Roman oratorio and Venetian extravagance come together in Vice & Virtue, a concert collaboration between North Winds Concerts and Music at the Met. It takes place February 7 at the Metropolitan United Church. The new musical is a co-production of The Gallery Players of Niagara of St Catharines, and Hamilton’s Capella Intima.
The program includes Rossi’s oratorio Giuseppe, along with Venetian vocal and instrumental works by Monteverdi, Sances, and their contemporaries — works that continue to develop the themes emerging in Giusppe: Envy, Faith, Injustice, and Charity.
Luigi Rossi: Giuseppe (1650)
Rossi was born around Naples in 1597 or 1598. He spent most of his adult life as a composer in Rome, working for Marc’Antonio Borghese, followed by Cardinal Antonio Barberini. His work was well received in his day. The premiere of his opera Orfeo, his best remembered work today, was a sensation on its premiere in Paris in 1647 as a fully-staged six-hour long extravaganza.
The story of Giuseppe is based on the biblical tale of Joseph and his brothers. The manuscript, among other Roman cantatas and oratorios, was discovered in the Barberini Codices of the Vatican library in 1954. The music was not signed, but was attributed to Luigi Rossi based on the handwriting and musical style. The handwritten version appears in many university libraries today.
Back in 2013, LvT reported on what may have been the first local performance of Rossi’s oratorio. Artistic director Bud Roach found the manuscript at the University of Toronto library, and transcribed it into a readable modern manuscript.
The oratorio tells a story about Joseph and his brothers. It begins with Joseph an adult. He is living in Egypt, risen to a high position in the Pharoah’s court when his formerly cruel brothers arrive. They come during the famine Joseph predicted, and while he’s at first angry, Joseph ultimately comes to forgive them.
The oratorio is written for five vocalists, along with strings, theorbo (a plucked instrument similar to a lute), and organ.
Additional works in the program include pieces from Venetians Claudio Monteverdi, Nicolò Fontei, and Giovanni Croce, Roman composers Francesco Manelli and Giovanni Sances, and from Bologna, Maurizio Cazzati’s “Variazioni” for two violins.
Capella Intima: Vice & Virtue
Bud Roach, Artistic Director of Capella Intima, directs the program.
Performers come from both Capella Intima and the Players of Niagara. From Capella Intima: sopranos Sheila Dietrich & Ellen Torrie; alto Laura Pudwell; tenor Bud Roach; and baritone David Roth. From the Gallery Players of Niagara: Patricia Ahern & Michelle Odorico, baroque violins; Margaret Gay, baroque cello; Lucas Harris and Jonathan Stuchbery, theorbo and lutes; and Jonathan Oldengarm, portative organ & harpsichord.
- More information about the February 7 concert, and tickets, [HERE].
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