Vergine bella

The conductor of Choral Arts Northwest, Robert Bode, asked the composer to write a work based on a text about The Blessed Virgin Mary. The final poem in Petrarch's most famous work, Il Canzoniere, was chosen, because it is a prayer to the Blessed Virgin.

 

The composer first quotes a melody by Guillaume Dufay (1397-1474,) and then continues with his own interpretation of the poem, simultaneously using both the original Italian and its English translation, and a few other references to Dufay's music. Duration: ca. 5:20

 

A review of CANW's performance of this piece comments: "Perhaps the heart of the programcame with the premiere of John David Earnest's 'Vergine Bella.' This gorgeous work caught up the listener from the start, the choir softly singing the first phrases on one note, while the solo tenor came in soaring above them in a beautiful melody."