The Vinaccesi Ensemble returns to northern Italy in a program of delightful and rarely heard Italian-language madrigals and canzonettas by the most famous Baroque Jewish composer, Salamone Rossi of Mantua, and psalm settings from Venetian Benedetto Marcellos monumental Estro poetico-armonico. The Ensemble was founded in 2008 by Nanette McGuinness, Kindra Scharich, and Bruce Wetmore, and first performed as part of the 2008 Berkeley Fringe Festival. The Ensemble focuses on music of the Baroque, especially—but not exclusively—that of Italy and the Veneto, and of course, Italian composer Benedetto Vinaccesi (1666-1719). The Ensemble recorded their first CD of solo cantatas by their namesake, Benedetto Vinaccesi, which was released in spring 2013 on Centaur Records (CRC 3270) and was made possible through the Musical Grant Program, which is administered by the San Francisco Friends of Chamber Music and supported by the Heller Foundation, the Hewlett Foundation, the San Francisco Foundation, and San Francisco Grants for the Arts.