"Born in Chioggia, a fishing village on the south western perimeter of Venice's lagoon, Giovanni Croce (1556-1609) made a major contribution to the musical life of the Veneto, eventually becoming maestro di cappella at St Mark's Basilica. It was, however, as a composer of mellifluous madrigals and motets that he achieved widespread fame throughout Europe. The demand for his music caused many of his collections to be reprinted, some of them time and time again. Indeed, his first book of motets for eight voices, found here, appeared in more editions than any of his other collections, the first...