Sax Octets

Sinfonia La Padovana

Ludovico Viadana, arr. Ben Tordoff

Composed:
1610 Arranged:
2020 Grouping:
SATB + SATB Duration:
02:20

Whilst less familiar today than the Gabrieli family, Ludovico Viadana was a prominent composer in 16th century Italy. As a Franciscan Friar, the majority of his works were designed for use during Christian services and ceremonies and most were choral. This sinfonia was from his only published instrumental collection “Sinfonie Musicale a Otto Voci” in which every piece was named after an Italian town or city. As with all the best renaissance polyphony, deceptively simple individual parts combine to give a rich and complex ensemble that can be difficult to play well.

This transcription for two sax quartets includes editorial suggestions on dynamics and articulations. The original left these entirely to the group to decide, as including dynamics in scores was still a relatively new invention. Alternative parts for sopranino (instead of soprano A) and bass (instead of baritone B) are provided.

You might also like our two other Italian Renaissance pieces for two quartets:

If you enjoyed this piece, have comments or corrections, we'd love to hear from you.

This music is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution Licence.