Cinge'l mio crin intorno

Gasparo Pratoneri was a composer of madrigals in the Italian Renaissance. This example of the genre for SATTB voices is a secular work. The text speaks of a lover crowned with a leafy branch, smelling its sweet scent and feeling the presence of Love. The singer wishes for their own love to flourish like the juniper, protected from jealousy, while the juniper remains adorned with leaves and safe from frost. Pratoneri’s setting would have been intended for performance by skilled amateur or professional singers, typical of the period’s sophisticated musical culture.