Body & Soul: Cavalieri’s Rappresentatione – A Turning Point in Musical Drama
Crescendo presents their last concert of the 2024–25 season, offering two performances of a rarely heard early Baroque work for soloists, chorus, and orchestra: Rappresentatione di Anima e di Corpo (Representation of Soul and Body) by Emilio de’ Cavalieri. This musical drama in three acts was composed in 1600 and is the first musical work of its kind. Written and published at a turning point in musical history, the beginning of the revolutionary Baroque era, this work is considered both an opera and an oratorio. Among a cast of allegorical figures, the two main characters Soul and Body argue about the meaning of their existence. They are tempted to enjoy material goods by Pleasure, World, and Worldly Life, and urged to pursue a virtuous life by Counsel, Intellect, and the Guardian Angel. The conflict also includes visions of Hell, with the appearance of the Damned Souls, and of heaven in the voices of the Blessed Souls and the Angels. Also on the program are two short balletti by Cavalieri and his contemporary Cristofano Malvezzi, composed for the marriage of their patrons Ferdinand I of Medici and Christina of Lorraine. Malvezzi’s piece features thirty voices, divided into seven choirs, creating an auditory climax for this performance.
The cast of soloists includes internationally and nationally renowned early music specialists from Montreal, Canada to New York City. Soprano Paulina Francisco, Anima, “delivers a strong performance [and] showcases her clarity, control and her agility” (The Washington Post). Baritone Anicet Castel, Corpo, has performed with famous European Baroque ensembles such as Les Arts Florissants, Le Concert d'Astrée, Le Poème Harmonique, and Accentus. Bass-baritone Paul Max Tipton, Mondo, is a soloist for Bach Collegium Japan and has been described as “a dignified and beautiful singer” (Atlanta Journal-Constitution). Tenor Pablo Bustos, Intelletto, “sang elegantly, with his own brilliant set of flourishes in the da capo” (The Boston Musical Intelligencer). The cast also includes baritone Jermaine Woodard Jr., Consiglio; countertenor Benjamin Rauch, Piacere; mezzo soprano Salomé Sandoval, Angel Custode; and soprano Jennifer Tyo Oberto, Vita Mondana. The award-winning Crescendo Chorus of thirty-five singers includes both amateur and professional singers of the tri-state area. They are joined by Crescendo Period Instrument Orchestra, an ensemble of fourteen period instrument players from New York City, Boston, Philadelphia, and Bloomington, IN.
This concert will be repeated the following day, Sunday, May 11, at 4:00pm at Saint James Place in Great Barrington. Tickets range from $10 to $75, and are available online at www.crescendomusic.org or on a first-come-first-served basis at the door, 45 minutes prior to the concerts.
A pre-concert talk will be held on Saturday, April 26 at 2:00 PM at Trinity Church. Crescendo’s Founding Artistic Director Christine Gevert will explain the background of Cavalieri’s Rappresentatione. The talk will also be live streamed on Zoom. Details will be available on Crescendo’s website: www.crescendomusic.org.
Support for these concerts has been provided to Crescendo by the Connecticut State Department of Economic and Community Development/Connecticut Office of the Arts (COA) from the Connecticut State Legislature. We also thank NBT Bank and WMNR Fine Arts Radio for their support.