Cornelis Schuyt (1557-1616)
Madrigali nuptiali, Padovane e Gagliarde
Weser-Renaissance Bremen/Manfred Cordes
rec. 2022, Stiftskirche, Bassum, Germany
Texts and translations included
Reviewed as a download
cpo 555 545-2 [66]

The Dutch are not known for caring much about their musical heritage; the entire oeuvre of Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck became available on disc only as recently as 2013. From the pre-Romantic era, only Jacob van Eyck, Constantijn Huygens and the family Van Noordt have enjoyed complete recordings but the likes of Johann Schenck, Carolus Hacquart, both from the 17th century, and Pieter Hellendaal and Willem de Fesch of the 18th century, are still waiting to be similarly honoured.

A contemporary of Sweelinck, Cornelis Schuyt, has fared even worse. Whereas Sweelinck’s works have been included in anthologies, and recordings have been devoted to his keyboard music, Schuyt is still largely an unknown quantity. His oeuvre is not large, but of importance, as he and Sweelinck were the only composers in the northern Netherlands who composed madrigals on Italian texts.

The disc under review is only the second that is entirely devoted to his works. In 2011, Globe released a disc with madrigals and instrumental works, performed by the Camerata Trajectina, an ensemble that entirely focuses on the research, performance and recording of music from the Netherlands (review). Earlier, some of his music was included in a project of music from the Netherlands from the Renaissance to the 20th century. However, he is still very much a marginal figure in music life in our time. The recording of the Camerata Trajectina showed that this neglect is unjustified, and that is confirmed by the recording that is the subject of this review.

Schuyt was born in Leiden and worked there for most of his life. His father was organist at the Pieterskerk, which was then still Catholic. Recently a series of recordings has been devoted to the so-called ‘Leiden Choirbooks’, which include liturgical music performed at the Pieterskerk. That in itself is a kind of miracle, especially because of the iconoclasm which took place as part of the Reformation in the northern Netherlands. In Leiden this happened in 1566, when supporters of the Reformation forced their way into churches and started to destroy images of saints and other objects which were the expression of the Roman Catholic doctrine and liturgy.

At some point, Cornelis went to Italy in order to widen his musical horizon, probably accompanied by his father. He returned in the early 1580s. In 1593 he was appointed second organist at the Pieterskerk, where his father was still active as first organist. Whether they had converted to the Reformation seems not to be known. It was not necessary, as the organist did not participate in the services of the Reformed church; the congregation sang only Psalms without any accompaniment. In Amsterdam, Sweelinck has probably always remained a Catholic, and played the organ only on weekdays. Something similar may have been the case in Leiden.

After his return from Italy, Schuyt published a collection of madrigals on Italian texts, for instance by Torquato Tasso. This was followed by two further collections, one with madrigals in Dutch, which is incomplete, as only three parts have been preserved, and the collection of wedding madrigals that is the subject of the present disc. His last publication was a set of instrumental works: twelve pavans and galliards in each of the modes, and two canzonas.

Leiden was a rich town at the time, and since 1575 it had a university, the first in the Northern Netherlands. This resulted in a flourishing social life, which offered much opportunity for a composer like Schuyt. The madrigals may have been intended to be sung by local ensembles, and the instrumental pieces were probably written for an ensemble of town musicians of the kind that existed across Europe. Music was also a fixed part of celebrations, either public – in this case especially occasions in the academic world – or private, such as weddings and social gatherings.

It is a matter of good fortune that Weser-Renaissance has selected madrigals that are not on the Camerata Trajectina disc. The latter focused on the first madrigal book, whereas on the present disc all the madrigals are from the collection Hymneo, overo Madrigali nuptiali et altri amorosi con un echo doppio. The booklet does not specifically mention it, but neither of the titles appears in the first book, which is available on-line. In most cases the text can easily be connected to a wedding, such as Al giogo d’Hymeneo: “To the happy and holy yoke of Hymnaios: Beautiful bride, let yourself not be bound by the legendary Juno or Talasio, but only from the little bowman.” Or take Gentil, vaga brunetta: “Tender and noble brunette, Venus allows your dark visage to be even more beautiful than her own fair face. Oh you beauty, oh you noble creature, your visible loveliness puts Kythira (Aphrodite) in the shade who emerged from the sea. Will she be meek if love is the driver of this noble face?” Amor, ch’in dolce nodo even directly refers to Leiden: “Since the tender Hymenaios has ignited the hearts of this couple with his holy embers, I sing of a great hero much honoured in Leiden and of the Phoebean chorus alongside this comely nymph (…)”.

However, there are also pieces that one may find hard to connect to a wedding. One of them is Io piango: ” I weep and pain is etched into my tears which deep down inside me awaken furies and open the gates of Hell.” And what about Poi ch’ho perso quel bene, the 12-part madrigal mentioned in the title? “After having lost the prize which the heavens had given me on earth, I cannot expect more from the noble and fair visage than suffering and painful war, therefore my tears course freely down my cheeks and I weep with you: you wretched Echo, at least please answer me.” It is a most intriguing piece, though. After the quoted first section, we get a section in which the end of each line is repeated as a double echo: “Se del mio mal non godi? Odi. – Di’. Dammi conseglio presto! Esto. – To’.” (“Do you not take pleasure in my suffering? Hear me. – Say something! Give me swift advice! So it is! – Take it!”).

There is no lack of text expression in these pieces. In Al giogo d’Hymeneo the words “bella sposa” (beautiful bride) are emphasized through repetition. Se non saetta Amore is about the arrows of Amor, which explains the swift tempo. In Amor, ch’in dolce nodo the flames of Amor are eloquently depicted. Ahi che l’età sen vola ends with the line “Ma stabilitá in ciel legge d’amore” (the laws of love are everlasting in heaven). The words “ma stabilita” are set homophonically in a slow tempo. Io piango mentioned above is a rather sorrowful piece, which is graphically illustrated. Unfortunately, the booklet does not mention the authors of the texts.

The madrigals are mostly performed by the vocal ensemble a cappella. The 12-part Poi ch’ho perso quel bene is different, as the vocal ensemble consists of only six voices; here, the remaining parts are performed by the viols. Two madrigals are performed in a mixed version of one singer and the consort of viols. That was one of the ways in which madrigals could be performed. The consort is also responsible for the performance of the instrumental works. That is one of the options. Such pieces may have been performed at special occasions, for instance during outdoor celebrations, and in such cases, they may have been played on wind instruments. Given that here madrigals for weddings are the focus of the recording, performances of a more intimate kind are the most logical option.

In this kind of repertoire, one expects top-class performances from Weser-Renaissance, and that is what we get here. Manfred Cordes is a specialist in music of the 16th and 17th centuries, and knows exactly how it needs to be performed. He always has at his disposal singers who are well acquainted with the style. The text is given much attention, each detail of the madrigals is fully explored, and the performances are also dynamically differentiated. The ensemble mostly performs sacred music, but it shows here that it is equally at home in secular music. The playing of the consort of viols is also excellent, and the combination of vocal and instrumental forces is impeccable.

The booklet includes a lengthy essay on Leiden, which is certainly interesting, but too long, and includes too many details that are of little or no interest for an understanding of the repertoire. Sometimes less is more.

This disc is a very strong case for Cornelis Schuyt, and I hope that the time will come that his entire oeuvre is available on disc. He fully deserves it. 

Johan van Veen
www.musica-dei-donum.org
twitter.com/johanvanveen
https://bsky.app/profile/musicadeidonum.bsky.social

Buying this recording via the link below generates revenue for MWI, which helps the site remain free.

Contents
Fortuna Guida, canzon
Al giogo d’Hymeneo
Se non saetta Amore
Del primo modo: Padouana – Gagliarda
Gentil signor
Amor, ch’in dolce nodo
Del quinto modo: Padouana – Gagliarda
Io piango
Gentil, vaga brunetta
Del sesto modo: Padouana – Gagliarda
Là ver l’aurora
Vivi, festeggia e godi
Del nono modo: Padouana – Gagliarda
Ahi che l’età s’en vola
Giovene nato
Del undecimo modo: Padouana – Gagliarda
Altro non è il mio amore
Poi ch’ho perso quel bene
La Barca, canzon