Who's afraid of Carlo Gesualdo? 🎃

For the footnotes and other extra information see the following link:
www.earlymusic...
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Created by Elam Rotem, October 2021.
Special thanks to Iason Marmaras, Netta Huebscher, Peter Schubert, Martin Morell, Hannah Lane and Anne Smith.
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[@Bova-Fett]

Gesualdo be like: "I guess you guys aren't ready for that yet. But your great-great-grandkids are gonna love it."

[@carlosandres7006]

Thanks. You made my day!

[@FahlmanCascade]

Except... it turns out that the great grandkids only want to hear I V vi IV. 😞

[@aaronbachelderMusic]

@@FahlmanCascade the sound that opens wallets

[@silviomp]

Hahaha Back To The Future 👏👏👏👏😂😂😂

[@abrahamlincoln9758]

"Hey you, get your damn hands off her" escalated rather quickly

[@HughResnick]

Omigosh, the special theme song is killer!

[@edwardblair4096]

I was going to say something similar. I had to stop and comment on the extra special modulations on the opening theme before watching the rest of the video.

[@jonaswolfmusic1775]

14:26 "Beautiful! Back to Gesualdo..." 😂🔥

[@Rhythmmical]

I just learned about Gesualdo in history a few weeks ago. I had the closed captioning running once and it heard "Gesualdo" as "Jazz Waldo." So now that's what I call him. I think considering the creepiness of Waldo (just somehow being everything at once) and the chromatic nature of his music, "Jazz Waldo" is actually kind of suitable.

[@dlevi67]

Not only "everything at once", but all over the place! 🤣

[@SimoneBattaglia94]

Jazz Waldo LOOOOOL

[@ml-ei3nz]

Finally we know who invented Jazz. Waldo from Venosa

[@fleeb]

Ah... so glad to see you tackle Gesualdo. Sincerely, compared to some of the other composers who wrote similar music in those times, somehow, Gesualdo seems to have done the better job of it. I don't think he was as insane as often regarded given his colorful past, though... just fortunate, and perhaps a bit misunderstood, particularly from a modern perspective. I also don't think his music was as innovative as people think, but more refined in the use of the techniques available to him.

[@GreenTeaViewer]

Agree, I bought into the legend of "OMG advanced chromaticism from a villainous nobleman" and that didn't help in actually listening to the music or putting it in context.

[@JacobGran]

9:14 That is the funniest thing I've ever seen in a music educational video. I was making that exact dog face as I was listening! Head tilt, eyebrows, everything.

[@WilliamFord972]

Gesualdo: “I guess you guys aren’t ready for that yet…but your kids are gonna love it!”

[@joenonomous3782]

I like Gesualdo's music. I like the way it sounds and moves. I think it's an odd mix of not being expected or unexpected. It is itself and complete. A satisfying listen.

[@spikeduncan6501]

Fantastic video! Would you ever consider doing a video about one of Gesualdo's musical rivals, Marc'Antonia Ingegneri? He's one of my absolute favourite early music composers, but I've not been able to find much about his life

[@straightupanarg6226]

This channel always inspires me to compose.

[@hongodigital]

Thannks Elam! This is amazing!!! As always, deep, professional and full of humorous brush strokes.

[@simf7563]

Great work. The qualitiy of the content was never at question, so I just want to add my appreciation for the really high production quality. It equals with expensive TV-shows.

[@markbeck8384]

I did not particularly know Gesualdo, other than as a name. I thought your presentation was very helpful, and I did really like the music. I will pursue more of his stuff, in the future. Thank you. I 've been a classical music fan for years, but I am only now beginning to find I like a great deal of Baroque and "early" music. For me, it's a big World NOT explored, after hearing lots of popular, and modern stuff. I am sort of shocked that there is so much that you rarely hear, and that it is curious, daring & fresh. I didn't know. it gives me some new late life enthusiasm!

[@ayashhammed9798]

the doggo killed me ¡beautiful video, as always!

[@authenticmusic4815]

What a coincidence, i had just discovered this composer!!

[@btat16]

Ahh, what an amazing joy to find waking up today! I clicked immediately!!

[@golden-63]

*Wonderful video. Gesualdo was a genius!* *Who's Afraid of Carlo Gesualdo?* *I am, George. I am.*

[@jatsefos]

Great video as always. I really enjoyed that excerpt by Lacorcia.

[@ginacrusco234]

Hi Elam! I'm loving going through your programs one by one. I take your point that Gesualdo was neither the inventor of a new harmonic approach nor the only one utilizing it. What I feel makes him unique is the keen and specific way he paints text (pace Galilei). His shorter phrases reflect the quicksilver emotive changes in the poetry, and for that I have high regard for him. Written as a singer, madrigalist, and teacher of Italian music history, albeit with less early music expertise than yourself!

[@Ivan_1791]

Aaah! You chose my favourite madrigal by Gesualdo! :) Thank you for these videos.

[@brasilebrasile2450]

Gesualdo was one of the Favourites composers of stravinsky

[@CommanderSiffredi]

Luzzaschi, Arcadelt and Banchieri deserve special videos as well.

[@jg5861]

As always, here's a fabulous topic in an irresistible video, enormously informative, carefully contextualized, rigorously presented and exquisitely edited. AND gorgeously sung, by both groups. Thank you so much.

[@anunachoir]

Great film. I would have concentrated on Book 5 if it had been me. Some great bangers in there, whereas Book 6 is a bit over-ripe with less good tunes (and you haven't mentioned the fact that he used repetition in a similar way to Debussy imho). Such a brilliant channel and you are doing incredible work. Thank you.

[@NiallMS1]

He wrote an amazing amount of music!

[@edwardblair4096]

I love the "check out the footnotes on our web page" insert at 23:41. "1. Bla bla bla bla bla ..." in a fancy font with some random years thrown in. :-)

[@cassianobarros7948]

Amazing music, clear and very interesting ideas beatifully presented! Congratulations and thank you!

[@Bahimo3154]

Thank you so much for this video I really like this underrated composer 💥❤

[@anahatamelodeon]

I want a T shirt that says "a fourth is a not a consonance".

[@EarlyMusicSources]

here you go: www.teechip.com/notafourth

[@olivieraleman]

Love it!

[@georgerichardson7560]

Many thanks! That was a great video and insight into Gesulado's Music!! :)

[@bifeldman]

Perfect for Halloween. I am very frightened!

[@tomatosoup6611]

Your analyses are very much appreciated. I always enjoy your thorough and entertaining presentations.

[@scathatch]

to contemporary ears the dissonance is quite delectable and thrilling.

[@gowanhewlett745]

Wonderful compositions

[@nigelhaywood9753]

I love that you made it coincide with Halloween. Very subtle.

[@maciejkubera1536]

It’s very interresting, that In 16th centaury we had allready had pieces, which are diatonic consonant, chromatic consonant nad chromatic dissonant, but actually to get some diatonic dissonant (where the dissonant notes were actual chord members, not just passing tones or appogiaturas) we had to wait till the last decade of the 20th centaury!

[@bitchslappedme]

Great video, as expected of the channel. Excited to hear the recordings mentioned in the video.

[@videosdehistoriadelamusica4484]

Another fantastic episode, thank you very much! The performances are just great!

[@brunoalbano616]

Love your channel👏👏

[@musicatraian]

18:29 It is plagal cadential IV-I (from A minor to E major) this we call it in Romanian Cadenta modulatorie cromatica (Modulated cromatic Cedence)

[@leonidasdeguevara7146]

He aprendido tanto con tus videos, eres un gran maestro, me haces amar mas a la música antigua

[@wilsonMelo6]

What a fine video about Gesualdo.

[@djonakachopper]

Thank you! Food for the ears

[@farahmohammed1963]

Oh, these graphics!!💕🌺

[@gabrielrangel956]

i like how A# is very similar in pitch to Bb but completely different in colour

[@AlejodelosReyes]

Great show! And yes, I want the t-shirt. Heading to your Patreon page. May I suggest a show about heavy chromaticism in late renaissance vs. Late romanticism? I know you've already talked a lot about it but a dedicated video would be awesome! Gesualdo vs. Wagner: the final batlle!

[@carrieann1640]

I love Gesualdo.

[@intervalkid]

Most of his music is based of of modes and their modulations. He was of a broad knowledge of music theoretical methods.

[@rogercoziol2768]

Indeed, not at all unpleasant.

[@danielwaitzman2118]

Bravo!

[@Eliane70b]

I like Lacorcia madrigal a lot!

[@shulmusicomnibus]

ד"ר רותם, שוב, ריגשת. התמזגות של ידע מוזיקלי יוצא-דופן, ניתוח מאלף, וכמובן, שירת מלאכים. You are an inspiration to us all (when will you publish a book detailing how to compose in the Rossian style!?) - keep on at it.

[@EduardoFrigattiComposer]

Thank you!Your vídeos always inspires me to compose more. Gesualdo was one of the influences for my opera, "The Raven" (O Corvo). And I'm happy to read the name of my colleague 'Caio Facó' at the end of the video. All the best!

[@theopaopa1]

great. thank you... 17:51 🤩

[@sunuraxiichnusa2756]

Next time can you doing a video about marco uccellini, Dario castello, the dawn of violin

[@stvp68]

Most of those dissonances didn’t sound dissonant to me. Same with the wacky ending-felt resolved to me, but more subtle than a typical V-I cadence

[@gavinspencer399]

Great video, but why does everything sound down a half step from where written? Makes it hard to play along and dissect unless you're a great at transposition. (Or is it just that way at my house??)

[@cht2162]

Murderous Music.

[@lxiaspb]

I don't understand, why 10!!! people disliked this video

[@HumbleNewMusic]

👻

[@briziojr.3724]

In which book can I found some of the rules of baroque composing? Regards!

[@hungrymikepencetd5686]

Others may have made 1 or 2 similar pieces of music, but their quality cant be compared to Gesualdos music. He just made dozens of those chromatic madrigals in such a crazy, weird, dark way, that the question, whether his music was special or not, is absurd.

[@robertocornacchionialegre]

A fourth is not a consonance

[@RubenJavierTovarEsparza]

Zarlino: 😡

[@lupash]

Well it's easy to make music and nothing else when you're rich and you have no other obligations all day long, except being a murderer. Anyway choral music can be misleading for the inner microstructure of the human voice, but if you sit at the piano and try to play something from Gesualdo you would get an even better sense of how many years ahead of his time and how much of a crazy visionary he was.

[@stevenharder308]

Shame he was born too early to be a member of Queen.

[@theotherohlourdespadua1131]

I know Carlo Gesualdo from an entry on the SCP Foundation on SC-6624 where he created an organ made from still living human remains and metal and composed music for it because a Cthulhu-esque cosmic godly Maestro d'Rancore "spoke" to him in his sleep (which only started after he murdered his wife and in his dreams his wife is taunting him)...

[@subjectline]

17:50-18:34 wtf

[@jimmeridda]

No belly ache here!

[@povilzem]

Whether you like Gesualdo's music or it makes you claw your ears off, his eyebrows cannot be ignored.

[@nucderpuck]

An amazing presentation of Gesualdo's music with illuminating examples. You manage to stay clear of the sensationalist hype surrounding the person of Gesualdo and clearly bring out his innovations, while also providing the musical context within which he operated. He didn't compose in a musical vacuum, and through the comparison with other composers you show that very clearly. The cartoons of disapproving contemporary authorities raising their warning forefingers are hilarious.

[@davideggert114]

Vincenzo Galilei with a burn book, and ol' Zarlino rolling his eyes as he admonishes an unprepared fourth. Laughed hard so often during this video: does it go in the education playlist or the humour one?? Elam Rotem + friends: you are so awesome.

[@CaioFaco]

Dear Sir, I have been following the Early Music Sources channel for some time. Each of your videos represents a moment of inspiration, profound learning and joy for me. Today, I feel so honored that you mentioned my music "The Prince of Venosa", for string quartet, as a work inspired by Gesualdo. Thank you so much... Have a wonderful day!

[@thomassicard3733]

I have always found Gesualdo's music very inspiring. The freedom, the hauntingly unexpected dissonances, the overall beauty and thought/emotion provoking quality of his compositions... It is special stuff, for sure. Congrats on your music career, sir!! Blessings to you!

[@JonathanBrown1]

I liked your piece very much.

[@CaioFaco]

@@JonathanBrown1 Thank you, Jonathan.

[@wesleyhunter8545]

Hey there! I'm currently a Masters student in music, and I just wanted to say that I learn a ton from every one of your videos! Incredibly eye-opening and thought provoking. Makes me think about music in a completely different way. Bravo!

[@gernoth9909]

Last week, inspired by this video, I made an arrangement of Moro lasso for the small sax and euphonium jazz ensemble I play in. I told them this is one of the most notorious madrigals of late renaissance. Neither of them knows any early music. We played it yesterday. They said they wouldn‘t understand. Those were only normal jazz harmonies. LOL. Sounds surprisingly great for 2 alto, 1 tenor, euphonium and baritone sax even though I had to transpose down a major third. Will be performed in the next concert.

[@thormusique]

Beautifully done, Elam, thank you! When I first heard Gesualdo played at uni, I thought 'What blessed madness is this?!' I really liked what you said about his perhaps not having been an innovator per se but more willing to freely express ideas already in the air. It's always seemed to me that Gesualdo's particular flavour of madness was the extent to which the emotive capabilities of music were perhaps more important to him than the 'rules'. As you imply, far too much has been made of his wild, impulsive, and maybe scandalous nature. But I also don't think it would be a stretch to say that the guy was driven. After all, how many composers (even with considerable financial resources) would have undertaken the work and expense of meticulously publishing their own compositions. That's some dedication! I guess today we might judge him to be 'on the spectrum'? Whether true or not, I'm happy to consider myself in Gesualdo's strange company of misfits. I should mention that I think about Gesualdo and his music enough that I often call my dog Gesualdo (it's not his name). Unfortunately, he's more a fan of Caccini. ;-)

[@lerippletoe6893]

The dog head tilt part made me lol, I was literally having the equivalent human reaction to when dogs do that.

[@dlevi67]

- Who is afraid of Carlo Gesualdo? - Me, but only when he returns in his Arnold Schoenberg form... Lovely "spiciness" in the opening/closing theme, Elam. Very magical and disquieting - but in a mischievous, not terrifying way.

[@henrikmulders8633]

In a Harry Potter/ Tchaikovsky way.

[@dlevi67]

@@henrikmulders8633 It _is_ very "ye olde sugar-plum fairy". 😁

[@rodrigoherreramunoz9248]

Lacorcia is a complete revelation to me, incredible music, it make look Gesualdo´s music completely traditional.

[@carlosdurancomposer]

Oh my god... this is pure gold! Thank you so much for sharing these videos

[@timothytikker3834]

Years ago I sang with a chamber choir that performed some sacred motets by Gesualdo. The more I studied the relationship between his music and the texts he set, the more I came to understand the significance of his genius. Your excellent presentation here has added so much more, putting him in a fuller context. Bravo!

[@pedroaugustocamerata597]

I've been waiting for this episode for ages, really excellent as usual, thank you! Gesualdo's music would really suit a Renaissance-themed Halloween party 😱🎃

[@RobertWildling]

What a fantastic video! Thanks for all those other composers you name, most of which I haven't heard of. And big thanks that you also give a short reflection on how Gesulado influences the 20th and 21st centuries!

[@sippakorn_p]

That Lacorcia's piece is hauntingly beautiful!

[@victotronics]

Yes, that was my favorite from this episode. Unfortunately no sheet music linked.

[@EarlyMusicSources]

now there is! www.cpdl.org/wiki/index.php/Ahi,_tu_piangi_(Scipione_Lacorcia)

[@victotronics]

@@EarlyMusicSources Thanks so much!

[@tedb.5707]

" Now witness the firepower of this fully ARMED and OPERATIONAL harpsichord! "

[@1963pipo]

Pure genius. I must listen to more of these wonderful composers.Thank you Mr. Rotem.

[@Symbioticism]

A good example of music before Gesulado that is equally whacky is Lasso's Prophetiae Sibyllarum :)

[@TamsinJones]

You point out around 13:10 that the imitations preserve only direction of movement, but don't they also keep interval quality intact? (i.e., semitone substituting for minor third and so on). This would show Gesualdo exerting a tight control over his material, even if appearances would suggest a freer attitude.

[@grahamrankin4725]

Reminds me of movie scores from mid 20th century particularly those sci fi films like The Day the Earth Stood Still or Forbidden Planet

[@aderbalsoares1988]

12:36 What a horrible downward slur by the soprano: it makes *crudel* sound really cruel.

[@javieroviedo6928]

Such a fascinating channel! Makes me wish I paid more attention in Music History! BRAVO!

[@agogobell28]

Excellent video. I had no idea of the beauty of Gesualdo’s music; at times the harmonies remind me of late Brahms or Vierne.

[@dliessmgg]

I've recently been trying out 31-tone equal temperament, but in a more modern manner. In addition to being very close to quarter comma meantone, it also has an extremely good approximation of the seventh harmonic, which makes a lot of septimal intervals available as an expansion of conventional harmony, like for example the harmonic seventh 7:4.

[@morrisalanisette9067]

I kind of wonder if the timbre of the voices makes it sound good or beautiful. If played with some other instrument I wonder if it would sound much more dissonant and weird. To me the strange chords in Moro lasso are absolutely beautiful and I don’t even hear it as dark, more like ethereal

[@virillustris8554]

Do you have an analysis of "Spem in alium" by Thomas Tallis in your plans?..

[@geckofeet]

For a hardcore early-music t-shirt, replace FOURTH with THIRD kthxbye

[@gord.w.p]

His victims definitely were

[@ivangabrielepuca5272]

Thank you so much, I really enjoyed this episode as Gesualdo is one of my favorite composers. Also, the animation in really on point!

[@jg5861]

And yes, the opening theme, always varied according to the topic of the video, is a most marvelous cherry on top of the cake. A sign of distinction reserved to a labor of love.

[@stevenottomanyi154]

HAH!! That Gesualdified theme song is awesome.

[@maniak1768]

Today's jingle is already very promising.