himself by making a distinction between two styles of composition, the prima prattica, in which the harmony is dominant, and the seconda prattica , in which the music is subordinate to the text. Monteverdi championed the seconda prattica, and eventually broke with traditional Renaissance polyphony and began to employ the basso continuo and recitative to do better justice to the text.
Monteverdi wrote amongst others eight books of madrigals, two collections of liturgical music and various operas. The opera L'incoronazione di Poppea is considered a culminating point of Monteverdi's work. It contains tragic, romantic, and comic scenes and warmer melodies than previously heard.

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Press

Play album

Videos

Interview with Sigiswald Kuijken (part 1)
Interview with Sigiswald Kuijken (part 2)
Interview with Sigiswald Kuijken (part 3)
Interview with Sigiswald Kuijken (part 4)

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