This edition was prepared by Allen Garvin — free to download, print, rehearse and perform.
L'empio folgore ardente
Staff Notation • Secular, Madrigals
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2 editions of this piece
Different typesettings and voicings of the same work. This page shows the main edition; the others are below.
SATTB · Willem Verkaik
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L'empio folgore ardente by Giovanni Bernardino Nanino — Lyrics
L'empio folgore ardente
Che di doppio disdegn'armata il viso,
Vibrò Madonna da begl'occhi santi,
In tormentoso inferno mi sospinse,
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About L'empio folgore ardente
Giovanni Bernardino Nanino's L'empio folgore ardente paints a vivid picture of divine wrath and subsequent mercy. The text describes how the 'wicked burning lightning' from a lady's eyes cast the singer into a tormenting inferno. Yet, this harshness quickly gives way to compassion. As divine pity then colours her angelic countenance, a smile's radiance lifts the singer from hell to paradise. This secular Italian madrigal for SATTB voices captures the dramatic emotional journey from despair to salvation through a lover's changing gaze. Nanino's masterful setting explores the interplay of suffering and solace, with the lush SATTB voicing offering a rich palette for this Baroque emotional narrative.
