Ruffo - Bassano - Virgiliano. Ricercate & Capricci

RUFFO – BASSANO – VIRGILIANO

RICERCATE E CAPRICCI

1.

Vincenzo Ruffo_Capriccio La disperata

[01:54]

Carmen Troncoso [6] – Elke Zeiner [3] – Sergio Candia [4]

2.

Aurelio Virgiliano_ Ricercata per Flauto et ogni altro instrumento | Sergio Candia [5]

3. Vincenzo Ruffo_Capriccio El cromato

[04:55]

[02:25]

Carmen Troncoso [1] – Elke Zeiner [3] – Sergio Candia [4]

4. Giovanni Bassano - Ricercata terza

[02:28]

Sergio Candia [5]

5. Vincenzo Ruffo _Capriccio El malenconico

[05:02]

Carmen Troncoso [2] – Elke Zeiner [3] – Sergio Candia [4]

6.

Giovanni Bassano_Ricercata ottava

[01:54]

7.

Vincenzo Ruffo_Capriccio El pietoso

[04:17]

Sergio Candia [5]

Carmen Troncoso [6] – Elke Zeiner [3] – Sergio Candia [4]

8. Giovanni Bassano_Ricercata sesta

[01:47]

Sergio Candia [1]

9.

Vincenzo Ruffo_Capriccio El chiocho

[02:31]

Carmen Troncoso [6] – Elke Zeiner [3] – Sergio Candia [4]

10. Giovanni Bassano - Ricercata prima

[02:27]

Sergio Candia [1]

11.

Vincenzo Ruffo_Capriccio Il capriccioso

[03:17]

Carmen Troncoso [6] – Elke Zeiner [3] – Sergio Candia [4]

12.

Giovanni Bassano_Ricercata quarta

[02:23]

Sergio Candia [5]

13. Vincenzo Ruffo_Capriccio El travagliato Carmen Troncoso [1] – Elke Zeiner [3] – Sergio Candia [4]

[01:46]

14. Virgiliano_ Ricercata per Flauto et altri

[04:04]

15. Vincenzo Ruffo_Capriccio El perfidioso

[02:08]

16. Aurelio Virgiliano_ Ricercata per Flauto,

[04:17]

Instrumenti | Sergio Candia [5]

Carmen Troncoso [1] – Elke Zeiner [2] – Sergio Candia [3]

Violino, Traversa e simili in Battaglia Sergio Candia [5]

17. Vincenzo Ruffo_Capriccio El trapolato

[02:17]

18. Vincenzo Ruffo_Capriccio La brava

[02:32]

19. Vincenzo Ruffo_Capriccio La gamba

[01:20]

Carmen Troncoso [6] – Elke Zeiner [3] – Sergio Candia [4]

Carmen Troncoso [1] – Elke Zeiner [2] – Sergio Candia [3]

Carmen Troncoso [2] – Elke Zeiner [3] – Sergio Candia [4]

Carmen Troncoso

Elke Zeiner - Sergio Candia

- Recorders alto in G [1], tenor in C 16

th

century / A=49 Hz

- Alto recorder in G [5], according to van Eyck (Bassano – Virgiliano), 16th -17 th century / A=40 Hz

- Alto recorder in G [6], after Ganassi, 16th century / A=40 Hz

- Temperament: Meantone ¼ comma

The recording for this publication was made in Santiago de Chile, March 2011. The sound recording and digital audio editing was done

by Félix Rodríguez Betancourt.

Givanio Basno

elioAur ganiV

SCORES FOR OUR RECORDING

oicenzV Rufo

T

he initial motivation for this recording is the overwhelming beauty of this music, born in the midst of the most splendid period of Italian music in the 16th century. But beyond that, it should be taken into account what D. Kämper said about Ruffo’s Capricci in musica (1564): “perhaps the most important collection of music for instrumental ensemble around the middleofthefifteenthcentury”(in:MarcoMaterassi:notes totheCD“VincenzoRuffo.Capricciatrevoci”.Accademia Strumentale Italiana - Alberto Rasi. Stradivarius, Dulcimer STR3Milano, 3 7, 19 4).

Indeed, Ruffo’s capricci are a marvellous testimony to the integration of compositional techniques and musical styles cultivated by the composer during his long musical life. On the one hand, his composition of vocal counterpoint, madrigals and motets, and of instrumental counterpoint in ricercares and fantasias must be considered, evidencing a highly sophisticated and sensitive development of the compositional techniques of the Flemish composers who marked the stylistic directions ofItalianmusicinthefirsthalfofthe16thcentury.Onthe

other hand, the capricci integrate are built on dance tenori from the the developments of his religious “TratadodeGlosas”byDiego composition as a chapel master Ortiz, dedicated primarily to the in different centres of northern viola da gamba.

Italy,particularlyinMilan.In addition, Ruffo’s compositional It has therefore seemed technique includes the art of appropriate to present Ruffo’s diminutione, of which there are works alongside some ricercate several testimonies in his time, for solo instrument by Giovanni mainly the treatises by Silvestro Bassano (1585) and Aurelio Ganassi (1535, 1542) and Diego Virgiliano (ca. 1600), which, Ortiz (1553). It should be noted although written for instructional that the techniques of diminuire purposes for learning virtuosity, and passeggiare do not appear in also show the passaggi integrated Ruffo’scapricesasasuperficial into small works with a certain and possibly dispensable freedom and autonomy with ornamentation, but are properly respect to a canto diminuito, integrated into the counterpoint, showing a striking resemblance to forming part of the essential the jazz solos of our time, with an musical material of each caprice. ingenious use of the techniques The direct relationship with of imitative counterpoint and thefirsttreatisesontheartofvarious elaborations of motifs. diminuire is evident in several of the Paradoxically, these are monodic capricci, but above all in Capriccio pieces whose listening evokes an V: La Gamba in tenor and XIII: La imaginary polyphony, a rare kind Gamba in basso e soprano, which of “counterpoint alla mente”that

converses very well with listening to the masterly three-voice counterpoint of the capricci.

important is his link with the Accademia Filarmonica in Verona.

It was precisely for the virtuoso musicians of this academy that he In relation to the instruments used dedicated his collection of capricci, in this recording, composed only also considering their performance of renaissance recorders, it could in“concerto”withthenumerous be said that it corresponds to a string (28) and wind (37) “minimalist”conformation,without instruments that the academy had being historically unsuitable, since both the instruments owned by Giovanni Bassano the Accademia Filarmonica of (1558 - 1617) Verona (to which the capricci were This composer and cornetto dedicated) and the publications of player became the leader of the Bassano and Virgiliano expressly wind ensemble of the Venice indicate the recorder as one of Dome in 1601, succeeding the the instruments for which these famous Girolamo Dalla Casa. He musical works were intended. also led or was involved in the practice of music with various Vincenzo Ruffo groups of wind instruments, (ca. 1508 - 1587) whichwerecalled“piffari”.His One of the main positions held by fame as a virtuoso performer this Veronese composer during his andhisfirstpublicationin158, long career was that of maestro “Ricercate,passagietcadentie” di cappellaintheDomeofMilan, (from which the ricercate in our appointed in 1563 by Cardinal record is taken), overshadowed Carlo Borromeo. But equally his skills as a composer. Not much

is known about Bassano’s life beforehisarrivalatSanMarco as an instrumentalist in 1576.

As a composer he produced music in a variety of genres in vogue at the time, such as madrigals, motets, canzonettas and concerti ecclesiastici. Some of his instrumental works show an ingenious counterpoint, whose workmanship and style possibly have their source of inspiration in some of his monodic ricercate of 1685.

Aurelio Virgilianoca. (fl. 160) Little more is known today about this 16th-century Italian musician than his incomplete manuscript with solo ricercate and various exercises in ornamental techniques mysteriously entitled “IlDolcimelo”,whichmayallude tobotha“sweetappletree”and a“sweetmelody”.Amongthe instruments he names for the execution of his exercises and

ricercate is the recorder, in a late Renaissance or early Baroque (ca.

1600) version or model, perhaps similar to the type of recorder still employed by Jacob van Eyck (ca.the 1590-67), lastofthe Renaissance masters of the art of “asolo”divition.Thesecondpart “IlDolcimelo”containsexamples of canzonas and diminuiti madrigals, together with a good number of ricercate for solo instrument, of which we include three in our recording.

Sergio Candia La Compañía de Céfiro

The editions of the Alio Modo Project offer high quality recordings of the works performed by Estudio MusicAntigua and La Compañía de Céfiro and their guest musicians.

Artistic direction

Sergio Candia

Sound recording (2011), mastering and digital editing (2022):

Félix Rodríguez

Photography

R o b e rto C a ndia Graphic design

Santiago de Chile – 2022 All rights reserved

Alio Modo

Mary Paz Alb o rnoz

Early Music Project – Chile 2022 aliomodoproject@gmail.com YouTube channel: Alio Modo Project