Nicol Vicentino: Musica prisca caput - Exaudi

Nicolà Vicentino (1511-1575/6): Musica prisca caput Madrigal demonstrating the three harmonic genera Each line of the text is set in a different harmonic ‘genus’ inspired by Ancient Greek music: diatonic, chromatic and enharmonic. Vicentino’s enharmonic genus divides the octave into 31 steps, giving a microtonal scale of 1/5-tones. Musica prisca caput tenebris modo sustulit altis Dulcibus ut numeris priscis certantia factis Facta tua, Ippolite, excelsum super aethera mittat. Ancient music has recently raised her head out of the darkness So that, with antique and sweet numbers to compete with ancient deeds, Your great deeds, Hyppolitus, she might send above the heavens. EXAUDI Juliet Fraser soprano Tom Williams countertenor Stephen Jeffes tenor Jimmy Holliday bass James Weeks director Recorded in Orford Church, Suffolk, 9 June 2017 Sound and vision: Patrick Allen for