Ceruleo
Emily Owen (soprano)
Jenni Harper (soprano)
Toby Carr (theorbo & baroque guitar)
Kate Conway (viola da gamba)
Satoko Doi-Luck (harpsichord)
Ceruleo celebrate the music of Barbara Strozzi, one of the greatest composers of the seventeenth century, and the most published composer of secular song of her time. Her distinctive style is characterised by virtuosic vocal lines, sophisticated interplay between voices and accompaniment, and a dramatic approach to text setting that went above and beyond that of her influences Claudio Monteverdi and Francesco Cavalli.
This is music of passion and desire; for love – both in general and in the specific form of another person – but also a longing for an answer to life’s questions or for relief from life’s burdens.
With two sopranos, viola da gamba, harpsichord and lute, Ceruleo bring to life the music of this extraordinary composer, combining a selection of her finest works with instrumental pieces by her contemporaries.
Album Booklet (PDF)
About the Artists: Ceruleo
Barbara Strozzi (1619–1677)
1. Il primo libro de madrigali, Op. 1,
No. 1 ‘Sonetto proemio dell’opera’
2. Cantate, ariette, e duetti, Op. 2,
No. 18 ‘La riamata da chi amava’
Girolamo Frescobaldi (1583–1643)
3. Canzona quinta detta la
Tromboncina, F 8.06a
Barbara Strozzi
4. Cantate, ariette, e duetti,
Op. 2, No. 2 ‘Begl’occhi, bel seno,
bei crini, e bella bocca’
5. Cantate, ariete a una, due,
e tre voci, Op. 3, No. 11
‘Desideri vani’
Tarquinio Merula (1595–1665)
6. Toccata del secondo tono
Barbara Strozzi
7. Arie, Op. 8, No. 6 ‘Che si può fare’
Alessandro Piccinini (1566–1638)
8. Partite variate sopra quest’aria
Francese detta l'Alemana
Barbara Strozzi
9. Cantate, ariette, e duetti, Op. 2,
No. 16 ‘L’Amante segreto’
Tarquinio Merula
10. Canzoni overo sonate
concertate, Op. 12, No. 11 ‘La bianca’
Barbara Strozzi
Cantate, ariette, e duetti, Op. 2
11. No. 23, ‘I baci’
12. No. 25, ‘La sol, fà, mi, rè, dò’
Biagio Marini (1594–1663)
13. Affetti musicali, Op. 1, No. 25
‘Gagliarda a2 (La caotorta)’
Barbara Strozzi
14. Ariette a voce sola, Op.6, No. 14
‘Amante ravveduto’
15. Cantate, ariete a una, due,
e tre voci, Op. 3, No. 9 ‘Begli occhi’
