Madrigals are a valued body of literature and when an English madrigal is being prepared for a performance, one strives to inform the experience with the best information available - thinking through important performance issues of a madrigal builds perspective. This handbook will be useful immediately for teachers and students or anyone who studies and performs the madrigal. It is supported by primary and secondary historical sources for the purpose of providing information that will assist readers to sort valid information from personal opinion. Readers will receive a unique perspective on the madrigal, the marriage of music and text, and its unique place in the stylistic timeline.