Il Furioso

The Newberry Consort closes the 2023-2024 season with Renaissance music influenced by the life and art of Venetian painter Jacopo Tintoretto. Curated by the musicians of Incantare, this visually and aurally sumptuous program explores music by Italian composers from the Venetian School, juxtaposing musical works by Andrea Gabrieli, Gioseffo Zarlino, Nicola Vicentino, Leonora Orsina, Madalena Casulana, Diego Ortiz, and Giovanni Priuli against visual art by Tintoretto and other Venetian artists such as Titian, Veronese, Bellini, and Bassano. A mixture of opulent antiphonal works for instruments and voices balances small-scale improvisatory solos, dances, and canzonas that mirror the richly-hued textures of the paintings.

Il Furioso will be presented as a sixteenth-century dialogo—a scripted pedagogical discourse in the style of Socrates, Machiavelli, and Castiglione—between Tintoretto and his daughter, the artist and musician Marietta Robusti, who was his favorite apprentice. Through Robusti’s questions and her father’s answers, the audience will learn about the music, the imagery, and life as an artist and musician in Renaissance Venice. Newberry Consort and Incantare musicians bring this music to life singing and playing instruments featured in the paintings, including viola da gamba, organ, violin, lute, and harpsichord.

Incantare debuted to enthusiastic crowds at the 2018 Twin Cities Early Music Festival, where they were chosen as one of “the week’s five best Twin Cities classical concerts” by the Star Tribune. Since then, they have performed programs throughout the United States, with appearances at the Pittsburgh Renaissance and Baroque series in collaboration with Chatham Baroque, Hobart & William Smith Colleges, LeMoyne College, The Perkins Mansion in Rochester, and the International Trombone Festival, where they were praised for their “beautiful and cohesive sound.” Incantare’s EXILE program, currently touring in Minnesota, New Jersey, Wisconsin, and New York, was recognized as an “innovative project” by the Paul R. Judy Center for Innovation and Research. EMAg, the Magazine of Early Music America, reported that audiences have left the ensemble’s concerts “with a sense of awe.”

The consort of sackbuts and violins has a long history and a unique sound that incorporates the vocal qualities of both instruments while retaining each of their distinct timbres, making it the perfect medium for performing the beautiful works from this rich musical time period. The name “Incantare” is a play on words that links directly to the group’s mission as early instrumentalists. “Incantare” means “to enchant” in Italian, and “to sing” in Latin. Incantare seeks to enchant, charm, hypnotize, and spellbind by singing through their instruments.