Cara virtu che fai

Giovanni Matteo Asola was a notable composer of the late Renaissance and early Baroque periods. His secular madrigal Cara virtu che fai is set for two male voices (TT). The Italian text speaks of a precious virtue that makes the soul dear to God, who looks upon it with pity and holds it as his desire, hope, and good. The soul, through this virtue, remains steadfast in God and never wishes to depart from Him, nor from all the good that lies beneath the sun. Asola's setting explores this devotional theme with a focus on the close interplay of the two vocal lines.