The Selva morale e spirituale is the most significant anthology of Monteverdi's liturgical works since the Vespers of 1610. The title of the collection does not allude to its content but refers to the period of almost thirty years in which Monteverdi served as head of music at St. Mark's Basilica in Venice (a position he always preferred to that of an official at the ducal court of Mantua). The program performed by Vox Luminis, an ensemble of Belgian origin specialized in early music, contains a careful selection of the five sections of the Selva that the composer from Cremona dedicated to Eleonora Gonzaga.