"Vespro solenne" for the birth of Louis XIV

In celebration of the birth of Louis XIV.
In 1638, the French ambassador to Venice commissioned "the most solemn and refined music imaginable" to celebrate with pomp and circumstance the birth of an heir to the throne of France - who was none other than the future Sun King. "Of all the musicians who are to be found in Venice, it is Giovanni Rovetta (Sign. Rueti) who was chosen as composer and maestro di cappella; he was expressly instructed to assemble all the singers and instrumentalists of the city in order to fulfil His Excellency's grandiose scheme." Thus it was that the right-hand man of maestro Monteverdi (soon to be his successor) took pains to deploy the full expressive range of the Baroque concerto to illuminate the church of San Giorgio and the ambassador's palace with dazzling music. A sumptuous festival!
This title was released for the first time in 2001.