Music For The Eyes Masques And Fancies

Description

Acclaimed for its "rhythmic verve, spontaneity, and an explosion of splendid colors" (Pizzicato, Canzoni da Sonar con ogni sorte d’istromenti, G. Picchi), Concerto Scirocco immerses itself in the musical life of England during the time of Elizabeth I and James I, particularly in the genre of Masques and Fantasies. The cultural life in England in the 16th and 17th centuries is vibrant: the Courts invest colossal resources in the production of masques, performances capable of blending music, dance, theater, and scenography, in a lavish display of grandeur. At the same time, the first theaters dedicated to Drama emerge in the suburbs: “Red Lion,” “The Theater,” “The Rose,” “The Swan,” and the Globe in 1599. Music plays a fundamental role and accompanies this eccentric cultural vitality: the asymmetrical Fantasies of J. Hilton, the monumental Songs and Pavanes of W. Brade, and the insolent and rhetorical Masques of R. Johnson reveal a time of unparalleled ingenuity and musical creativity.