With this album, the ensemble La Venexiana puts the music of the Italian cellist and composer Giovanni Bononcini in the spotlight. In the first half of the 18th century he was one of the most famous cellists and composers in Europe. He was admired for his beautiful melodies and sense of drama. He worked in various places in Europe, including at the Habsburg court. Italian oratorios were very popular
… there. There Bononcini wrote the oratorio La Conversione di Maddalena for the time of suffering of 1701. The characters sung entirely by men at the time are: Mary Magdalene, her sister Marta, the Sacred Love and the Worldly Love. The two Love characters try to convince Mary Magdalene to choose their side: that of the fleeting, worldly pleasures, or to forgo them and turn their heart to Christ. Mary Magdalene was an ideal archetype for portraying Roman Catholic values such as penance, repentance, repentance, and forgiveness of sins. (SvdP).more
