Io non hebbi giammai – Dolorosi martir

Io non hebbi giammai – Dolorosi martir

Marc’Antonio Ingegneri is famed as the teacher of Monteverdi, and today we present two rarely heard madrigals of his construction. The first, Io non hebbi giammai, opens with a serene, homorhythmic statement from the lower voices before gradually increasing the rhythmic complexity and repetition of text as the piece builds to its climax with the words “ché per maggior tormento”. Ingegneri plays with the voicing, contrasting three and four-voice passages for almost the entire piece before bringing all the singers together in a tearful close. The second, a setting of Petrarch’s text Dolorosi martir, fieri tormenti, differs from the first in pace, but both are beautiful examples of the craftsmanship that inspired Monteverdi.
Hannah Ely