Madrigals of Love and War (Madrigali Guerrieri ed Amorosi) |
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Composed: 1608 to 1638 Published: 1638 First Performed: ? Peak: -- Sales (in millions): -- Genre: classical > chamber music |
Rating: 4.702 out of 5.00 (average of 4 ratings)
Awards:(Click on award to learn more).
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About the Work:Monteverdi offered his first book of madrigals in 1587 when “the popularity of the genre of little vocal pieces had just reached its pinnacle.” CG He published six more collections of madrigals through 1619. The “madrigals are an important component of his early operas” CG and “serve as a kind of laboratory in which he can experiment mainly with the building of dramatic tension in music in connection with the text’s dramatic content.” CG However, his best-known book of madrigals, Madrigali guerrieri ed amorosi (Madrigals of Love and War), was published in 1638 when Monteverdi was 71 years old and the music director of Venice’s ducal church of St. Mark’s. “The madrigals of the Eighth Book are for voices and instruments, developing further an Italian form with a hundred years of history.” MB It “was dedicated to Ferdinand III, the newly crowned Hapsburg Emperor in Vienna.” MB “The texts repeatedly expound the interlocking themes of love and war – the warrior as lover, the lover as warrior and the war between the sexes.” MB This was “the final collection of his secular music to be issued in his lifetime.” MB “This is an extensive collection of diverse compositions ranging from solo laments to vast eight-voice compositions with instrumental accompaniment.” CG It brought “together music written as early as 1608, and including one large work from 1624 and a variety of other compositions whose origins are unknown but which probably span the entire period 1619-1638.” MB The work “transformed a venerable genre – the Renaissance part song – into dramatic scenes that rival the flamboyant art of Caravaggio or Bernini. By updating an old musical form, Monteverdi created a repertoire that is both timeless and singular: few madrigals from any age hold a candle to these masterworks for multiple voices and instruments.” LH |
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First posted 2/22/2026. |
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