First-class material at the Liceu

Claudio Monteverdi (1567-1643) gathered throughout his life several madrigals, divided into nine books, the last of which was published posthumously. The fifth, written in 1605, marks a turning point because the musician from Cremona incorporates what is known as seconda prattica, in which word and music intertwine in an expressive will – which includes resources such as dissonances – that will soon blossom into opera: let's not forget that two years after that collection-book, written for the court of Mantua and the Gonzaga family, Monteverdi would premiere in that city and in the ducal palace La favola d’Orfeo, in which the composer demonstrates having assumed the principles that will govern from then on theopera per musica, both his own and others'..The Liceu has been offering the various series of Monteverdi's madrigal books since the 2020-2021 season, and until now the second, third, fourth, sixth, seventh, and eighth had been heard. Now it's the fifth's turn, without this ordinal arrangement being very clear. Surely, Rinaldo Alessandrini has something to do with it. But it doesn't matter if the order isn't the established one, because what matters is enjoying these chamber sessions in a foyer very suitable for this type of evenings.Once again, the ensemble led by the Italian master demonstrates its commitment to Monteverdian music, with rigor, precision, and elegance. And, in the case at hand, with the measured theatricality of a compendium of pieces that prefigure the great theater man that Monteverdi would become, despite having bequeathed us only three complete operas.Facing the Concerto Italiano, which features a theorbo, two violins, two violas, and a cello, and with Alessandrini present on harpsichord, the vocal ensemble managed to convey the contrasts, the lights, and the shadows of the nineteen pieces that make up the compendium.Sober in gesture and generous in expressive transmission, Rinaldo Alessandrini once again demonstrated that he is not only an authority in the Monteverdian style, but that he has also managed to convey its modernity, thanks to a writing that also demands expressive imagination. And there was a lot of that on Wednesday evening in the foyer of the Gran Teatre del Liceu.