Gesualdo: Madrigals / Galliards / Canzonettas / Psalms

Carlo Gesualdo (Composer), Richard Levitt (Performer), Marilyn Horne (Performer), Grace Lynne Martin (Performer), Richard Robinson (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Richard Levitt, Marilyn Horne, Grace Lynne Martin, Richard Robinson
• Composer: Carlo Gesualdo
• Audio CD (March 17, 1998)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B0000062DU
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #153,225 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #3 in Music > Classical > Ballets & Dances > Galliardes
  • #22 in Music > Classical > Opera & Vocal > Divas > Horne, Marilyn
  • #95 in Music > Classical > Opera & Vocal > Vocal Non-Opera > Songs & Lieder > Madrigals

Track Listings

1. T'Amo mia vita, la mia cara vita, madrigal for 5 voices (Book 5), W. 5/79

2. Or che in gioia credea, madrigal (Book 4), W. 4/33

3. Chiaro risplender suole, madrigal for 5 voices (Book 6), W. 6/25

4. Gagliarda del Principe di Venosa, for keyboard, W. 10/22: Gagliarda seconda

5. In te, Domine, speravi, motet for 4 voices, W. 10/26

6. O vos omnes, unspecified

7. Come vivi cor mio, madrigal for 5 voices, W. 10/34

8. Gagliarda del Principe di Venosa, for keyboard, W. 10/22: Gailliarda ottava

9. Felicissimo Sonno, madrigal for 5 voices (Book 5), W. 5/33

10. Io pur respiro in cosí gran dolore, madrigal for 5 voices (Book 6), W. 6/44

11. Già piansi nel dolore, madrigal for 5 voices (Book 6), W. 6/96

12. Resta di darmi noia, madrigal for 5 voices (Book 6), W. 6/23

13. Deh, coprite il bel seno, madrigal for 5 voices (Book 5), W. 5/64

14. Gagliarda del Principe di Venosa, for keyboard, W. 10/22: Sinfonia a quattro antica

15. Cor mio deh non piangete, madrigal (Book 4). W. 4/37

16. Gagliarda del Principe di Venosa, for keyboard, W. 10/22: Gailliarda nona

17. Mercè grido piangendo, madrigal for 5 voices (Book 5), W. 5/49

18. All'ombra degl'allori, canzonetta for 5 voices, W. 10/32

19. Gagliarda del Principe di Venosa, for keyboard, W. 10/22: Gailliarda quarta

20. Languisce al fin chi de la vita parte, madrigal for 5 voices (Book 5), W. 5/45

See all 30 tracks on this disc

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Blast from the Past, April 5, 2001

By 

"veryclassy" (hummelstown, PA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gesualdo: Madrigals / Galliards / Canzonettas / Psalms (Audio CD)

I beg to differ with the music fan from Indiana. First, let's start with the recording itself. The greater part of this recording was first issued in 1959 and was a trail-blazing effort by conductor Robert Craft to familiarize the listening public with Gesualdo's music. The historical nature of these performances more than justifies their reissue and Sony is to be congratulated, especially for the budget pricing. I did not hear anything "shrill" in the recording. The comments about chalkboards are nowhere to be found on the recording which I listened to, even with headphones and the volume level set high. Considering the fact that we are dealing with early-stereo recordings, this is a commendable engineering job. Now, back to the music. Craft was a student of and collaborator with Igor Stravinsky. Stravinsky's orchestration of Gesualdo's work encouraged Craft's interest. As Einstein noted in his classic "A Short History of Music," Gesualdo pushed chromaticism "to extremes of daring." When the music fan from Indiana complains that the "voices are frequently out of tune," he unjustifiably criticizes the performers who are singing Gesualdo's music as written. Granted, Craft's association with Stravinsky, who had by this time adopted Schoenberg's twelve-tone system, may have lead to an emphasis on the more dissonant aspect of Gesualdo's compositions. But this is the nature of artistic interpretation. I will agree that today there are many more recordings of Gesualdo's music and we a fortunate for this relative wealth. Nevertheless, this remains a fine, introductory survey of Gesualdo's music. My only complaint is that the liner notes do not contain the lyrics or their translations. The words add a great deal to the music's meaning.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful!, September 5, 2001

By 

Jeff in Philly "Jeff in Philly" (Philadelphia) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Gesualdo: Madrigals / Galliards / Canzonettas / Psalms (Audio CD)

My heart skipped a beat when I saw this recording was available on CD... I used to have it on vinyl 25 years ago when I was in college, and nearly wore it out. (In fact, I think I did replace it at least once!)

This is wonderful music, lovingly performed. I agree, as an earlier reviewer complains, that the singers are occasionally not in tune, but ... does one want to complain that Casals is not worth listening to because he couldn't play in tune? I think our ears in this day and age have become spoiled by over-edited and electronically perfected recordings. This recording is thrilling and delightful for precisely the reason that these great singers (look at the names!) got together to record some excellent 5-part vocal music, and did not (obviously) go back and re-record every little moment that didn't go smoothly. It feels much like attending a live performance.

The music of Gesualdo is extraordinary in it's own right, of course, with harmonies that presage Wagner a couple of hundred years ahead of schedule. This recording, with solo voices on each of the 5 parts, let's us really hear all the subtleties of the intricate voice leading that Gesualdo accomplishes.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Glorious Italian Renaissance Reissue, April 14, 2006

By 

Daniel (Virginia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gesualdo: Madrigals / Galliards / Canzonettas / Psalms (Audio CD)

Really happy to have found and purchased this reissue on Sony classical of "Gesualdo- highlights of his Madrigals, Galliards, Canzonettas". Features beautiful remastered performances in the early opera style(Opera was born in the mid to late Renaissance), with string instrumental interludes. May seem somewhat "sedate" to modern early music listeners, but I find it adds to it's charm- perfect background music for reading or relaxing. If you've ever seen "The Agony & The Estasy" (Michalangelo-Charlton Heston) similar music is performed during a banquet scene. 5 stars.