Carlo Gesualdo Da Venosa

Carlo Gesualdo (1566-1613), Prince of Venosa, was an Italian composer and lutenist. His six books of madrigals are distinguished by an unusually intense response to their texts, abrupt contrasts and adventurous chromatic harmony. He also composed sacred music, including the Responsoria for Holy Week. His music occupies a distinctive position between the late Renaissance madrigal tradition and the expressive experiments of the early seventeenth century.