Quia Amore Langueo continues the idea behind the Rappresentatione di Giuseppe e i suoi Fratelli of composing new music in the historical musical language of the early Italian Baroque. While Giuseppe tells a biblical story in a manner similar to that of the first operas, this collection presents motets inspired by the more intimate and amorous madrigal genre as well as two pieces in the dramatic style of the genere rappresentativo. The motets set texts from the Song of Songs, while the dramatic scenes depict the dark love tales of Amnon & Tamar (Samuel II), and Samson & Delilah (Judges).

- Iowa Public Radio Classical, Uri Golomb, 13.10.2015
“He [Rotem] has not only mastered the technique of the music he studies and performs, he has also entered fully into its spirit ... These two new releases [Rappresentatione di Giuseppe and Quia Amore Langueo] demonstrate how intensely dramatic and sensuous the musical results can be ... Both in the Biblical texts and in Rotem’s settings, there is a sense of unflinching honesty. This is not to deny the music’s rich beauty – there are some ravishingly sensuous passages. But the dramatic peaks pack a considerable punch, intensified by the performers’ complete identification with text and music alike... Rotem thus reveals the continued dramatic and moral relevance of Biblical narrative and stile  rappresentativo alike, through compositions permeated by a sense of vitality, dramatic bite and sensuous beauty. Whatever its historical roots, his is an exciting new voice. Let us hope it will continue to engage and enthrall listeners for years to come.”

- Toccata alte musik aktuell, Robert Strobl (78/2015)
"Profeti della Quinta and Elam Rotem have created something both new and old: Very coherent, very intensive, and above all very convincing!" 

- Haaretz, Hagai Hitron, 26.1.2015
“Breathtaking beauty resides all through the recording of For I am sick with Love (Quia Amore Langueo) by the Israeli vocal ensemble Profeti della Quinta. This beauty is achieved through the verses from the biblical Song of Songs as well as from the books of Judges and Samuel, sang with exemplary pronunciation, and through the musical settings of these verses by the ensemble founder, the baritone Elam Rotem. The sound quality of the CD is excellent, clear yet not dry at all.”   

- El arte de la fuga, Eduardo Torrico, 19.12.2015
" ...Rotem's work, forged by the iron discipline of the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, can only be regarded as formidable. ... The question posed by some music lovers, whether it makes sense to compose nowadays in the baroque style, is perfectly answered after listening to this CD. ... Those who have ever heard Profeti della Quinta can attest to their exquisite way of making music. ... [the ensemble] displays absolute maturity in this recording."

Canto primo – Doron Schleifer
Canto secondo – David Feldman 
Alto – Lior Leibovici
Tenor – Dan Dunkelblum
Bass, Cembalo & musical direction – Elam Rotem
 
Violin – Katya Polin, Katia Viel
Cornett – Nathaniel Cox
Chitarrone, Baroque guitar – Ori Harmelin
Viola da gamba, Chitarrone – Ryosuke Sakamoto
Viola da gamba – Giovanna Baviera
Violone, lirone – Elizabeth Rumsey
Organ – Aki Noda

Recording producer: Oren Kirschenbaum
PAN CLASSICS, May 2015 (PC10321)

Elam Rotem is a Harpsichordist, composer and singer. He specialized in historical performance practice at the Schola Cantorum in Basel, and graduated with a master’s degree in continuo playing and another in improvisation and composition, focusing on the vocal and instrumental music of the 16th and 17th centuries. Currently, Rotem is working on his PhD thesis, within a new collaborative program between the Schola Cantorum in Basel and the University of Würzburg, Germany. His research focuses on the first operas and musical dramas in Italy at the beginning of the 17th century.