Carissimi: Historia di Jephte / Motets

With their sixth album for the Arcana label, Voces Suaves presents a program dedicated to one of the most influential composers of the 17th century: the great Giacomo Carissimi. At its heart is Carissimi's most famous work, the masterful oratorio Jephte, supplemented by two of his rarely performed, virtuoso motets. Also included is the astonishingly theatrical Cristo smarrito by Domenico Mazzocchi, Carissimi's Roman contemporary. The works gathered on this recording impressively demonstrate the expressive power of Carissimi's musical language and the extraordinary virtuosity of the singers for whom his music was originally conceived. Instrumental interludes by Carissimi—preserved in the collection of his pupil Marc-Antoine Charpentier—have been inserted into the score of Jephte, resulting in a unique version of the oratorio as it might have sounded in Rome during Carissimi's lifetime.