If you're curious about the composers featured on 'L'Arte dei Piffari' by Ensemble Ventosum, you're looking at a nice variety of historically significant names. The album dives into Italian music from the late Renaissance to early Baroque periods—think around 1580 to 1650.
It's cool because it showcases music that would have been performed at big events like princely weddings.
From what we've found, the album includes pieces by acclaimed composers like Giovanni Gabrieli, Palestrina, and Cipriano de Rore.
These guys are known for their contributions to sacred polyphony, and that's really a big part of the album. The selections mix things up with instrumental motets and madrigals, originally written for voices but now interpreted by Ensemble Ventosum in an instrumental style.
A highlight of the ensemble's performance, according to our research, is their innovative approach to the music. They don't follow a strict hierarchy, allowing more creative freedom and a touch of improvisation, while still keeping things historically accurate.
This gives each piece a fresh and spontaneous feel.
The group features cornettists and trombonists, with an organist thrown in, to really capture the essence of the period's music. David Vickers, a professional reviewer, picked up on how they bring out the contrapuntal textures in pieces like Luca Marenzio's six-part madrigal 'Chi dal Delfino.'
William Dongois, one of the performers, gets special praise for his cornett playing, which shows off the instrument's elegance.
All in all, 'L'Arte dei Piffari' is notable not just for its historical sounds but also for its educational value, with beautifully detailed notes.
It's a great find for music lovers and anyone into early Italian wind music. Definitely worth checking out if historical interpretations of music are your thing.
