It seems that every month there's a new recording of music by one of the remarkably gifted nuns of the convents of 17th century Italy. Finally the works of such composers as Chiara Margarita Cozzolani, Lucrezia Vizzana and Isabella Leonarda are winning long-deserved recognition. Candace Smith and her ensemble, Cappella Artemisia, have done much to promote this music and on this new recording introduce us to Sulpitia Cesis (1577-1619).
Cesis took her holy vows at the Convent of San Geminiano in Modena when she was sixteen years old. The convent, a center of musical excellence, and Cesis are both mentioned in contemporaary chronicles of Modena. The music on this recording is taken from her only surviving works, a collection of Mottetti Spirituali.
Cesis eschewed the concertato style that dominated the 17th century, so stylistically her music is reminiscent of the polychoral works of Andrea Gabrieli or, in the case of the motet Angelus ed pastores, the stile antico. Cesis had a gift for managing diverse vocal forces and the motets, written for one to twelve voices, impress with their skillful vocal writing - she clearly knew how to make the most of the resources at hand. The performances by Cappella Artemisia are very good. The women sing with clarity and warmth, although there's an occasional strain on topnotes, and the instrumental support, especially the cornetti and tromboni, are fine.
This is an excellent recording of a conservative but compelling voice from the cloister. CRAIG ZEICHNER