Review

Giovanni Gabrieli
Canzon per Sonar Septimi Toni à 8 from 'Sacred Symphoniae' Ch.171:

Arranged by Damiano Drei

Brass Ensemble: 4 B-flat trumpets (alt. 2 F horns), F horn (alt. trombone), 2 trombones (alt. 2 F horns), tuba or bass trombone

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Publisher: Cherry Classics Music
Date of Publication: 2021
URL: http://www.cherryclassics.com

Score and parts.

Primary Genre: Brass Ensemble - 6+ brass (choir)

According to Cherry Classics this was “Composed in 1597 as part of a collection of 45 motets titled Sacrae Symphoniae. These works were performed in St. Marks Basilica after Gabrieli returned to Venice to become the principal organist there and propelled him to become recognized as one of Europe's leading composers.”

The pieces in the collection are for various combinations of cornetti, sacbuts, voices and viols, whose players would have been placed antiphonally inside St. Mark's to take advantage of the church's acoustics and to clarify the dialogic musical structure of works such as the Canzon. The Canzon septimi toni, so-called because it is written in the Mixolydian church mode, which is based on G, the "seventh tone," has been transposed down a whole step to the key of B-flat, which works extremely well for mixed brass. What sets this arrangement apart, besides its practical editing, is the optional substitute parts making it accessible to a variety of ensemble combinations.