Short Paper I for MMS331-02 by Greg Henry Waters

Question:With the scores, listen to "Il combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda" and "Lamento della Ninfa" from Monteverdi's Eighth Book of Madrigals, Madrigali guerrieri et amorosi (Warlike and Amorous Madrigals, 1638). Describe the specific musical characteristics of the "soft" and "agitated" styles. How does Monteverdi achieve these emotional states?

This of course, II combattimento, is a tragedy and not a pleasant story, Women and Men killing each other for what I ask? Monteverdi use solos voices, orchestra and tempo changes to create the musical drama, plus he also uses tempo changes from cut time to 3/2 etc.

He starts out very simple with a chord and then an entrance of a strong male voice to begin the drama.

Then question and answer with the strings which changes the style some. Then they change time signature into 3/2 time. Then they change the feeling again with 8^th and dotted 16^th feel even though it is not written that way. Soon Clorinda enters with some recitative. And it continues in this style for awhile with no real tempo. Then five quarter notes repeats three time to introduce the next section.

Monteverdi uses syncopation to create the feeling of excitement and 16 notes in the strings.

The piece continues on like this with recitative and question and answer with the orchestra and Keyboard.

The narrator and Tancredi change voices with a simple whole note background or accompaniment. Clorinda enters and her voice is so nice and clear I really like this part of it, the female voice.

Clorinda ends the piece on a d in the staff. So they are in lento cut time feel at the end. Just with the Female voice.

Lamento della Ninfa starts out in three part harmony with an homophonic style and continues on for the most part throughout the entire piece. All male voices and very pleasant to listen to and they sing very rhythmically too. Monteverdi maintains the same style to keep this piece pleasant an calm. I really like this piece more than the combattimento for it is more musical for me and smooth. Combattimento had so many changes in rhythm, tempo and orchestral effects.

The keyboard part was and is three and four part harmony with a lot of quarter notes. To keep the flow going and tempo. What amazes me about these singers is that they sing a robato style like it was in an exact tempo. And they sing their counter point so exacting.

The female voice comes in and they are in two (cut time) it is like a whole note four/four time. Musicians of our age are not use to reading this kind of notation that is for sure.

I must say that the voice was the first melodic instrument that is for sure and singing is so important.

I wish when I was young I had more singing and more piano rather than the traditional band we have in our schools. I cannot say I ever saw a double whole note in a score before. I believe this piece by Monteverdi is very pleasant and has a lot of feeling. Not like our modern day orchestras with their big sound blazing away at the audience like a rock band would, Stravinsky I am speaking about or Bartok.

The words of love, where is the fidelity she asked! Where is the love I ask. Do people really have the ability to love I hardly think so. She is so consumed with love for him. What a mistake people make with love. We live this age old story over and over again. I think Monteverdi ‘s Lamento score really demonstrates this feeling of lost love and sadness. We are damned if we do and we are damned if we do not do something. The ego comes into it and the woman says she is a better woman then the woman who stole her lover, love mingles fire and ice so goes the poem.

Combattimento, what do you want she asked him, he said, war and death! Such a life people lead. It reminds me of the terrorists their lives are about death not life. One thing wonderful about musicians we are not into war or death we are into creating something we think is beautiful.

The two of them start their combat with their sharp swords and their pride which ignites their wrath on each other. Like two jealous bulls ablaze with anger. Their egos will not let them retreat but they stand and fight to destroy each other. For what I ask. Such is the life of man, so stupid and tasteless they are.

Sincerely Greg Henry Waters