Sung or recited as a prayer of thanksgiving for the day drawing to an end and of entreaty for the night that follows, Vespers are one of the most ancient and evocative parts of the so-called “liturgy of the hours” or “office”, hence that daily cycle of prayers, created by monastic tradition, which all those belonging to religious communities were obliged to recite. The music for Giannettini’s Vespers on which this recording is based, are reproposed following a liturgical pattern suited to a Marian solemnity and with music in conformity with the customs of the times. These imposing but agile polychoral compositions return to us the magnificence of the court of Francesco II d’Este, a sovereign who showed great interest in music, also patronising performances of operas and oratorios.

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