Composed by Claudio Monteverdi. Arranged by Mike Lyons. Baroque,Renaissance. Score and parts. 19 pages. Lyons Music Services #3218703. Published by Lyons Music Services (A0.767281).
As part of my continuing project to transcribe Monteverdi's madrigals onto winds, here is the 6th book. In this book we see a much greater development towards dramatic representation. In a way, this book is divisible into two Scenes with a number of single items in between. The vocal lines are all much more complex and we can also see the beginnings of monodic writing appear in the semi-recit sections of some of the songs.
Also clearly developing are delineations of the voices into soloists and chorus. Several songs in this book are almost akin to arias, with clear soloistic writing for the higher voices (Cantus/Tenor).
The first four songs form a kind of introductory scena, which Monteverdi calls Lamento d'Arianna. There is another set of 6 forming a substantial scena which Monteverdi labelled Sestina.
No 11 is a stand-alone song describing a young man, Alceo, unwilling to leave his lover (Lydia) to go on a long journey. This is much more in the character of a solo song for the tenor, with interjections from the 'chorus'.
As with all things madrigalian, the lyrics are rife with double entendres. Monteverdi uses some very close dissonances to describe death and release.
Monteverdi - The Sixth Book of Madrigals - 11. Misero Alceo
