Baronial Patronage of Music in Early Modern Rome 2018001256, 9781138235335, 9781315304878

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Baronial Patronage of Music in Early Modern Rome

This is the first dedicated study of the musical patronage of a Roman baronial family in the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. Patronage – the support of a person or institution and their work by a patron – in Renaissance society was the basis of a complex network of familial and political relationships between clients and patrons, whose ideas, values, and norms of behavior were shared with the collective. Bringing to light new archival documentation, this book examines the intricate network of patronage interrelationships in Rome. Unlike other Italian cities where political control was monocentric and exercised by single rulers, sources of patronage in Rome comprised a multiplicity of courts and potential patrons, which included the pope, high prelates, nobles, and foreign diplomats. Morucci uses archival records, and the correspondence of the Orsini and Colonna families in particular, to investigate the local activity and circulation of musicians and the cultivation of music within the broader civic network of Roman aristocratic families during the period. The author also shows that the familial union of the Medici and Orsini families established a bidirectional network for artistic exchange outside of the Eternal City, and that the Orsini-Colonna circle represented a musical bridge between Naples, Rome, and Florence. Valerio Morucci began his career as a music historian in Rome, where he graduated with a laurea from the University of Rome. He then earned a PhD in musicology and criticism from the University of California at Davis. His articles are published in various international peer-reviewed journals. He is currently an adjunct professor at the University of Nevada (Reno), where he teaches courses in music and directs the Early Music Ensemble.

Baronial Patronage of Music in Early Modern Rome

Valerio Morucci

First published 2018 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN and by Routledge 711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2018 Valerio Morucci The right of Valerio Morucci to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Morucci, Valerio, author. Title: Baronial patronage of music in early modern Rome / Valerio Morucci. Description: Abingdon, Oxon ; New York, NY : Routledge, 2018. |   Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2018001256| ISBN 9781138235335 (hardback) |   ISBN 9781315304878 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Music patronage—Italy—Rome—History—16th century.   | Music patronage—Italy—Rome—History—17th century. | Music   and aristocracy—Italy—Rome—History—16th century. | Music and   aristocracy—Italy—Rome—History—17th century. Classification: LCC ML3917.I8 M67 2018 | DDC 780.79/45632—dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018001256 ISBN: 978-1-138-23533-5 (hbk) ISBN: 978-1-315-30487-8 (ebk) Typeset in Goudy by Apex CoVantage, LLC

Contents

List of images Abbreviations Notes to the reader Acknowledgements

vii ix x xii

Introduction1 1 L’Orsa e la Colonna: the patronage of Felice Orsini and Marco Antonio II Colonna10 Felice alta Colonna: the madrigal in Colonna-Orsini’s circle  15 Pietro Vinci and Colonna’s patronage in Sicily  20 Dell’Arpa and the villanella in casa Colonna 23 Appendix A  31 2 Paolo Giordano I Orsini as patron of music40 Del Tebro e d’Arno: the Roman-Florentine network  44 Cantar alla napoletana: Neapolitan musicians at the Orsini court  47 3 Il refugio delle muse: poetry and music at the court of Virginio Orsini, second Duke of Bracciano55 The Orsini-Medici connection  55 Luca Marenzio at the Orsini court  60 Poetry and monody in Orsini’s circle  68 Appendix B  76

vi Contents 4 Gloriosa orsa latina: the patronage of Paolo Giordano II Orsini, third Duke of Bracciano98 Musici di corte 102 Non-salaried musicians (1626–1635)  108 Andrea Fei stampatore ducale 110 In search of giovani virtuosi 112 The late years (1644–1656)  114 Appendix C  119 Conclusion Bibliography Index

139 141 151

Images

Figures 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 4.1 4.2 4.3

Portrait of Marco Antonio II Colonna 11 Portrait of Felice Orsini Colonna 12 Genealogy Orsini-Colonna 13 Coded dispatch of Felice Orsini Colonna, II.C.D.1.2197 14 Letter of Pedro Guerrero to Ascanio Colonna (1 April 1581), I-Aco, archivio Colonna, II.C.D, corrispondenza Ascanio Colonna22 Letter of Giovanni dell’Arpa to Felice Orsini (23 December 1581), I-Aco,  archivio Colonna, II.C.E, corrispondenza Felice Orsini 29 Portrait of Paolo Giordano I Orsini  41 Map of the Duchy of Bracciano, Fondo Odescalchi, I D 12 43 Map of Rome with Monte Giordano, Roma sotterranea, Antonio Bosio 43 Letter of Geronimo Tastavin to Paolo Giordano I Orsini, Bracciano, 8 November 1583 50 Portrait of Virginio Orsini, second Duke of Bracciano 56 Letter of Emilio de Cavalieri to Virginio Orsini, 27 November 1585 59 Members of Orsini’s pastoral academy, Prose tiberine, Antonio Piccioli, 1597 63 Orationi et discorsi, Lorenzo Giacomini 71 Portrait of Paolo Giordano II Orsini 99 Letter of Giulio Caccini to Paolo Giordano II Orsini, 16 January 1616 100 Copialettera of Paolo Giordano II Orsini to Luigi Rossi, 19 October 1648 115

Tables 1.1 Printed music books dedicated to Marco Antonio Colonna and Felice Orsini

16

viii Images 1.2 3.1 4.1 4.2 4.3

List of villanellas composed by Giovanni dell’Arpa 27 Tasso’s poems dedicated to Virginio Orsini and Flavia Peretti 64 List of actors and musicians for Cicognini’s Adone101 List of salaried musicians 103 List of music books printed by Andrea Fei 111

List of Examples 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5a 1.5b 2.1 4.1 4.2a

Antonio Barrè, “Sorgi superbo Tebro,” mm. 7–12 (third stanza) Pietro Vinci, “Chi vol de l’alta prole,” mm. 6–8 Giovanni dell’Arpa, “O bella man ch’avanzi,” mm. 1–16 Giovanni dell’Arpa, “Bellezza ch’empi il ciel,” mm. 10–16 Giovanni dell’Arpa, “Vorria crudel tornare,” mm. 1–9 Cosimo Bottegari, “Vorria crudel tornare,” mm. 1–6 Bernardo Giacomini, “Nobil coppia gradita,” mm. 11–20 Francesco Petratti, “Signor fin dove il mar,” mm. 1–13 Francesco Petratti, from the dialogue “Che vai cercando Aminta,” mm. 1–15 4.2b Francesco Petratti, final chorus in the dialogue “Che vai cercando Aminta,” mm. 1–9 4.3 Giovanni Rovetta, “Lacrime d’Erminia,” mm. 4–16 4.4 Carlo Rainaldi, “Ho il cuor costante,” mm. 28–40

18 21 26 26 26 27 46 105 106 106 109 118

Abbreviations

I-Fas (Florence, Archivio di Stato) I-MOe (Modena, Biblioteca Estense) I-Rasc (Rome, Archivio Capitolino) I-Ras (Rome, Archivio di Stato) I-Ru (Rome, Biblioteca Universitaria Alessandrina) I-SUss (Subiaco, Biblioteca del Monastero di S. Scolastica) V-CVasv (Rome, Archivio Segreto Vaticano) F.O. (Fondo Orsini) App. (Appendix) doc. (document) docs. (documents) fol. (folio) ff. (folios)

Notes to the reader

Information on archival sources Non-recurrent payments, daily and monthly expenses, and receipts are recorded in the libri mastri, libri di entrata e uscita, giornali, registri di mandati, guardaroba, and giustificazioni. Payments to musicians are more difficult to locate, for they often appear in some sources but not in others. Resident members of the household are indicated as salariati and salariati companatici. In the latter case, in addition to the stipend, they were to be paid for room and board. The guardaroba were account books for household items such as linens, musical instruments, art objects, etc. Musicians are sometimes listed as the aiutanti di camera for their duties went beyond music and required other obligations at court. Like most members of the household they were supervised by the maestro di camera, who was in charge of the private service of the duke, and the maestro di casa, the head of the household.

Monetary denominations In Rome, as reported in court records, the monies of account were the scudo, baiocchi, and giuli. One silver scudo was equal approximately to ten giuli (100 baiocchi). The salary of musicians varied in accordance with their fame, abilities, and time of permanence in the household. For instance, Luca Marenzio started with a stipend of 6 scudi a month in 1591 and ended up with 20 scudi in 1595. The rent of an apartment in the city could cost 40 scudi a year, and a barile of wine (approximately 60 liters) 27–30 baiocchi. For more information on the cost of living and the economic life in Rome, see Richard Spear, “Scrambling for Scudi: Notes on Painters’ Earnings in Early Baroque Rome,” The Art Bulletin 85, no. 2 (June, 2003): 310–320; Jean Delumeau, Rome au XVIe siècle (Paris: Hachette, 1975), and Vie economique et sociale de Rome dans la seconde moitie du XVIe siècle 2 volumes (Paris: de Boccard, 1957), 59.

Transcriptions and translations Unless otherwise indicated, all transcriptions and translations of the letters, documents, and poetic texts presented in this book are by the author. In transcribing the letters, the same criteria have been used for the text and the appendices. The

Notes to the reader  xi “h” in old Italian words has been normalized (havere = avere, humile = umile, hora = ora, etc.), and the following letters were modernized: t = z, v = u, and j/i (benefitio = beneficio, protettione = protezione, gratia = grazia, etc.). Conjunctions (ex: et and & = e, poiche = poiché), pronouns, and prepositions have been also modernized, as well as capitalization, punctuation, and accentuation. Honorific titles and abbreviations were expanded (ex. V. E. = vostra eccellenza). Missing words have been indicated (with the sign __). The letters presented in the appendices have not been included in the body of the chapters because of their length or supplementary function.

Editorial principles My editions of all music examples are based on manuscript or printed sources. Text underlay generally follows the original sources, but where a word is not divided in the manuscript or print, the final syllable has been placed under the final note of the phrase. In editing the poetic texts, original spelling, accents, abbreviations, and capitalization have been normalized silently (for example, the letters u and v), following the suggestions of Giuseppina Bianconi, “Filologia dei testi poetici nella musica vocale Italiana,” Acta musicologica 66, no.1 (1994): 1–21. Text abbreviations (indicated as ij) and repetitions have been expanded. Sharps and flats are provided as in the original, but when applied to E and B are modernized as naturals (in general, when flat or sharp signs are used in the source to cancel their opposites, natural signs are used). General rules of musica ficta have been applied. Accidentals have been therefore added above the affected note, and hold for the measure in which they appear. Proportion, meter, and mensuration signs have been transcribed as found in the original source, including the numerical sign 3, interpreted as 3/2. In some cases, note values have been halved, and in others preserved without reduction. When barlines were given in the source, they have been retained; when absent, they have been added. Ligatures and slur marks have been kept. Continuo figures and accidentals are designated exactly as in the source. However, they were correctly re-positioned when misplaced on the staff of the original print or manuscript.

Acknowledgements

Research for this book was carried over a number of years in Rome. A subvention from the Gustave Reese Endowment of the American Musicological Society (funded in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation) helped to cover some of the expenses associated with copyright permissions, and photographic reproductions. I would like to express my gratitude to the people who assisted me during the preparation of this book. Tim Carter and Arnaldo Morelli shared thoughts, and made extensive corrections on previous drafts. Their writings have deeply influenced my own work, and continue to be inspiring to me. The comments and suggestions of Kate Van Orden, James Chater, and Margaret Murata were very important. They gave so generously of their time to read preliminary versions of the chapters. The critiques of those scholars touched upon their areas of expertise, and were crucial for correcting portions of the book manuscript. I also thank the anonymous readers for having remarked on specific issues and provided constructive critique. I am indebted to Elisabetta Mori, Cristina Falcucci, and the staff at the Archivio Capitolino in Rome for their assistance. The employees at the Archivio Segreto Vaticano provided invaluable support. The following archivists helped during these past years of research: Tiziana Cecchini at the Castello Orsini-Odescalchi in Bracciano, Michele Di Sivo at the Archivio di Stato in Rome, Don Romano and Elia Mariano at the Archivio di Santa Scolastica in Subiaco, Sabine Wagener at the Landesbibliothek und Murhardsche Bibliothek der Stadt in Kassel, Małgorzata Krzos at the Biblioteka Jagiellońska in Krakow. And last but not least, the help of all the librarians at the Mathewson-IGT Knowledge Center of the University of Nevada Reno cannot be overstated.

Introduction

Patronage is a microcosm of the systems and mechanisms that govern human relations and events. In Renaissance Italian society, it involved a complex network of familial and political relationships between clients and patrons, whose ideas, values, and norms of behavior were shared with the collective. It is a phenomenon that remains difficult to understand in its social, geographic, and artistic manifestations. The social system of early modern patronage, defined as “the action of a patron in supporting, encouraging, or countenancing a person, institution, work, art, etc.,” has drawn the attention of scholars from various academic fields.1 Cultural and social historians have used the terms clientelismo and mecenatismo to differentiate clientage, or socio-political patronage, from artistic patronage.2 However, one could argue that the distinctions between these two forms of patronage were not quite so sharp, and that they shared common, overlapping characteristics. Some aspects of political patronage can be found in artistic and musical patronage. Terms like servitore (servant) and padrone (lord or master), for instance, were common in both musical and political epistolary interactions during this era. They were not only used in compliance with a code of formal etiquette, but they were also declarations of an existent or expected subservience to the patron. Moreover, in both types of patronage, the patron was bound to this clientelistic exchange of obligatory reciprocity.3 In the field of musicology, pioneering research has shed light on musical patronage in notable Italian courts.4 These studies have sparked an interesting historiographical debate. Howard Brown contends that the study of patronage demonstrates “the relationship between an individual piece (or a particular genre) and the society that caused it to come into being.”5 Drawing from anthropological theory, Claudio Annibaldi challenges Brown’s beliefs about the relationship between music and the social milieu in which it was created. Annibaldi proposes a model of musical patronage that treats music as a symbol of the social status of a patron. Music could signify standing either “by displaying compositional qualities that parallel the sophisticated tastes of the class in question (humanistic patronage)” or “through reference to repertories traditionally associated with the elite class (conventional/institutional patronage).”6 While Brown and Annibaldi might appear to be on opposite sides of the issue, Annibaldi’s anthropological approach (far from being axiomatic) can be viewed as a valid response to Brown’s inquiry.

2 Introduction Both premises describe the patron-client-musician relationships and the network of clientage that characterized the patronage practices of the Italian nobility. Following the lead of Annibaldi, scholars have investigated the social construction of music as a reflection of early modern political hierarchies in relation to gender and feminist theories. The important works of Kelley Harness, on the Florentine co-regency of Grand Duchesses Maria Maddalena of Austria and Christine of Lorraine, and of Suzanne Cusick, on the musician Francesca Caccini, are exemplary of this.7 Other studies have questioned Annibaldi’s theories. Vincenzo Borghetti claims that Annibaldi’s criticism caused separation among scholars of humanistic and institutional patronage. He adds that the institutionalization of music is correlated to the “transformations of the court” in the early modern era.8 Tim Carter rejects the rigidity of Annibaldi’s semiotic interpretation (the singularity of purpose, and intrinsic function of music to symbolize the patrons’ social rank by way of appropriate sonic events), and terminology. Carter, using the example of court singer and composer Jacopo Peri, proposes to look at musical patronage from an economic perspective, as a relational field of transactions where things of value get traded, rather than a mere exchange of protections and submission.9 A more recent discussion on musical patronage took place at a conference held at Harvard University. Although the main focus of this meeting was the composer Luca Marenzio, some of the participants re-examined specific aspects of Annibaldi’s theory. Mauro Biagioli focused on methodological issues. Arnaldo Morelli contended that Annibaldi’s interpretative model is too simplistic because it does not fully take into account the socio-political context of that time. Both Morelli and Biagioli bring to fore the importance of brokerage in patronage. Jonathan Glixon, in discussing dedications and commissions in music printing, challenges Annibaldi’s idea that patrons were high-class members who possessed their distinctive and exclusive musical styles.10 In line with Glixon’s view, I contend that patronage in Rome was not merely confined to benefactors in the highest echelons of the nobility; individuals of lower social status were also actively involved. The myriad of dedications contained in the music editions published in this period (especially madrigal books) show that among the dedicatees of musical works were dukes, popes, and cardinals, as well as bishops, secretaries of courts, members of academies, and erudite humanists of lower rank. They could act simultaneously as patrons, brokers, and clients, and provide different levels of support to musicians. I also believe that, despite the existence of social class differences within and outside the courtly system, it is more beneficial not to view patronage dynamics strictly in hierarchical terms of power relations (a top-down way). The client (in our case, the musician) also retains freedom of choice and control over the patron, and the latter is also the client to some higher authority. It is a mutual and enduring system in which all clients have the capacity to be patrons to those lower down the ladder. Patron-client relationships should be examined on a case-by-case basis, because not all of them consisted of salaried court positions. On the contrary, financial remuneration often took the form of benefices, and recommendations to religious and civic appointments (canonries, positions in churches and courts,

Introduction  3 offices, etc.), which were obtained though the intercession of one or more patrons. The “objects” being exchanged in a patronage relationship may be material (money, compositions, books, etc.), but can also be intangible, such as performances, services, and courtesies. The patron provides favors to the client but holds obligations to him, and vice versa. Favors and obligations initiate short- or long-term interactions. In some cases, favors are provided with no expectations and benefits in return, being granted out of formal friendship (amicizia). This conception of patron-client relationship finds indeed resonance in the writings of contemporary writers. A case in point is Panfilio Persico, who served as secretary to cardinal Alessandro Orsini (1592–1626), to whom he dedicated his book Del segretario. In his discussion of Roman courtly life, specifically of the conventional aspect of congratulations letters, Persico asserts that “even patrons of great fortune who aim at having a great following of clients and courtiers do not lose the opportunity to congratulate even their inferiors because all friendships are useful at some point.”11 It is certainly not a coincidence that Persico used Rome as an example of the clientage system of late Renaissance society. The Eternal City was comprised of various courts and many potential patrons, including the pope (who kept changing), high prelates, foreign diplomats, and native nobles. These esteemed personages created an intricate web of patronage relationships. Consequently, the study of patronage networks in Rome is arguably more challenging than the study of the networks of other European centers. One way to understand the social realities of the patronage system in the city is to imagine a series of points connected by lines, with a single point representing a patron, his household and his closest relatives, and the lines the connections to other patrons, clients, and intermediaries. At the same time, one may speak of a vertical network of clients connected to a common patron. More attention, however, should be given to the fundamental role of brokers, who acted as intermediaries between patrons and clients, arranged negotiations, organized musical exchanges, and facilitated transactions.12 Despite the complexity and peculiarity of Roman society, the music historians who study patronage in the city gravitate toward the curial families connected to the pontifical court, local churches, and confraternities, all of which were under the influence of the pope.13 Unlike in some Italian cities, where political control was monocentric, Rome had centers of patronage outside the papal orbit. Research on local aristocratic families, such as the Colonnas and Orsinis, has focused on the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries.14 Musicologists have not investigated the activities of musicians or the cultivation of secular music within the broader network of Roman baronial families before this period. More specifically, little is known about the musical patronage of the Orsinis in the sixteenth and first half of the seventeenth centuries.15 I aim to fill that lacuna through this book, which takes the form of four chronologically interrelated studies. In the first chapter, I investigate the role of Felice Orsini (ca. 1530–1596) and her husband, Marco Antonio Colonna (1535–1584), in the artistic and social life of Rome. I discuss the madrigal in relation to the musicians linked to the Colonna-Orsini circle, with particular attention devoted to the encomiastic

4 Introduction compositions dedicated to the couple. Given the prominent position of these families in Rome and their strong familial ties to the Aragonese court of Naples, I focus on the villanella, especially on the composer Giovanni Leonardo dell’Arpa. The next three chapters focus on the leaders of the Orsini family: Paolo Giordano I Orsini (1541–1585), his son Virginio (1572–1615), and grandson Paolo Giordano II (1592–1656). They performed their identities as patrons-clients and situated themselves in the complex world of trade in different ways. Their patronage activities were deeply affected by their kinship ties to the Medicis, which created fluidity in the Roman-Florentine clientage system. Paolo Giordano I relied on his military skills and the support of his wife Isabella de’ Medici to acquire influence and prestige in Rome and Florence. I examine his role in the circulation of musicians between Naples, Florence, and Rome, and show that Paolo Giordano I was responsible for bringing Neapolitan musicians (including Scipione delle Palle, Caccini’s teacher) to the Medici court. In chapter 3 (a preliminary version of which appears in Early Music 42), I argue that Virginio Orsini represents an example of patron-client-intermediary in early modern Italy, specifically in Rome and Florence, where he exercised considerable influence. This relates to relationship of Duke Ferdinando de’ Medici with Virginio, who was a potential heir to the Medici throne (before the children of Ferdinando and Christina of Lorraine were born). Ferdinando used Virginio’s status as a buffer against any claims to the throne from Antonio, the illegitimate son of Grand Duke Francesco, keeping him close as a son. This placed Virginio in a very special position within the political, artistic, and musical network of clientage. But music historians hardly know about his role in the patronage of secular music. In addition to providing new information about composers working under Virginio’s secular sway (i.e., Luca Marenzio, Giulio Caccini, Emilio de’ Cavalieri, and some other prominent singers), I also discuss a Roman-Florentine group of poets and musicians who circulated around the Orsini and Medici courts and who had a profound impact on the spread of secular poetry and music. The case of Virginio is significant because it sheds light on the multiple functions that a powerful aristocrat could assume in the patronage and self-fashioning process. In chapter 4, I suggest that with Paolo Giordano II (Virginio’s son) the influence of the Orsinis in Florentine circles gradually decreased, and there was a shift in the family patronage. If Virginio was both a patron and mediator, Paolo Giordano II became more concerned with his image as a “patron” of music in his own right, and with projecting himself as a new-style Roman aristocrat. But whereas his father Virginio could operate almost for free on his Medici connections, gaining significant reputation as a result, Paolo Giordano II had to defray his own costs. This eventually led to the gradual dissipation of Orsini’s finances. Paolo Giordano II has attracted the attention of art historians, who have investigated his association with famous contemporary painters and sculptors like Gian Lorenzo Bernini. Musicologists, on the other hand, have not given him adequate consideration, in spite of a significant quantity of unexamined archival material. A systematic scrutiny of his private correspondences and financial records has allowed me to reconstruct the artistic and social contexts of his

Introduction  5 patronage in the papal city in the first half of the seventeenth century. I reveal new information about well-known composers such as Luigi Rossi and Stefano Landi, and I demonstrate Paolo Giordano II’s connections to these composers and to the emergence of vocal chamber music as a form of more intimate courtly entertainment.

Aspects of methodology The contemporary narrative accounts (diaries, avvisi, etc.) do not provide us with much information regarding sponsored musical events or the public occasions on which music was performed at the Orsini court.16 In addition to secondary literary sources, financial records, which include inventories and account books, and correspondences serve as the basis for this study. Such documentation usually lacks information about musical performances because most of the communication between patrons and court musicians was verbal (often through secretaries), and those conversations were rarely recorded in writing. There are also almost no letters written by household musicians to their benefactors or employers. Nevertheless, letters are essential to my historical reconstruction. Letters are not only antique artifacts, but also they tell stories, providing us with a view of how individuals from previous generations wrote, spoke, and interacted. They bring us into the daily lives of artists, politicians, and ordinary people. Given the contextual role of artists as uomini and donne di corte, I have relied on letters to reconstruct social interactions within the sphere of courtly patronage. Because personal and professional relationships in this period were conducted also through the medium of letter writing, it is necessary to examine surviving correspondences in order to understand the dynamics of patron-client relations. Studying the epistolary record provides us with a better understanding of the constitutive and strategic aspects of networking in relation to music. Even letters that, at first glance, may appear of no great concern, such as formulaic greetings at holidays and social events (religious festivities, condolences, etc.), served to forge, articulate, and reinforce patronage bonds. Studies by social anthropologists and cultural historians on network analysis have influenced my ideas of cultural interactions during the early modern era. As Jeremy Boissevain maintains: The social relations in which every individual is embedded may be viewed as a network. This social network may, at one level of abstraction, be looked upon as a scattering of points connected by lines. The points, of course, are persons, and the lines are social relations. Each person can thus be viewed as a star from which lines radiate to points, some of which are connected to each other. These form his first order or primary network zone. But these persons are also in contact with others whom our central person does not know, but with whom he could come into contact via members of his first order zone. These are the often important friends-of-friends. They form what might be called his second order zone. . . . Those who seek to establish relations with

6 Introduction powerful persons will try to convert their initial single-stranded transactional relations into multi-stranded moral ones. By transforming the transactional link into a moral one, they hope to gain greater access to the resources they control.17 This representation is an apt way of describing the patronage system of the secular nobility in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Rome. In Renaissance epistolary culture, the common practice of dedicating a music book or offering a composition through a letter often indicated the composer’s implicit intention to initiate a transactional relation with a potential patron. A musical gift represented a means for the writer to establish a moral relationship with a wealthy aristocrat and to seek acceptance sotto la sua protezione (under his protection). For a musician, this apparent hierarchical bond between patrons and clients in certain cases entailed a position at court. But in Rome, as demonstrated by some of the documents presented here, there were so many opportunities for casual or freelance employment. This increased the fluidity of the clientage system in the city, and affected the way members of the Orsini family engaged and interacted with the marketplace. Yet, as Mario Biagioli puts it, career advancement and “major leaps in social status could not be achieved by compounding the patronage of many small patrons but could result only from the patronage of a single great patron.”18 The careers of many of the composers and singers discussed in this book corroborate this. Although this study focuses on the patronage of Roman aristocrats, it also tells the story of the lives of contemporary musicians, integrating them into a broader historical context. These stories may have affected the narrative continuity of the book, but the new biographical information about the musicians employed by the Orsinis (or the people connected to them) are essential to understanding each entourage (salaried musicians, freelance composers, agents, etc.) and its influence in Rome. I strive to frame a coherent historical reconstruction based on the unpublished documentation available, but I am aware that both chronological and thematic approaches have limitations when working with such a vast quantity of letters and documents. I hope that historians will find these “small fruits of mine,” as a sixteenth-century composer would rhetorically say, useful for their own research. I also hope that readers interested in the poetry and music of Renaissance and early Baroque Rome will find something to enjoy here.

Notes 1 Quotation from Werner Gundersheimer, “Patronage in the Renaissance: An Exploratory Approach,” in Patronage in the Renaissance, ed. Guy Lytle and Stephen Orgel (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1982), 3. 2 For a more in-depth discussion of this subject, see Tracy Cooper, “Mecenatismo or Clientelismo? The Character of Renaissance Patronage,” in The Search for a Patron in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, ed. David Wilkins and Rebecca Wilkins (Lewiston, NY: Edwin Mellen Press, 1996), 19–32; Fred Kent and Patricia Simons, “Renaissance

Introduction  7 Patronage: An Introductory Essay,” and Ronald Weissman, “Taking Patronage Seriously: Mediterranean Values and Renaissance Society,” in Patronage, Art, and Society in Renaissance Italy, ed. Fred Kent and Patricia Simons (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1987), 1–21, 25–45. 3 For political patronage, see Sharon Kettering, “Patronage and Kinship in Early Modern France,” French Historical Studies 16, no. 2 (Fall 1989): 429–433. 4 This includes, but is not limited to, the following studies: Paul Merkley and Lora Merkley, Music and Patronage in the Sforza Court (Turnhout, Belgium: Brepols, 1999); Warren Kirkendale, The Court Musicians in Florence during the Principate of the Medici, with a Reconstruction of the Artistic Establishment (Florence: Olschki, 1993); Allan Atlas, Music at the Aragonese Court of Naples (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1985); Lewis Lockwood, Music in Renaissance Ferrara 1400–1505: The Creation of a Musical Centre in the Fifteenth Century (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1984); Iain Fenlon, Music and Patronage in Sixteenth-Century Mantua, 2 vols. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1980–1982); Anthony Newcomb, The Madrigal at Ferrara, 1579–1597 (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1980). 5 Howard Brown, “Recent Research in the Renaissance: Criticism and Patronage,” Renaissance Quarterly 40, no. 1 (Spring 1987): 10. 6 Claudio Annibaldi, “Towards a Theory of Musical Patronage in the Renaissance and Baroque: The Perspective from Anthropology and Semiotics,” Recercare 10 (1998): 176. See also Claudio Annibaldi, “Introduzione,” in La musica e il mondo: mecenatismo e committenza in Italia tra Quattro e Settecento, ed. Claudio Annibaldi (Bologna: Il Mulino, 1993), 9–43. 7 Kelley Harness, Echoes of Women’s Voices: Music, Art, and Female Patronage in Early Modern Florence (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2006); Suzanne Cusick, Francesca Caccini at the Medici Court: Music and the Circulation of Power (Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 2009). 8 Vincenzo Borghetti, “Music and the Representation of Princely Power in the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Century,” Acta musicologica 80, no. 2 (2008): 182–187. 9 See Tim Carter, “Monteverdi and Some Problems of Biography,” Journal of Seventeenth-Century Music 18, no. 1 (2012): par. 3.2, at www.sscm jscm.org/v18/no1/carter. html; Tim Carter and Richard Goldthwaite, Orpheus in the Marketplace: Jacopo Peri and the Economy of Late Renaissance Florence (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2013). Again, I am profoundly indebted to Tim Carter for sharing his ideas on patronage with me, and for making corrections and comments on previous drafts of the book manuscript. 10 See Claudio Annibaldi, “Social Markers in the Musical Market: The Patronage of Music in Marenzio’s Age in Light of His Madrigals,” Mauro Biagioli, “Between Signs and Symbols: Annibaldi, Marenzio, and the Patronage of Music,” Arnaldo Morelli, “Marenzio, the Courtier: Some Thoughts on Patronage on the Court of Rome,” and Jonathan Glixon, “There Are No Simple Answers: Patronage of the Late-SixteenthCentury Madrigal,” in Perspectives on Luca Marenzio’s Secular Music, ed. Mauro Calcagno (Turnhout: Brepols, 2015), 205–220, 221–226, 227–234, 243–250. 11 “Son anche molti signori di gran fortuna che mirando ad aver seguito di clienti e di cortigiani non lasciano occasione che lor si porga di congratularsi con gli amici anche inferiori, trovandosi realmente che tutte l’amicizie son buone a qualche tempo e fruttano,” Panfilio Persico, Del segretario libri quattro (Venice: Zenaro, 1629), 317. English translation from Mario Biagioli, Galileo Courtier: The Practice of Science in the Culture of Absolutism (Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 1993), 26. 12 Chapters 3 and 4 provide several examples of this. The figure of the broker has been studied within the context of science and poetry, see Biagioli, Galileo Courtier, and Janie Cole, Music, Spectacle and Cultural Brokerage in Early Modern Italy: Michelangelo Buonarroti il giovane (Florence: Olschki, 2011). I have examined a case of patron-broker in relation to music and diplomacy in the article “Musical Patronage and Diplomacy:

8 Introduction The Case of Prince Paolo Savelli (ca. 1632),” Journal of Seventeenth-Century Music 24 (forthcoming). 13 Some of the most representative studies on the patronage of curial families and ecclesiastical institutions in Rome during the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries are John Hill, Roman Monody, Cantata, and Opera from the Circles around Cardinal Montalto (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1997); James Chater, “Musical Patronage in Rome at the Turn of the Seventeenth Century: The Case of Cardinal Montalto,” Studi musicali 16 (1987): 179–227, Frederick Hammond, Music and Spectacle in Baroque Rome: Barberini Patronage under Urban VIII (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1994); Margaret Murata, Operas for the Papal Court, 1631–1668 (Ann Arbor: UMI Research Press, 1981); Jean Lionnet, Norma Deane, and John Whenham, “The Borghese Family and Music during the First Half of the Seventeenth Century,” Music & Letters 74, no. 4 (November 1993): 519–529; Claudio Annibaldi, “‘Il mecenate politico’: Ancora sul patronato musicale del Cardinale Pietro Aldobrandini (1575–1621),” Studi musicali 16 (1987): 33–93; 17 (1988): 101–178; Noel O’Regan, Institutional Patronage in PostTridentine Rome: Music at Santissima Trinita Dei Pellegrini 1550–1650 (London: Royal Music Association, 1995); Arnaldo Morelli, Il tempio armonico. Musica nell’oratorio dei Filippini in Roma, 1575–1705 (Laaber: Verlag, 1991). 14 See Valeria de Lucca, “Dalle sponde del Tebro alle rive dell’Adria: Maria Mancini and Lorenzo Onofrio Colonna’s Patronage of Music and Theater between Rome and Venice, 1659–1675” (PhD diss., Princeton University, 2011); “L’Alcasta and the Emergence of Collective Patronage in Mid-Seventeenth-Century Rome,” Journal of Musicology 28, no. 2 (Spring 2011): 195–230; “Strategies of Women Patrons of Music and Theatre in Early-Modern Rome: Maria Mancini Colonna, Queen Christina of Sweden, and Women of their Circle,” Renaissance Studies 25 (2011): 374–392; AnneMadeleine Goulet, “Le cercle de la princesse des Ursins à Rome (1675–1701): un foyer de culture française,” Seventeenth Century French Studies 33 (2011): 60–71; “Il caso della Princesse des Ursins a Roma (1675–1701): tra separatezza e integrazione culturale,” Recercare 23 (2012): 175–187; “Princesse des Ursins, Loyal Subject of the King of France and Foreign Princess in Rome (1675–1701),” in Music and Diplomacy from the Early Modern Era to the Present, ed. Rebekah Ahrendt, Marc Ferraguto, and Damien Mahiet (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2014), 191–207. 15 A brief introductory study on the musical patronage of the Orsinis is Ferdinad Boyer, “Les Orsini et les Musiciens d’Italie au début du XVIIe siècle,” in Melanges de Philologie D’histoire et de Litterature offerts a Henri Hauvette (Paris: Paillart, 1934), 301–310. As historians have demonstrated, beginning in the fourteenth century, the term “baronial” was used to indicate a restricted number of influential families that could vaunt a centuries-old presence in Rome, tracing their origins back to legendary Roman ancestors. Traditionally, their political and economic power was based on the control of feudal territories. Apart from the Colonna and Orsini families, there were few other prominent baronial clans in Rome, such as the Savellis, Contis, and Caetanis. For the musical patronage of the Savellis (in particolar of Prince Paolo) see footnote 12. I have researched the private archives of the Conti and Caetani families, but without significant outcomes. See Barbara Furlotti, “Baronial Families,” in Display of Art in Roman Palaces, 1550–1770, ed. Gail Feigenbaum (Los Angeles: Getty Research Institute, 2014), 76. See also Maria Visceglia, “La nobiltà romana: Dibattito storiografico e ricerche in corso,” in La nobiltà romana in età moderna: Profili istituzionali e pratiche sociali, ed. Maria Visceglia (Rome: Carocci, 2001), 13–41, and Sandro Carocci, “Una nobiltà bipartita: Rappresentazioni sociali e lignaggi preminenti a Roma nel Duecento e nella prima metà del Trecento,” Bullettino per l’istituto storico italiano per il medio Evo e archivio Muratoriano 95 (1989): 2–52. An in-depth study of Roman nobility is Richard Ferraro, “The Nobility of Rome, 1560–1700: A Study of Its Composition, Wealth, and Investments” (PhD diss., University of Wisconsin, Madison, 1994).

Introduction  9 16 The term court (corte) is intended here as the space and entourage around an aristocrat who exercised public authority over a territory (in this case, over feudal lands), over which he administered the legislative, financial, and military organization. The entourage of familiari at a baronial court, like at other princely establishments, ranged from guards and secretaries, to cooks and musicians. 17 Jeremy Boissevain, Friends of Friends: Networks, Manipulators, and Coalitions (New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1974), 24, 85. A recent study of networking in the Renaissance, specifically in Florence, is Paul McLean, The Art of the Network: Strategic Interaction and Patronage in Renaissance Florence (Durham: Duke University Press, 2007). 18 Biagioli, Galileo Courtier, 29.

1

L’Orsa e la Colonna The patronage of Felice Orsini and Marco Antonio II Colonna

Nepotism permeated many aspects of Roman civic life in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and curial families were among its chief beneficiaries. When a new pope came to power, his relatives and trusted friends took hold of the profitable vacant positions that opened with his election. The recurring change in the ranks in the Roman curia, which remained a central means for upward social mobility, was also the main cause of instability in the patronage networks. As a display of their new political power, curial families gave expression to their social status by building new palaces and churches and by taking under their protection prominent artists and literati. Although they contributed significantly to the shape of art and music in the pontifical city, their influence was destined to wane with the end of one pontifical reign and the beginning of a new one. Most of these families never managed to establish a bloodline that became integrated into the Roman nobility, whereas baronial families like the Orsini, Colonna, and Savelli had established themselves in the Middle Ages. So, long after the old curial families faded into obscurity, the baronial families continued to dominate definable areas of the city and to play roles in the socio-political and artistic life of Rome. The Colonnas and the Orsinis, who were leaders of the Roman aristocracy, acquired power and prosperity through papal support. They exercised hegemony both inside and outside Rome, where feudal authority was never subjugated. Although often threatened, they managed to maintain territorial supremacy. In the early fourteenth century, the Colonna family fought a defensive war against Pope Boniface VIII, who aimed to diminish their territorial influence in the Lazio region and Kingdom of Naples. When the pope died, the Colonnas regained some of their lost possessions, but they also initiated conflicts with the other baronial families, namely, the Orsinis and the Savellis. As a result, the Roman nobility separated into opposing factions. The election of Oddone Colonna as Pope Martin V (1417–1431) and the return of the papal court to Rome, which officially ended the Avignon papacy, increased his family’s dominion and guaranteed additional feudal territories. In the following decades, however, ongoing disputes with the church challenged the power of the Colonna family. This turbulent relationship reached its apex with the 1527 sack of Rome, a devastating event for the Eternal City. The Colonna

L’Orsa e la Colonna  11 family facilitated the incursion of the Spanish troops into Rome, contributing to the temporary defeat of the Papal State.1 The papacy, in particular Paul IV Carafa, never forgave the family for this, or for the political alliance between the Colonnas and Spain’s King Charles V. As punishment for these transgressions, the papacy confiscated Colonna lands, and it was only after the signing of the Treaty of Cave in 1557 that the Colonna family reacquired most of its fiefdoms. The marriage of Marco Antonio II Colonna (Figure 1.1) to Felice Orsini (Figure 1.2) on May 12, 1552, marked the highly anticipated alliance of two

Figure 1.1  Portrait of Marco Antonio II Colonna

Figure 1.2  Portrait of Felice Orsini Colonna (by permission of the Galleria Colonna)

L’Orsa e la Colonna  13

Genealogy Orsini-Colonna s nio I o onn

r

io

iro o Orsini r gon ie a

nn r gon

n onio II o onn

a

ro er o i oria a ri io an Geroni a Colonna

os n ran es o Cara aggio II Car inal

arrie or a s nio ro

i

o o ior Orsini

Orsini

i r s

a

aren s o arrie o

osi o I i i

r n s or ie a

i ni

o o ior Orsini

no I

Virginio II Orsini

Is

o

onor

o

i i

onor Orsini

no II

ro er o Car inal lessan ro an er inan o Orsini

Figure 1.3  Genealogy Orsini-Colonna

powerful baronial families that had long been separated by political and territorial rivalry (Figure 1.3). Marco Antonio was the son of Giovanna D’Aragona and Ascanio Colonna. His sisters were Geronima, who resided for most of her life in the Colonna palace in Naples, and Vittoria, the celebrated poetess and friend of Michelangelo. Marco Antonio is remembered today as the leader of the papal victory over the Turks at the Battle of Lepanto in 1571, as Duke and Prince of Paliano and Tagliacozzo, as Viceroy of Sicily (1577–1584), and as a warlord in sixteenth-century Italy. Idealized depictions of his military triumphs are still visible in the sumptuous frescoes that decorate the rooms of the Palazzo Colonna at SS. Apostoli in Rome. Like his mother, Marco Antonio was also interested in the figurative arts, poetry, and music.2 Felice Orsini was the daughter of Girolamo Orsini and Francesca Sforza. She and her brother Paolo Giordano I Orsini, the first Duke of Bracciano (chapter 2), were raised under the legal guardianship of their maternal uncle, Cardinal Guido Ascanio Sforza da Santa Fiora. The cardinal, an active patron in Rome, was responsible for their finances and their humanistic education. Felice Orsini became well-versed in poetry and possessed a theoretical and practical knowledge of music – skills valued as essential to courtly manners. Her grasp of musical notation transpires from a number of coded and deciphered dispatches (Figure 1.4), which also

i

14  L’Orsa e la Colonna

Figure 1.4  Coded dispatch of Felice Orsini Colonna, II.C.D.1.2197 (by permission of the Soprintendenza Archivistica e Bibliografica del Lazio)

show Felice at the center of secret intrigues. These notational signs, which she used to communicate with her husband and her mother-in-law, Giovanna d’Aragona, are associated with prominent contemporary political figures. The investigation of Felice and her husband’s contributions as patrons is a study of the intricacies of conjugal patronage. Felice’s role in artistic commissions and the hiring of musicians at court is difficult to assess due to the paucity of archival data and indistinct attributions. However, it would be a mistake to assume that

L’Orsa e la Colonna  15 she played no part in patronage decisions, even though the traditional patriarchal subset of patronage models would preclude her from any direct participation in the process. Art historian Roger Crum notes that “women in the Renaissance may often have initiated the patronage process, but their financial position and society’s dictates for their roles may have prohibited them from drafting and signing relevant documentation.”3 This appears to be untrue for many Italian cities like Florence, where there exists a strong enough tradition of female patronage. The case of Felice Orsini seems to support this idea. She assumed leadership of the household during her husband’s frequent and protracted absences, and also his legal, political, and bureaucratic duties. During the period of 1560–1577, there are indications of Felice’s connection to religious patronage in the city, particularly to the Oratorians. The epistolary correspondence preserved in the Colonna’s carteggio also reveals her involvement in secular poetry and music. Felice’s patronage participation extended beyond the confines of domestic life, taking place simultaneously in the private and the public spheres.4 As her letters show, she projected her identity by nurturing personal, diplomatic, and artistic relationships. Felice hosted a literary salon and maintained close connections with poets and musicians. A conspicuous number of encomiastic poems in honor of Felice appear in print and manuscript sources. Various anonymous sonnets are preserved in a miscellania of the Colonna’s archive in Subiaco.5 Others are found in Felice’s private correspondence, which discloses her personal relationships with humanists such as Margherita Sarrocchi and Giovanni Domenico Bevilacqua.

Felice alta Colonna: the madrigal in Colonna-Orsini’s circle Most of the archival documentation concerning the Colonna family in the first half of the sixteenth century is lost, and only a few account books dated after 1550 have survived. These include the mandati and libri mastri, but most administrative records are missing. Nonetheless, there are clear indications that the Colonnas were intensely involved with music from the beginning of the Cinquecento. The Colonna palaces in Rome (SS. Apostoli) and Naples (Mezzocannone) were the residences of Fabrizio Colonna (1450–1520), grand constable of the Kingdom of Naples, and hosted some of the most famous artists and musicians of that time. Among them were the poet Jacopo Sannazzaro and the composer Costanzo Festa.6 Festa’s connection to the Colonna family’s Roman-Neapolitan circle during his early musical career has escaped the attention of music historians, and we should reconsider the widely accepted hypothesis that he began his professional career as a madrigal composer under northern Italian patrons.7 The involvement of the Colonnas in the patronage of early madrigal composers is also evidenced in their support of the publication of Libro primo della serena, one of the first madrigal collections published in Rome.8 This is hardly surprising given that Giovanna d’Aragona, the mother of Marco Antonio and of the famous poetess Vittoria Colonna, was a renowned music lover. She separated from her husband, Ascanio, to seek refuge on the isolated island of Ischia, where she fostered literary and artistic talent.

16  L’Orsa e la Colonna Table 1.1  Printed music books dedicated to Marco Antonio Colonna and Felice Orsini AUTHOR

BOOK AND PUBLISHER

DEDICATED TO

Giovanni Battista Cimello

Libro primo di canti a quattro voci sopra madrigali e altre rime, Venice, Gardano 1548 Introduttione facilissima et novissima di canto fermo, figurato, Venice, Marcolini 1553 Il primo libro delle muse a quattro voci, madrigali ariosi Rome, Barre 1555 La nuova et armonica compositione a quattro voci Rome, Blado 1564 Il primo Libro di madrigali a tre voci, Venice, Scotto 1582 Il primo libro di mottetti a otto voci, Venice, Scotto 1582 Il primo libro delle lamentationi a quattro voci, Venice, Scotto 1583

Fabrizio and Marcantonio II Colonna Marcantonio II Colonna

Vicente Lusitano Antonio Barrè Giovanni Battista Martelli Pietro Vinci Pietro Vinci Pietro Vinci

Felice Orsini and Marcantonio II Colonna Marcantonio II Colonna Marcantonio II Colonna Marcantonio II Colonna Marcantonio II Colonna

As Table 1.1 shows, three out of seven prints dedicated to Marcantonio Colonna and Felice Orsini do not consist of madrigals, and one-third of the music prints (leaving aside the theoretical treatise by Vicente Lusitano) demonstrate his interest in sacred music. In 1548, the composer Giovanni Tommaso Cimello dedicated his Libro primo de canti a quatro voci to Marco Antonio and his brother Fabrizio. Cimello was employed in Naples and Rome by Giovanna d’Aragona Colonna and his son, to whom he remained connected until at least 1566.9 In this same year, Cimello was in correspondence with Cesare Gallo, secretary of Marco Antonio. Two letters indicate that the musician returned to Monte San Giovanni (a town under the control of the Colonnas), and that his patronage relationship with the Colonna family went beyond music, for it involved other personal and financial aspects.10 In the poem that precedes his Libro primo, Cimello says, “to be Roman is to conquer (or win), and [the Roman] never dies, and the high COLUMN never falls, but will always stand, ever greater.”11 The “high column” (alta Colonna), which recurs in a number of compositions, is a metaphorical reference to the Colonna family. In 1554, a book of five-voice madrigals by the composer Philippe de Monte was printed in Rome.12 It was dedicated to Honofrio Virgili, the secretary for Cardinal Flavio Orsini. Given Monte’s connection to the OrsiniColonna circle, it is not a coincidence that the phrases Colonna di smeraldo and In ferma alta Colonna appear in his encomiastic compositions: On a firm, high column my lord wears the spoils of a thousand victories and rests there, like wise love. From there,

L’Orsa e la Colonna  17 through the grace of God he spreads wisdom and valor, the fruits of heaven from his Holy Kingdom. In ferma alta colonna di mille spoglie il mio signor ad or s’indonna, e stassi come in suo bel saggio amore. Inde senno e valore in dei grazie qui sparge quanto, il ciel produce il suo bel regno santo. There is little doubt that this work was addressed to Felice and Marco Antonio II Colonna. The phrase alta Colonna used in conjunction with the topos of marriage can only be found in madrigals that were composed by musicians in the Colonna circle and dedicated to the couple. The year after the publication of Monte’s book, the Roman printer and musician Antonio Barrè sent to press the wellknown Primo libro delle muse, a collection of madrigali ariosi dedicated to the Felice Orsini and her husband.13 Barrè set to music Francesco Bellano’s five-stanza poem Sorgi superbo Tebro. The explicit allusion to the Tiber River in the first two stanzas reminds us that we are in Rome, the birth city of the Orsini and Colonna families. The bride and the groom (Felice and Marco Antonio) are represented as characters in an idyllic pastoral scene in which Hymeneo (Cardinal Ascanio Sforza di Santa Fiora), the god of marriage, honors their union while surrounded by nymphs. The remaining three stanzas extol the virtues of Felice, her uncle, and Marco Antonio. They begin with the metaphorical image of the rose, the heraldic symbol of the Orsini family, joined with the high column (alta colonna): It is now that the happy rose in the excellent column is grafted, and spreads her virtues, existing in herself like the rose on a stem, and her chaste perfume as well. Their noble descendants who now lie unseen, spreading their branches in every part, crowned with eternal glory they shall fly from Thule to Bactria, from one pole to the other. And like the parents, the grandfathers, and the uncle who wears the purple honor on his head. Having sent into oblivion every base thought, he shall bring the ancient fasces back to Rome. As the city, burning with such fine desire, shakes off already the servile yoke, and places its every hope in you alone, high column, and in you, happy rose. Happy since, on such a worthy stalk, you are burning with the fragrance of your virtues;

18  L’Orsa e la Colonna from hence, reaching the heavens your glory, and his own, shall be seen by the whole world. And you, o column who in such ardent zeal are bound to the happy flower. O happy you, that everyone loudly decrees you shall be happy only through Felice. Eccoti pur che la felice rosa nell’eccelza colonna oggi s’innesta, e come in stelo in lei sue virtù, e seco i casti odor spargendo assesta. La cui stirpe gentil che or giace ascosa, spargendo i rami in quella parte e in questa, cinta d’eterna gloria, andran a volo da Tilo e Battro a l’un e l’altro polo. E simile ai parenti, agli avi, al zio,14 che del purpure onor si orna la chioma. Ogni basso pensier posto in oblio farà veder gli antichi fasci a Roma, la quale, ardendo in così bel desio, squote già la servile oiosa soma. E sol in te ogni speranza posa, alta colonna, e in te Felice rosa. Felice, poiché in cosi degno stelo sei col odor di tue virtute accesa; onde insieme potran volando al cielo, esser tua gloria e sua dal mondo intesa. E tu, colonna che in ardente zelo sei col felice fior legato e presa. Felice te, che ogniun gridando dice che per felice sol sarai felice.

Example 1.1  Antonio Barrè, “Sorgi superbo Tebro,” mm. 7–12 (third stanza)

L’Orsa e la Colonna  19 This symbolism reappears in the secunda pars of the madrigal that follows, which is addressed to the powerful Cardinal di Santa Fiora (Hymeneo): Since, with such gallant knots the happy Hymenaeus binds together the high column and the happy rose, whose noble descent will make his name resonate from the faraway stream of the rich Ganges to the land where the sun sets. Poiché per te con sì leggiadri nodi il felice Imeneo ristringe insieme l’alta colonna e la felice rosa, la cui stirpe gentil farà che si odi il nome suo dalle belle onde estreme dal ricco Gange a dove il sol si posa. James Haar convincingly argues that some of these madrigali ariosi were intended for monodic performance and stemmed from a southern (Neapolitan) improvisatory tradition. This is suggested, above all, by their formulaic structure, wherein textual declamation is based on simple contrapuntal formulas made of a melody sustained by chordal progressions and on a bass harmonically subordinated to that melody.15 The emergence of the madrigale arioso in Rome was related to the flourishing of solo singing in Naples and to the strong familial ties of the Colonna-Orsini circle to the city. This Roman-Neapolitan patronage network was also vital for the early development of the villanella and the pseudo-monody of the commedia dell’arte during the 1540s and 1550s.16 As we will see shortly, some of the forerunners of Neapolitan monody (namely, Scipione delle Palle, Tommaso Cimello, and Giovanni Leonardo dell’Arpa) were active within the circle of the Colonna, Orsini, and Aragona families, who were connected through kinship. The musician Giovanni Battista Martelli eulogizes Felice and Marco Antonio in his La nuova, et armonica compositione a quattro voci (Rome, Antonio Blado, 1564), of which only the alto part survives. In the dedicatory preface to the work, Martelli openly acknowledges his allegiance to the house of Colonna and identifies himself as a pupil of Cimello (App. A, doc. 2). As previously, the opening madrigal of his book is a tribute to the alta Colonna: Felice Colonna, on whom the soul and heart of my dear Lord, lean. Woman who, in unusual fashion, illuminates our age with holy and chaste love. O sanctuary of honesty that shelters beauty, greatness, kindness, and honor. O true Goddess, as you are divine, grant me creativity and raise my songs.

20  L’Orsa e la Colonna Felice Colonna, in cui si appoggia del mio caro signore l’anima e il core. Donna che accendi in disusata foggia l’età nostra de un santo e casto amore. O d’onestate albergo dove alloggia beltà, grandezza, cortesia, onore. O vera dea, perché celeste sei dammi l’ingegno e alza i canti miei. This chaste image of Felice Orsini echoes the Marian imagery that prescribed appropriate feminine behavior and that viewed the identity of a woman strictly in relation to her husband’s expectations. The pious and morally upright depiction of Felice reinforces the male-centric conception of mother-wife and personifies spiritual purity. Martelli’s poetic-musical representation of Felice fits within the collective view of Early Christian matrons that was so deeply embedded in the minds of people living in Rome during the Counter-Reformation, especially in the religious circle of the Oratorians, of which Felice was part. Although this conservative and idealized vision of Felice Orsini as Blessed Virgin may appear in contrast to her public role as a woman patron and her interests in vernacular poetry and non-religious music, here is used precisely to justify placing Felice in such a prominent “public” role.

Pietro Vinci and Colonna’s patronage in Sicily Vinci was the most prolific of the Colonnas’ musicians. He was born in Nicosia, a small Sicilian town, and late in his career, he seems to have been under the patronage of Marco Antonio and his daughter Costanza Colonna (dedication in App. A, doc. 8). Vinci’s first book of three-voice madrigals contains a number of encomia that confirm his connection with their familial network. Viva la casa Colonna (“Long Live the House of the Colonna”) is followed by the six-verse madrigal Chi vol dell’alta prole, in praise of Costanza, her husband Francesco I Sforza di Caravaggio, and their daughter Faustina. To highlight the names of the two families, Sforza and Colonna, Vinci uses a declamatory syllabic treatment of the text: He who wants to hear and behold the honor, grace, wisdom, and valor of the noble offspring of the Sforza and the Colonna, brought together by heavenly designs, contemplate, listen to, and always behold Faustina, so beautiful, so noble, and so divine. Chi vol de l’alta prole Sforza e Colonna udir mirar l’onore, grazia, senno, e valore, raccolto insiem dalle celeste scuole, contempli, ascolti ogni, or miri Faustina, tutta bella gentil, tutta divina.

L’Orsa e la Colonna  21

Example 1.2  Pietro Vinci, “Chi vol de l’alta prole,” mm. 6–8

The glory of the Colonna is also celebrated in Ecco cinque guerrieri d’Italia. Here, the emphasis is on the “virtues and valor” of the family. Behold five warriors, honor of Italy, who follow in this new age the footsteps17 of their fathers and forebears and their virtue and valor. None among those that I see now blossoming among us guard the breast save these: Marco Antonio and Filippo Colonna, courteous brothers, and the three cousins, [so close as to] almost [make] one body, the Caraffeschi and my great Muzio Sforza. Ecco cinque guerrieri d’Italia, onore che i vestigi de padri e avi suoi, e la virtù e il valore mostran seguir in questa età novella. A tal che io vedo omai fiorir tra noi questi tolti non guarda la mamella: Marco Antonio e Filippo colonnesi, fratelli ambi cortesi, e i tre cugini quasi d’una scorza, i caraffeschi e il mio gran Muzio Sforza. A separate mention should be made of the two collections of sacred music composed by Vinci in honor of Marco Antonio (Table 1.1), which reflect the latter’s involvement in the patronage of religious art and music in Sicily. After his nomination to viceroy under the Spanish King Philippe II in 1577, Colonna exercised control over local churches and ecclesiastical institutions. He acted as a client-agent of Philippe II, and reorganized the royal musical chapel in Palermo, hiring talented musicians and supervising the musical activity of the cathedral.

22  L’Orsa e la Colonna There he was involved in the administration of singers, clerics, and canons (App. A, doc. 5). Additional documentation attests that Marco Antonio purchased various music books for the cappella musicale (App. A, doc. 10). These included bounded copies of masses, motets, and other sacred works, which were composed by Italian and Spanish musicians active in Rome, including some connected with the OrsiniColonna circle. Among them were Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (chapter 2), and the composer/theorist Diego Ortiz, who was a famigliare of Colonna in the years 1572–1576.18 The same payment records also reveal the existence of a heretofore-unknown book of masses by Pedro Guerrero. That the latter was connected with Colonna’s circle is attested by a letter of Guerrero to Marco Antonio Colonna’s son (Ascanio Colonna), in which the composer discusses his relocation to Sicily (Figure 1.5), and his appointment to a position at the Abbey of Bordonaro

Figure 1.5 Letter of Pedro Guerrero to Ascanio Colonna (1 April 1581), I-Aco, archivio Colonna, II.C.D, corrispondenza Ascanio Colonna (by permission of the Soprintendenza Archivistica e Bibliografica del Lazio)

L’Orsa e la Colonna  23 (App. A, doc. 4). At his vice regal palace, Marco Antonio sponsored lavish musical entertainments and commedie. He supported musicians such as Mauro Chiaula, from whom he commissioned the musical intermedi for the Atto della Pinta; and Mario Cangialosi, regarded by his contemporaries as “the most excellent lute player of Europe.”19 Regrettably, the dearth of archival material does not allow a more detailed assessment of Colonna’s patronage in Sicily during his royal appointment.

Dell’Arpa and the villanella in casa Colonna The villanella alla napoletana, with its rustic character and popular origins, was cultivated at court.20 This is especially true in the case of the Colonnas, who contributed to its diffusion within Naples and Rome. They supported two of the earliest and most representative composers of this genre, Tommaso Cimello and Giovanni Leonardo dell’Arpa. The emergence of the villanella and its peninsular dissemination through the printing market coincide with the 1545/46 publication in Venice of works by Cimello and few other Neapolitan musicians. Cimello’s Canzoni villanesche al modo napolitano a 3 voci (Venice: Gardano, 1545) is one of the earliest collections of villanescas. In 1562, the theorist Giovanni Camillo Maffei called Cimello a harbinger of the Neapolitan style of vocal ornamentation (passaggi). Maffei considered this a noble style of singing. The famous musician Giulio Caccini adopted this same designation in his Le nuove musiche (Florence: Marescotti, 1601) to describe the vocal ornamentation technique of his teacher, Scipione delle Palle (or del Palla), who was also a musician active within the Roman-Neapolitan orbit of the Colonnas and Orsinis. Maffei writes: Here, I briefly respond that it is certainly true that the disposition of the throat comes from nature, but without these rules of mine, it is impossible that one could learn the way to sing with passaggi . . . The true style of noble singing and pleasing the ear is to sing with passaggi. S.D. Giovanni Domenico da Nola, S.D. Giovanni Antonio Filodo, S. Stefano Lanno, S. Rocco, and, finally, S. Giovanni Tommaso Cimello also concur in this opinion.21 The music of Cimello and dell’Arpa was rooted in the vocal traditions of Naples. Their villanellas were often referred to as “arie napoletane” for their lyrical tunes and triadic harmonies, and they were improvised for solo voice and instrumental accompaniment. By 1558, dell’Arpa joined the circle of Giovanna d’Aragona. He was indeed asked to compose an aria on a poem (now lost) that celebrated the marriage of her daughter, Geronima Colonna (App. A, doc. 1). He also took part in important pre-operatic spectacles, including the intermedi for the comedies Alessandro and Gli ingannati. A few years later, dell’Arpa moved to Rome to enter the household of Marco Antonio and Felice.22 One of the interlocutors in Luigi Dentice’s Due dialoghi della musica (Giovanni Antonio Serone and Paolo Soardo) remarks on the beauty of the music that he heard in the house of d’Aragona, and

24  L’Orsa e la Colonna he provides the names of the musicians who took part in the performance with dell’Arpa: Serone: I waited for you for two long hours. Where, so full of astonishment, are you coming from? Soardo: From the house of the most divine signora donna Giovanna d’Aragona. Serone: Now, I am [no longer] surprised by your astonishment. Soardo: Why? Serone: Because signora donna Giovanna and her daughter, the divine signora donna Vittoria Colonna, were created by nature as a world miracle. Soardo: So it is, but [my] astonishment is caused by something else. Serone: By what? Soardo: By the music I heard in the same house . . . The musicians were the Neapolitan M. Giovanni Leonardo dell’Arpa, M. Perino from Florence, the Sicilian M. Battista, and M. Jaches from Ferrara. Serone: I have heard of them many times, and (in my opinion) they all get the first place in their respective instruments. Soardo: You speak the truth. Those who sang were S. Giulio Cesare Brancaccio, S. Francesco Bisballe Count of Briatico, S. Scipione del Palla, and another one who sang the soprano.23 These musicians (and Luigi Dentice) maintained patronage ties to Giovanna D’Aragona, her daughter Vittoria, and her son Marco Antonio. Some historians hypothesize that the “Jacques from Ferrara” mentioned by Dentice was the Ferrarese organist Brumel. However, there is no evidence that he ever traveled to or worked in Naples. We should keep open the possibility that the musician in question may be Jaches de Wert, whose early career was linked to Neapolitan patrons. As a boy, he was employed near Naples by Maria di Cardona, Marchioness of Padulla, and his presence in Aragona’s entourage seems to confirm his involvement with a wider circle of Neapolitan nobles. The formulaic and arioso style of Wert’s early madrigals further supports this hypothesis.24 It is important to note that dell’Arpa is mentioned with Giulio Cesare Brancaccio, who was at the court of Marco Antonio and his wife also in 1576, and Scipione delle Palle, Giulio Caccini’s master.25 They all contributed to the diffusion of the Neapolitan style of singing outside of Naples. The following legal document sheds additional light on dell’Arpa’s employment under Marco Antonio and his wife: Marcantonio Colonna, Duke of Tagliacozzo and great constable of the Kingdom of Sicily, sends greetings to the great man Giovanni Leonardo dell’Arpa of Naples, a most dear acquaintance of ours. The excellence of your life and morals, and other laudable merits of your probity and virtues, and especially of the art of music, in which you excel all others in what is commonly called Arpa, and the welcome services you have expended for us hitherto and still do not cease

L’Orsa e la Colonna  25 to expend in your customary pursuits, and which we hope you will demonstrate laudably in future, induce us to be liberal in our favor toward you. Since, therefore, we have determined in the months that have passed an annual provision of 200 ducats for as long as you live. . . . We promise that this confirmation, donation, concession and grant for you to have through both yourself and your heirs and successors, is ratified, pleasing and fixed, and we will at no time ever contravene it or side with a contravener. Therefore, we invest you with the said entrance monies stated above in any better way that we can, so that you are able to ask for and obtain royal assent, which we always respect, in the case of the said donation and assignation, and order each and every one of our officials, staff and exactors of the entrance monies of the said Lake Fucino, and of others in the state of Abruzzo, both at present and to come, and those whom it will concern in the future, to pay in full to you or your overseers the said annual 200 ducats at their times and in each of their thirds, or make it be paid, and in the receipt and exaction of this defend and guard you and them, nor introduce any impediment, or in any way contradict them or make them [be contradicted], but inviolably observe and make observed our present document and each of its contents to the letter, under the penalty of indignation and others of our judgment. In faith and testimony of which we ordered and had the present document undersigned by our hand be made at once, and corroborated by the impression of our usual seal. Sent from Marino in the palace of our customary residence on May 23, 1563. In the sixth indiction, in the fourth year of the pontificate of Our Most Holy Lord, Pope Pious IV by divine providence.26 The sum of 200 ducats was high in comparison with the average salary of contemporary musicians in Rome.27 The granting of a lifetime stipend is proof of reciprocal loyalty and obligation between Marco Antonio and dell’Arpa, which was not common in the clientage system of sixteenth-century Italy. It reflects dell’Arpa’s strategy to fix a source for his annual income, which helped securing it. Historians and philologists of the French Renaissance have used the term fidélité to indicate a similar stable patron-client relationship.28 Dell’Arpa’s long-term residency at the Roman court of Marco Antonio and his wife lasted no fewer than fifteen years (1563–1578). During this period, he composed his villanellas (Table 1.2) and published in various musical collections. The villanellas of dell’Arpa were highly esteemed in the musical-poetic circles of Naples and Rome.29 Although they were written in three parts, they were intended for monodic performance. A number of them retain recitational features and the characteristic elements of the madrigale arioso. For example, dell’Arpa’s O bella man ch’avanzi is characterized by a speech-like syllabic setting of the text and monotone recitation on simple chords. The vocal range within phrases is narrow. Similar stylistic traits are found in Bellezza ch’empi il ciel, an explicit tribute to Felice Orsini. The villanella Vorria crudel tornare also served as a compositional model for one of Cosimo Bottegari’s solo songs with lute accompaniment.

Example 1.3  Giovanni dell’Arpa, “O bella man ch’avanzi,” mm. 1–16

Example 1.4  Giovanni dell’Arpa, “Bellezza ch’empi il ciel,” mm. 10–16

Example 1.5a  Giovanni dell’Arpa, “Vorria crudel tornare,” mm. 1–9

Example 1.5b  Cosimo Bottegari, “Vorria crudel tornare,” mm. 1–6

Table 1.2  List of villanellas composed by Giovanni dell’Arpa TITLE

BOOK

PUBLISHER/YEAR

Bellezza ch’empi’ il ciel Dormendo mi sonniava Amor lasciami stare Un tempo ogn’hor Lucretia gentil Tanti migliara Villanella ch’all’acqua vai Gran pena sente l’huomo Io persi lo mio cor O belle trezze d’oro O bella man ch’avanzi Parti canzona mia Le donne a Roma Io navigan un tempo Do poi che tu crudel Un temp’ogn’hor piange La prima volta ch’io

Il primo Libro de Canzone Napoletane a tre voci, Di Jo. Leonardo Primavera

Venice: Scotto, 156517 (reprinted in 156614,157029)

Canzon napolitane a tre voci Di L’arpa, Cesare Todino, Joan Dominico da Nola

Venice: Scotto, 15669

Il primo libro delle villanelle alla napolitana, di D. Gio. Domenico da Nola Di Gioan Leonardo Primavera, Il Terzo Libro delle Villotte alla Napolitana a tre voci Corona Primo Libro delle Napolitane a tre et a quattro voci

Venice: Correggio, 156722 (reprinted in 156930,157027

La nobiltà di Roma versi in lode di cento gentildonne romane et le villanelle a tre voci

Venice: Scotto, 15718 (reprinted in 157319)

La persona che va Correte tutti quanti Giva cogliendo fiori O core di diamante Credeva che la fiamma Con ceppi e con catene Vorria crudel tornare Fra quante faccie

Venice: Scotto, 157031 Venice: Scotto, 157018 (reprinted in 15725)

28  L’Orsa e la Colonna Other composers connected to the Colonnas’ Roman-Neapolitan circle dedicated villanellas to the couple. In 1571, Pompilio Venturi published his Il secondo libro delle villanelle a tre voci (Venice: Scotto), which contained the compositions Felice alta Colonna and Ahime quest’occhi; the collection honored various Roman noble women, primarily from the Orsini and Colonna families. In 1574, Gaspare Fiorino sent to press his Libro terzo di canzonelle. The canzonella is a hybrid musical genre between the villanella and the canzonetta. It is different from the latter in its less frivolous poetic texts, but it retains the same general chordal and declamatory character. Many of Fiorino’s canzonelle commemorate the victory of the papal troops over the Turkish fleet at Lepanto on 7 October 1571.30 In particular, Questa Roma praises Marco Antonio’s role as military commander and immortalizes his triumphant entry into Rome (as it appears in the last two stanzas): O beautiful Rome, happy more than ever, rejoice for such a hero, and as superb examples erect statues and temples for this great son. And then write with golden letters on marbles. This is for Marco Antonio Colonna famous in every street, and the great conqueror of Turkey. O Roma bella più che mai felice, rallegrati d’un tanto cavaliero, e con superbi esempi a si gran figlio inalza statue e templi. E scrivi poi nei marmi a lettere d’oro. Questo è per Marco Antonio colonnese chiaro per ogni via, e gran trionfator della Turchia. In the years after the Battle of Lepanto and the consequent appointment of Colonna to Viceroy of Sicily (1577), dell’Arpa and seven other musicians were in the entourage of Marco Antonio and his wife: Antonio Messia, Antonino basso, Giovan Paredes, Pietro Losco, Michel Monente, Michel Dorati (trombone player), and an unnamed contralto. They were engaged from May 1577 until January 1578; however, the absence of additional documentation prevents us to determine with precision how long they served at the Colonna court. Marco Antonio provided them with a rental space, in addition to a small stipend, food and board (companatici).31 By the end of 1577, dell’Arpa returned to Naples to join the household of Marco Antonio’s sister, Geronima Colonna. A number of letters (Figure 1.6) show that, after Felice temporarily relocated with her husband to Palermo, the composer maintained a close and enduring relationship with her. They are also revealing of how dell’Arpa held some balance of power in their patronage relationship.

L’Orsa e la Colonna  29 He wrote to Felice to thank her for the help of her husband in an unspecified matter. Later, he sent his Christmas wishes, regretting his inability to play music and sing before her (App. 1, docs. 3, 6). On 23 March 1582, dell’Arpa apologized for not having being able earlier to provide Felice with an oratione that he had composed, due to a medical impediment (App.1, doc. 7). However, “indisposition” was a conventional excuse that recurs often in epistolary interactions. It played on the obligations between patron and client; the benefactor should “protect” the musician (client), so should accept illness as a justification. Coincidentally, Felice did the same on the following year (30 March 1583): Most magnificent Sir, I have not yet acknowledged receipt of the two beautiful villanellas that you sent me in the past few days because of an indisposition that has quite troubled me. Having now recovered from it thanks to the mercy of our Lord, I write this letter to thank you for your continued remembrance to share with me the fruits constantly born of the fine skill of that sweet harp.32

Figure 1.6 Letter of Giovanni dell’Arpa to Felice Orsini (23 December 1581), I-Aco, archivio Colonna, II.C.E, corrispondenza Felice Orsini (by permission of the Soprintendenza Archivistica e Bibliografica del Lazio)

30  L’Orsa e la Colonna Felice acknowledges the receipt of the villanellas, thanking dell’Arpa for his “gift” with a very courteous letter. Perhaps, in her eyes the villanellas were a proof of dell’Arpa’s fidelity. Furthermore, Felice’s appreciative words for dell’Arpa’s compositions seem to imply that either Felice or unnamed musicians in the Colonna household performed the music. Given that there is evidence of women patrons privately performing solo songs on the lute within the domestic sphere, it seems likely that Felice played the compositions. Felice’s sister-in-law, Isabella de’ Medici, is a case in point. As we will see in chapter 2, she cultivated her interest in villanellas and Neapolitan songs through her husband, Paolo Giordano I Orsini, Felice’s brother. Although dell’Arpa retained a lifetime annual income, he was a relatively free musician who gained considerable power in the musical market. He moved around between the households of Felice and Geronima Colonna, possibly earning additional money as well. He could be called to serve, but also had other moral obligations to fulfill. Dell’Arpa continued to perform in various ensembles at the Colonna court. An anonymous dispatch shows that he participated in musical entertainments organized by Marco Antonio and his wife. Among the musicians involved in this event was Cesare Zoppino, who had composed the musical intermedi for gli Ingannati (in which dell’Arpa, Dentice and del Palla also took part): Much excellent music was performed by Giovanni Leonardo on the harp, Antonio Mescia on the lute, Cesare Zoppino on the violone, the Abbate Pigliano on the harpsichord, and another [musician] on the sordelline. . . . After having sung and played a piece, His Excellency ordered dancing.33 The affiliation of dell’Arpa and Messia with the House of Colonna is confirmed by the documents heretofore discussed, and further references in the Tempio armonico della Beatissima Vergine (Rome: Nicolò Muti, 1599), which was dedicated to Geronima Colonna and has been regarded as a foundational work in the prehistory of the oratorio. It is a collection of three-voice laude by composers active in Naples and Rome, which, as stated in the dedication, were intended for monodic performance.34 Four works by the previously mentioned Abate Pitigliano are also preserved in this print. From 1584, the year of the death of Marco Antonio, until the first months of 1595, there are no records of dell’Arpa in the Colonna archive. In September of 1595, he returned to Felice and her son Cardinal Ascanio in Rome. Account books report recurring payments to him until December of 1602.35 Dell’Arpa remained connected to Felice until her death in 1597, and he retained the most stable musical position in the Colonna household. More importantly, his career and his musical output suggest that the villanesca alla napoletana, the main genre from which monodic practice in Rome stemmed, was cultivated in the RomanNeapolitan circle of Felice and her husband from at least the early 1560s. As we will see in chapter 2, other Neapolitan composers of villanellas and monody were active in Rome, at the court of Felice’s brother, Paolo Giordano I Orsini.

Appendix A

1. October 1558, anonymous poet to Giovanna Colonna d’Aragona. I-SUss, archivio Colonna, II. C. D, corrispondenza Giovanna d’Aragona. The poet wrote a composition for the wedding of Geronima Colonna, and decided to send it to her mother, Giovanna d’Aragona. He explains that the poem is complete, but would like to bring it to her in person. He also suggests to give the text to Giovanni Leonardo dell’Arpa, who will set it to music (as an aria) for the singer Femia.   Vostra eccellenza si può ricordare che quando le diedi il sonetto che io feci per lo signor Marco Antonio, stando egli a Gaeta, le dissi ancora che avevo cominciato un componimento per lo maritaggio de signora donna Geronima. Or questo componimento son molti giorni che è finito, ma perchè desideravo darlo io di mia mano l’ho ritenuto trattenuto appresso di me, sperando pur di poter riuscir a portarglielo . . . credo che riuscirebbe assai bene in canto, e massimamente se Giovanni Leonardo ci facesse l’aria, la quale cantata da Femia darebbe assai dilettazione, e ogni uomo desiderarebbe veder tutta l’opera, e piacerebbe più. 2. Rome, December 1, 1564, Dedicatory preface of Giovanni Battista Martelli to Marco Antonio II Colonna. This dedication confirms that Martelli studied with Tommaso Cimello, a composer connected with Colonna’s circle.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signor e padron mio osservandissimo il signor Marco Antonio Colonna   La virtù e bellezza d’animo di vostra eccellenza (così questa non mai lodata abbastanza, come quella non mai reverita a pieno) accendono meraviglioso desio nella mente di ciascuno di consacrarle l’animo con perpetua servitù. E poiché tutto il mondo vede quanto ella è officiosa e amorevole nel favorire i virtuosi, ben è degna che non meno a giorni d’oggi che a tempi passati tutte le persone onorate cerchino d’appoggiarsi a questa real colonna, in ogni età conosciuta alta per nobiltà e esperimentata forte per virtù. Onde io umilmente la supplico che non si sdegni fra l’onorata schiera dei virtuosi (li quali vivon lieti per vedersi favoriti da vostra eccellenza, per aver ella con occhio si benigno raccolti i loro preziosi frutti) che io sono di virtù il più povero e di frutti il più sterile, le comparisca innanzi con queste mie poche

32  L’Orsa e la Colonna fatiche musicali, messe pur ora in luce non per desio di gloria, ma per dar saggio d’onesto esercizio. E siccome non ho avuto altro maestro che messer Giovanni Tommaso Cimello, il quale gioisce sotto la servitù sua, così ho voluto che esse non abbino altro padrone che vostra eccellenza. Come cose dunque nelle quali lei ha giuridizione quali sieno, glie le presento accompagnate con ogni mia devozione, per pregarle sempre conforme alla grandezza de meriti suoi perpetua felicità dalla maestà divina, e con ogni reverenza le bacio le mani. Di Roma al primo di dicembre 1564. Di vostra eccellenza umilissimo servo Giovanni Battista Martelli. 3. Naples, 1578 (no date), Giovanni dell’Arpa to Felice Orsini Colonna. I-SUss, archivio Colonna, II.C.E, corrispondenza Felice Orsini. Shortly after Marco Antonio and his wife temporary relocated to the vice regal court in Palermo (Sicily), dell’Arpa moved to Naples in the household of Geronima Colonna (Marco Antonio’s sister). From there, he wrote the following letter to thank them for the favors received, and to remind them of his continuous obligations.   Illustrissima e eccelentissima signora e patrona unica   Ancor che l’ordine che ha mandato sua eccellenza al banco di composta e corcione m’abbia sollevato da terra, me ha dato spirto e vita il veder secondo la eccellenza vostra me ha fatto favore de scrivermi. Che prima che giungessero le mie lettere in Palermo, già sua eccellenza da sé si era ricordato d’aggiutarmi e farmi grazia, da donde io prendo sicurita e speranza, che si bene sto lontano dalla presentia loro, non sono però lontano dalle solite e benigne grazie loro. Io vorrei scrivere venti fogli di carta per complarmi, parendomi col scrivere de parlar con li miei signori e patroni de tanti anni, ma perché ne servizio ne facendome sforza ad scrivere lungo, faccio con questa fine pregando iddio benedetto che la contenti e prosperi come io suo schiavo desidero, con che umilmente bacio le sue illustrissime mani e piedi. Da Napoli, di vostra signoria illustrissima e eccellentissima umile schiavo che lavora   Giovanni Leonardo dell’Arpa 4. Madrid, 1 April 1581, Pedro Guerrero to Ascanio Colonna. I-SUss, archivio Colonna, II. C. D, corrispondenza Ascanio Colonna. Guerrero informs Marco Antonio Colonna’s son (abbot Ascanio, who was not yet cardinal) of his impending relocation to Sicily. King Philippe II appointed him to an unspecified position at the Abbey of Bordonaro.   Illustrissimo signor mio padron osservandissimo   Avendomi io da partire brevemente per Sicilia per satisfare alla obligazione che sua maestà mi ha posto dell’abadia di Bordonaro, e non mi essendo concesso potere andare a baciar le illustrissime mani di vostra eccellenza come devo, lo fo per questa, supplicandola si voglia degnare d’accettare questa mia voluta tenendomi nella buona grazia di vostra eccellenza illustrissima come uno delli più minimi servitori, come sempre mi son reputato. E vostra eccellenza illustrissima mi accettò quando le baciai le mani in Alcalà, supplicandola mi voglia comandare se in questo mio viaggio, o in quella mia

L’Orsa e la Colonna  33 chiesa, potrò servire in alcuna occorrenza. Nostro signore Dio conceda a vostra eccellenza ogni colmo di felicità e exaltazione, come i suoi così desideriamo. Di Madrid a primo d’aprile 1581. Di vostra eccellenza illustrissima devotissimo servitore   Don Pedro Guerriero 5. Lisbon, 29 November 1581, copialettera of Philippe II to Marco Antonio II Colonna. V-CVasv, fondo Colonna, busta 102, no page number. The King of Spain instructs Colonna to obtain information about the ecclesiastical privileges of the canons and clerics of the royal chapel. They had to sing during the Divine Office, canonical hours, and the Blessed Sacrament (Eucharist).   Lettera dello già detto re di Spagna al sudetto eccellentissimo duca Marco Antonio Colonna, vicerè di Sicilia, colla quale gli incarica che prendi informazione sopra li privilegi che asseriscono avere li canonici e clero di San Pietro di palazzo di cantare nella detta chiesa li divini offici e l’ore canoniche nella cappella reale avanti il Santissimo Sagramento, e altre funzioni ecclesiastiche, e inviarla alla maestà sua acciò possi risolvere quello che sarà di maggior servizio di sua maestà. Data in Lisbona li 29 di novembre 1581. 6. Naples, December 23, 1581, Giovanni dell’Arpa to Felice Orsini. I-SUss, archivio Colonna, II.C.E, corrispondenza Felice Orsini. Dell’Arpa sends his Christmas wishes to Felice Orsini, and regrets to be far away and not being able to sing and play the harp for her.   Illustrissima e eccellentissima signora e patrona mia unica   Se io fossi ora in Palermo, daria a vostra eccellenza le bone feste con l’arpa cantando, ma trovandomi qua con bona grazia di vostra eccellenza, glie li mando con l’animo pregando il re del cielo che guardi sua illustrissima e eccellentissima persona felicissimamente, alla quale bascio li piedi, da Napoli adi xxii dicembre 1581. Di vostra signoria illustrissima e eccellentissima umile schiavo   Giovanni Leonardo dell’Arpa 7. Naples, March 23, 1582, Giovanni dell’Arpa to Felice Orsini. I-SUss, archivio Colonna, II.C.E, corrispondenza Felice Orsini. Dell’Arpa sends a spiritual poem (orazione) to Felice, and apologizes for not having done so earlier, due to a medical indisposition.   Illustrissima e eccellentissima signora e patrona mia unica   Avendo io raccolto dal mio orticello rustico in questi giorni di Quadragesima un poco di frutti spirituali, i quali ho colti dopo che io sono stato un poco indisposto, protestandomi a Dio benedetto como l’eccellenza vostra leggerà nella mia orazione, gli mando a vostra eccellenza per tributo come schiavo che gli sono, sapendo quanto ella è affezionata di leggere cose spirituali. E sel verso è bascio appresso como è il mio ingegno, prendami il soggetto poi che io prego a re del cielo, dal quale venga alla eccellenza vostra ogni felicità e

34  L’Orsa e la Colonna contento. Da Napoli adi xxiii marzo 1582. Di vostra signoria illustrissima e eccellentissima umile schiavo   Giovanni Leonardo dell’Arpa 8. Venice, 1582, Dedicatory preface of Pietro Vinci to Marco Antonio II Colonna. Vinci gives valuable information about his life. He tells us that the role of Marco Antonio was crucial for his career, which started in Sicily, when Colonna was nominated Viceroy. From there, Vinci moved to Tuscany (Livorno), and Lombardy (Bergamo), where he also served Costanza Colonna, Marchioness of Caravaggio (daughter of Felice Orsini and Marco Antonio) and her husband Francesco I Sforza.   All’illustrissimo e eccellentissimo principe il signor Marco Antonio Colonna, duca di Paliano, e di sua maestà cattolica viceré in Sicilia, signor e patron suo sempre osservandissimo   Volse la fortuna mia, illustrissimo e eccellentissimo principe, che molti anni fa mi levassi da cotesto regno di Sicilia e dalla patria mia di Nicosia, e che ne fossi condotto in Toscana, dove ebbi il primo albergo a Livorno, e d’indi poi in Lombardia, e che vagassi e che scoressi per le principali città, nelle quali sempre fui da diversi gentiluomini veduto caramente, e or da quello or da quell’altro trattato onorevolmente. E fra poco feci tanto che or ero chiamato, a questa chiesa principale or a quell’altra, ad esercire questa professione mia della musica, e ultimamente ad istanza d’amici miei e signori fui sforzato fermarmi nella città di Bergamo, principale musico e onorevolmente stipendiato, dove son vissuto da dodici anni. Nel qual tempo è piaciuto a nostro signore che abbi usata molta servitù all’illustrissima signora sua figliuola, la signora Costanza, marchesa di Caravaggio, ritratto vero di vostra eccellenza illustrissima, per bontà della quale so che l’eccellenza vostra illustrissima s’è mossa a conferire diversi benefici a miei parenti in cotesto regno. Ora, signore eccellentissimo, dovendo io ritornare alla patria per godere i miei parenti, e insieme i tanti benefici ricevuti dall’innata cortesia di vostra eccellenza illustrissima, ne sapendo con qual mezzo mi potesse esser concesso il venire a fargli umilissima riverenza, e insieme in parte almeno ringraziarla dei tanti benefici, ho giudicato poterlo fare per mezzo d’una dell’opere mie, dedicandola alla grandezza di vostra eccellenza illustrissima come faccio, la qual supplico umilissimamente non riguardare al picciol dono ma si bene alla prontezza dell’animo mio, che pregarò nostro signore che mi presti spirito per l’avenire di cose maggiori, e che fra tanto a lei doni il colmo di ogni suo desiderio. 9. Naples, June 17, 1583, Giovanni dell’Arpa to Felice Orsini. I-SUss, archivio Colonna, II.C.E, corrispondenza Felice Orsini. Dell’Arpa is expecting a letter from Felice Orsini, which has not yet arrived. He humbly and politely solicits her to send it to him.   Illustrissima e eccellentissima signora e patrona osservandissima   Io non scrivo a vostra eccellenza perché cognosca che io li sono grato e affezionato schiavo, che questa è troppo chiara cosa. Ne scrivo perché mi

L’Orsa e la Colonna  35 abbia addolere della mia poca fortuna e in dignità, non venendo ad favorirmi con quella lettera del suo secritario, ne scrivo se mi favorisca ormai che questo saria troppo ardire e presunzione, ma solo per farli riverenza, inchinandomi alli soi piedi e quelli basciali pregar Dio per la salute della sua eccellentissima e regal persona. Da Napoli, 17 giugno 1583. Di vostra signoria illustrissima e eccellentissima schiavo umile   Giovanni Leonardo dell’Arpa 10. List of music books purchased for the royal chapel in Palermo. V-CVasv, fondo Colonna, busta 99.   23 September 1577 (fol. 100v): Magnifico signor vi si manda una lista di libri di canto che dimandavano questi musici. Nota de li libri che si comprano per sua eccellenza: Il primo, secondo, e terzo libro delle messe del Palestrina (4.10), il primo, secondo, e terzo libro de mottetti del detto (7.40), libri de vespri de Ortiz (7.80).   27 October 1581 (no page number): Messe del Guerriero ligate in un pezzo (5 scudi), messe del Vittoria ligate in un pezzo (5 scudi), messe dell’Animuccia ligate (2 scudi), inni e magnificat in un corpo due pezzi (7.50), laude dell’Animuccia in otto pezzi (1.30), messe del Palestrina 6 volumi quattro libri (1.10), per la cassa (0.40), per la tela incerata (0.60), per la fittuccia (0.30). 23.20 (scudi) di moneta quali sono per prezzo delli sopra detti libri di musica che avemo comprati per servigio della nostra cappella in Palermo.

Notes 1 For more information on the history of the Colonna family in Rome, see Filadelfo Mugnos, Historia dell’augustissima famiglia Colonna (Venice: Turrini, 1648); Pompeo Litta, I Colonna di Roma (Rome: S.I.T., 1837); Antonio Coppi, Memorie colonnesi (Rome: Salviucci, 1855); Rodolfo Lanciani, “Il patrimonio della famiglia Colonna al tempo di Martino V (1417–1431),” Archivio della società romana di storia e patria 20 (1897): 369–449; Pietro Colonna, I Colonna dalle orgini all’inizio del secolo XIX (Rome: Istituto Farmacologico Serono, 1927); Pio Paschini, I Colonna (Rome: Istituto di Studi Romani, 1955); Vincenzo Celletti, I Colonna principi di Paliano (Milan: Ceschina, 1960); Judith Hook, “Clement VII, the Colonna and Charles V. A Study of Political Instability of Italy in the Second and Third Decades of the Sixteenth Century,” European Studies Review 2 (1972): 284–299; André Chastel, Il sacco di Roma (Turin: Einaudi, 1983); Andreas Rehberg, “Colonna,” in Le grandi famiglie Italiane, ed. Volker Reinhardt (Vicenza: Neri Pozza, 1996), 210–229. 2 A comprehensive account of Marcantonio’s life and career is Nicoletta Bazzano, Marco Antonio Colonna (Rome: Salerno Editore, 2003). For a discussion of his involvement in the patronage of the figurative arts, see Fausto Nicolai, “Pittura di storia e nascita di un mito: il Trionfo di Marcantonio Colonna nella fortezza di Paliano,” in Arte e committenza nel Lazio nell’età di Cesare Baronio: atti del convegno internazionale di studi, Frosinone, Sora, 16–18 Maggio 2007, ed. Patrizia Tosini (Rome: Gangemi, 2009), 267–293; Fausto Nicolai, “La committenza artistica di Marcantonio II Colonna: le decorazioni pittoriche dei palazzi ‘Della Torre’ ai Santi Apostoli, di Pio IV sulla via Flaminia e gli esordi romani di Scipione Pulzone,” Studi Romani 56 (2006): 278–319. A biographical study of Felice Orsini is still lacking.

36  L’Orsa e la Colonna 3 Roger Crum, “Controlling Women or Women Controlled? Suggestions for Gender Roles and Visual Culture in the Italian Renaissance Palace,” in Beyond Isabella: Secular Women Patrons of Art in Renaissance Italy, ed. Sheryl Reiss and David Wilkins (Kirksville: Truman State University Press, 2001), 41. 4 For an in-depth discussion of women’s public/private spheres and their involvement in early modern art patronage, see Dorothy Helly and Susan Reverby, eds., Gendered Domains: Rethinking Private and Public in Women’s History (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1992); Cynthia Lawrence, “Introduction,” in Women and Art in Early Modern Europe: Patrons, Collecteurs, and Cononosseurs, ed. Cynthia Lawrence (University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1997), 1–20. 5 Archivio Colonna (AC) Arch. II A 18/55. Numerous poems to Felice were printed in anthologies, including Muzio Manfredi, Per donne romane: Rime di diversi raccolte e dedicate al Signor Giacomo Buoncompagni (Bologna: Alessandro Benaco, 1575); Don Benedetto dell’Uva, Le Vergini prudenti (Florence: Sermartelli, 1582). 6 The circle around Fabrizio Colonna also included the musician “Paolon Fiammingo.” See Bartolomeo Capasso, “Il palazzo di Fabrizio Colonna a Mezzocannone,” Napoli nobilissima. Rivista di topografia e arte napoletana 3 (1894): 53. 7 In this regard, Donna Cardamone asserts that “at the beginning of a promising career as madrigal composer, Costanzo Festa seems to have stimulated more interest in northern Italian circles than in the south.” See her “Madrigali a Tre et Arie Napoletane: A Typographical and Repertorial Study,” Journal of the American Musicological Society 35, no. 3 (Fall 1982): 442–443. 8 For this last aspect, see Stefano Campagnolo, “Il Libro primo della serena e il madrigale a Roma,” Musica disciplina 50 (1996): 95–133. 9 There is no documentary evidence that the relationship between Colonna and the composer continued after 1567. For Cimello’s life, see Maria Lopriore, “Cimello, Tommaso,” in Dizionario biografico degli Italiani, at www.treccani.it. For an edition and discussion of his music, see “Giovanthomaso Cimello,” The Collected Secular Works, ed. Donna Cardamone and James Haar (Middleton: A-R Editions, 2001). James Haar, “Giovanthomaso Cimello as Madrigalist,” in The Science and Art of Renaissance Music, ed. Paul Corneilson (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1998), 239–270. 10 The letters, which do not not touch upon musical matters, are in I-SUss, archivio Colonna, corrispondenza I, Cimello to Cesare Gallo, 27 March and 30 August 1566. 11 “Casus, ROMANUM est vincere, & illa pati. Que nunquam cecidit, nunquam cadet alta COLUMNA.” Quoted from “Giovanthomaso Cimello,” in The Collected Secular Works, ed. Donna Cardamone and James Haar, page 51. 12 Philippe de Monte, Il primo libro di madrigali a 5 voci (Rome: Dorico, 1554). 13 Antonio Barre, Il primo libro delle muse (Rome: Antonio Barre, 1550). The most exhaustive analysis of this music book is Stefano Campagnolo, “La danza delle muse: il primo libro delle muse, madrigali ariosi di Antonio Barrè (1555), e il madrigale a Roma (1527–1559)” (PhD diss., University of Pavia, 1999). 14 The following corrections in the original text have been made: “simul” has been changed to “simil,” and the repetition of “ai parenti” has been omitted. 15 James Haar, “The ‘madrigal arioso’: A Mid-Century Development in the Cinquecento Madrigal,” Studi musicali 12 (1983): 203–219; Howard Brown, “Petrarch in Naples: Notes on the Formation of Giaches de Wert’s Style,” in Altro Polo, Essays in Italian Music of the Cinquecento, ed. Richard Charteris (Sydney: Frederick May Foundation, 1990), 16–50. 16 See Claude Palisca, “Vincenzo Galilei and Some Links between ‘Pseudo-Monody’ and Monody,” Musical Quarterly 46, no. 3 (July 1960): 344–360; Alfred Einstein, The Italian Madrigal (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1949), 836–849. 17 Vestigi can be translated in English as vestiges. Here, however, it is closer to the Latin origin of footsteps or footmarks, which is also the first definition given in the 1612 Crusca dictionary. Scorza literally means bark or peel or skin, but metaphorically it can assume different semantic connotations, among these, body.

L’Orsa e la Colonna  37 18 Monthly payments (3.75 scudi) to Ortiz can be found in V-CVasv, fondo Colonna, busta 62 (April 1572–December 1573), busta 99 (mandati 1575–1580), ff. 26v (May 1575), 35r (19 January 1576), 76r (March 1576), 52v, 63v (April 1576), 66v (May 1576), 75v (August–September 1576). 19 “Il più eccellente uomo di toccare un leuto che abbia l’Europa,” quoted from Ottavio Tiby, I polifonisti siciliani del XVI e XVII secolo (Palermo: Flaccovio, 1969), 114. No additional information regarding Calgialosi’s life and music can be found. Marco Antonio’s activity as sponsor of courtly musical entertainments in Palermo is mentioned by the writer Vincenzo di Giovanni in his manuscript book Palermo restaurato, which was compiled in 1627. See Vincenzo di Giovanni, Palermo restaurato, ed. Mario Giorgianni and Antonio Santamaura (Palermo: Sellerio, 1989), 16, 327. Colonna was also connected with the Neapolitan bass singer Giulio Cesare Brancaccio and the Spanish composer Sebastiano Raval. The latter dedicated his Il primo libro di canzonette a 4 voci (Venice: Vincenti, 1593) to Marco Antonio’s nephew (Marco Antonio III). See Melanie Marshall, “Warriors and Musicians: Notes from the Colonna Family Archive,” Early Music 39, no. 2 (May 2011): 195–202. 20 The most comprehensive study on the villanella remains Donna Cardamone, The Canzone Villanesca alla Napolitana and Related Forms, 1537–1570 (Ann Arbor: UMI Research Press, 1981). 21 “Onde brevemente rispondo che è ben vero che la disposizione della gorga viene dalla natura ma che senza queste mie regole si possa apparare il modo del passeggiare, è pure impossibile cosa . . . Il vero modo di cantar cavaleresco e di compiacere all’orecchia è il cantar di gorga. E di questo parere anco è il S. D. Giovanni Domenico da Nola, il S. D. Giovanni Ant. Filodo, il S. Stefano Lanno, il S. Rocco e finalmente il S. Giovanni Tommaso Cimelli.” Giovanni Camillo Maffei, Delle lettere del Signor Giovanni Camillo Maffei da Solofra libri due (Naples: Amato, 1562), 77–78. See also Giovanni Camillo Maffei, “Letter on Singing (1562),” in Readings in the History of Music in Performance, ed. and trans. Carol MacClintock (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1979), 60. 22 Dell’Arpa’s participation in the intermedi is discussed in Nino Pirrotta, Music and Theatre from Poliziano to Monteverdi (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1982), 106– 107. For dell’Arpa’s life, see Cesare Corsi, “Mollica, Giovanni Leonardo,” in Dizionario biografico degli Italiani, at www.treccani.it. 23 “Serone Io v’ho aspettato qui due grand’ore, onde venite così pieno di maraviglia? Soardo Di casa della divinissima signora Donna Giovanna d’Aragona. Serone Ora non mi maraviglio della vostra maraviglia Soardo Perchè? Serone Perchè la signora donna Giovanna e la divina signora donna Vittoria Colonna sua figliuola furono prodotte dalla natura per un miracolo al mondo. Soardo Così è, ma la maraviglia mia è causata da un altra cosa Serone Da quale? Soardo Da una musica ch’ho inteso nella medesima casa . . . I musicisti furono messer Giovan Leonardo dell’Arpa napoletano, messer Perino da Firenze, messer Battista siciliano, e messer Jaches da Ferrara. Serano Tutti questi ho intesi più volte e certo ognun di loro nel suo strumento (a mio giudizio) ottiene il primo luogo. Soardo Dite la verità. Quei che cantaron fu il signor Giulio Cesare Brancaccio, il signor Francesco Bisballe Conte di Briatico, messer Scipione del Palla, e un altro che cantava il soprano.” Luigi Dentice, Due dialoghi della musica (Rome: Lucrino, 1553), no page number (bold in the modernized text is mine). 24 The identification of “Jaches from Ferrara” with Brumel was proposed by Howard Brown, “The Geography of Florentine Monody: Caccini at Home and Abroad,” Early Music 9, no. 2 (April 1981): 148. For Wert’s connection with Maria di Cardona in Naples, see Carol MacClintock, “New Light on Giaches de Wert,” in Aspects of Medieval and Renaissance Music: A Birthday Offering to Gustave Reese, ed. Jan LaRue (New York: W. W. Norton, 1966), 595–602. The formulaic style of Wert’s early madrigals is discussed in Brown, “Petrarch in Naples,” 16–50.

38  L’Orsa e la Colonna 25 Two monthly payments to Brancaccio (10 and 20 scudi, respectively) appear in V-CVasv, fondo Colonna, busta 99 (mandati 1575–80), fol. 35r (10 January 1576), 63v (April 1576). 26 “Marcusantonius Antonius Columna Dux Talliacotii et Regni Siciliae magnus comestabulus Magno viro Joanni Leonardo dell’Arpa de Neapoli familiari nobis charissimo salutem. Vitae ac morum honestas aliaque laudabilia probitatis et virtutum merita, et praesertim musicae artis qua plurimum in arpa sic vulgo dicta ceteros omnis praecellis, nec non grata servitia quae nobis hactenus impendisti, et adhuc sollicitis studiis impendere non desistis ac in futurum te praediturum laudabiliter speramus nos inducant ut tibi reddamur ad gratiam liberales. Cum itaque elapsis mensibus tibi provisionem annuam ducentorum ducatorum constituerimus vita tua durante . . . Quam quidem confirmationem donationem concessionem, et elargitionem promittimus tibi tam per nos quam per heredes et successores nostros habere ratam, gratam et firmam et nullo unquam tempore contravenire, aut contravenienti consentire. Investientes te propterea superdictis introitibus supra narratis omni meliori modo quo possumus, ut ualeas in praedicta donatione, et assignatione regium petere et impetrare assensum, quem semper reservamus, Mandantes omnibus et singulis officialibus nostris ac erariis et exactoribus introituum praedicti lacus fucini, et aliorum status Aprutii tam praesentibus quam futuris, et ad quos spectat et in futurum spectabit, quatenus tibi seu procuratoribus tuis annuos ducentos ducatos praedictos suis temporibus et singulis tertiis integre persolvant seu persolvi faciant, et in perceptione et exactione huiusmodi te et illos defendant et manuteneant, nec impedimentum aliquod inferant aut quovis modo contradicant aut faciant, sed praesentes nostras et in eis contenta quaecunque ad unguem inviolabiliter observent et observari faciant, sub indignationis, et aliis nostri arbitrii poenis. In quorum fidem et testimonium praesentes manu nostra subscriptas, exinde fieri, sigillique nostri soliti iussimus et fecimus appressione communiri. Datum Mareni in Palatio nostrae solitae residentiae die 23 mensis Maii 1563. Indictione sexta, pontificatus Sanctissimi Domini Nostri Pii divina providentia papae quarti Anno quarto.” I-SUss, archivio Colonna, III TE, 1/B, c. 86r. 27 From January to December 1568, an account book also records monthly payments of 3.75 scudi to dell’Arpa for his companatico (food and board), see I-SUss, archivio Colonna, III TE 28 (dichiaratione d’introiti et esiti), ff. 2, 16, 25, 32, 37, 39, 45, 50, 58, 63, 66. 28 Yves Durand, “Clientèles et fidélités dans le temps et dans l’espace,” in Hommage à Roland Mousnier. Clientèles et fidélités en Europe à l’époque moderne, ed. Yves Durand (Paris: Presses universitaires de France, 1981), 3–24; Rouland Mousnier, “Les fidélités et les clientèles en France aux XVIe, XVIIe et XVIIIe siècles,” Histoire sociale 15, no. 29 (May 1982): 35–46. 29 See Elena Barassi, “La villanelle alla napoletana nella testimonianza di un letterato,” Nuova rivista musicale Italiana 2 (1968): 164–187. 30 Gaspare Fiorino, Libro terzo di canzonelle a tre et a quattro voci (Venice: Scotto, 1574). For an in-depth discussion of Fiorino’s book, see Iain Fenlon, Music and Culture in Late Renaissance Italy (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002), 145–161. 31 Various payments were issued to these musicians for their monthly salary, companatico, and rental expenses, see V-CVasv, fondo Colonna, busta 87 (mandati 1577–1578), ff. 23v (30 June 1577), 24r (1 July 1577), 25r (August 1577), 26r (September 1577), 40r-v (1 May 1577). 32 “Molto magnifico signore non ho prima di ora avvisato la ricevuta delle due belle villanelle che ella mi mandò li giorni passati, per causa di una indisposizione che questi di mi ha travagliato assai; della quale essendo ora per grazia del signore libera vengo con questa a ringraziarla assai della memoria che tiene continuata di farmi parte delli frutti che continuamente nascono dal bello ingegno di quella dolce arpa.” It was sent by Felice Orsini Colonna to Giovanni dell’Arpa; however, there are additions in the letter that were later inserted by both correspondents. It is located in I-SUss, archivio Colonna, II.C.E, corrispondenza Felice Orsini (no page number).

L’Orsa e la Colonna  39 33 “si fe musica molto eccellente, che fu Giovanni leonardo con la sua arpa, Antonio Mescia con la lira, Cesare Zoppino col violone, l’abbate Pitigliano col cimbalo, e un’altro con le sordelline . . . Dopo cantato, e sonato un pezzo, sua eccellenza ordinò che si danzasse.” I-SUss, archivio Colonna, II.C.E. 337 (no page number). This dispatch bears no date; however, it must have been written after 1578 because Marco Antonio is referred to as viceroy. For the performance of Gli ingannati, see again Pirrotta, Music and Theatre, 106–107. 34 See Einstein, The Italian Madrigal, 848–849. Other poetic works in honor of Geronima Colonna were published in Ottavio Sammarco, Il tempio della divina signora donna Geronima Colonna d’Aragona (Padua: Lorenzo Pasquato, 1568). 35 See I-SUss, archivio Colonna, I-E-1 (giornale), fol. 5r – 151v, I-E-3 (giornale), fol. 27v – 60v. Dell’Arpa annual salary remained unvaried (200 ducats), but the payments were initially issued each month, then every six months.

2

Paolo Giordano I Orsini as patron of music

Your wisdom guides you to a great honor and your valor leads you to a high place: Hence, if both lead you who shall have greater fame than you? Let Augustus forever be sung by his trusted great Latin trumpet, and fierce Achilles by the Greek glory, since in yourself more illustrious virtue, and more valor reside. Yet, if it is gathered in you what made the two kings illustrious, why is not anyone alive today who shall sing you, and surpass Smyrna and Mantua? Arches then, and trophies, colossi, and friezes the Arno shall erect for you, since whoever writes poems has no song that matches your subject. A gran segno di onor senno vi guida, e valor a luogo alto vi conduce: Onde se l’uno e l’altro è vostro duce, chi sia che aggia di voi più eterne grida? Suoni pur sempre Augusto la sua fida e gran tromba latina, e l’altra luce greca il feroce Achille, che in voi luce virtù piu illustre e più valor si annida. Ma s’è raccolto in voi quell che i due regi fè chiari, perché un sol oggi non vive che voi cantando avanzi e Smirna, e Manto? Archi dunque, e trofei, colossi, e fregi, vi erga Arno, poiché chi poema scrive al vostro oggetto non ha pari il canto.1 The anonymous author of this sonnet exalts the valor of Paolo Giordano I Orsini (1541–1585; Figure 2.1) and his glorious lineage. His image embodies the heroic Roman past of the Orsini family. He surpasses the fame of Homer and Virgil, who

Paolo Giordano I Orsini as patron of music   41

Figure 2.1  Portrait of Paolo Giordano I Orsini (by permission of the Castello Odescalchi)

are allusively evoked by their respective birthplaces, Smyrna and Mantua. The Orsinis of Bracciano were the wealthiest and most powerful among all the family branches, and they remained united through a series of matrimonial alliances. From the end of the fifteenth century, the territory under their control extended for more than 800 square kilometers, spanning from Rome to the border of the Kingdom of Naples. The lands, fortresses, and residences located within the

42  Paolo Giordano I Orsini as patron of music Orsini territory provided the family with huge incomes. The Orsinis’ familial ties to the houses of the Medici, Farnese, and della Rovere strengthened their geopolitical influence. Paolo Giordano’s grandparents were Felice della Rovere and Costanza Farnese, two prominent figures in contemporary Italy. His uncle, Cardinal Santa Fiora, motivated by personal ambitions, organized the marriage of Paolo Giordano to Isabella de’ Medici (3 September 1558), which consolidated the alliance between the two families. The marriage was presumably part of Cosimo de’ Medici’s plan (Isabella’s father) to increase his diplomatic influence in Roman aristocratic society after the wedding of Paolo Giordano’s sister Felice to Marco Antonio II Colonna. The coalition with the Medici family represented for Paolo Giordano a means to enlarge his circle and patronage networks, as well as to acquire favors and political protection. For a member of the Roman nobility, this meant striving continuously to uphold his status and public image, and this striving inevitably led to an opulent lifestyle marked by conspicuous consumption. Paolo Giordano’s expenditures often exceeded his income, forcing him to seek new diplomatic and military appointments. The political aspirations of Paolo Giordano were partially fulfilled in 1561, when, at only 20 years of age, he received the feudal title of first Duke of Bracciano. During this period, Paolo Giordano and his brother-in-law Marco Antonio Colonna were the wealthiest of the Roman baronial nobles, with an annual income of 100,000 and 120,000 scudi, respectively.2 Paolo Giordano could count on his residential properties, which included the Palace of Monte Giordano, strategically located along the main road to Saint Peter’s Basilica; the residence of Campo de Fiori; a vigna at the Trinita dei Monti; and the renowned Orsini castle of Bracciano, which is positioned above the homonymous lake. Like other members of the baronial aristocracy, however, Paolo Giordano maintained an itinerant court, relocating between Bracciano (Figure 2.2) and Rome (Figure 2.3).3 He did not permanently reside with his wife in Florence, and his sojourns there were often dictated by urgent obligations. This seems to have affected their marriage, which has been the subject of intense speculation, especially in regard to Paolo Giordano’s hypothetical assassination of Isabella.4 In 1567, Paolo Giordano moved to Florence for two years, but the financial administration of his properties became a priority; thus, he was forced to return to Rome, leaving his wife behind. This long-distance relationship continued for many years. With the death in 1574 of his father-in-law (Cosimo I de’ Medici), which caused a power vacuum in Florence, Paolo Giordano attempted to bring Isabella to Rome. The account books for the years 1574–1575 show conspicuous expenses for the renovation of all the Orsini residences that were to host his wife. The entire Roman palace of Monte Giordano was expanded; a gallery with a rich collection of ancient statues was created; and the large rooms were decorated with sumptuous frescos and paintings. He commissioned a beautiful studiolo for Isabella, and he made similar large-scale renovations to the Castle of Bracciano. For these projects, Paolo Giordano hired the foremost sculptors and architects of Italy.5 But Paolo Giordano’s efforts were largely in vain because Isabella died on 16 July 1576.

Figure 2.2  Map of the Duchy of Bracciano, Fondo Odescalchi, I D 12 (by permission of the Archivio di Stato di Roma)

Figure 2.3  Map of Rome with Monte Giordano, Roma sotterranea, Antonio Bosio (by permission of the Archivio Storico Capitolino)

44  Paolo Giordano I Orsini as patron of music

Del Tebro e d’Arno: the Roman-Florentine network Modern scholars have examined Isabella de’ Medici’s life and artistic interests, but scant attention has been paid to her husband’s role as a patron of music.6 The financial books and correspondence for the period are fragmentary. From the surviving documentation, it is clear that Paolo Giordano I engaged freelance musicians for private and public performances, including celebratory events marking visits from prominent political figures. The guardaroba (February–March 1579) preserves a partial list of the musical instruments used at court, which included a small organ, an harpsichord, lutes, and string instruments (as well as various music books).7 There are also indications of Orsini’s involvement in the organization in Rome and Florence of lavish mascherate, comedies, and theatrical spectacles with dance and music.8 References to musicians go back as early as 1550, the year that records show a payment to a certain Antonio musico, who has been tentatively identified as the composer and printer Antonio Barrè. While this hypothesis cannot be confirmed, it is plausible in view of Barrè’s association with Paolo Gordano’s sister, Felice Orsini. On 28 April 1557, another musician named Ettore was paid the sum of 13 scudi.9 Given his ties to the Medici family, it is not surprising that Orsini was attracted to their artistic circle and hosted in his retinue musicians who were active in the Florentine musical scene. Simone Ponte, Stefano Rossetti, Matteo Rampollini (Squitti), Bernardo Giacomini, and Philippe de Monte belonged to this group.10 Rampollini spent most of his career at the court of Cosimo I de’ Medici, for whom he composed his Primo libro de la musica, a collection of madrigal cycles. But in the years 1560–1561, he appears as a musico of Paolo Giordano in Rome.11 In 1563, Giacomini dedicated his first book of five-voice madrigals to the Duke of Bracciano. The absence of documentation prevents us from evaluating precisely the nature of Paolo Giordano’s relationship with the musician, although some help in this regard comes from the dedicatory preface of Giacomini’s book: As I, o most Illustrious and Excellent Lord, must print some of my madrigals, many friends having enticed me to do so, I consider that I would neglect my task if I did not bring them into the light under the shelter of the most honored and illustrious name of Your Excellency. Since I am your most affectionate servant, and have produced the present fruits, whatever they may be, under your protection, I owe you what I am, what I am worth, and what I produce.12 Since these compositions were created under Orsini’s “protection,” Giacomini felt obliged to dedicate them to him. The opening madrigal, Nobil coppia gradita, is a tribute to the matrimonial union of Isabella de’ Medici and Paolo Giordano, who are metaphorically represented by their respective rivers: Noble and favored couple in whom shines the light of the Tiber and the Arno joined in a union of ancient valor and novel beauty

Paolo Giordano I Orsini as patron of music   45 that both illuminates the world and lights, the high mountain nearby, which takes its name from the wise and no less beautiful plant. While it thanks you humbly, Paolo Giordano and Isabella, yet it resounds through me, so I would like to praise both as it should be done. But which style could do so with the highest and most ineffable courtesy? Happy sojourn, and happy the beautiful meadow where they stayed, he such a famous champion and she such a woman that – I will not say her equal – not even a comparable one ever existed. Nobil coppia gradita in cui risplende del Tebro e d’Arno in un congiunti quella di valor prisco e di beltà novella luce, che insiem alluma il mondo e incende l’alto monte vicino, che il nome prende dalla fronde saggia e non men bella. Mentre ora Paolo Giordano or Isabella rimbomba umil per me grazie vi tende, che ben d’ambo vorrei come devria lodar. Ma quale stil ciò far potrebbe la soma e ineffabil cortesia? Felice albergo e tu bel prato ove ebbe campion si chiaro e donna tal che pria, non dico par ma simil mai non ebbe. Paolo Giordano and his wife are also celebrated in two madrigals by Philippe de Monte, Il piu forte di Roma and Orni un piu bel smeraldo, published in his primo libro di madrigali a sei voci, of which only the second edition survives.13 As Alfred Einstein notes, the encomiastic nature of this book points to Paolo Giordano as the likely dedicatee, but the hypothesis cannot be confirmed because the dedication of the first edition has been lost.14 Moreover, in 1575 Monte dedicated his sixth book of madrigals for five voices to Paolo Giordano’s wife, Isabella de’ Medici. Monte’s connection with the Orsini family is further attested by his correspondence with cardinal Flavio Orsini, for whom he published numerous secular and sacred works. 15 A veil of ambiguity obscures Paolo Giordano’s relationship with two other composers: Francesco Corteccia, who authored a motet in his honor, and Giovanni Maria Nanino, whose link with Orsini’s circle is suggested by a series of encomia printed in his first book of five-voice madrigals. Much the same can be said about Stefano Rossetti and Cosimo Bottegari. Rossetti dedicated to Isabella Il Lamento di Olimpia and the madrigal Piangete occhi miei in his Musica Nova del Rossetto, a cinque voci (Rome: Dorico, 1566), which also contains Hor che di tanti, in honor of Cardinal Flavio Orsini. He remained connected to the court of Emperor Maximilian II and the Orsinis, providing the music for at least one of the mascherate

46  Paolo Giordano I Orsini as patron of music

Example 2.1  Bernardo Giacomini, “Nobil coppia gradita,” mm. 11–20

organized by Paolo Giordano in Florence.16 Bottegari dedicated to Paolo Giordano’s daughter, Eleonora Orsini, three songs, one of which depicts her as “gran Signora.”17 Bottegari’s songs were certainly known to Eleonora, who had established a concerto delle donne at the Orsini court in Rome.18 She inherited the passion for solo singing from her mother and from her father, Paolo Giordano, who maintained various musicians from Naples in his entourage. A number of monodies in Bottegari’s lutebook are modeled after the mid-sixteenth-century villanellas of Neapolitan composers.

Paolo Giordano I Orsini as patron of music   47

Cantar alla napoletana: Neapolitan musicians at the Orsini court As noted in chapter 1, the villanella reached the orbit of Rome in the midsixteenth century through musicians like Cimello, dell’Arpa, and delle Palle. Furthermore, the work of preceding scholars has made it safe to assert that a new style of solo singing with instrumental accompaniment emerged in Naples (“alla napoletana”) around the same time.19 Coincidentally, some of those early composers of Neapolitan monody were connected with the Colonna-Orsini circle. Giulio Caccini, who studied with Scipione delle Palle, is regarded by many as the forebear of Baroque chamber monody; John Hill argued that the Neapolitan practice of solo singing that preceded Caccini’s influence contributed to the development of monody in Rome independently of Caccini.20 Hill’s hypothesis remains valid; however, in trying to resist the conventional musicological view of his time that considered Florence as the center of the modern musical universe, Hill placed too much emphasis on Cardinal Montalto’s role in the history of solo singing, and on the separate development of monody in Rome and Florence. We should indeed include other noble patrons in the historical narrative. One aspect that had a direct effect on the Roman-Florentine development of monody, for instance, was the presence and circulation of Neapolitan musicians patronized by Paolo Giordano I Orsini and his wife Isabella de’ Medici. This occurred before Montalto was elected cardinal in 1585, the terminus post quem of his musical patronage. Documentary sources refer to musicians singing in the Neapolitan style with instrumental accompaniment at the Orsini court as early as 1559. On January 25 of that year, the Este agent Francesco Susena reported that Isabella de’ Medici “kept in her room there certain musicians of Signor Paulo (Giordano Orsini) who sing alla napoletana to the lute, and others with voices alone, and one who sings to keyboard accompaniment.”21 Paolo Giordano’s patronage of Neapolitan musicians, all of whom moved in the same Roman-Florentine circle, is not surprising given that he was a member of the Aragona family in Naples and that his wife resided in Florence. Furthermore, his sister Felice Orsini and his close relatives Cardinal Flavio Orsini and Marco Antonio Colonna controlled much of the territory around Naples, and, as mentioned in chapter 1, they employed Neapolitan musicians in Rome.22 Unfortunately, only a small portion of the repertoire of Roman-Neapolitan monody has been preserved due to the improvisatory nature of sixteenth-century solo singing. As Nino Pirrotta and Anthony Cummings note: If we were to draw conclusion about the musical culture of early modern Europe based exclusively on the works remaining in manuscripts and prints (Pirrotta has in effect argued), our understanding of that culture would be at best incomplete and at worst distorted.23 Scipione delle Palle is one of the first musicians trained in Naples to appear in Orsini’s account books. The contemporary humanist Benedetto Varchi, in his

48  Paolo Giordano I Orsini as patron of music poetic dialogue L’Hercolano, also refers to delle Palle as Paolo Giordano’s musician in Rome. Orsini was connected to various academic circles of Florence and Siena, including the Accademia degli Intronati, and it is likely through this network that he made the acquaintance of Varchi: Count:

I understand that with the most Illustrious Signor Paolo Giordano Orsini, son-in-law of your duke (Cosimo de’ Medici), there is someone who not only plays and sings divinely, but also is knowledgeable and composes, who is named Messer Scipione della Palla. Varchi: You speak the truth; and since he told me that he wants to come over here to stay one day with me, I promise you that I will talk to him about it and let you know.24

If Varchi’s remarks are correct, then during his brief sojourn at the Medici court, delle Palle must have impressed Duke Cosimo considerably because by the end of 1560, the musician left Paolo Giordano’s entourage. All his belongings and musical instruments were moved from Rome to Florence.25 There is ample evidence that Orsini, as a relative and client of the Medici family, introduced other Neapolitan musicians to the Florentine court. On 13 July 1568, Isabella wrote to Paolo to request a “napoletano che canta” who was in her husband’s household.26 These musicians composed villanellas within the Orsini circle, which included another three of the foremost practitioners of Roman-Neopolitan monody: Giovanni Andrea of Naples, Giulio Cesare Brancaccio, and Bartolomeo Roy. The importance of the first two musicians to the development of solo singing in Rome (before Montalto’s patronage activity) is emphasized by Vincenzo Giustiniani in his Discorso sopra la musica: In my boyhood days my late father b. m. sent me to music school, and I observed that the compositions of Archadelt, Orlando di Lasso, Striggio, Cipriano de Rore, and Filippo di Monte were in use and were considered the best of that time, which, in effect, they were; and for singing with a solo voice to the accompaniment of some instrument, preference for villanelle napoletane predominated, in imitation of which some of them were also composed in Rome. . . . In the Holy Year of 1575, or shortly after, there began a style of singing very different from the earlier one, and [it continued] thus for some years afterward, especially as regards the style of singing with one voice to the accompaniment of an instrument, following the example of one Giovanni Andrea of Naples and of Giulio Cesare Brancaccio, and of Alessandro Merlo of Rome.27 Paolo Giordano engaged a certain Giovanni Andrea musico in December of 1572. Archival documents never mention his surname; therefore one can only speculate that he could be the same musician mentioned by Giustiniani, or the composer Dragoni.28 In 1571, Orsini had already established connections with Brancaccio, who served as a captain at his side during the battle against the Turks in Tunisia. Although Brancaccio officially arrived at Rome to comply with his

Paolo Giordano I Orsini as patron of music   49 military orders, he took part in the musical scene within the circle of the Duke of Bracciano.29 This is later substantiated by a series of financial records found in Orsini’s account books. A document shows that on 14 September 1585, he and the Spanish composer Bernardo de Chiros were famigliari of Paolo Giordano and his second wife, Vittoria Accoramboni.30 Additional evidence of Brancaccio’s connection to the Duke of Bracciano are two payments of 20 scudi issued to him on 17 and 18 September 1585 (I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 2211, fol. 33r). That Brancaccio and other composers performed in Orsini’s circle is attested by another performance in Rome on 22 December 1585, which involved Brancaccio, Flaminio Accoramboni, Chiros, and the Neapolitan composer Scipione Dentice.31 Although the latter participated in the musical scene at the Orsini residence, he was not a member of Paolo Giordano’s household. In 1574, the composer Bartolomeo Roy provided the music for a comedy organized by Orsini in honor of Giacomo Buoncompagni and the Spanish ambassador in Rome. It was staged in his palace of Campo Marzio, which Paolo Giordano had rented for the occasion.32 Roy’s name appears along with Giovanni Francesco musico in Orsini’s records for the year 1580, when Roy received 9 scudi and 20 baiocchi for the month of August. Less than two years later, Paolo Giordano issued another smaller payment to him.33 The Neapolitan musician Geronimo Tastavin also seems to have been part of Orsini’s entourage. This can be deduced from a letter that Tastavin sent from Bracciano to Paolo Giordano (Figure 2.4): These past days, on Sunday, I received this sonnet, which was made in good memory of the Excellence of the signora your mother. With [all] my efforts, I did not fail to set it [to music] immediately, now I send it to your Excellency praying you to deign yourself to accept it with the affection that I ask you, I will continuously pray the Lord to give you good life, and with all my reverence I kiss your hand.34 Dated 8 November 1583, the letter pushes the date of Tastavini’s death back by at least three years.35 More than two decades earlier, Tastavin had dedicated his first book of madrigals to Cardinal Flavio Orsini, and one of Tastavin’s villanelle alla napoletana was published in the collection Il primo libro delle Napolitane à tre voci, di Giosef Policretto et altri Eccellentissimi Musici (Venice: Scotto, 1571). The only known patrons of Tastavin were Cardinal Flavio and Paolo Giordano I; thus, it is likely that some of his villanellas circulated in Orsini’s circle, and, as was customary at the time, they were performed for solo voice and instrumental accompaniment. Paolo Giordano employed most of the heretofore-mentioned musicians on a short-term basis. They may have been the duke’s dependents, but were not considered members of his court. They did not hold a permanent relationship of service, nor could they count on professional stability and career advancement. Although this may be explained by Orsini’s regular absences from Rome, one must consider that lifetime employment of a musician in an aristocratic household (as seen previously with dell’Arpa) was not common in this period; this is even truer

50  Paolo Giordano I Orsini as patron of music

Figure 2.4 Letter of Geronimo Tastavin to Paolo Giordano I Orsini, Bracciano, 8 November 1583 (by permission of the Archivio Storico Capitolino)

for painters, architects, and sculptors. Patronage ties in the Eternal City were often dynamic and unstable. Scholars who study political patronage recognize that this type of patron-client relationship was ordinary and not durable, and it seems to have been common for the majority of the musicians in Paolo Giordano’s circle.36 Orsini’s connection with Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina is peculiar in this

Paolo Giordano I Orsini as patron of music   51 regard. Palestrina rented a residence from Paolo Giordano, but it is unclear if the composer was committed to musical services and court obligations. It is possible that Palestrina performed in Orsini’s circle on one or more occasions.37 But, more importantly, the example of Palestrina invites us to expand our conception of “protection” within the context of the Roman clientage system and marketplace, because permanent or temporary employment was by no means the only form of patronage bond. Marzio musico is another case in point. He was engaged with a monthly stipend of 10 scudi from July to October of 1578. In 1583, the registri recorded two large payments to him in the amounts of 70 and 50 scudi. Due to the absence of financial documents, it is impossible to know whether Marzio had remained in Paolo Giordano’s household or had left during those five intervening years. Furthermore, there is no additional information concerning this musician’s identity or his career, and neither are there indications of the kind of musical performances he gave. Therefore, we can only hypothesize about his involvement in performance at the Orsini court. The connection between solo singing and other members of the Orsini family in Rome is further investigated in the next chapters.

Notes 1 The sonnet was published in Francesco Sansovino, L’historia di casa Orsina (Venice: Stagnini, 1565), 93. 2 Richard Ferraro, “The Nobility of Rome, 1560–1700: A Study of its Composition, Wealth, and Investments” (PhD diss., University of Wisconsin, Madison, 1994), 246–247. 3 This last aspect is discussed in Barbara Furlotti, A Renaissance Baron and His Possessions: Paolo Giordano I Orsini, Duke of Bracciano, 1541–1585 (Turnhout: Brepols, 2012), 66. For the geopolitical role of the Orsini and their territorial influence (including the Duchy of Bracciano), see Lando Scotoni, I territori autonomi dello stato ecclesiastico nel cinquecento (Galatina: Gongemo, 1982), 36–44; Christine Shaw, The Political Role of the Orsini Family from Sixtus IV to Clement VII (Rome: Istituto storico Italiano per il Medioevo, 2007), 33; Francesca Sigismondi, Lo stato degli Orsini: Statuti e Diritto proprio nel ducato di Bracciano (Rome: Viella, 2003). 4 See Elisabetta Mori, L’onore perduto di Isabella de’ Medici (Milan: Garzanti, 2011); Carolyn Murphy, The Murder of a Medici Princess (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008). 5 See Mori, L’onore perduto, 226–230. 6 See Donna Cardamone, “Isabella Medici-Orsini: A Portrait of Self-Affirmation,” in Gender, Sexuality, and Early Music, ed. Todd Borgerding (New York and London: Routledge, 2002), 1–26; Frank D’Accone, “Corteccia’s Motets for the Medici Marriages,” in Words on Music: Essays in Honor of Andrew Porter, ed. David Rosen and Claire Brook (New York: Pendragon Press, 2003), 45–53. 7 The visit of Costanza Sforza to Bracciano in March of 1576, for instance, was celebrated with impressive musical entertainments. See I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 408, ff. 313– 315 (Relatione del ricevimento fatto a Bracciano da quel Signor Duca a Madama Sforza). Some of the musical instruments owned by Orsini are mentioned in I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 1208, ff. 10r-v, 11r, 2061, fol. 97r. 8 See, for instance, the payment of 11.02 scudi (February 6, 1568) for “le mascherate del carnevale” in I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 801, fol. 38. Other theatrical entertainments are reported in Furlotti, A Renaissance Baron, 32–43, and Frank D’Accone, appendix of article on Corteccia cited in footnote 6.

52  Paolo Giordano I Orsini as patron of music 9 For Antonio Barrè, see I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 792, ff. 9, 11, and Mori, L’onore perduto, 37. For Ettore musico, see I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 2055, fol. 16r-v. 10 For Simone Ponte, see I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 2204, fol. 99 (“Simone Ponte musico di cornetta deve dare a di 29 di dicembre 1573, 50 scudi di moneta”). 11 The payments concerning Squitti Rampollini (“Messer Squitti musico deve dare 57 scudi”) appear in I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 2193, fol. 317 (1560), 2194, fol. 65 (1561). He was also a salaried member of the Medici household from 1551–1569. See Kirkendale, The Court Musicians, 67. 12 “Dovendo io illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signore dar fuori alle stampe alcuni miei madrigali, a ciò forzato da molti amici, ho giudicato che io mancherei molto dell’officio mio quando io non gli mandassi in luce sotto l’ombra dello onoratissimo e illustre nome di vostra eccellenza, perciò che essendo suo affezionatissimo servitore, e avendo partorito i presenti frutti quali essi si sieno sotto la sua protezione, le debbo quel che io sono, tutto quel che io vaglio, e ciò che io produco.” Bernardo Giacomini, Il primo libro di madrigali a cinque voci (Venice: Gardano, 1563). 13 Philippe de Monte, Il primo libro di madrigali a sei voci (Venice: Angelo Gardano, 1569). 14 See Alfred Einstein, The Italian Madrigal (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1949), 506; and Brian Mann, The Secular Madrigals of Filippo di Monte 1521–1603 (Ann Arbor: UMI Research Press, 1983), 126–127. 15 De Monte’s letters to Flavio Orsini are discussed in Robert Lindeil, “Die Briefe Filippo Di Montes: Eine Bestandsaufnahme,” Studien zur Musikwissenschaft 39 (1988): 37–54. 16 For Orsini’s connection to Nanino and Rossetti, see Anthony Newcomb, “Giovanni Maria Nanino’s Early Patrons in Rome,” Journal of Musicology 30, no. 1 (Winter 2013): 103–127; “Stefano Rossetti,” Il lamento di Olimpia et canzone (Venice, 1567), ed. James Chater (Middleton: A-R Editions, 2017), ix–xviii. Robert Lindell, “Stefano Rossetti at the Imperial Court,” in Musicologia Humana: Studies in Honor of Warren and Ursula Kirkendale, ed. Sigfried Gmeinwieser, David Hiley, and Jörg Riedlbauer (Florence: Olschki, 1994), 157–181; D’Accone, “Corteccia’s Motets,” 51. 17 Eleonora and her brother Virginio were born and raised at the Medici court. The patronage of Virginio, who was Orsini’s only legitimate heir, is the subject of chapter 3. Bottegari’s book also contains a composition by Isabella de’ Medici entitled “Lieto viva e contenta.” See Donna Cardamone, “Isabella Medici-Orsini: A Portrait of SelfAffirmation,” in Gender, Sexuality, and Early Music, ed. Todd Borgending (New York and London: Routledge, 2002), 1–26. The lutebook manuscript has been transcribed and discussed in Carol MacClintock, “A Court Musician’s Songbook: Modena MS C 311,” Journal of the American Musicological Society 9, no. 3 (Fall 1956): 177–192; Carol MacClintock, ed., The Bottegari Lutebook (Wellesley, MA: Wellesley College Press, 1965). 18 See the letter of Ercole Cortile (the Ambassador of the Este family in Rome) transcribed in Newcomb, The Madrigal in Ferrara, 200. 19 Pirrotta, Music and Theatre, 2008; Palisca, “Vincenzo Galilei,” 344–360; Haar, “The madrigale arioso,” 203–219; Brown, “Petrarch in Naples,” 16–50, and “The Geography of Florentine Monody,” 147–168. 20 For Hill’s argument, see chapters 3 and 6 of his Roman Monody, Cantata, and Opera from the Circles around Cardinal Montalto (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997), 57–120, 180–234. Some of Hill’s assumptions have been criticized in Claudio Annibaldi, review of Roman Monody, Cantata, and Opera from the Circles around Cardinal Montalto, by John Hill. Early Music History 18 (1999): 365–397. 21 Quoted in David Butchart, “La Pecorina at Mantua, Musica Nova at Florence,” Early Music 13, no. 3 (1985): 364; Donna Cardamone, “Isabella Medici-Orsini,” 21–22. 22 For Flavio Orsini’s connection to Neapolitan musicians in Rome, see the letters in Tim Carter, “Giulio Caccini (1551–1618): New Facts, New Music,” Studi musicali 16 (1987): 13–31.

Paolo Giordano I Orsini as patron of music   53 23 Quote from Anthony Cummings, The Politicized Muse: Music for Medici Festivals, 1512–1537 (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1992), 6. For Pirrotta, see his Music and Theatre from Poliziano to Monteverdi (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2008), and Music and Culture in Italy from the Middle Ages to the Baroque (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1984). 24 “Conte Io intendo che coll’illustrissimo signor Paolo Giordano Orsini, genero del duca vostro (Cosimo de’ Medici), è uno che non solamente suona e canta divinamente, ma intende ancora e compone, il quale si chiama messer Scipione della Palla Varchi Voi dite il vero, e perché egli m’ha detto che vuole venire quassù a starsi un giorno con esso meco, io vi prometto che gliene parlerò, e vi saperò poi ragguagliare.” Benedetto Varchi, L’Hercolano dialogo di Messer Benedetto Varchi, nel quale si ragiona generalmente delle lingue et in particolare della Toscana, e della Fiorentina (Florence: Giunti, 1570), 277. The first part of the translation is quoted from Newcomb, “Giovanni Maria Nanino,” 111. This source is also cited in Mori, L’onore perduto, 52. Paolo Giordano was the dedicatee of Poesie toscane, et latine by Ludovico Domenichi (Florence: Torrentino, 1563) and a number of sonnets by Leonardo Salviati, who apparently were part of his humanistic circle. 25 “Da Roma a Firenze per portar le robe e strumenti di messer Scipione delle Palle.” I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 2193, fol. 315 (cited also in Mori, L’onore perduto, 92). 26 “Mi farà favore grandissimo a mandarmi il napoletano che canta,” I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 157/3, fol. 322 (July 13, 1568, also in Mori, 152). 27 “Nella mia fanciullezza mio padre b. m. mi mandò alla scuola di musica e osservai che erano in uso le composizioni dell’Archadelt, di Orlando Lassus, dello Striggio, Cipriano de Rore, e di Filippo di Monte, stimate per le migliori di quei tempi, come in effetti erano, e per cantare con una voce sola sopra alcuno strumento prevalesse il gusto delle villanelle napoletane, ad imitazione delle quali se ne componevano anche in Roma. . . . L’anno santo del 1575 o poco dopo si cominiciò un modo di cantare molto diverso da quello di prima, e così per alcuni anni seguenti, massime nel modo di cantare con una voce sola sopra un istrumento, con l’esempio di un Giovanni Andrea napoletano, e del signor Giulio Cesare Brancaccio, e d’Alessandro Merlo romano.” Quoted English translation from Hill, Roman Monody, 87, 102. 28 Various payments (two of which for the large sum of 69 scudi) were issued to Giovanni Andrea musico in 1572. See I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 2203, fol. 58, 2058, ff. 34v, 35v. See also Furlotti, A Renaissance Baron, 46. The hypothesis that the “Giovanni Andrea” mentioned in the documents may be Dragoni has been advanced by James Chater, “Family Matters: Music in the Life and Works of Giovambattista Strozzi the Elder,” in Perspectives on Luca Marenzio’s Secular Music, ed. Mauro Calcagno (Turnhout: Brepols, 2015), 75–140. 29 For Brancaccio’s arrival to Rome, see the letter of Isabella de’ Medici to Paolo Giordano in I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 158, fol. 154, cited in Mori, L’onore perduto, 373. 30 “E lo spagnuolo Bernardo de Chiros, Giulio Brancaccio napoletano, Tiberio Pagnotta di Bracciano, suoi famigliari.” The full document is published in Domenico Gnoli, Vittoria Accoramboni: Storia del secolo XVI (Florence: Le Monnier, 1870), 460. It is also cited in Richard Wistreich, Warrior, Courtier, Singer: Giulio Cesare Brancaccio and the Performance of Identity in the Late Renaissance (Aldershot: Ashgate, 2007), 121. 31 See Gnoli, Vittoria Accoramboni, 324; and in Hill, Roman Monody, 81. 32 I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 2059, fol. 55r. See also Mori, L’onore perduto, 224, 374. 33 In August of 1580, Giovanni Francesco musico and Bartolomeo Roy were paid respectively 6.50 and 9.20 (I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 1808, fol. 21v). Another payment of 20 baiocchi was issued to Roy in July of 1582 (I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 2066, fol. 35r). 34 “Questi giorni passati mi fu mandato di domenica questo sonetto fatto per la bona memoria de la eccellentia de la signora sua madre, io subito non ho mancato di farlo con quelle mie fatiche, ora lo mando a vostra eccellentia pregandola si degnia acetarlo con quella amore che io le domando, pregarò il signore continuamente gli dia vita

54  Paolo Giordano I Orsini as patron of music longa, e con ogni riverenza gli baso le mani, di Bracciano adi 8 di novembre 1583. Di vostra eccellentia illustrissima, Geronimo Tastavin.” 35 It was previously assumed that Tastavin died in 1580. See Donna Cardamone, “Tastavin, Geronimo,” in Grove Music Online, at www.oxfordmusiconline. 36 See Jill Burke and Michael Bury, “Introduction,” in Art and Identity in Early Modern Rome, ed. Jill Burke and Michael Bury (Burlington: Ashgate, 2008), 6. For the political study of patron-client relationships, particularly in Renaissance France, see Sharon Kettering, “Patronage in Early Modern France,” French Historical Studies 17, no. 4 (Fall 1992): 839–862. 37 “Messer Giovanni da Palestrina deve dare, addi xii di luglio 1583, 26 scudi per pigione di casa,” I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 2210, fol. 78. For Marzio musico, see the payments for the year 1583, in I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 1809, ff. 191, 193.

3

Il refugio delle muse Poetry and music at the court of Virginio Orsini, second Duke of Bracciano

I send you the beginning of my epic poem, with this act of reverence I come to confirm the opinion of the judicious ones, for whom you are not only the refuge of the muses, but also the tribunal and oracle . . . supplicating you not to be disdained to read it, I desire your judgment.1

With these words the poet Carlo Bocchinensis extols Virginio Orsini, second Duke of Bracciano (Figure 3.1), as a patron of the arts. His letter adheres to the conventional rhetorical norms of sixteenth-century culture and represents the ideal approach for an artist seeking to establish a connection with a powerful aristocrat. In the eyes of his contemporaries, Virginio, a poet and an amateur musician himself, must have appeared a devoted supporter of poetry and music. His fame as a patron attracted the attention of Elizabeth I, Queen of England, who honored Virginio’s visit to her court with magnificent musical celebrations. The figure of Virginio is thought to have inspired William Shakespeare to create Orsino, a character in his comedy Twelfth Night.2 Contemporary chronicles claim that Duke Orsini’s visit to Protestant England (1600−1601), which had not been officially approved by papal authorities, roused the indignation of the Catholic Church. Virginio’s stay followed his political journey through France, where he accompanied his cousin Maria de’ Medici to her wedding with Henry IV.

The Orsini-Medici connection After the death of Paolo Giordano I Orsini, his young son Virginio was put in charge of the Duchy of Bracciano and the family properties in Rome. Like his sister Felice, Virginio was raised and educated by his mother at the prosperous Medici court in a period when Florence was home to musicians, poets, and thinkers, whose activities were conducive to the development of poetry, monody, and early opera. As the myriad of letters in the Archivio di Stato in Florence and Archivio Capitolino in Rome show, Virginio played a significant role in the political life of that time, acting also as a mediator for the Medicis in the Papal City. He could always rely on a network of artists who benefited from the protection of his uncle Ferdinand de’ Medici. As a member of both the Orsini and the Medici

Figure 3.1  Portrait of Virginio Orsini, second Duke of Bracciano (by permission of the Galleria degli Uffizzi di Firenze)

Il refugio delle muse  57 families, Virginio received his first musical training from Cristofano Malvezzi and Emilio de Cavalieri, two composers involved in the first operatic experiments in Florence and Rome, including the notorious intermedi for Girolamo Bargagli’s comedy La pellegrina. The musician Antonio Mugliani also served as Orsini’s voice teacher in this period.3 The marriage on 29 March 1589 of Virginio to Flavia Peretti Montalto, grandniece of Pope Sixtus V, and the union with the court of his brother-in-law Cardinal Montalto reinforced the political power of the Orsini family in Rome and made the Eternal City an important stage for the circulation of secular music.4 A number of madrigals celebrating this alliance appear in Marenzio’s Quinto libro di madrigali a sei voci (1591). To mark the occasion, Philippe de Monte wrote the madrigal Spiran l’aure feconde, which survives incomplete in his Sesto libro di madrigali a sei voci: Fertile winds blow toward the Orsinis and the Perettis, and joyously the Tiber takes a tribute of pearls to the sea through the waves. Then proud fame spreads its quick wings – I hear the trumpet, I hear the sound that roars all around. Love that is drunk with love sweetly resounds as well. O trusted mirrors of love, love binds you tightly, who then will separate you if love embraces you? Spiran l’aure feconde ad Orsini a Peretti, e lieto il Tebro da tributo di perle al mar per onde. Quindi veloci spiega la fama altera i vanni, odo la tromba, odo il suon che d’intorno alto rimbomba. Amor che è di amor ebro dolce risuona anch’egli. O d’amor fidi spegli, amor vi lega e stringe, chi dunque vi sciorrà se amor vi cinge? The work remains virtually unexamined because it only survives incomplete in three parts (tenor, altus, and quintus). Monte’s book was published in 1591, but the encomiastic message of this piece suggests that it may have been written around 1589 as a celebration of the matrimonial event. The metaphorical image depicted in the text honors the union of the noble couple. A similar lyrical tone tinges the madrigal that follows, which was written for the celebration of another political event that occurred in the same year: the marriage of Felice Orsina Peretti Montalto to Marcantonio III Colonna. Both madrigals confirm Monte’s

58  Il refugio delle muse enduring relationship with the Orsinis, which, as seen in chapter 2, is further attested by a number of compositions written for some of its earlier family members. After Virginio Orsini and his wife, Flavia Peretti, relocated to Rome in 1589, the Orsini court became a center of fervent artistic activity. Contemporary poets and musicians gathered there, among whom were former members of the so-called camerata, the Accademia degli Alterati, and other academic circles.5 The group included Marenzio, Caccini, and Cavalieri, as well as various poets and musicians who gravitated toward the circles of Virginio Orsini, his brother-in-law Cardinal Montalto, and the Medici court. The Duke of Bracciano was connected to two important members of the Strozzi family: Piero (or Pietro) and Giovanni Battista il giovane (the younger), who played an important role in the poetic and musical scene of Florence and Rome.6 According to previous scholarship, Giovanni Battista Strozzi moved to Rome in early 1590.7 But this cannot be true because he was still in Florence when he wrote to Virginio on August 27 of the same year to recommend a certain poet named Bellorio Donadio.8 During this period, Giovanni Battista was in close contact with Guarini, from whom he received a number of madrigals for Orsini, and he was involved in the preparation of theatrical works.9 For instance, on 20 March 1588, Strozzi, who was solicited by Virginio himself, was already working with Bernardo Buontalenti, the stage designer of various theatrical spectacles at the Medici court, to finalize and embellish an inventione prepared by his collaborator.10 Strozzi was a member of a noble Florentine family, and this status made him a higher-rank client than other poets connected with Orsini. Some of Strozzi’s letters indeed denote a more informal bond, and reveal Virginio’s role less as a patron than as mediator within a literary circle that included prominent figures such as Strozzi himself, Giovanni Battista Guarini, and Torquato Tasso.11 Piero Strozzi, a former member of the camerata, was also involved in theatrical and musical projects at the Orsini court. This is apparent from a few extant payment records, in which the musician appears alongside Giovanni Battista Cini in a list of “Florentine” artists salaried by Virginio. More precisely, Piero Strozzi received a stable monthly income from 1589–1593.12 Another well-known figure, Emilio de Cavalieri, a relative of Virginio, participated in the organization of artistic events at court. This is confirmed by the composer himself, who provided Virginio with musical entertainments of all kinds.13 Cavalieri’s first contacts with Virginio Orsini can now be dated back to 27 November 1585 (Figure 3.2), when the composer conveyed his condolences on the recent death of Orsini’s father, Paolo Giordano I.14 On 18 November 1589, Cavalieri, writing from Florence, notified Virginio that: His Highness [Grand Duke Ferdinando] is in Pistoia, and the Grand Duchess [Christine de Lorraine], happily continuing her pregnancy, is at Poggio with the other princesses, and instead of games, songs and dances, they only talk about and involve themselves with hunting.15

Il refugio delle muse  59

Figure 3.2  Letter of Emilio de Cavalieri to Virginio Orsini, 27 November 1585 (by permission of the Archivio Storico Capitolino)

A few months later (12 May 1590), the composer wrote again to the Duke of Bracciano, this time to announce the birth of the grand duchess’ son, the future Cosimo II.16 Cavalieri was not part of the Orsini household, but his frequent sojourns in Rome and his letters to Virginio indicate that he was involved with various administrative and diplomatic affairs for Orsini, and that he also acted on

60  Il refugio delle muse Orsini’s behalf as an agent in Rome and Florence.17 Cavalieri was acquiring more privilege and influence within the Orsini-Medici network of clientage. In serving Virginio, he was in fact serving Grand Duke Ferdinando, given that Virginio was a client of the latter. The same is true for other Florentine artists and musicians being “patronized” by Orsini, who assumed a very special position of which others took great advantage. Cavalieri was also responsible for introducing musicians and dancers into the artistic entourage of the Duke of Bracciano, as evidenced by his recommendations of Francesco Danielli; Angelo Ricci (Agnolino), who designed many of the ballets at the Medici court; and Francesco Rasi.18 Rasi was in Mantua on 20 March 1595, when he sent a composition to Virginio. With the mediation of Cavalieri, he expected to be favored with a gift by Duke Orsini.19 Another letter reveals that Rasi, keen to improve his concerti for Vincenzo Gonzaga, requested an organ from Virginio: Twice a week, Thursday and Sunday, Your Lordship, the Duke, very much enjoys listening to concerts with many voices and instruments. He truly derives pleasure from their harmony, but I am missing a wood organ [organo di legno] to improve them significantly. I long for one. In Lombardy one cannot be found and nobody knows who manufactures them. I know Your Excellency would bestow a great favor on him [Duke Gonzaga] by having one made or by letting him have one.20 Rasi tried to obtain Orsini’s favor to satisfy his Mantuan patron. Gonzaga did not write directly to Virginio but instead used the composer as a mutual intermediary to make the request. Such situation was not uncommon because musicians often acted as lower-status clients and mediators, and played a vital role in epistolary interactions between patrons of equal or higher noble ranks. Rasi maintained close contact with Orsini after visiting Rome. The composer’s move to Mantua was caused by repeated scandals, and must be understood within the political context of clientage, wherein artists circulated within the orbit of the Orsini, the Medici, and the Gonzaga families, all of whom had become connected through a series of matrimonial alliances (e.g., in 1584 Virginio’s cousin Eleonora de’ Medici married Vincenzo Gonzaga). Among the many figures working in this milieu were the poetess Maddalena Campiglia and the composer Luca Marenzio.

Luca Marenzio at the Orsini court Letters dating back to 1588 from Campiglia to Virginio’s maestro di casa, Velleio Velo, show that Marenzio was already in contact with the Orsini court in February 1588. More importantly, the letters corroborate evidence of Marenzio’s involvement in the writing of music for a dramma pastorale. They also show that Virginio’s patronage network of clients and intermediaries facilitated artistic collaborations and helped establishing connections among poets and musicians. Campiglia was motivated by her desire to have Marenzio set two madrigals to

Il refugio delle muse  61 music for her pastoral drama Flori, which was soon to be printed.21 In the first letter, Campiglia states: I was told that Luca Marenzio, an excellent musician and perhaps the best of all, is there in the service of your Most Illustrious Lordship. I have just finished, after several months, writing a pastoral drama, and because I would like to have five madrigals with music printed with it, I would be grateful if your lordship could convince this excellent man (Marenzio) to set at least two of them to music. I will delay the printing (of the pastorale) until your reply.22 In a later letter (April 1588), she expresses her hope that her wishes will be met by the composer: I hoped for nothing less than your lordship’s great kindness and Signor Luca’s many virtues, to which I will remain forever indebted. Let the madrigals be for four or five voices, as it is more convenient and preferred by signor Luca, whose decision in this regard I will trust completely. Knowing that each of his compositions is outstanding, I will await them with great desire.23 Marenzio ultimately set the madrigals in question to music, but they reached Campiglia too late, after the publication of her pastorale had already been finalized.24 An examination of the work makes evident that no music was included in the final print. In spite of this lacuna, it is possible to identify the texts of the two madrigals. They were included as acrostics in Campiglia’s letter and printed in Flori as an encomium for Curzio Gonzaga and his wife.25 In the work, they are preceded by eulogistic quotations to Felice Orsini Colonna.26 The poetess refers to the second madrigal as “the shorter one” (first letter), leaving to Marenzio the decision of setting the music for four or five voices (second letter). The location of both madrigals within the pastoral drama, in particular their participation in the action of the dialogue, confirms that they may have been conceived as choral sections. The two madrigals in question are Il re dell’universo and Chiunque de l’esperia. They conclude the third scene of act five. In the play they are sung by the shepherds and nymphs Androgeno, Licori, Alessi, and Flori. The period of Marenzio’s life and career in Rome remains shrouded in obscurity. It has been hypothesized that in the summer of 1593, Marenzio was in the service of Cardinal Cinzio Aldobrandini.27 But the account books in the Orsini archive allow us to establish with certainty the period of Marenzio’s employment in Virginio’s household, as well as his exact salary. The composer’s sojourn at Virginio’s Roman court (palace of Monte Giordano) began in the early months of 1590. His discharge from Florence (11 November 1589) was remedied by the composer’s association with a client (Virginio) of his former employer (the Grand Duke). The first extant payment to Marenzio was made in January 1591, when he was receiving 6 scudi per month. From July 1593 to January 1595, his stipend was increased to 240 scudi per year (20 scudi per month), which was higher than Marenzio’s previous salary at the court of Ferdinand de’ Medici. This is a significant amount, especially if we consider that Marenzio was a member of Virginio’s famiglia as

62  Il refugio delle muse companatico, which meant that he received room and board in addition to his monthly income. This stipend remained unchanged until the end of January 1595, when he left Virginio’s palace.28 The last record of Marenzio in Rome is a letter to Flavia Peretti (2 August 1595), in which the composer requests permission to leave and to accept the position offered to him by the king of Poland.29 Since few of the payrolls for the period under consideration have survived, it is not possible to identify all of the salaried musicians in Orsini’s famiglia. We learn that the musico Antonio Mongani and the harpsichordist messer Camillo were paid for several months of service.30 Other musicians were certainly available to Virginio for private performances, as evidenced by an additional payment of 50 scudi to Marenzio (1592) for having accompanied a number of musicians to the Orsini castle in Bracciano.31 It seems more than likely that Marenzio’s madrigals were performed on this occasion. Furthermore, the guardaroba and the inventory of Orsini’s residence show numerous music books and musical instruments owned by Virginio, which could have been used for ensemble performances. These included various string, keyboard, and percussion instruments: lutes, harpsichords, violoni, claviorgan, and organs. Adorned with frescoes of muses, the saletta delle 9 muse in the castle of Bracciano, which is now called La Sala del Trono, seems to have been one of the locations for private musical events; another harpsichord and organ were kept here.32 The patronage of Virginio was crucial for the creation of Marenzio’s Quinto libro di madrigali a sei voci (1591). As the composer himself made clear, most of the music was composed during his time at the Orsini palace.33 The encomiastic message of this book is explicit in the opening composition (Leggiadrissima primavera), but it is also subtly evident in the madrigal that follows: Gracious nymphs and pretty loving shepherds who with joyful mien in this shadowed valley, today, at the clear waves of the running spring, love drew you to choose flower by flower to weave garlands and to crown my gentle nymph, while pleasant satyrs and sylvans in their strange clothes humbly dance strewing roses and flowers, you sing: “long live the beautiful Dori.” Leggiadre ninfe e pastorelli amanti che con lieti sembianti in quest’ombrosa valle, all’onde chiare di vivo fonte, oggi, vi trasse amore a scieglier fior da fiore per tesser ghirlandette e coronare la mia ninfa gentile,

Il refugio delle muse  63 mentre vezzosi satiri e silvani nei loro abiti strani danzan con modo umile, voi cantate spargendo rose e fiori: “Viva la bella Dori.” Various sections of the text are marked by recurring chordal and declamatory passages. Marenzio depicts musically the pastoral scene of a matrimonial celebration, where humans and demigods join together in dance and music to praise the alluring bride (Dori). Perhaps, the textual references to shepherds, the valley, and the running spring are indirect allusions to the Pastori della valle tiberina (the shepherds of the valley of the Tiber river), an accademia founded and hosted by Virginio Orsini in Rome. Antonio Piccioli’s Prose tiberine (Figure 3.3),

Figure 3.3  Members of Orsini’s pastoral academy, Prose tiberine, Antonio Piccioli, 1597 (by permission of the Biblioteca Alessandrina in Rome)

64  Il refugio delle muse a book printed in Treviso in 1597 and dedicated to the Duke of Bracciano, contains a partial list of the members and their corresponding pastoral pseudonyms.34 From a letter by the poet Cosimo Cicognini, dated September 10, 1603, we know that six years after the publication of Piccioli’s book, the academy was still active.35 In addition to several anonymous texts that bear no attribution, both of Marenzio’s madrigal books, which were published in 1591 and 1594, contain madrigal texts by the poets Torquato Tasso and Antonio Ongaro, two members of Orsini’s circle. Scholars have emphasized Tasso’s ambivalent connection to Marenzio and maintained that there was never direct contact between the poet and the composer.36 But this assumption can be challenged because Tasso’s participation in Orsini’s academy dates back at least to the late 1580s and lasted until his death in 1595, which was exactly the same period in which Marenzio was a salaried musician for Orsini. Furthermore, two letters locate Tasso in Rome in February and August of 1591 and confirm that the poet maintained close ties with Virginio’s courtly circle.37 Tasso had also dedicated his pastoral drama Il rogo amoroso and verses of Risposta di Roma a Plutarco to Fabio Orsini, which serves as further evidence of his link with Orsini’s academy.38Among the various encomiastic poems that Tasso composed in honor of Virginio Orsini and his wife, Flavia Peretti (Table 3.1), we find the canzone Delle più fresche rose, which, once again, celebrates their marriage. This poem was certainly written by Tasso before the summer of 1589, for it is mentioned in a letter from Giovanni Battista Strozzi to Orsini’s maestro di casa, Velleio Velo, which is dated July 9 of the same year. Strozzi contacted Velo, who, as an intermediary, acknowledged the receipt of the canzone (App. B, doc. 7). Thus, it is evident that poetic compositions were Table 3.1  Tasso’s poems dedicated to Virginio Orsini and Flavia Peretti TITLE

POETIC FORM

Per iscolpire il vostro nome Virginio, il tuo destrier La bella donna Voi, che cercate pur da l’Austro a L’Orse Fabbricò il Tempio con purgati carmi, Vide Flavia inalzar sublime Tempio In voi rare bellezze Mirando Roma il crin Se di lodarvi in rime A nobiltà di sangue Flavia, quando nel lago Quando col ventre plen donna Da questo altero e glorioso Tempio Delle più fresche rose

sonnet sonnet sonnet sonnet sonnet sonnet sonnet sonnet sonnet sonnet sonnet sonnet ottava rima canzone

Il refugio delle muse  65 circulating among the members of Orsini’s academia pastorale before the publication of Piccioli’s book: With the freshest roses then your hair, Hymenaeus, joyously engirdle, before the fortunate day wanes; and crown the seven hills, and let Rome, still fertile with heroes, furnish its towers all around with roses. Let the Tiber display roses besides its usual ornamentation, and let not the laurel and the purples be held in higher regard – even though they were your ornament, once the enemy was defeated, in that fine ancient time, O famed Africanus, O great Augustus – for novel glory equals ancient honour. Hymenaeus, although you liked to wind around your mane the flower which I so much honour, you liked to wind around your mane, because it was an ancient sign of valour, replace the green laurel with the rose now. It was picked on these shores by the beautiful Cypris and denotes and demonstrates a newer virtue, such that, because of her, every flower despises and scorns itself. Fierce Mars, even nobler in blood, esteems it; he deployed it in a sublimer part, so that the rose is worthy of high verse in balls and celebrations, and still more among troops and arms. Come, then, Hymenaeus, girdled with roses, with the new dawn, whose mane and bosom are bedecked with roses; and with the softest and dewiest breezes, which, while dawn decks herself with flowers, bestrew a cloud of roses too. See the blossoming as far as the cerulean edge of wavy Thyrrenian, which also brings to you pearls and gems; but on Flavia’s refreshing face they are more beautiful than in the sky, and sunrise would lose if she challenged her. Come, come, Hymenaeus, for the sun is setting. Come, come, Hymenaeus, for Hesperus

66  Il refugio delle muse twinkles already, and the sky is darkening; but Flavia shines more clearly for us, and with calm and quiet features outshines the white moon, as she would the purple light. Come, for the brave captain awaits you who also sighs for the divine lights and fair mane of Flavia, whose sweet looks have already set him on fire, and you are late. Now bring along joy, throw away your cares, shake your golden face, and drive away the shadows. Come, for without you everlasting on earth there is no sceptre or crown, nor stable kingdom or durable domain of ancient lineage, celebrated in wars, whose fame resounds beyond the last Battro and the far Atlantis. Already through you the chaste lover is expecting his sons; the glory of the forebears you extend to the grandsons, and to undying memory; mortal things you make almost eternal, equal to the celestial. Shake your golden face, and may the stars be like other torches around your own. Behold Hymenaeus; see the flame and lightning, O Rome, and in a blossoming sight the night and the sky, saddened with no cloud; and in him behold, almost docile, the bear and the lion, which now revolve more radiant. Delle più fresche rose omai la chioma, lieto Imeneo circonda pria che tramonti il fortunato giorno; e ne incorona i sette colli, e Roma ancor d’eroi feconda, rose produca alle sue torri intorno. Di rose il Tebro oltre l’usato adorno le sue rive dimostri, ne siano in maggior pregio il lauro e gli ostri, benché, vinto il nemico, di lor s’ornasse in quel buon tempo antico, o famoso Africano, o grande Augusto, che nova gloria agguaglia onor vetusto. Se la fronde, Imeneo, che io tanto onoro,

Il refugio delle muse  67 ti piacque al crine avvolta, perché fu di valore antica insegna, or cangia nella rosa il verde alloro. Che in queste piagge è colta, e più nova virtù dimostra e segna, tal che ogni fior per lei si sprezza e sdegna dalla bella Ciprigna, e di più nobil sangue ancor sanguigna. La stima il fero Marte, che dispiegolla in più sublime parte, tal che degna la rosa è d’altri carmi, fra balli e feste, e più fra schiere ed armi. Vieni dunque, Imeneo, cinto di rose, colla novella aurora, che s’adorna di rose il crine e il grembo; e coll’aure più lievi e rugiadose, che mentre ella s’infiora, spargono intorno pur di rose un nembo. Vedi fiorir sino al ceruleo lembo dell’ ondoso Tirreno, che perle e gemme pur ti porta in seno. Ma nel viso di Flavia in mezzo il gelo son più belle che in cielo; e perde l’alba se con lei contende: vieni, vieni, Imeneo, che il sol discende. Vieni, vieni, Imeneo, che omai scintilla espero e il ciel s’mbruna, ma Flavia più serena a noi riluce, e con sembianza placida e tranquilla, vince la bianca luna, e vincerebbe la purpurea luce. Vien, che t’aspetta il valoroso duce, che le luci divine pur di Flavia sospira, e il biondo crine, ed a quei dolci sguardi già par tutto di foco, e tu ritardi. Porta i diletti omai, le noie sgombra, scuoti la face d’oro, e scaccia l’ombra. Vieni, che senza te perpetuo in terra non è scettro o corona, ne stabil regno o signor fa costante. Vieni per antica stirpe, illustre in guerra, la cui fama risuona oltre l’ultimo Battro e il mauro Atlante. Per te già figli attende il casto amante;

68  Il refugio delle muse tu degli avi la gloria stendi ai nipoti, e l’immortal memoria. Tu le cose mortali fai quasi eterne, alle celesti eguali scuoti la face d’oro, e quasi stelle siano intorno alla tua le altre facelle. Ecco Imeneo, vedi la fiamma e il lampo, Roma, è infiorita vista la notte, e il ciel, cui nulla nube attrista; e quasi mansueti in lui rimira l’ orse e il leon che più lucente or gira.39

Poetry and monody in Orsini’s circle Tasso and Marenzio were two of the many artists who gravitated to the courts of Virginio, Ferdinando de’ Medici, and Cardinal Alessandro Montalto. Given his kinship ties to the Orsini family, Montalto relied on the influence of Virginio in Florence for legal and bureaucratic matters that involved members of his household, including musicians. The cases of the castrato Onofrio Gualfreducci, and the composer Scipione Dentice are peculiar in this regard. In 1595, Montalto turned to his sister Flavia Peretti (Duchess of Bracciano) to help Gualfredrucci with a financial dispute against the Magistrate of the Bigallo, the head of a public institution that controlled various orphanages in and outside of Florence (App. B, doc. 14). Montalto did not have direct connections with Florentine clients who were as powerful and close to him as Virginio, and anticipated that Flavia could count on Virginio’s role as a political mediator to intercede in favor of the singer. Likewise, Dentice requested the help of Orsini, who acted as an intermediary between Montalto and the musician, writing recommendation letters for the latter (App. B, doc. 15).40 Some of the other musicians and singers associated with the circle of Virginio were not salaried or employed in fixed positions; instead, they were hired on an ad hoc basis to provide services for the Duke of Bracciano. The list of artists includes Giulio and Francesca Caccini, Vittoria and Antonio Archilei, Adriana Basile, and Isabella Andreini.41 Vittoria Archilei was in close contact with Virginio, and from November 1593, she became a habitué at Monte Giordano, where she lodged in the well-appointed apartment adjacent to the garden (appartamento vicino al giardino). On 11 February 1594, she was granted permission by Virginio’s wife, Flavia Peretti, to sing at a dinner organized in honor of Orazio Rucellai, and in November of the same year, she returned to Monte Giordano.42 Two years later, Vittoria was again at the Orsini court when Giulio Caccini wrote to Virginio on 14 September 1596: I have composed the madrigal for Your Most Illustrious Excellency with those notes that I know and consider the most appropriate to express the affection of the words, and I have also provided it with vocal ornamentation (passaggi) that I imagine will

Il refugio delle muse  69 give your lordship pleasure when you hear it. . . . You advised me that you wished that the madrigal would be sung by Vittoria Archilei: Your Excellency should know that while I was composing it, she heard it several times, and I have finished it in conformity with her taste.43 This is one of the few documents wherein Caccini remarks on the poetic conceit of the performance of passaggi, namely, the imitation of the noble style of singing associated with his teacher Scipione delle Palle, and with other Neapolitan musicians in the Orsini-Colonna circle (discussed in the previous chapters). Even more noteworthy is that Caccini feels the need to claim that he has set to music a madrigal by Virginio in a manner suited to the tastes and abilities of one of the most celebrated singers of the time: Vittoria Archilei. He does so both to bolster his music but also as part of the ritual exchange of favors: Virginio says that the madrigal is to be sung by Archilei, and Caccini responds that he has already anticipated the request. Vittoria’s fame had already reached far beyond the confines of Rome and Florence. Her exceptional vocal abilities and improvisational skills were regarded as a model by even contemporary amateur singers like Agata Cesare. As her husband, Antonio Archilei, briefly remarks in a letter to Virginio, “Agata Cesare requested one of those arias that Vittoria sings, to see the way and manner of singing our passaggi.” Antonio was looking after this young female singer and arranging her engagement to his son Ottavio (with a dowry of 5,000 scudi). He endorsed Agata’s aptitudes as a musician, wife, and courtier.44 The Archileis seem to have played the courtly game judiciously by developing solid connections with the Orsini-Medici power network. They succeeded indeed in placing themselves in the marketplace, and in gaining the approbation of Virginio and the Grand Duke. Additional letters show that Vittoria continued to provide musical services to Virginio, his children, and cardinal Montalto. In turn, Orsini and his wife supported the singer, her family, and relatives by recommending them to court positions in Florence and Rome. (App. B, docs. 20–22, 24). It is certainly not fortuitous that, in 1604, Antonio and Vittoria Archilei relied on Flavia Peretti to obtain permission to relocate to Rome for two years to take care of financial matters. The request was prompted by their precarious economic status (App. B, doc. 25). Giovanni Battista Strozzi il giovane was also involved in the composition of madrigals for Archilei. A letter to Virgino shows that on at least one other occasion during 1597, Vittoria was in Virginio’s courtly circle. The letter further attests that in October 1597, Strozzi was back in Fiesole:45 May it please Your Excellency, who already granted me the favor of composing a madrigal, deigning to give me the idea for it, to also let me know if you agree that it (the madrigal) should consist of eleven verses, like I am sending it to you now, or if it is better to transform it into two, in the manner that follows here, with a third one added to accompany them. I have wanted to do something with care to

70  Il refugio delle muse accommodate the wishes of Signora Vittoria, whose powerful singing can make even a mediocre poem appear excellent; but if the Madrigal of the Dream, which is (included) with this, lacks of affection, at least it will have the power, with its imperfection, to exalt more the virtue of those who sing it.46 This passage, like the previous letter of Giulio Caccini, brings to the fore the expression of “affection” in solo singing. Contemporary views of the doctrine of affects were deeply rooted in Virginio’s poetic circle. In this same year, the Orationi e discorsi (Figure 3.4) of the poet and amateur musician Lorenzo Giacomini were printed in Florence bearing a dedication to Orsini, who was the recipient of other unpublished orations written by the poet.47 The link between this publication and Virginio is clear. Giacomini’s close acquaintance with Girolamo Mei stemmed from their association with the camerata and the accademia fiorentina. Later, along with Strozzi, they joined the Alterati of which Orsini was an unofficial affiliate.48 Like Mei, Giacomini was immersed in the study of ancient Greek music, a fact that is evident in his two orations De la purgatione de la tragedia and Furor poetico, which were delivered at the Alterati in 1586 and 1587 then later published (among others) in his printed collection for Virginio. Like Mei, the poetics of Giacomini was profoundly grounded in Aristotle’s Poetics, although the views of the latter two were more conceptual than practically oriented toward specific issues of music theory. Giacomini prepared the first translation into vernacular Italian of Aristotle’s Trattatello Aristotelico dell’armonia (contained in Problematum XIX), a treatise that exerted considerable influence on humanist musical discourse. This work and Giorgio Bartoli’s translation of Boethius’ De Institutione Musica were connected to Bardi’s circle. Bartoli, a pupil of Giacomini and an acquaintance of Orsini, recorded some of the letters from Bardi and Mei to Vincenzo Galilei.49 In De la purgatione, Giacomini discusses the essence of affects, how they are produced, and the influence they exercise over the human soul. He claims that the ineffable phenomenon of purgatione (purification) is common in both poetry and music and reaches an absolute union in musical drama. 50 As it transpires through Giacomini’s writings, humanist reception of ancient tragedy finds expression in the notion of artistic imitatio or mimesis, which is reflected in the constituent elements of late Renaissance musical theater, such as the suavity of music and dance and the magnificence of the choreography and costumes. Influenced by Aristotelian thought, Giacomini maintained that the inner force of music resides in its cathartic capacity to purify (purgare), instruct or initiate (ammaestrare), relieve (diportare), and pacify (calmare) the human soul. The aim of the orator, as well as the poet and musician, is to awaken the affetti hidden in the soul of the listener.51 The rhetoric of affetti conceived by Giacomini represents one facet of humanist aesthetic related to the development of monody and early opera. The creation of poetry and music were, generally speaking, influenced by the recovery of classical knowledge, although it is problematic to determine which aspects of music the recovered knowledge influenced and to what extent. Claude Palisca held that Greek classical ideas were at the very least

Figure 3.4  Orationi et discorsi, Lorenzo Giacomini

72  Il refugio delle muse an indispensable part of the development of the new monodic style at the turn of the seventeenth century. On the other hand, Nino Pirrotta maintained that, while not insignificant, classical ideas played a role subordinate to the composers’ technical experimentations with popular music and theater that evolved from the fifteenth century.52 Whatever the truth, the aesthetic beliefs of Giacomini and Renaissance humanists provided an intellectual framework for thinking about experiments and innovations in music, and provided a means of justifying composers’ preexisting ideas about what they aspired to achieve. Moreover, they gave noble patrons and clients like Virginio Orsini, the arbiters of taste, a way to judge on various grounds the composers’ works and the singers’ performances. Giacomini’s discussion did not remain an abstract conceptualization but found concrete application in Strozzi’s poetry for music and in the RomanFlorentine monodies of the Caccinis and other poets and musicians connected with Orsini’s circle. Both Giulio and his daughter Francesca Caccini sojourned on several occasions at Monte Giordano in Rome. While at the French court (1604–1605), Caccini wrote three letters to Virginio. In January 1607, Giulio notified Virginio of his arrival at Rome to serve his sister-in-law, and on March 7, Giulio thanked Virginio for the hospitality he and his family had received at Virginio’s residence. Therefore, sometime during the two intervening months, they were at Virginio’s palace. In March 1609, Giulio and Francesca were again in touch with him to address a missed payment of Settimia Caccini’s dowry. On 16 August 1610, Giulio was Virginio’s guest, as evidenced by the appearance of his name in the libro dello spenditore. Francesca returned to the Orsini court in early March 1612, when Pietro (or Piero) Strozzi wrote to Virginio and again in April 1613.53 On 4 May 1613, Francesca was seeking another favor from Virginio, but this time she used a different tactic to obtain what she needed. Instead of inquiring the duke directly, Francesca wrote a letter to Virginia Manelli Fei (courtier and wife of Orsini’s maestro di casa Emilio Fei), with whom she seems to have been in good terms (App. B, doc. 31). A few days later, not able to satisfy the duke’s request to go to Rome for the upcoming summer, Francesca sent two madrigals to Virginio. At the time, she was also involved with the composition of music for a dance at court.54 By being unable to serve Virginio in person, and sending him the compositions as a gift instead, Caccini aimed to maintain and reinforce her patronage relationship. It was Francesca’s means, as a client of both Orsini and the Medicis, to show dependency and allegiance. Caccini’s madrigals and arie, as well as those of other contemporary poets, seem to have enjoyed considerable popularity within the Orsini-Medici circle. They were often performed by the composer on the chitarrone, an instrument recently invented by Antonio Naldi (known as il Bardella), another protégé of the duke. At Virginio’s request, lutes and chitarroni were often purchased or repaired and sent to the Medici court in Florence.55 This suggests that he was in some sense acting as both a patron and Medici agent in procuring musical instruments in Rome. On September 16, 1614, Giulio Caccini sent his last letter to Virginio. In

Il refugio delle muse  73 it he discusses operatic singing in sprezzatura, claiming, in spite of Emilio de Cavalieri, to have been the first to introduce a form of recitative based on the rhythm of musical speech, which imitated Greek theatrical and oratory practice. The composer also informs the duke of the improving compositional abilities of his daughter Francesca, stating: She has recently written three books of certain works of her own with all those invented ornamentations that others can (only) imagine, and with these the best affects that may be heard from anyone who practices solo singing . . . and she has composed some madrigals and sonnets with words and music, which have been very pleasing to all who have heard them.56 In the years of Francesca Caccini’s frequent sojourns at the Orsini court, Virginio’s interest in theatrical representations intensified. This is clear from various expenses related to macherate, giostre, and commedie. Between September 1612 and May 1613, the libro dello spenditore records the purchase of numerous books of comedies. Six of them are identified with titles and confirm Virginio’s literary inclination toward pastoral poetry: Nuova Amarilli, La finta fiammetta, La gratiana, L’intrigo, Sonetti intrigati et gesti sdegni, and Le false querele d’amore. One of these might have been the comedy staged in the “giardino del concerto” (garden of the concert) mentioned in the account books. Among the figures who may have participated in the musical and artistic preparation of these theatrical works were Cesare Zoilo (from March–July 1613), Ottavio Archilei (from November 1607 until February 1613), Pompeo Caccini (in September 1614), Domenico Poggi, and Alberigo Malvezzi (both at the Orsini court in October 1614).57 Although the payrolls from the first quarter of the seventeenth century are fragmentary, it is possible to identify other musicians connected with Virginio, some of whom lodged in the stanze de musici of the Orsini palace, which were specifically designed to accommodate them. In April and May 1608, Stefano Fabri and an unnamed musician of Cardinal del Monte appear on the payrolls.58 More importantly, in the following year, Virginio engaged Paolo Quagliati and a certain Orazietto (Crescenzi?) musico. Although the length of their residence at the Orsini court cannot be established with precision, they were both salaried members of Virginio’s household (companatici). Horatietto was paid for the full month of September, and Quagliati was paid from before August until October of 1609. The involvement of Quagliati, and other musicians, in composition, musical performance, and teaching at the Orsini court is suggested by a series of expenses related to cartelle musicali, guitar strings, and private lessons. 59 It is likely that Quagliati’s connection with the Orsinis continued for several years because his Carro di fedeltà d’amore was printed in Rome in 1611, and it bore a dedication to Virginio’s sister-in-law, Giustiniana Orsini, who resided at Monte Giordano.60 Pietro della Valle, author of the libretto, claimed that this monodic musical drama, which was performed as a traveling opera during the Roman

74  Il refugio delle muse carnival of 1606, was the earliest example of a theatrical work in the stile melodrammatico heard in Rome.61 Indeed, a number of Quagliati’s solo madrigals contained in Carro di fedeltà d’amore are examples of Roman-Florentine monody in recitative style. Here we find elaborate diminutions, syllabic textual declamation, and speech-like singing based on the pervasive use of monotone recitation. A close reading of the dedicatory preface to Giustiniana Orsini, signed by the writer Oberto Fidati, discloses interesting insights concerning its publication. The work appears to have enjoyed popularity outside of the pontifical city after his first performance; indeed, as Fidati himself states, he was in Bologna when he heard it and observed a handwritten copy of it. Manuscripts of this work, with both text and music, may have circulated in Italy for six or more years before it was finally printed. A passage from Fidati’s opening dedication reports: I negotiated with the aforementioned composer (Paolo Quagliati), and because he did not hold much esteem for it (his music), it was necessary to use with him many and robust demands, or to better say, importunities, to the end that he consented that it be printed only if it carried on the title page the name of your most Illustrious Excellency, who is so honored and revered by him.62 In the foregoing remarks, one can see that Quagliati accepted Fidati’s proposition to have his music published on the condition that the printed book bear the name of Giustiniana Orsini. The decision to have the complete work published was influenced by Fidati’s ambitious desire to honor a powerful family like the Orsini for his own personal gain. Virginio Orsini’s epistolary contacts with other well-known literary figures show that he was not only associated with the Valle tiberina. As a result of his participation in the Florentine confraternity of the Compagnia del Gesù, in the Accademia degli Umoristi, in the Accademia della Crusca, and in the Accademia degli Alterati, Duke Orsini also established himself at the center of a broader poetic network.63 Virginio took part in academic meetings that were organized by other influential patrons and open to philosophers and scientists of the caliber of Galileo Galilei. Orsini’s connection with the latter is attested by two unpublished letters (App. B, docs. 28, 29). In the first letter, Galilei notified Virginio of his return to Florence at the court of Granduke Ferdinando. In the second dispatch, Galilei praised one of Giovanni Battista Strozzi’s works, which was presented at an informal literary gathering held in Rome, at the house of cardinal Deti. The association of Galilei with the Orsini family was by no means an isolated episode of patronage bonding, because it continued with Virginio’s sons Paolo Giordano II, and particularly with cardinal Alessandro (1592–1626).64 The correspondence of the poet Ottavio Rinuccini with Virginio provides us with information regarding other singers associated with Orsini. For instance, on 10 February 1603, he (together with Bardo Corsi, Piero Guicciardini, and Matteo Conti) requested Virginio’s intercession in the liberation from prison of the singer

Il refugio delle muse  75 Antonio Brandi (called il Brandino), whose arrest had compromised an unspecified theatrical representation at court. Brandi was at Monte Giordano in November 1606. Several years later (18 January 1611), Rinuccini, entrusting again in Virginio’s influence, asked for a recommendation for the singer Livia Scheggia, who “is putting efforts to become a virtuosa, and to serve their highnesses, as she has served them in Dafne (“s’affatica per farsi virtuosa per poter servire loro altezze, e l’ha servite nella Dafne”).” These are examples of how the market in favors operated. Rinuccini, although an esteemed poet, was a lower-rank client and could not approach grand duke Ferdinando directly. Rinuccini (and the others) therefore turned to Virginio, who was his closest liason to the Orsini-Medici circle, and certainly an influential enough client of Ferdinando de’ Medici to mediate. Virginio did indeed succeed, and could claim a future favor in return. Rinuccini continued to uphold his obligations by providing service to Orsini at his palace in Rome, where the poet’s presence is documented from 21 April 1610, until 24 June 1612.65 Besides Rinuccini, Virginio maintained close connections with two other members of the alterati: Gabriello Chiabrera and Jacopo Corsi. Although they did not touch upon musical matters, various letters from Jacopo and Bardo Corsi to Virginio testify to their close relationship.66 The Compagnia del Gesù was another center of Virginio’s poetic network, through which he consolidated his connections with Corsi and Lorenzo Giacomini, who, as we have seen earlier, dedicated his book orationi et discorsi to Orsini (1597); he also came into contact with Michelangelo Buonarroti the younger.67 Furthermore, Virginio’s presence in the Umoristi allowed him to extend his poetic circle to include Giovanni Battista Marino, Guarini, and Jacopo Cicognini.68 The relationship between Guarini and Virginio began after their meeting at the Accademia della Crusca, where Virginio served as the arciconsolo under the pseudonym of Vagliati.69 In regards to Cicognini, he was writing poetry for Orsini as early as 1608 (App. B, doc. 26), and was a member of his famiglia from April–July 1613. He returned to Monte Giordano on at least one other occasion in October 1614, a few months after the first operatic representation of his pastoral drama L’Amor pudico at the Peretti residence in Rome.70 As we have seen here, the overlapping of associations among the various members of the literary academies and musical circles connected to the Orsini court show the existence of an elaborate Roman-Florentine network of poets and musicians. Virginio, as a patron, client, and intermediary, was at the center of this web. His support of the development of poetry and music was strong. As it will be discussed in the next chapter, with Virginio’s death on 9 September 1615, his son Paolo Giordano II assumed responsibility for the political future of the Orsinis and their contribution to musical patronage in The Eternal City.

Appendix B

1. 27 November 1585, Emilio De Cavalieri to Virginio Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 156/2, fol. 216. Cavalieri is in Rome, where maintained close professional contact with Orsini. In this letter, the composer offers condolences to Virginio for the recent death of his father (Paolo Giordano I).   Illustrissimo eccellentissimo mio signore e singolarissimo padrone   È piaciuto al signor iddio tirare a sé il signor suo padre, che sia in gloria, e come cristiani abiamo a prendere in bene tutto quello che ci viene mandato dalle sue mani, quale so certo che superando di giudizio qual si voglia altri nell’età che vostra eccellenza tiene, non è da credere che non si sia conformata con il voler de iddio, se bene l’amor paterno è solo. Vengo dunque con questa mia a far riverenza a vostra eccellenza e ricordarmegli per divotissimo servitore, e dolermi di tutto quello che è dolore a vostra eccellenza e disservizio suo, accertandola che sempre pregherò iddio per la grandezza dell’illustrissima e eccellentissima casa e sua persona. Di Roma li xxvii di novembre 1585. Di vostra signoria illustrissima e eccellentissima devotissimo servitor   Emilio de Cavalieri 2. 5 February 1588, Giovanni Battista Strozzi to Virginio Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 103/1, fol. 154. Strozzi’s early career was linked to Virginio’s poetic circle. He took part in Orsini’s accademia and, as the following letter shows, provided Orsini with madrigals and other poetic compositions.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signore patron mio   Bartol (Giorgio Bartoli) non dice che io sappia che per debito di madrigali si possa metter nessun nelle stinche, ma il pagare tutti i suoi debiti è cosa che mi par che abbia tanto del buono che ___ eccellente e inventionevole, non credo che ne potesse avere un altra migliore. Ecco pertanto quei quattro madrigali del Guerino, e non so quanti dei miei desiderosi di cancellare quella partita della qual vostra eccellenza mi disse che mi aveva fatto debitore al signor Ferrante de Rossi, ma gli altri debiti che io ho con lei propria altro ci bisognerebbe che madrigali a volergli pagare. Io per me, non avendo altro che la mia voluntà a vostra eccellenza, l’ho obbligata in maniera che tutto quel che ella ha, o è mai per avere ad altro, mai non servirà che a sodisfare al suo

Il refugio delle muse  77 e mio obbligo, il quale essendo infinito, e perciò non proporzionato alle mie forze, sarà forza che l’infinita benignità di vostra eccellenza accetti in cambio del potere il volere. Baciole con ogni debita reverenza la mano, e dal nostro signor Dio desidero ogni felicità. Di Firenze il di 5 febbraio 1588. Di vostra eccellenza illustrissima obligatissimo servitore in perpetuo Giovanni Battista Strozzi 3. 6 March 1588, Giovanni Battista Ghellini to Velleio Vela. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 341/1, fol. 32. Ghellini was the founder of a literary academy in Vicenza. He sends to Virginio a recently printed copy of a commedia that was written by Giovanni Battista Calderari. The work in question may be La schiava, which is the only known comedy of Calderari written in these years (1588–1589).   Il signor cavalier Calderari ha fatto stampare una sua comedia, e mi ha voluto favorire di onorarmi di dedicarla alla mia persona. Io non ho voluto mancare di mandarne una a vostra signoria accio veda l’opera, che è meritevolissima per l’onore che mi è stato fatto da questo onorato e virtuoso Calderari, e con questa le faccio riverenza baciando la mano a nome di esso signor Calderari. La mi dia qualche ragguaglio particolare de casi suoi. Di Vicenza alli 6 marzo 1588. Di vostra signoria illustrissima servitore affezionatissimo Giovanni Battista Ghedini 4. 20 March 1588, Giovanni Battista Strozzi to Virginio Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 103/1, fol. 146. Strozzi informs Orsini that he, and the theatrical designer Bernardo Buontalenti and other workers, are putting their efforts to embellish one of Virginio’s artistic inventions.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signor e patron mio   Vostra eccellenza illustrissima mi favorì di dirmi che io avessi a cuore le cose sue come le mie proprie, io gli risposi, più con l’affetto del cuore che con la voce, che più che le mie mi premevano segno ne sia che postponendo tutti i miei affari. Stamani, e oggi, e stasera, sono stato con messer Bernardo Buontalenti, abbiamo di già messi i lavoranti in opera. Io, dal favor di vostra eccellenza inanimito, vo di ora in ora ritrovando cose da abbellir non poco la sua bellissima inventione, infatti io conosco per prova che i principi quando prendono a favorire un servitore hanno virtù di fargli far cose impossibili, ma non è maraviglia poiché i principi son mandati quaggiù per dispensar le grazie del donatore d’ogni bene; da lui prego a vostra eccellenza ogni maggior felicità. Da Firenze il di 20 di marzo 1588. Di vostra eccellenza illustrissima servitore obligatissimo in perpetuo   Giovanni Battista Strozzi 5. 20 December 1588, Giovanni Battista Strozzi to Virginio Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 103/1, fol. 78. Strozzi acknowledges receipt of various madrigals from Giovanni Battista Guarini. One of the madrigals, which Strozzi intends to send to Orsini in Rome, concerns flowers.

78  Il refugio delle muse   Il cavaliere Guerino scrivendomi una gentilissima lettera l’ha accompagnata con quei madrigali che monsignor Alamanni a giorni passati mi mandò, e di più mi ha favorito d’un altro, il quale fra l’altre sue bontà avrà l’esser buono a ricordarmi a vostra eccellenza per vivo, se però io son vivo nella sua memoria. Trattasi in esso di fiori, e perciò mi ha fatto sovvenire d’un mio sopra un fiore che nacque costì quando era in parte altro uom da quell che io sono; non mi vergognerò mandarlo a vostra eccellenza, perché quando ė non faccia altro, e farà pur apparire tanto più il valor di quel del Guerino. Bacio reverentemente a vostra eccellenza la mano, e prego il nostro signor Dio con tutto il cuore per ogni sua felicità. Di Firenze il di 20 di dicembre 1588. Di vostra eccellenza illustrissima servitor obligatissimo e desiderosissimo de suoi comandamenti Giovanni Battista Strozzi 6. 24 February 1589, Giovanni Battista Strozzi to Virginio Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 124/1, fol. 31. In this letter, Strozzi refers to some mascherate that were organized in Florence. He also criticizes a book on the subject that was published thirty years earlier; presumably Antonfrancesco Grazzini’s Tutti i trionfi, carri, mascherate ò canti (Florence: Torrentino, 1559).   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signor e patron mio   Una canzone in canzona que pars est! Chi me ne scuserà più, o la stagione, o la benignità di vostra eccellenza! Molti gentiluomini, insieme e tutti dei principali e tutti a lei servizi desiderando di rimetter l’usanza delle mascherate allegre, di già mi dettero invenzione, essi chiesero parole, fecile ingegnandomi di sfuggire il mal costume di passati, che davano qualche volta nell’empio, nel maledico spesso, e nel disonesto sempre, come si vede in quel libro dei canti che si stampò trent’anni orsono. Non è piccola difficultà il voler trarre d’altronde il ridicolo, ma ridicolo sarei forse ora io se in cambio di pregare vostra eccellenza che mi perdonasse la colpa non mia, la infastidissi con lunghezza di ragioni o discorsi soverchi alla sua bontà e intelligenza. Baciole con ogni debita reverenza la mano e dal nostro signor Dio le desidero ogni felicità. Di Firenze il di 24 di febbraio 1589. Di vostra eccellenza illustrissima servitore obligatissimo in perpetuo Giovanni Battista Strozzi 7. 9 July 1589, Giovanni Battista Strozzi to Velleio Velo. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 343/2, fol. 251. Velo (Orsini’s segretary) sent a canzone of Torquato Tasso to Strozzi. The latter replied with this letter to thank him for the favor.   Illustrissimo signor mio ossequendissimo   Ringrazio vostra signoria del favor che mi fece dandomi la canzone, basta dir del Tasso e subito s’intende che ella è cosa bella. Ma sarà inclusa in questa, e io gli bacio le mani pregandola che mi comandi e mi favorisca di conservarmi in grazia del suo e mio signore. Nostro signor Dio la felicità. Di Firenze il di 9 di luglio 1589. Di vostra signoria illustre servitor umilissimo e obligatissimo   Giovanni Battista Strozzi

Il refugio delle muse  79   8. 6 February 1590, Emilio de Cavalieri to Virginio Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 105/2, fol. 182. Cavalieri reports on a lottery game that was organized on the previous day, and in which the cardinals Aldobrandini and dal Monte participated.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signor mio singularissimo   Questa sarà solo per ricordarmi a vostra eccellenza per suo devotissimo servitore, rimettendomi al signor Pietro Aldobrandino, quale gli darà la beneficiata che nel lotto di ier sera toccò a sua eccellenza, e dal signor cardinale dal Monte gli sarà dato gli motti, e umilmente gli bacio le mani, da Fiorenza li 6 di febbraio 1590. Di vostra signoria illustrissima e eccellentissima umilissimo e devotissimo servitore   Emilio de Cavalieri   9. 27 April 1590, Giovanni Battista Strozzi to Virginio Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 104/1, fol. 31. Strozzi tries to introduce to Virginio the poet Bellorio Donadio, who seems to have been well regarded in Florence.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signore e padron mio   Non mi si porgendo altra occasione di ricordarmi a vostra eccellenza per quel devotissimo servitore che io gli sono, e sarò fin che io viva, la prenderò dal desiderio che ha il signor Bellorio Donadio di fare personalmente a lei reverenza, si come l’ha fino a qui debitamente riverita con l’animo. È uomo virtuoso, e qui in Firenze in poesia e in altro ha dato soddisfazione non piccola, perciò tengo per fermo che vostra eccellenza, solita favorire i meritevoli, si degnerà di sodisfare al desiderio che egli ha di baciargli le mani, il che facendo umilmente ancora io, prego il donator d’ogni bene per ogni sua maggiore felicità. Di Firenze il di 27 aprile 1590. Di vostra eccellenza illustrissima servitore obbligatissimo in perpetuo   Giovanni Battista Strozzi 10. February 1591 (no exact date), Torquato Tasso to Virginio Orsini. It is published in Torquato Tasso, Le lettere di Torquato Tasso, ed. Cesare Guasti (Florence: Le Monnier, 1855), 35-36. Tasso sends a sonnet to Virginio reminding him of his continuous obligations.   Non mi sono dimenticato di quel che vostra eccellenza mi comandò l’ultima volta che io la vidi, perché gli oblighi miei, che sono molti e grandi verso l’eccellenza vostra, sempre mi rappresentano a l’animo quanto io debbo fare per servirla. Le mando il sonetto che tanto mostrò di desiderare, e se io fossi così pieno d’amore come è vostra eccellenza, o che mi si facesse almeno sentir nel cuore in qualche parte invece di quella malinconia che di continuo mi travaglia, avrei forse con maggiore affetto e più convenientemente lodata la bella donna che vostra eccellenza, o per sua gloria o per segno di vendetta, porta appesa al collo così gentilmente dipinta. Si degni d’accettar lietamente ciò che può avere da povero debitore. E viva felice. Da Roma.

80  Il refugio delle muse 11. 30 August 1591, Torquato Tasso to Virginio Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 105/3, fol. 451. Tasso thanks Veleio Velo and Virginio for all the favors received.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signor mio e padron mio colendissimo   Con occasione della venuta del signor Hippolito Pigna, ho preso ardire di far umile riverenza a vostra eccellenza, ringraziandola a nome dell’eredi e parenti delle molte grazie fatte in memoria del povero signor Veleio (Velo). Che se bene tutto è frutto della magnanimità dell’animo suo, con tutto ciò non sono per cessar in loro gli infiniti oblighi che tengono a vostra eccellenza, e se in altro non che potranno restar segni in perpetuo, pregheranno il signor iddio per ogni sua maggior grandezza, e io in particolare come obbligatissimo suo servitore cosi che non gli sarò più tedioso, e con ogni debita umiltà gli bascio le mani. Di Roma li 30 agosto 1591. Di vostra eccellenza illustrissima umilissimo e obbligatissimo servitore   Torquato Tasso 12. 20 March 1595, Francesco Rasi to Virginio Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 106/3, fol. 684. Rasi sends a musical composition to Virginio asking for a greater favor in return. The letter does not include specific information on the music nor on Rasi’s request; however, it shows that Cavalieri was involved in this favor exchange.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signor mio e padron osservandissimo   Se io volessi mandare a vostra eccellenza qualche opera di filosofia o di poesia, ella se ne riderebbe parendo impossibile che uno che si diletta tanto della musica come fo io, abbi a poter sottomettere il cervello ad altro per cavarne frutto, onde per non aver briga di sbarbare questa invecchiata opinione e forse ancora nella mente di vostra eccellenza. Non le mando opera non di filosofia ne di poesia, ma si ben di musica, e una sola non mi parendo aver fatto poco si quella fosse, e non la mando a vostra eccellenza acciò che ella mi abbi di favorire di riceverla e sentirla, che non si usa più al mondo far cosa alcuna senza interesse. Ma fo questo acciò vostra eccellenza, ricevendo questo picciol dono da me, sii sforzata farmene uno maggiore conforme a quello che per me le dirà il signor Emilio Cavalieri, il quale se vostra eccellenza nun farà rimarrò assai indebidato. Dio conservi felicissimo vostra eccellenza come fa il serenissimo signor duca nostro, quale s’accinge d’iscivergli un qual fine, rimanendo umilissimo servitore a vostra eccellenza li fo riverenza. Di Mantova li xx di marzo 1595. Umilissimo e devotissimo servitor   Francesco Rasi 13. 1 July 1595, Rutilio Gaci to Virginio Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 106/2, fol. 532. Gaci sent a chitarrone to the court musician Antonio Naldi (il Bardella), and asks Virginio to confirm receipt of it. He also requests a copy of the arias sung by Giulio Caccini.   . . . Vostra eccellenza mi facci grazia di farmi scrivere se il chitarrone è stato ricevuto dal Bardella con occhio lieto e con animo di ricompensarlo con delle tastate e altre galanterie del suo capriccio, e resti servita di comandarla

Il refugio delle muse  81 al signor Vittori, che mi sia in questo buon sollecitatore, e se Giulio Romano cantasse qualche aria di quelle che vostra eccellenza si potesse immaginare che qua avessero da piacere, mi farà grazia particolare a farmene mandar copia . . . Roma primo di luglio 1595 14. 11 August 1595, Cardinal Alessandro Montalto to Flavia Peretti, I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, fol. 610. Cardinal Montalto asks Flavia to intercede in favor of the singer Onofrio Gulfreducci, who was prosecuted by the magistrate of the Bigallo in Florence. The Bigallo was a public institution that provided assistance to the poor and orphans, and controlled other local orphanages (ospedali). Montalto explains that Gualfreducci received financial profits from one of these ospedali located in Pistoia, which was granted to Gualfreducci’s family by Pope Gregory XIII. The magistrate, however, had freezed Gualfreducci’s earnings, and it is for this reason that Montalto requests the Duchess of Bracciano to intervene.   Illustrissima e eccellentissima signora mia e sorella osservandissima   Scrivo a sua altezza in raccomandazione di Honofrio musico, il quale vien molestato dal magistrato del Bigallo di Fiorenza sopra un suo Ospitale di Santo Spirito sul Ponte alla Brana di Pistoia, e mentre che sta qui gli ne hanno levato li frutti, e vorriano ancora che restituisse quelli che ha tirato gli anni passati, cosa che li saria scomodissima e massime vivendo di quelle entrate suo padre ormai decrepito. Supplico dunque sua altezza che avendo Honofrio posseduto il detto ospitale da Gregorio XIII, in qua dal quale ne fu provisto, si degni di lasciarglielo godere in vita sua, e ordinare al detto magistrato che cessi di molestarlo. Così prego vostra eccellenza a farne ogni buono officio, acciò che in luogo di accrescere comodità a questo buon servitor di sua altezza non sia privato di quella che mentre si trattiene qui per mia sodisfattione, e a vostra eccellenza bacio le mani. Di Roma il di xi d’agosto 1595. Di vostra eccellenza servitore e fratello affettuosissimo   Alessandro Montalto 15. 1 February 1597, Scipione Dentice to Virginio Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 108/3, fol. 667. Virginio recommended Dentice to cardinal Montalto, and wrote letters in his favor. Dentice asks Orsini to provide him with the original copies of Montalto’s replies.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signor padron mio osservandissimo   Per l’ordinario passato baciai a vostra eccellenza le mani del favor fattomi delle lettere per il signor cardinal Montalto in favor mio, le quali presentate dal signor cardinale del Monte si ebbe bonissima risposta. Ma poiché fin adesso non ci è risoluzione ferma, ne io ho possuto accertarne di quanto comanderà detto signor cardinale Montalto, supplico vostra eccellenza ogni volta che riceverà risposta di quelle lettere di favorirmi d’inviarmi l’originale, ovvero la risposta di questo fatto, acciò mi possa a fatto risolurne che patendendo inviare in aria, del che ne resterò a vostra eccellenza obbligatissimo come a la signora duchessa sua consorte, alla quale prontamente fo riverenza

82  Il refugio delle muse declarandomele per servire in ogni loco dove mi sia. Di Roma, il primo di febbraio 1597. Di vostra eccellenza illustrissima obligatissimo servitore   Scipione Dentice 16. 29 November 1597, Pietro Priuli to Virginio Orsini I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 108/2, fol. 480 (partially quoted in Boyer, Les Orsini, 303 and Kirkendale, The Court Musicians, 564). Priuli informs Virginio that Francesco Rasi visited him at his house in Venice, where he performed delightful music.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signor mio colendissimo   Il signor Francesco Rasi è capitato a Venezia e in casa mia, ed è riuscito grazioso e compito a tutti per l’eccellenze di molte virtù che a gara fanno prova in qual di poco si mostri più laudabile, accompagnate da musica così squisita che verifica in questo nostro mare quel che ha celebrato l’antichità delle sirene e dei cigni. Onde con l’occasione di salutare vostra eccellenza, mi ha parso opportunità comunicarle questa mia traboccante consolazione, in modo che ella può avvisare che ce la passiamo musicalmente e festevolmente. Con desiderio di servirla, ma già che questo ne vien negato, resto solamente pregandola che si compiaccia di risvegliare nella sua memoria, e nella sua grazia, l’obligata servitù e devozione mia verso l’eccellenza sua, assicurandola che vivo assai bramoso d’esserne anche certificato con i suoi comandamenti, poiché per sua molta cortesia ne resto in tante maniere sicurissimo per sempre. E a vostra grazia bacio le mani. Di Venezia il di 29 novembre 1597. Servitore umilissimo e devotissimo   Pietro Priuli 17. 2 February 1600, Emilio de Cavalieri to Virginio Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 109/2, fol. 289. Virginio sent a letter of recommendation for Angelo Ricci (Agnolino) to Cavalieri, who inquired the dance teacher Paulo Hernandez to take Ricci as his student. Ricci initially agreed to study with Hernandez at no charge, but did not attend any lessons. Cavalieri notifies Orsini of this.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo mio signor singolarissimo   Subito ricevuta la lettera de vostra eccellenza in raccomandazione di Agniolino, andai a trovare mastro Paolo e lo pregai volesse pigliarlo a star seco. Lo trovai che non teneva più scuola, ma che per farmi servizio e con questa occasione, avendo veduto ballare Agnolino, voleva rimetter scuola, e in termine di un mese o poco più che lui l’avria rimessa, e tiratosi Agniolo (Agniolino) appresso di se, e che fra tanto le avria dato ogni giorno lezione senza pagamento veruno. Agniolo resta con molta sodisfazione di tutto questo, e resta meco di andare a pigliar lezione. Ho poi inteso che non vi è mai andato, e che si è accomodato per camoriere con il signor Filippo Salviati, e che è molto ben veduto, sì che non occorre altro per questo servizio. Ne ho voluto dar conto a sua eccellenza acciò sappia che io avevo subito procurato di servire vostra eccellenza con ogni affetto, alla quale faccio riverenza. Da Roma li ii febraro 1600. Di vostra signoria illustrissima e eccellentissima umilissimo e devotissimo servitore   Emilio de Cavalieri

Il refugio delle muse  83 18. 26 August 1600, Paulo Hernandez to Virginio Orsini I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 109/1, fol. 251. Hernandez explains to Virginio that one of his pupils (Francesco Danielli) wishes to go to France, and is seeking the support of a high aristocrat. He therefore asks Orsini to recommend him to one of the princes who accompanies the queen to France. Hernandez also requests a portrait of Virginio to decorate the walls of his dance school with paintings of eminent nobles.   Intendo che Francesco Danielli, già mio allievo e valente giovane, così nel ballare come nel suono, desidera andar a spendere la gioventù sua in Francia, e andare sotto l’appoggio di qualche principe. Supplico vostra eccellenza che per amor mio si degni raccomandarlo e appoggiarlo ad alcuno di quei principi o signori che accompagnano la regina, assicurandola che le farà onore, e io le ne terrò obligo particolare. La raccomandazione fattami per parte di vostra eccellenza dal signor Emilio del Cavaliere, anche per Angelo Ricci, mi sarà come sprone a cavallo che corre, poiché il giovane è tenuto da me in luoco di figlio, fa ottimo progresso ed è per riuscire eccellente in questa mia professione. Io ho rimesso su una bella scuola, e la vengo adornando di quadri di uomini illustri, fra i quali desidero porre quello di vostra eccellenza, però la supplico a farmi grazia d’un suo ritratto acciò io possa di continuo vedere e fruire l’effigie di colui che mi sta al naturale sempre scolpito nel cuore, e umilissimamente le bacio le mani pregandole da Dio ogni compita felicità. Da Roma, 26 di agosto 1600. Di vostra eccellenza devotissimo e obligatissimo servitor   Paulo Ernandez, maestro di balare 19. 31 July 1601, Antonio Archilei to Virginio Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 110/2, fol. 224. Antonio and Vittoria Archilei inform Virginio that they served Paolo Giordano II in his room, where they performed in the presence of other nobles. They recommend to Orsini the young singer Agata Cesare for a position at court, and as wife for their son Ottavio (with a dowry of 5,000 scudi). Agata’s father had already agreed with the plan.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo mio signore e padron osservandissimo   Vengo con questa insieme con Vittoria a far umilmente reverenza a vostra eccellenza. Andammo giovedì a servire il signor Paolo Giordano in camera sua, dove era il signor contestabile con molti altri signori, se ben con poco valore almeno con la solita buona volontà. Vittoria andò ieri con la signora Virginia e signora Caterina al monastero nuovo dalle signore, le quali stanno benissimo, e ora che il Bonaparte a comprato li cavalli per la carrozza, potrà andare piu spesso a servirle. Al partir che io feci da Roma mi ricordo che io dissi a vostra eccellenza che avevo sentito cantare la signora Agata Cesare, e che l’avevo giudicata di bonissima riuscita, e che suo padre me disse che seria stato de bisogno per far qualche buon profitto che ella fossi stata insieme con Vittoria qualche mese. Io gli risposi alli orecchi che parentassimo insieme e così sarebbe stata con Vittoria, egli mi rispose che havea cinque mila scudi di dote, io gli dissi che ci pensassi un poco bene

84  Il refugio delle muse e che poi con lettere ne averriamo trattato, e così restammo. Lei poi me chiese un aria di quelle che canta Vittoria, per vedere il modo e la maniera delli nostri passaggi. Vittoria gle la mandò subito con una sua lettera, alla quale respose averla ricevuta con grandissimo suo gusto e che ne vorrebbe delle altre. Ho voluto dire a vostra eccellenza quanto è passato fra di noi sin ora acciò compiacendosi di volerci far grazia in questo negozio, e in questa buona occasione favorire Ottavio. Io credo che sarebbe una buona cosa per lui, l’una fanciulla di buona qualità, buona presenza, virtuosa non solo nel cantare e sonare ma in moltre altre cose, e ha una voce da far quel che vuole, e bonissima riuscita a cinque mila scudi di dote, e va a rischio per essere sola in casa loro di redarne 25 o 30 mila. Ottavio poi non solo è senza stipendiato di vostra eccellenza, ma io gli consegnarò anco in tanti luoghi de monti, per ora cento scudi l’anno da spendere, e dopo la morte potrà averne qualche cosa di più. Vittoria poi non ha bisogno di nisuno di loro, le due sorelle sono di già accommodate, una in palazzo e l’altra con le signore sue figliole, di modo che ella non potrebbe stare se non bene, e non resta altro se non che vostra eccelenza vogli per sua grazia trattarlo o farlo trattare come gli pare, e tutto quello poi che succederà pigliaremo non solo della mano del signore, ma anco dalla buona voluntà di vostra eccellenza, alla quale con ogni umiltà facciamo riverenza. Di Fiorenza li 31 luglio 1601. Di vostra eccellenza illustrissima devotissimo e obbligatissimo servitore   Antonio Archilei 20. 28 August 1601, Vittoria Archilei to Virginio Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 109/1, fol. 16. Vittoria is grateful to Orsini for all the help and affection received. She says to have served Virginio’s daughters (Isabella and Camilla) at the Palazzo Vecchio, where they sojourned during their trip to Florence. She also informs Virginio about the improved medical conditions of his other daughter, Maria Felice.   Illustrissimo e colendissimo mio signore e padrone osservandissimo   Per una di vostra eccellenza a messer Antonio, ho veduto la continuata sua amorevolezza e grazia verso di noi e delle cose nostre, e tanto più gle ne restiamo obligati quanto che di suo pugno abiamo veduto essere incaminato il negozio per buonissima via. Non poteva per noi desiderare suggietto più appropriato che il signor cardinal Montalto, piaccia al signor iddio che segui quello sia il meglio, e intanto non restaremo di pregar signor Dio mio per la sua salute. Mentre che la signora Isabella e signora Camilla sono state in Firenze, io non ho mancato ogni giorno di andarle a servire al Palazzo Vecchio, e stanno benissimo, e la signora Maria Felice comincia a star meglio, piaccia al signore de rendergli interamente la sua sanità, e con tal fine desiderandogli il colmo de ogni bene gli facciamo reverenza. Di Firenze li 28 di agosto 1601. Di vostra eccellenza illustrissima umilissima e obligatissima serva   Vittoria Archilei

Il refugio delle muse  85 21. 23 February 1602, Vittoria Archilei to Virginio Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 110/2, fol. 395. Vittoria regrets not being able to serve Virginio at his palace, and expresses contentment for his medical recovery.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo mio signor e padrone colendissimo   Poiché non posso con la presenza servire si come sarebbe mio desiderio vostra eccellenza illustrissima, vengo con questa a farli la mia debbita reverenza; e siccome ho sentito infinito contento della tornata e della sua salute, così parimente la supplico a tenermi eternamente viva in grazia sua, parendomi meritarla per la lunga servitù e grande affezione che per obligo gli porto. Onde che insieme con messer Antonio, mio marito e suo devotissimo servitor, gli fo reverenza e pregarò sempre il signore per la sua salute e della mia signora. Di Roma li 23 di febbraio 1602. Di vostra eccellenza illustrissima obbligatissima e devotissima serva   Vittoria Archilei 22. 1 June 1602, Vittoria Archilei to Flavia Peretti. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 110/2, fol. 304. Vittoria is pleased to have received a letter from Flavia Peretti. She tells her about the musical performances at the residence of cardinal Montalto that take place after dinner, and thanks her for having helped her daughter Caterina, whom Vittoria recommends for a position at court.   Quando che meno aspettavo di essere favorita de sue lettere, appunto mi sopragiunse la sua tanto da me desiderata, che di già ero quasi for di speranza che tenessi piu memoria di me, e se mi è stata cara e se ne ho avuto contento grandissimo idio lo sa. Signora mia mi creda pur certo che poi che altro non posso per ora, almeno quando vo dal signor cardinale a far musica, che per l’ordinario sono le feste doppo desinare, mi passo di remirare il suo retratto in galleria. Ho visto poi per la sua quanto ogni giorno più cerca di giovarmi e di favorirmi appresso a madama serenissima in tutti li conti, e particularmente di Caterina, la quale se bene sta in mano buona e sicura, tenendola madama Lucrezia, tuttavia se sua altezza serenissima se la pigliassi noi serriamo favora de un gran fastidio, e questo non lo può far altri che vostra eccellenza all’occasione, poiché lei ha fatto il più, gle ne supplichiamo dunque e pregheremo per la sua salute sempre. Non resto poi di andare alle volte a servire la signora a Santo Apostolo, non per cantare che non ha gusto, ma per visitarla, e in vedermi subito da propria parola me dice se io ho avuto lettere di vostra eccellenza; e in vero si more di vederla, sta benissimo, e se gli raccomanda il signor cardinale, poi sta benissimo e allegramente con il signor marchese, ancora dalli quali riceviamo ogni giorno più infinite grazie e siamo regalati de quella maniera che gli ho detto altre volte, e tutto per loro grazie non per nostro merito! Attenderemo intanto a fare il comandamento de sua altezza serenissima, sebbene abbiamo grandissimo martello di Fiorenza, ma poiché non potemo far altro, bisogna che abiamo pazienza e che obedimo, e qui finisco supplicandola a tenerci vivi sempre in grazia del signore e sua, facendoli reverenza insieme con messer Antonio, mio marito e suo devotisssimo

86  Il refugio delle muse servo. Di Roma di primo di giugno 1602. Di vostra eccellenza illustrissima obligatissima serva   Vittoria Archilei 23. 10 September 1603, Cosimo Cicognini to Virginio Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 113/3, fol. 334. Cicognini, motivated by his desire to participate in Orsini’s accademia, accompanies this letter with a poem that he hoped to be worthy of acceptance by Virginio.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signor padron mio colendissimo   La presente poesia, per mio diporto composta dedicata al nome di vostra eccellenza, se non sarà degna dell’infinito merito della sua virtù e della partecipazione della sua virtuosissima accademia, sia almen testimonio della devotissima servitù mia verso di lei. E se al bellissimo giudizio de vostra eccellenza e dei suoi virtuosi, ella apparirà rozza e con qualche imperfezione, scusa anco mi sarà la diversità della professione, con che fine umilissimamente me l’inchino, e da Dio signor prego ogni bene. Di Prato li 10 settembre 1603. Di vostra eccellenza umilissimo e devotissimo servo   Cosimo Cicognini 24. 18 January 1604, Antonio and Vittoria Archilei to Flavia Peretti. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 124/3, fol. 317 (cited in Kirkendale, The Court Musicians, 270). The Archileis thank Orsini for having helped their nephew, and hope to serve Virginio during the next Carnival festivities.   Illustrissima e eccellentissima mia signora e padrona colendissima   Insieme con Vittoria vengo con questa a fargli umilissima reverenza, e a ringraziarla infinitamente della grazia fattaci in persona del nostro nepote, il quale speramo che se porterà di maniera se ben è principiante, che vostra eccellenza possa un’altra volta con la sua solita benignità fargli magior grazia di questa, essendo anco questa de non poca importanza per lui. Io son stato poi quest matina a far reverenza alle signore, e ho veduto desinare il signor Francesco, signora Isabella, e signora Maria Felice. Tutti stanno bene e alegramente, solo se desidera la presenza di vostra eccellenza, della quale ancor non siamo fuor di speranza di non averla a servire qua questo carnevale. Signora mia, dice Vittoria insieme con Antonio, suoi devotissimi servitori, che son tanto grandi quanto gli oblighi che gli teniamo che non possono essere maggiori. Solo resta a loro per non poter altro di pregare eternamente questa santissima Nunziata per la salute delle signore e di vostra eccellenza, e con tal fine, supplicandola a volergli tener tuttavia vivi in sua grazia, gli basano la veste. Di Firenze li 18 di gennaio 1604. Di vostra eccellenza illustrissima umilisssimo e obligatissimo servitore   Antonio e Vittoria Archilei 25. 25 January 1604, Antonio and Vittoria Archilei to Flavia Peretti. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 124/3, fol. 318 (cited in Kirkendale, The Court Musicians, 270). Antonio and Vittoria remind Flavia about her promise to help their young daughter.

Il refugio delle muse  87 Due to their precarious economic condition, the Archileis also request permission to go to Rome for two years to take care of their financial situation.   Illustrissima e eccellentissima signora e padrona osservandissima   Al partir che fece madama serenissima di qua, essendo io a servirla e accompagnarla, mi chiamò alla sedia e mi disse che io dovessi governare bene la Vittoria e che si sarebbe recordata della nostra figlia. Io con tal occasione la suplicai che ci volessi far grazia di levarcela di casa perché è grande, e che non avendo noi qua ne parenti ne altri, non poteamo piu lasciarla così sola in mano de servire. Lei me disse orsù, “scrivete alla signora Lucrezia che io non mancherò,” ma non me disse ne che ne altro. Ora illustrissima e eccellentissima mia signora, avendo Vittoria e io con buona occasione parlato a lungo con il signore del pericoloso stato in che ora ci ritroviamo, per non poter essere in Roma a defendere le cose nostre, le quali se ne vanno per la mala via in danno nostro e della nostra povera fanciulla, sua eccellenza per sua benignità e grazia ci ha promesso di volerci in qualche modo aiutare, quando però non se ne abbia a parlare di andarsene. E non sapendo noi trovare cosa piu convincente ne piu facile, poiché loro altezze serenissime mostrano di compiacersi che noi stiamo qua che questa che chiediamo, abbiamo fatto una supplica alla signora, la quale ci potria servire ancora appresso alla benignità di vostra eccellenza, volendoci far grazia di favorirci sì come ha fatto sempre; e sperando tuttavia ogni buona voluntà da loro altezze serenissime, poiché non chiediamo se non cosa conveniente e quello che di già ce ne hanno fatto grazia. Ottenendo potriamo quietar l’animo nostro, il quale tuttavia va travagliando insieme con il corpo per non poter defendere quel poco che in tanti anni de servitù abbiamo guadagnato virtuosamente. Si supplica che ci faccino grazia di accomodarci Caterina, che per il servizio o monaca, come meglio parerà a sua altezza, e che Vittoria sia remessa nel buon di della grazia già avuta, veramente un paro de anni de licenza per andare a casa nostra per accomodare li fatti nostri. E con tal fo fine, facendogli umilissima reverenza insieme con Vittoria, pregaremo sempre questa santissima Nunziata per la salute de loro eccellenze. Di Fiorenza li 25 di gennaio 1604. Di vostra eccellenza illustrissima umilissimi e devotissimi servitori   Antonio e Vittoria Archilei 26. 11 February 1608, Jacopo Cicognini to Virginio Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 179/3, fol. 471. Cicognini sends a sonnet to Virginio, and thanks him for having read other poems that he had previously sent him.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signore et padron mio colendissimo   Mando l’incluso sonetto a vostra eccellenza, tanto povero d’arte, quanto ricco delle vere glorie del serenissimo gran duca d’eterna memoria. Scusi il mio ardire con quella medesima benignità con la quale altra volta non sè sdegnata leggere i miei rozzi componimenti, e facendole umilissima reverenza la prego da nostro signore suprema felicità. Di Volterra il di 11 di febbraio 1608. Di vostra eccellenza illustrissima devotissimo e obligatissimo servitore   Jacopo Cicognini

88  Il refugio delle muse 27. 7 June 1610, Adriana Basile to Virginio Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 121/3, fol. 380. Before leaving the castle of Bracciano, Basile thanks Virginio for the favors, courtesies, and great hospitality received there and in Rome.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signore mio padrone osservandissimo   Bastavano li tanti favori ricevuti da vostra eccellenza in Roma, ha voluto anco di nuovo obligarmi con tante grazie e tante cortesie avute qui in casa sua, che veramente sono rimasta admirata e affascinata; e tuttavia confermo quello che io dissi, che vostra eccellenza tenea privilegio di obligare a tutte le persone. E io ne parlo per prova poiché mi ha fatto tante grazie, e mi ha obligata in maniera tale che mi sarà sempre in continua memoria; non essendo bastate le mie forze a complire a quello che io devo, mi obligo pregare iddio per la sua salute e accrescimento di grandezza. Questo castello mi ha piaciuto grandemente, già si conosce essere stanza di vostra eccellenza, alla quale per fine bascio umilmente le mani e li fo mille profondissime reverenze. Da Bracciano li 7 di giugno 1610. Di vostra eccellenza umilissima e obligatissima serva   Adriana Basile 28. 18 September 1610, Galileo Galilei to Virginio Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, filza 122, fol. 628. Galilei notifies Virginio of his return to Florence (where he continued to serve Ferdinando de’ Medici) and offers his service to Orsini.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signore   Richiede il debito della mia umilissima servitù verso vostra eccellenza illustrissima che io le dia conto del mio ritorno in Firenze, dove per benignità del serenissimo granduca mio signore sono fermato al suo servizio. Io nelle altre dimore fattte a presso sua altezza scusai con la brevità del tempo la mia fortuna del non mi aver ella presentata occasione di poter mostrar con qualche segno esterno di servitù la devozione dell’animo mio. Vostra eccellenza illustrissima, e gli illustrissimi e eccellentissimi vostri suoi figli, ora che cessa questa causa, se io continuerò di vivere totalmente ozioso nel servirla, non potrò più scusar me appresso me stesso, ma converrà che io mi reputi e condanni per servitore assulutamente inutile. Io per tanto la supplico che con l’impiegar l’opera mia in qualche suo servizio, voglia in un tempo medesimo accertar se stessa dell’ardentissimo affetto col quale io bramo i suoi comandamenti, e me dell’esser la mia devotissima servitù da lei gradita. Qui umillismo me gli inchino, e dal signor Dio gli prego il colmo di felicità. Di Firenze li 18 di settempre 1610. Di vostra eccellenza illustrissima umilissimo e devotissimo servitore   Galileo Galilei 29. 8 April 1611. Galileo Galilei to Virginio Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 123, fol. 131. Galilei informs Orsini about the success of Giovanni Battista Strozzi’s poetic work, which was presented at an accademia sponsored by cardinal Deti in Rome. Galilei and Strozzi both took part in this informal gathering.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signore colendissimo

Il refugio delle muse  89   Sapendo quanta sia l’affezione con la quale vostra eccellenza illustrissima risponde ai meriti della devotissima servitù del messer nostro signor Giovanbattista Strozzi, e scorgendomi avere occasione di scriver nuova di questo a lei, e di onore al signor Giovanbattista, non mi è parso di permettere di farla consapevole della meravigliosa azione fatta di giorni sono da sua signoria nell’accademia dell’illustrissimo e reverendissimo signor cardinale Deti, trattando con erudizione e insieme vaghezza incomparabile della superbia, alla quale intervennero, sopra molti altri prelati, li illustrissimi e reverendissimi cardinali Aldobrandino, Bandini, Tosco, San Clemente, invidiati poi da molti altri, che per vari accidenti e per poca ventura del signor Giovanbattista non vi potettero intervenire tra i quali l’eccellentissimo signor ambasciatore Niccolini, prevenuto da uno spontaneo invito di quello di Savoia, ne è restato con dolore non piccolo. La bellezza dell’opera ha dato e dà occasione a tutta Roma di celebrare la dottrina del signor Giovanbattista, e io che come forestiero qua son muto, desidero di parlare in cotesta corte, e farvi pervenire in parte la meritata gloria di questo mio signore, e benché la mia attestazione sia di piccolissima autorità, ricevetela come relazione dell’applauso universale di Roma. Io poi benché speri di esser per quietare ognuno e levare tutti gli scrupoli circa la verità dei miei scoprimenti, tuttavia mi dolgo della mia sventura mancandomi il favore e protezione di vostra eccellenza illustrissima, la quale con la sua autorità mi averebbe agevolate tutte le difficoltà. Vogliami il suo medesimo favore in coteste parti, se però vi resta ancora contradittore, e come io infinitamente confido nel suo patrocinio così ella si averti della devotissima e umilissima mia perpetua servitù, e qui inchinandola gli prego dal signor Dio il colmo di felicità. Di Roma li 8 di aprile 1611. Di vostra eccellenza illustrissima devotissimo e obligatissimo servitore   Galileo Galilei 30. 3 March 1612, Piero Strozzi to Virginio Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 124/2, fol. 204 (quoted in Kirkendale, The Court Musicians, 313). Orsini demanded Francesca Caccini and her husband to go to Rome. Strozzi notifies him of their departure from Florence.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signor mio   La signora Francesca e suo marito vengono a Roma per obbedire a quanto vostra eccellenza illustrissima comanderà, così ha comandato a me il mio serenissimo granduca mio signore che io dica loro, il che so che essi faranno non tanto per obbedire, quanto perché sono antichi servitori di vostra eccellenza, e io ho sentito molta lode presenza d’esser in parte ministro de sui desideri. Piaccia a Dio dunque che ella resti così sodisfatta da loro come essi onorati da lei, con il qual finisco ricordandomi a vostra eccellenza per questo devoto servitor che sempre le sono stato, umilmente le bacio le mani, Dio con lei qual sempre maggiormente la faccia felice. Di Firenze il di 3 di marzo 1612. Di vostra eccellenza illustrissima devotissimo servitore   Piero Strozzi

90  Il refugio delle muse 31. 4 May 1613, Francesca Caccini to Virginia Mannelli Fei. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 351/1, fol. 197. Francesca apologizes for not being able to provide news about Mannelli’s daughters. She also inquires her about an unspecified matter that Virginia’s husband (Emilio Fei) will bring to the attention of Orsini.   Molto signora padrona mia osservandissima   Mi rincresce di non poter ancora darle nuova delle sue figliole perché non ho potuto attender ad altro che a queste feste, nelle quali siamo più che mai occupati. Non mancherò subito finite le feste di fare quanto sono obbligata, ne fra tanto ho voluto mancare di non darle nuove di me, conforme a quello che io le promessi e all’affezione che le porto. Mi ricordo sempre de la sua a me cara conversazione, e mi duole di aver avuto così corta occasione di servirla, se ben ho speranza di poter rimetter il tempo. Ci manca solo che il signor Emilio suo ci sia quel medesimo protettore che nell’altre nostre occasioni ci è stato appresso il signore, il perchè ci è così caro padrone, e noi ne viviam così infinitamente obbligati. Prego vostra signoria voglia far buono uffizio che il signore Emilio ricordi al signore il nostro negozio, ma in modo però che noi non paiamo troppo noiosi e frettolosi, basta che se vorrà, come io spero dalla sua amorevolezza, farà di maniera che ci rivedremo presto. Io la prego fra tanto che ella voglia favorimi di qualche suo comandamento appresso le sue figlie, e faccia conto d’avere a Firenze una vera serva in desiderio di servirla e in affezione una sorella, con che me le raccomando in grazia, e il mio marito si ricorda affettuosissimo servitore al signore Emilio, mentre io le prego da nostro signore ogni vero bene. Di Firenze alli 4 di maggio 1613. Di vostra signoria mia illustre come sorella e serva   Francesca Caccini Signorini 32. Inventario dei beni di Virginio Orsini 1615–1616, UCLA, Library Special Collection, box 13, folder 2. This is a list of the musical instruments that Virginio owned and kept in the palace of Monte Giordano in Rome.   Fol. 16r: Un gravicembalo con suoi piedi (quarta camera) Fol. 16v: Un tamburetto (retrocamera) Fol. 25v: Un libro di sonate da leuto senza coperta, due leuti uno de quali è in una cassa (armario) Fol. 39v: Due leuti d’avorio nelle sue casse (una stanza), una tiorba con sua cassa (un’altra stanza), un leuto ordinario con sua cassa (un’altra stanza) Fol. 54r: Tre casse entrovi violoni, quattro casse da leuti e chitarra, un legio basso di noce, due tamburacci (guardaroba) Fol. 66r: Un graviorgano con li suoi piedi e cassa dipinta (guardaroba) Fol. 67v: Un gravicembalo con sua cassa e suoi piedi (in galleria) Fol. 99v: Un tamburo da sonare (nel tinello della famiglia bassa) Fol. 119v: Un organetto piccolo con sua cassa con canne Fol. 124r: Due tiorbe Fol. 128r: Un tamburo grande

Notes 1 “Le mando il principio del mio poema, vengo con questo atto di reverenza a confermar l’opinione che hanno i giudiziosi che ella sia non solo il refugio delle muse, ma il tribunale e l’oracolo . . . supplicandola a non disdegnar di leggerlo desidero il parer suo.” I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 114/1, fol. 15.

Il refugio delle muse  91 2 See Roberto Zapperi, Virginio Orsini: Un paladino dei palazzi incantati (Palermo: Sellerio, 1993); Paolo Cecchi, “Modalità, grande forma e rapporto tra testo e musica nella Canzon de’ baci di Guarini intonata da Luca Marenzio,” in Guarini: la musica, i musicisti, ed. Angelo Pompilio (Lucca: Libreria Musicale Italiana, 1997), 33–35. 3 Mugliani was a famigliare of Virginio from May 12, 1587 (“A messer Antonio Mugliani maestro di cantare un gravicembalo di appresso intarziato con cassa di fuora dipinta di verde con suoi piedi”), until January 16, 1588. See I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 1212, ff. 10r, 50r, 61r, 65r, 67r. Payments to Malvezzi appear in I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 820, fol. 9 (“E a 4 detto scudi sei di moneta pagata, per mandato di sua eccellenza illustrissima, a messer Cristofano Malvezzi maestro di musica e di sonar, per sua provisione di mesi tre: gennaro, febraro, e marzo”). In regard to Cavalieri, Roberto Zapperi asserts that the composer was also responsible for Virginio’s musical education at the Medici court (Zapperi, Virginio Orsini, 10). See also Ferdinand Boyer, “Les Orsini et les Musiciens d’Italie au début du XVIIe siècle,” in Melanges de Philologie D’histoire et de Litterature offerts a Henri Hauvette (Paris: Paillart, 1934), 301–311. 4 Virginio and Flavia, who were only 17 and 10 years old, respectively, entered the Orsini palace in Rome on 8 April 1589. Virginio Orsini and Flavia Peretti’s sons and daughters were Paolo Giordano II (third Duke of Bracciano); Ferdinando (fourth Duke of Bracciano); Alessandro (later Cardinal); Camilla and Isabella, who married Marco Antonio Borghese (nephew of Pope Paul V) and Cesare Gonzaga, respectively; and Carlo and Raimondo, who died very young. 5 In regard to the “camerata” and the misunderstanding that the term has engendered, I subscribe to Warren Kirkendale’s assertion that the word ‘camerata’ occurs only in a minute number of contemporary sources. Notably in the prefaces of Giulio Caccini. . . . It was, of course, not an exclusive designation for the friends of Giovanni Bardi, but could be used for any informal gathering of persons in a ‘camera.’ Kirkendale, The Court Musicians, 33. 6 A comprehensive study of Strozzi’s poetic contribution to music is found in James Chater, “Poetry in the Service of Music: The Case of Giovambattista Strozzi the Younger (1551–1634),” Journal of Musicology 29, no. 4 (Fall 2012): 328–384. For a general account of his life and career, see Silvio Barbi, Un accademico mecenate e poeta: Giovanni Battista Strozzi il giovane (Florence: Sansoni, 1900). His poetry and its connection with the figurative arts is examined in Massimiliano Rossi, “Per l’unita delle arti: La poetica figurativa di Giovambattista Strozzi il giovane,” I Tatti Studies: Essays in the Renaissance 6 (1995): 169–213. 7 See Chater, “Poetry in the Service of Music,” 333–334. 8 App. B, doc. 9. 9 App. B, doc. 2, 5. 10 App. B, doc. 4. 11 App. B, docs. 5–7. 12 He was paid 16 scudi and 10 baiocchi a month. The payments are registered under the “lista degli artisti di Firenze” of Virginio. See I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 2215, fol. 417. Payments for the setting of comedies during Carnival are found in giornale 2072, fol. 25 (for “Filippo Festaiolo per diverse parature e sparature, e adornamenti d’arme di sua eccellenza per comedie al carnevale passato”). For additional biographical information on Piero Strozzi see James Chater, “Bianca Cappello and Music,” in Renaissance Studies in Honor of Craig Hugh Smith, eds. Andrew Morrogh and Fiorella Superbi (Florence: Giunti Barbèra, 1985), 569–79. 13 “Al qual signor Don Virginio io li do trattenimento di musica di ogni sorte.” Cited in Warren Kirkendale, Emilio De’ Cavalieri, ‘Gentiluomo Romano’: His Life and Letters, His Role as Superintendent of All the Arts at the Medici Court and His Musical

92  Il refugio delle muse Compositions (Florence: Olschki, 2001), 354. In this book (page 13), Kirkendale shows that Cavalieri was related to the Orsinis, indeed a direct descendent of the branch Orsini-Cavalieri. 14 App. B, doc. 1. 15 “Sua altezza si trova a Pistoia e la gran duchessa, seguitando felicemente la gravidanza, se ne sta al poggio con le signore principesse, e invece di giochi, canti, e balli non si parla ne si fa altro che andare a caccia.” I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 343/2, fol. 212. 16 I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 307/1, fol. 68. 17 There are additional unpublished letters of Cavalieri to Virginio, which although not touching upon musical matters, corroborate further evidence of their relationship. They are preserved in I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 105/2, fol. 182; 106/1, fol. 18; 108/3, fol. 632; 109/2, fol. 289–291; 156/2, fol. 216; 343/2, fol. 212; 345/2, fol. 229; 347/2, fol. 225; 347/1, fol. 197. This last letter dates from 12 July 1601, eight months before the death of the composer. 18 For Ricci and Danielli, see the letters of Emilio de Cavalieri and dance-master Paulo Hernandez to Virginio (App. B, docs. 17, 18). Hernandez’s association with Orsini dates back to 1600. He was paid 30 scudi by Virginio in November 1610 and 40 scudi in June 1613 for teaching dance to Ferdinando Orsini, Cosimo, and Carlo de’ Medici. These payments are found in I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 2091, ff. 38r, 59v. Hernandez was replaced by another dance-master, “messer Stefano,” who appears in the account books from April 1615 (giornale 2091, fol. 81r). 19 App. B, doc. 12. 20 “Al signor duca gusta assai di sentire due volte la settimana, il giovedi e la domenica, concerti d’assai voci e di strumenti. La cui armonia gli piace assai, ma mi manca un organo di legno per migliorarli sommamente, lo desidero. In Lombardia non se ne trova, non si sa chi ne faccia, so quanto favore gli farebbe vostra eccellenza fargnene fare, ovvero fargnene aver uno.” I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 307/1, fol. 49v. This letter to Virginio is dated November 8, but it does not indicate the year. Considering where it is located within the carteggio, it is likely that it was written in the same year as the previous letter. In 1597, Rasi traveled to Venice and wrote another letter to Virginio (App. B, doc. 16). 21 Maddalena Campiglia, Flori, favola boscareccia (Vicenza: Perin and Brunello, 1588). For an English edition of the work, see Maddelena Campiglia, Flori, a Pastoral Drama: A Bilingual Edition, ed. and trans. Virginia Cox (Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 2004). 22 “Mi vien detto che costà appresso a vostra signoria illustrissima si ritrova il signor Luca Marenzio, eccellentissimo musico e il meglio forse dei tempi nostri. Avendo io condota a finire dopo alcuni mesi una pastorale, e in essa dovendo andar stampati con la musica cinque madrigali, avrei gran favore che vostra signoria illustrissima appresso di lui operasse in modo che almeno potessi aver in musica a due di questi da sì eccellente uomo, che ritardarò la stampa fino alla risposta sua.” I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 343/1, fol. 34. 23 “Non manco sperava della gran gentilezza di vostra signoria e molta virtù del signor Luca, ai quali so quanto dovrò restar obligata. Gli madrigali siano dunque a cinque voci o a quattro, come piu tornerà a meglio e stimerà il signor Luca, al cui singular giudizio in quest’azione mi rimetto in tutto. So quanto è rara ogni sua composizione, lo aspettarò con grandissimo desiderio.” I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 343/1, fol. 35. 24 See letters from Campiglia to Velleio Velo (June 22, 1588) and from Valerio Fenice to Velleio Velo (July 2, 1588) in I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 342/2, fol. 297, 342/1, fol. 61. A passage from Fenice’s letter to Virginio (342/1, fol. 61) states that, “la signora Maddalena Campiglia desidera aver potendo queli suoi madrigali, e li mandai ier sera.” 25 In one of Campiglia’s letter to Virginio’s secretary (June 22, 1588), Campiglia declares that she wants to dedicate her work to Virginio, although she has already promised it to Curzio Gonzaga and his wife: “Poco ci ha mancato che io non abbi donata questa mia fatica all’eccellentissimo signor duca suo (Virginio Orsini), con tutto che era ella

Il refugio delle muse  93 stata promessa a questi signori, a cui sarà indirizzata (Curzio Gonzaga and Isabella Pallavicina Lupi) ma come cosa per avventura indegna di comparir inanzi a intesa presenza sarà forse stato così il meglio.” I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 342/2, fol. 297. The two madrigals and Marenzio’s connection with the poetic circle of Campiglia in Vicenza have been discussed in Marco Bizzarini and James Chater, “Flori, Olympia and the Temple of Venus: Luca Marenzio’s Tour of the Veneto in 1588,” Studi Musicali 45, no. 1 (2014): 137–174. 26 “Orsa Felice che col mondo a paro vivrà chiaro il tuo nome in degne carte!” Atto quinto, scena terza, fol. 60v. 27 Paolo Fabbri, “Luca Marenzio,” Dizionario biografico degli Italiani, at www.treccani.it. Although Virginio paid Marenzio regularly for each month of service until 1595, he is mentioned in a ruolo of 1594 as being part of Cardinal Cinzio Aldobrandini’s familia. See also Marco Bizzarrini, Luca Marenzio: The Career of a Musician between the Renaissance and the Counter-Reformation, trans. James Chater (New York: Routledge, 2008), 190. Between 1597 and 1600, Virginio traveled between Florence and Rome, and during the following year, he went to France and England. After 1607, Virginio seems to have spent the remainder of his life between Rome and Bracciano, but the lack of documentation does not allow us to be more precise. 28 In March 1592, Marenzio was paid 12 scudi, and in October 1594, he received 60 scudi for the three preceding months. All the payments appear in I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, giornale 2072, ff. 100, 158, 163, 183, 191, 236, 248, 266, 280, giornale 2076, ff. 7, 49, 56–57, 80. 29 The letter is published in Hans Engel, Luca Marenzio (Florence: Olschki, 1956), 71–72. 30 For Mongani and messer Camillo (“suonatore di cembalo”), see I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, ruolo 1973, no page numbers (November 1589–March 1590), registro 1222, no page numbers, June 22, 1593. 31 I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, registro 839, no page number, 7 January 1592 (“a di detto scudi 50 di moneta pagati al signor Luca Marenzio, disse per distribuire alli musici condotti a Bracciano”). 32 On 6 May 1594, the guardaroba indicates that there were at least seventy music books in Orsini’s inventory (“libri otto da cantare di musica, libri undici di musica, adi 12 detto per sua eccellenza libri cinquanta simili”). See I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 1222, no page number. Orsini’s inventory is in App. B, doc. 32. For a list of other musical instruments owned by Virginio, see guardaroba 1219, ff. 160r – 161v (July 28, 1594), registro 1228, ff. 9, 12 (year 1609), registro 1230, fol. 47r. (30 May 1613). 33 This is stated explicitly by Marenzio in his letter of dedication to the duke. The texts of four anonymous madrigals contained in the print may have been written by Virginio. See Steven Ledbetter, Luca Marenzio: New Biographical Findings (Ann Arbor: UMI Research Press, 1994), 129. As James Chater has suggested for Marenzio’s earlier book of madrigals, this work also contains textual allusions to Tirsi, the pastoral pseudonym of Virginio. See James Chater, “Musical Patronage in Rome,” 179–227; “Fonti poetiche per i madrigali di Luca Marenzio,” Rivista Italiana di Musicologia 13, no. 1 (1978): 60−103. 34 Virginio and his close relative Fabio Orsini appear with the names “Prince Tirsi” and “Aminta,” respectively. For the other members, see also Luigi Berra, “Una pre-Arcadia del Cinquecento sconosciuta: I Pastori Tiberini,” Studi Romani 1 (1954): 41–54; Giuseppe Gerbino, Music and the Myth of Arcadia (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009), 360–377; Mauro Sarnelli, “Fra i cigni del Tevere accanto al Tasso: Antonio Decio da Orte, Fabio e Virginio II Orsini (con documenti inediti),” in Luca Marenzio e il madrigale romano, atti del convegno internazionale di studi, Roma, 9–10 Settembre 2005, ed. Franco Piperno (Rome: Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, 2005), 20–22. 35 App. B, doc. 23.

94  Il refugio delle muse 36 See Richard Freedman, “Marenzio’s madrigali a quattro, cinque et sei voci of 1588: A Newly-Revealed Madrigal Cycle and Its Intellectual Context,” Journal of Musicology 13, no. 3 (Summer 1995): 344; Iain Fenlon, “Cardinal Scipione Gonzaga (1542-93): ‘Quel padron confidentissimo’,” Journal of the Royal Musical Association 113, no. 2 (1988): 223–49; Nino Pirrotta, “Notes on Marenzio and Tasso,” Music and Culture in Italy from the Middle Ages to the Baroque: A Collection of Essays (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1984), 198-209. 37 App. B, doc. 10, 11. There was no evidence of Tasso’s presence in Rome in this period. 38 See also Sarnelli, “Fra i cigni,” 15–38. 39 For the Italian text see Giambatista Manso, Opere complete di Torquato Tasso, primo volume (Venice: Lampato, 1834), 758. 40 Dentice set to music two madrigals based on poems by Virginio. The first madrigal of Dentice was included as a gift in a letter to the Duke of Ferrara (21 May 1595). The composition was well received, and the Concerto delle dame of Ferrara performed it. See Ledbetter, Luca Marenzio, 224–225; and Lynn Martin, “Scipione Dentice: A Neapolitan Contemporary of Gesualdo,” Studi Musicali 1 (1981): 217–239. The second madrigal by Virginio is printed in Scipione Dentice, Il secondo libro de madrigali a cinque voci (Venice: Gardano, 1596). 41 Isabella Andreini was in contact with Virginio on 28–29 November and on 29 December 1597 (I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 108/3, ff. 782, 784, 754). Adriana Basile was still at the Orsini castle in Bracciano when she wrote to Virginio on June 7, 1610 (App. B, doc. 27). 42 For Archilei’s apartment, see I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 1219, ff. 43v-44r (November 17, 1593), which includes a list of the items given to the singer (linens, etc.) for a total of 80 scudi. For her participation at Rucellai’s dinner, see the letter of Giulio Gaci (January 27, 1594) in Warren Kirkendale, Emilio de’ Cavalieri, ‘Gentiluomo Romano’: His Life and Letters, His Role as Superintendent of All the Arts at the Medici Court and His Musical Compositions (Florence: Olschki, 2001), 442; and Claude Palisca, “Musical Asides in the Diplomatic Correspondence of Emilio de’ Cavalieri,” Musical Quarterly 49, no. 3 (1963): 346. 43 “Ho composto il madrigale di vostra eccellenza illustrissima con quelle note che ho conosciuto e saputo esser più a proposito per esprimere l’affetto delle parole, e accompagnatolo anco di quei passaggi . . . [vostra eccellenza] mi disse che desiderava che il madrigale fusse cantato dalla signora Vittoria, saprà vostra eccellenza che mentre l’ho fatto ella l’ha udito più volte e conforme al suo gusto l’ho finito.” I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 106/1, fol. 169. Also in Ledbetter, Luca Marenzio, 226–227; and Kirkendale, The Court Musicians, 132, 264. 44 “[Agata Cesare] me chiese un aria di quelle che canta Vittoria per vedere il modo e la maniera delli nostri passaggi.” See full letter in App. B, doc. 19. 45 It has previously been assumed that Strozzi returned to Florence in 1599. See Chater, “Musical Patronage in Rome,” 333–334. 46 “Vostra eccellenza la qual si come mi favorì già di farmi fare un madrigale degnandosi di darmene il concetto, così spero che mi farà grazia che io sappia se ella approva più che è resti d’undici versi come di nuovo glie lo mando, o se è meglio trasformarlo in due nella maniera che sarà qui appresso, e col terzo lor compagno per giunta. Desideravo di fare qualche cosa affettuosa per accomodarmi al desiderio che ella mi disse che aveva la signora Vittoria, possente col canto suo a far apparire ottima una poesia men che mediocre, però se il madrigale del sogno che sarà con questa mancherà d’affetto, almeno avrà il potere con la sua imperfezione palesare tanto più il valore di chi lo canterà.” I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 107/1, fol. 14. 47 Lorenzo Giacomini, Orationi e discorsi (Florence: Sermartelli, 1597). Various letters reveal that orations were sent directly to Virginio. One, in honor of Grand Duke Ferdinando, was enclosed in a dispatch from Strozzi to Virginio (8 May 1622) in I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 169/3, fol. 369.

Il refugio delle muse  95 48 For Girolamo Mei, see Claude Palisca, “Girolamo Mei: Mentor to the Florentine Camerata,” Musical Quarterly 40, no. 1 (January 1954): 1–20; Donatella Restani, L’itinerario di Girolamo Mei: dalla ‘poetica’ alla musica, con un’appendice di testi (Florence: Olschki, 1990). 49 See Claude Palisca, Humanism in Italian Renaissance Musical Thought (New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1985), 159–160. Bartoli was connected to Duke Orsini, as is suggested by the opening of another letter from Strozzi to Virginio (App. B, doc. 2). 50 The concept of purgation, wherein the affetti are stimulated and then erased from the psyche of the listener, is central to Giacomini’s discourse. The theory of purgatione, as contemplated in humanist writings, dates back to A.S. Minturno’s De Poeta (1559) and Arte Poetica (1563). A brief scholarly debate on the subject is presented in Leon Golden, “The Purgation Theory of Catharsis,” The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 31, no. 4 (Summer 1973): 473–479. Related aspects of Giacomini’s view of the affetti are also discussed in Claude Palisca, Music and Ideas in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries (Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 2006), 10; Claude Palisca, “The Alterati of Florence, Pioneers in the Theory of Dramatic Music,” in New Looks at Italian Opera: Essays in Honor of Donald J. Grout, ed. William Austin (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1968), 9–38; Bernard Weinberg, A History of Literary Criticism in the Italian Renaissance (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1961), 315–316; Baxter Hathaway, The Age of Criticism: The Late Renaissance in Italy (Ithaca and New York: Yale University Press, 1962), 251–259; Barbara Hanning, Of Poetry and Music’s Power: Humanism and the Creation of Opera (Ann Arbor: UMI Research Press, 1980), 22–29; and Barbara Hanning, “The Influence of Humanist Thought and Italian Renaissance Poetry on the Formation of Opera” (PhD diss., Yale University, 1969), 58–69. 51 Giacomini, Orationi e discorsi, 46–47. 52 For Claude Palisca, see his Humanism in Renaissance Musical Thought (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1985), 408–433; and Palisca, Music and Ideas, especially 29–47, 107–129. Pirrotta’s argument transpires in Nino Pirrotta, Music and Culture in Italy from the Middle Ages to the Baroque (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1984); and Nino Pirrotta, Music and Theater from Poliziano to Monteverdi (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1982). 53 For Giulio Caccini’s presence at the Orsini palace on August 1610, see I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 1604, fol. 60v. Pietro Strozzi’s letter to Virginio is in App. B, doc. 30. Her residence there on April 22, 1613, is confirmed by another payment (52 scudi) to her servant for the transportation of various musical instruments (“al servitore della signora Francesca musica per tanti spesi per fare portare li strumenti da sonare in vari luogi”). These two payments are in I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 1610, ff. 35r, 91r. 54 I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 115/1, fol. 133 (Kirkendale, The Court Musicians, 151), 116/1, fol. 732 (Hill, 305). See Ferdinand Boyer, “Giulio Caccini à la cour d’Henri IV d’après des lettres inédites,” Revue Musicale, 11 (1926): 241–250. See I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 124/2, fol. 204, and Suzanne Cusick, Francesca Caccini at the Medici Court: Music and Circulation of Power (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2009), 307. See letters in I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 124/2, fol. 233 (4 May 1613), 125/1, fol. 164 (22 March 1613), 126/5, fol. 858 (11 May 1613). Cusick, 307–309. 55 See also App. B, doc. 13 regarding the instrument maker Rutilio Gaci and the later payments for Pompilio Archilei, and for a certain “Matteo leutaro” in I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 2089, fol. 71r (September 1607), 2091, ff. 49v (August 1612), 61r (June 1613). 56 “Che ella ha scritto di nuovo in tre libri di sua mano accerte opere con tutti quei passaggi d’invenzione che altri si possa immaginare, e con essi i migliori affetti che si possino udire da qualunque sia che professi di cantar sola . . . e ha composto alcuni madrigali e con sonetti le parole e la musica che son stati di molto gusto a chiunque li

96  Il refugio delle muse ha uditi.” I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 126/2, fol. 300v (September 16, 1614). Other passages from this letter are cited in Hill, 59, Kirkendale, 314, and Cusick, 84. 57 Payments related to mascherate and giostre (19 April 1613, and 12 February 1615) appear in UCLA, box 46, folder 1, no page number. For the performance of the commedia (11 September 1612), see I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 1610, fol. 43r. (“volo della scena e abiti da commedianti servita per la commedia che si fece al giardino del concerto”). The expenses for the books of comedies, including those mentioned above, are listed in ff. 65, 73, 76, 77, 98. The payments to Zoilo appear in the dispensa 1611, ff. 49r–77r, those issued to Archilei in dispensa 1607 (all), and 1611, ff. 5r–44v. For Poggi, Caccini, and Malvezzi, see guardaroba 1225, fol. 17r. 58 See I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, registro dello spenditore 1604, fol. 26r. “Stefano Fabri” (8 April 1608), fol. 29r. “il musico del Cardinal del Monte” (1 May 1608). The reference to the stanze de musici at Monte Giordano is dated 5 March 1613, in registro 1610, fol. 79r (“per conficarre i paramenti alle stanze de musici”). 59 The payments to Quagliati and Orazietto appear in I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, registro di dispensa 2314/5, year 1609 (no page numbers), on the following dates: August 17 (“a Paulo Quagliati giulii settanta due de ordine della signora duchessa”), September 17 (“3.0 a Horatietto musico per companatico di un mese”), October 11 (“72 giulii a Paulo Quagliati musico”). For teaching lessons, string instruments, and composition, see the payments issued on August 9 (“2.40 all’insegnante di liuto”), August 11, (“20.0 per fare accomodare il liuto due volte”), September 16 (“2.40 all’insegnate di liuto”), September 19 (for “due cartelle da musica”), September 24 (to “musico che impara sonare”). 60 Oberto Fidati, Carro di fedeltà d’amore (Rome: Robletti, 1611). Giustiniana Orsini married Ferdinando Orsini, the second son of Virginio, who later became the fourth duke of Bracciano. Giustiniana was the legitimate and hereditary daughter of Don Giovanni Antonio Orsini, a descendant of another genealogical branch of the Orsini family, that of San Gemini. 61 Della Valle’s literary words are “una delle prime azioni (per dir così) rappresentate in musica che in Roma si siano sentite.” From Pietro della Valle, Della musica dell’età nostra (1640), printed in Angelo Solerti, Le origini del melodrama (Turin: Bocca, 1903), 155. 62 “Trattai con il detto autore (Paolo Quagliati), e perché ne faceva pochissima stima mi fu necessario usar seco molte e gagliarde instanze, o per dir meglio importunità acciò si contentasse che fosse stampato pur che dovesse portare in fronte il nome di vostra eccellenza illustrissima, da lui tanto onorato e riverito.” The full English translation of the dedicatory preface appears in Paolo Quagliati, La sfera amorosa and il carro di fedelta d’amore, ed. Vernon Gotwals and Philip Keppler (Northampton: Smith College, 1957), 83. It also contains a musical edition of Quagliati’s work. 63 Virginio’s participation in some of the meetings of the alterati dates back to 1590. During a visit to Florence, he and his relative Giovanni de’ Medici attended the oration of Lorenzo Giacomini for Torquato Tasso. “Sono stato oggi dal signor Giovanni Battista Strozzi per informarmi del particulare che si desiderava sapere a loro S. S. e egli mi ha detto ch’il signor don Giovanni Medici e il signor don Virginio Orsini furono presenti l’anno 1590 alle orazioni che recitò pubblicamente il signor Lorenzo Giacomini nell’Accademia degli Alterati sopra le lodi di Torquato Tasso.”   This passage is from a letter written on January 23, 1613, by Cosimo Minerbetti to Andrea Cioli. It is preserved at the State Archive of Florence, in MdP, 1351, 34. 64 Cardinal Alessando Orsini was a close patron of Galilei. In 1616, the scientist addressed to him his revolutionary essay on the motion of the sea tides (Discorso sul flusso e il reflusso del mare), which proved the Earth’s rotation and revolution around the sun.

Il refugio delle muse  97 65 Rinuccini letters are preserved in I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 113/5, fol. 612, 121/1, fol. 104. The expenses related to his stay at the Orsini palace are in Serie II, spenditore 1604, ff. 46r, 61v (the payment for 24 June 1612, bears no page number). For Brandi, see Serie II, spenditore 1582, fol. 21r (8 November 1606). 66 For Chiabrera, see Ferdinand Boyer, “Virginio Orsini ed i poeti del seicento,” La cultura, rivista mensile di filosofia, lettere, arte, 5 (1926): 318–319. The letters from Jacopo Corsi to Virginio are dated 15 April 1596, and 12 December 1597, respectively, and they are found in I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 106/1, fol. 89, 107/1, fol. 5. 67 For a partial list of members of the compagnia del Gesù, see Tim Carter, “Music and Patronage in Late Sixteenth-Century Florence: The Case of Jacopo Corsi (1561– 1602),” I Tatti Studies: Essays in the Renaissance (1985): 93. Two letters from Buonarroti to Virginio (January 21, 1604) are found in I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, filza 114/1, fol. 185, and filza 115/3, fol. 592. Buonarroti was also in Virginio’s palace on 7 December 1610, (Serie II, spenditore 1604, no page number). His contribution to music is discussed in Janie Cole, A Muse of Music in Early Baroque Florence (Florence: Olschki, 2007); and Janie Cole, Music, Spectacle and Cultural Brokerage (Florence: Olschki, 2011). 68 For Virginio and Marino, see Girolamo de Miranda, “Giambattista Marino, Virginio Orsini e Tommaso Melchiorri in materiali epistolari inediti e dimenticati,” Quaderni d’ italianistica 1 (1993): 17–32. 69 Virginio abdicated both the name and title to Guarini. During this period, the poet sent many of his compositions to the duke. On 28 September 1604, he offered Virginio a copy of his commedia L’Idoprica. See again Boyer, “Virginio Orsini,” 315–317. 70 Cicognini’s stay at the Orsini court overlapped with that of Cesare Zoilo. See I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 1611, ff. 53v–77r. The performance of Amor pudico is discussed in Hill, 279-97.

4

Gloriosa orsa latina The patronage of Paolo Giordano II Orsini, third Duke of Bracciano

Upon the death of Virginio Orsini in 1615, his son Paolo Giordano II (Figure 4.1) succeeded him as third Duke of Bracciano. He inherited the family castle, along with the three Roman palaces at Monte Giordano, Piazza Pasquino, and Campo de Fiori, and other Orsini properties in the outskirt of the pontifical city.1 The possession of urban real estate was critical for the maintenance of a noble status. The marriage in January 1621 of the Duke of Bracciano to Isabella Appiani (Princess of Piombino) gave Orsini the territorial control over the southern territory of Piombino, the northern island of Elba, and profitable lands in Naples, Genoa, and Tuscany.2 This contributed to enhance Paolo Giordano’s financial status and, consequently, his position in Roman aristocratic society. To consolidate his image as an exponent of one of the oldest Roman families, Paolo Giordano displayed an extravagant lifestyle, which later became a reason for the Orsinis’ economic decline. Notwithstanding the incumbent debts that eventually forced him to sell some of the family properties, he lavished substantial sums on art. In line with the living standards of an aristocrat of his rank, Paolo Giordano surrounded himself with some of the most famous artists and literati of Rome. He was knowledgeable about painting and sculpting, and enjoyed being portrayed by his friends and protégés Gian Lorenzo Bernini and Ottavio Leoni.3 By the standards of the age, Paolo Giordano was regarded as a well-versed poet, and more importantly, he was a confirmed music lover who contacted and patronized numerous musicians of his age. During his first years of governance, Paolo Giordano II remained connected with those poets and musicians who had been in the circle of his father Virginio (chapter 3). Unpublished letters of Vittoria Archilei, Giulio Caccini, and Jacopo Cicognini to the duke attest this. The acclaimed singer Vittoria Archilei, now at the twilight of her career, enlivened the adolescence of Paolo Giordano. On several occasions Vittoria and her husband, Antonio Archilei, provided the young Orsini with private musical entertainments at his Florentine residence.4 Vittoria’s patronage tactics secured for her son Ottavio the temporary position of aiutante di camera at court. She was also successful in obtaining the intercession of Paolo Giordano II in favor of Ottavio when the latter was involved in a dispute with Giulio Caccini, for which the composer was imprisoned and placed under house arrest (App. C, doc. 2). It is for this reason that Caccini, entrusting in the Duke’s protezione, appealed to him for

Gloriosa orsa latina  99

Figure 4.1  Portrait of Paolo Giordano II Orsini (by permission of the Istituto Nazionale per la Grafica)

his own liberation.5 On 16 January 1616, a few months after the death of his father, Paolo Giordano received another letter from Caccini (Figure 4.2): I have received greater favors from Your Excellency’s most kind letter than I could ever have hoped for in this life, because instead of punishing any discontent that I may have caused to your Excellency through my ignorance, you have forgiven me and overlooked any past mistakes I may have committed . . . and because I profess to be, and I am, a

100  Gloriosa orsa latina

Figure 4.2  Letter of Giulio Caccini to Paolo Giordano II Orsini, 16 January 1616 (by permission of the Archivio Storico Capitolino)

hereditary servant of Your Most Illustrious Excellency, having served your forefathers, your grandfather and grandmother (Paolo Giordano I and Isabella de’ Medici), and then your father Signor Don Virginio of happy memory (may his soul rest in peace), I beg Your Most Illustrious Excellency to hold me in good faith and believe with certainty that, just like all your other servants, my life is always at your disposal.6 Caccini’s words confirm that he had also served in one or more occasions Paolo Giordano II’s grandfather (Paolo Giordano I, the first Duke of Bracciano). His polite and apologetic tone conceals his intention to maintain close ties with the

Gloriosa orsa latina  101 most distinguished Roman family. This is not surprising considering that the recent death of Virginio had caused an enexpected disruption of patronage relationships for some of the clients associated with Orsini’s circle. The letter, however, is the last surviving evidence of Paolo Giordano II’s connection with the composer, now at the end of his career (Caccini died less than two years later). As for Vittoria Archilei, her relationship with the Duke of Bracciano continued for many years. On 23 December 1624, the singer recommended her son Ottavio for another position at the Orsini court: The last time Your Excellency left Florence, for Bagni di Lucca, with your usual courtesy and kindness, you offered to receive Cavalier Ottavio, my son, under your benign protection, to see to all his genuine needs and to have him given a place in your most excellent household. Now that he has come to Rome to begin making his fortune, I recommend him to Your Excellency as a mother and native servant of your house.7 The letters of Archilei and Caccini are only a few of the numerous flattering requests for favor addressed to the Duke of Bracciano. The poet and librettist Jacopo Cicognini was also in correspondence with him. Their connection dates back at least to 1613, when Paolo Giordano financed the publication of Cicognini’s rime.8 Three years later, the poet wrote to Paolo Giordano to inform him about the forthcoming performance of Peri’s Euridice in Bologna, and to express his wish to have his opera Adone staged soon in Rome. Cicognini even provided the duke with a list possible of singers. Table 4.1 lays out the complete cast of the comedy, based on Cicognini’s letter to Paolo Giordano.9 The work, set to music by Jacopo Peri, was to have been staged in 1611, but the unexpected deaths of Grand Duke Ferdinand I and of the French king, as well as the departure of the singer Settimia Caccini (daughter of Giulio), had compromised its performance.10 Due to the latter’s departure from Florence, Cicognini now proposes the singer Hippolita Recupito. The preparation of the scenography was assigned to Cosimo Lotti, and the main roles Adone and Nuncio to Cesare Zoilo. Zoilo had performed in Cicognini’s Amor pudico in Rome in 1614 and, as we will see shortly, became a stable salaried musician in Orsini’s Table 4.1  List of actors and musicians for Cicognini’s Adone ROLE

SINGERS

Prologe and Beauty Venus Adone The God Pan Cupid Mars Mercury Tirrenia Nuncia Carino Nuncio

Francesca Caccini Hippolita Recupito Cesare Zoilo The bass singer of the chapel Cosimo Francesco Severi, castrato Giovanni Domenico Pugliaschi Sir Pellegrino Francesca Caccini Cesare Zoilo

102  Gloriosa orsa latina household.11 On more than one occasion, the Duke of Bracciano also hired Francesca Caccini, to whom Cicognini refers to as “an ancient servant of the Orsini house.”12 Puliaschi and the castrato Francesco Severi were in the service of Cardinal Scipione Borghese. Signor Pellegrino can be identified with the contemporary Bolognese musician Domenico Pellegrini, possibly an acquaintance of Cicognini in Bologna. The other singers, including Recupito, gravitated around the Florentine and Roman courts of the Orsini, the Medici, and Montalto. For the performance of Adone, Cicognini counted therefore on a group of musicians linked to Duke Orsini and to his close relatives. He was also confident that Paolo Giordano and his future brother-in-law MarcAntonio Borghese would have moved forward to have his works Adone and Andromeda performed in Rome.13 Cicognini did not desist from his efforts, and wrote again to the Duke of Bracciano: If my Adonis or my Andromeda are not awakened by the most fortunate name of his Excellency the Prince of Sulmona [MarcAntonio Borghese], or at least if any commandment by Your Excellency fails to rouse my sleeping muse, then I am as good as dead to all in the grace and memory of Your Excellency, whom I humbly beg not to forget a servant so devoted, so grateful and so indebted to your most illustrious house. If my boldness is excessive, I blame it on my infinite desire to see Rome once again, and to see Your Excellency and your brother, the most illustrious cardinal (Alessandro Orsini), there once more.14 Despite Cicognini’s intention, there is no evidence that the two works were ever staged at any of the Roman palaces of the Orsini and the Borghese families. His request for support seems to have failed.15 As a lowly client, the poet made some strategic mistakes in approaching a patron like Paolo Giordano II directly. He was unsuccessful at playing the courtly game and made a gauche move. His request was not presented in flattering enough terms, nor had he enough credit in Florence to warrant the favor. More importantly, Cicognini’s demand for specific singers was too audacious because it suggested informally, and too explicitly, the important favors that Paolo Giordano II would have needed to request. In other words, Cicognini treated Orsini as an intermediary, not a high rank patron. In spite of this, during the following three years, the Duke of Bracciano remained in close contact with Cicognini. A letter to the Duke from his agent Andrea Salvetti, dated 14 May 1619, reveals that Cicognini left Bologna permanently for a position in the Chancery of Florence, where he continued to write comedies for the stage.16 After this date, however, the correspondence between Orsini and the poet seems to have ended.

Musici di corte Paolo Giordano’s patronage was not restricted to a circle of artists hired on a temporary basis, as was the case with Archilei, Cicognini, and the Caccinis. Like most high-ranking members of the Italian nobility, he maintained musicians attached to his household for the purposes of private musical entertainments and celebrations at court (Table 4.2).17 Among the first singers engaged by Orsini

Table 4.2  List of salaried musicians* NAME

START DATE

Cesare Zoilo

April 1617 August 1622

Francesco Petratti Artemisia (Caioli) Paolo Muratto

August 1617 February 1618 February 1618

Francesco Angioletti

March 1622

Angelo Cecchini

March 1622

Angelo Macati Fabio Oldradi Margarita (Maffei)

1628 Early 1628 July 1631

END DATE

SALARY & SOURCE (Serie II)

Registro 1816: f. 39v (4.50), Giornale 2097: f. 45r, 63–64, 66, 72r, 84, 90v, Registro 1822 (last payment of 25.00 on August 1622) November Registro 1816: f.49r (5.10), Giornale 2097: f. 63–64, 1619 66v (5.00), 72r (5.10), 84 (4.00), 145–146 (9.10) July 1619 Giornale 2097: ff.121v, 123v, 130, 132v, 134, 135 (4.65) November Giornale 2097: f. 121v (2.40), 130 (3.20), 132v 1619 (3.00), 134–135 (3.00), 141 (3.20), 143–144 (3.20), 145–146 (3.00) August Registro 1821: March 1622−May 1625 (3.50), 1636 August 1626−May 1627 (7.50), June 1627 (6.30), Registro 1822: April 1628 (7.50), February 1630 (37.50), Libro Mastro 2241: year 1628, f. 35 (4.00), September−October 1630, f. 439 (22.50), Registro 1827: February 1633 (15.00), 30 December 1633 (20.00), 31 March 1634 (27.95), May 1634(65.50), February 1635−August 1636 (13.00) July 1643 Registro 1821: March 1622−October 1626 (8.00), December 1626 (6.30), February−May 1627 (8.00), June 1627 (6.80), Registro 1822: August 1623 (5.40), June 1624 (5.00 for copies of music sent to Germany), 9 July 1626 (26.00 for his salary of May and June), Registro 1827: 22 November 1631 (30.00), June 1632 (40.00), 13 April 1633 (20.00), 23 January 1634 (20.00), April 1634 (9.55), August 1635−July 1636 (7.00), 11 September−July 1643 (various payments) N/A Libro Mastro (1628−30): carta 256, Angelo Macati organista di Bracciano Late 1630 Libro Mastro 2241: year 1628, f. 35 (9.40), year 1630, f. 515 (15.60) June 1633 Registro 1827: 25 scudi paid on 2 July 1631 and 50 scudi paid on 8 June 1633 to Scipione Maffei father of Margherita musica di casa October Registro 1827: November 1634− January 1637 1641 (10.00), Registro 1831: June 1637−December 1640 (10.00), Registro 1833: January−October 1641 January Registro 1831: July 1639−January 1640 (10.00) 1640 February Registro 1833: April−June 1642 (4.10), 1649 July 1642−June 1643 (8.00), Registro 1839: September 1647−February 1649 (10.00) September Registro 1839: September 1647–1650 (10.00) 1650 January Registro 1839: September 1647−January 1656 1656 (10.00) April 1651 Registro 1839: September 1649−April 1651 (7.00)

Giovanni Marciani

November 1634

Stefano musico Carlo Rainaldi

July 1639

Domenico del Pane Pier Matteo Petrucci Venanzio Leopardi G. B. Volpi (or Vulpio)

September 1647 September 1647 September 1649 May 1650 After 1652 Registro 1839: May 1650−N/A (7.00)

April 1642

*Account books for the years 1620−1621 and 1644−1647 are incomplete. Monthly payments are indicated in parenthesis (ex. 3.20 = 3 scudi and 20 baiocchi). When available, exact dates and folio numbers have been indicated (f.=folio).

104  Gloriosa orsa latina there was Artemisia Caioli, who, in addition to a monthly stipend, was compensated with a dowry of 500 scudi. This last information appears in a notary document in which the term and conditions of the agreement between Caioli and his patron are formalized.18 In the earliest surviving account book (for the year 1617 in Rome), we find Cesare Zoilo and Francesco Petratti listed as musici, and from February of the following year Paulo Muratto. But payment records for the year 1620–1621 are incomplete; thus, we cannot establish with precision when, during those two intervening years, Petratti and Muratto left the Orsini court. On the occurrence of religious festivities in Rome, Orsini musicians were sometimes lent for performances in local churches. Petratti, for instance, participated in the musical activity of St. Apollinaire, as was requested, on more than one occasion, by the maestro di cappella Annibale Orgas: “Our church of St. Apollinaris has been honored and favored by Signor Francesco in playing the theorbo on several occasions: now for the festival dedicated to the same Saint he is desired even more.”19 Paolo Giordano set the career of Petratti in motion. His music has garnered scholarly attention, mainly for the involvement of Claudio Monteverdi in the printing of his first book of arie, which was dedicated to the Duke of Bracciano. From surviving correspondence between Orsini and Monteverdi, we learn that Orsini was directly involved in the publication of Petratti’s volume.20 Monteverdi acted as an intermediary in Venice for the printing of the book, but he also provided Paolo Giordano with a copy of his madrigals, perhaps with the intent to establish network ties with a potential patron. However, the relationship between Paolo Giordano and the composer seems to have not continued, at least in so far as can be deduced from the absence of additional documentation. In any event, the case of Monteverdi, Petratti, and Orsini is an example of patron-broker-client relationship, a three-part interaction in which Monteverdi mediates to arrange a long-distance transaction. Petratti’s arie were part of the repertoire of vocal chamber music composed and performed at the Orsini court. Various passages in his dedication to Paolo Giordano suggest as much: These arie of mine, protected by the most benevolent authorities of your Excellency, left the nest, where, already born timorous of the precipice, they lay hidden, and in your presence, they happily took their first flights . . . and [they] were raised at your court, where I have the fortune to be numbered among those who, in serving you, enjoy that pleasant freedom.21 The encomiastic aspect of Petratti’s book is evident in the metaphorical allusions captured in the aria Signor fin dove il mar, a clear eulogy to Paolo Giordano II and to the glorious past of the Orsini family: Sire, up to where the sea borders the sky, in the most distant foreign land

Gloriosa orsa latina  105 the call of your glorious Latin bear also rises in barbarian soil. Signor, fin dove il mar col ciel confina, nel più lungi da noi straniero lido anco in barbaro suol sen vola il grido la tua gloriosa orsa latina. This is a sonnet with cross-rhyme quatrains and chain-rhyme tercets (metric structure of ABBA-ABBA-CDC-DCD), which is set as a solo song with continuo. This is only one of the twenty-five arie that makes up Petratti’s book. The work includes the thoroughly composed dialogue Che vai cercando Aminta. The individual musical lines sung by the three characters (Filli, Ergasto, and Aminta) consist of lyrical arioso passages rather than declamatory recitatives, and they are interpolated with short tutti sections. A final chorus concludes the dialogue. Petratti’s musical activity at the Orsini court overlapped with that of Cesare Zoilo, who, as we have seen, appears among the musicians chosen by Cicognini for the performance in Rome of his Adone. Zoilo was already in direct correspondence with Duke Orsini in December 1614, when he identified himself as his servitore. According to court records, Zoilo was a musico of Orsini’s famiglia until

Example 4.1  Francesco Petratti, “Signor fin dove il mar,” mm. 1–13

Example 4.2a Francesco Petratti, from the dialogue “Che vai cercando Aminta,” mm. 1–15

Example 4.2b Francesco Petratti, final chorus in the dialogue “Che vai cercando Aminta,” mm. 1–9

Gloriosa orsa latina  107 August 1622. Although he spent extended periods of time away from Rome, he always remained in close communication with Paolo Giordano II and his brother Ferdinando Orsini. In April 1620, Zoilo was a guest of another brother, Virginio Orsini, in Verona. From there he traveled to Venice to supervise the printing of his Primo libro di madrigali a cinque voci (Venice: Magni, 1620), dedicated to Paolo Giordano II. By July 11, he was already in the city, from where he sent a letter to Ferdinando Orsini thanking him for the favors provided to his uncle Giovanni Battista Grifoni.22 A week later, he sent a copy of the madrigals to Paolo Giordano II in Rome: May Your Excellency be pleased to receive my madrigals, to reverently remind you of the most devoted servitude of their author, and to be granted permission, now that they are printed, to be diffused throughout the world, seeing that Your Excellency has so warmly deigned to honor them with your most kind protection and to preserve them from any detraction.23 The book contains five-part madrigals on texts by Marino, Tasso, Petrarca, and Sannazaro. Zoilo added an instrumental basso seguente to conform to contemporary musical practice. Despite their conservative style, Zoilo’s madrigals seem to have enjoyed some recognition in the music market, for they were re-issued several times. The Venetian printer Magni, after having sold all copies, communicated to Zoilo his decision to print them again. Paolo Giordano II, as the dedicatee and sponsor of Zoilo’s music, was soon informed of Magni’s intention: I have received a letter from Venice by Bartolomeo Magni, the printer who already printed those madrigals for 5 [voices], and who, having sold them all and wishing to reprint them once more, is asking me to send him a set of its partbooks with whatever additions or corrections I wish to make, saying that he will carefully reprint exactly what I send him. In obedience to Your Excellency’s command, I would be greatly honored to let him print [the madrigals] next time, whenever that may be, even were it for a cost of 65 scudi, without earning even a giulio of profit. So all the more should I cooperate much in their reprinting now, as I do not have to spend anything. As the aforesaid printer in wrote all this to me at the end of last July, and I asked him to grant me some time – a couple of months – which expire at the end of this month, in the meantime I have already corrected a set, as I saw fit, to send to him. Now, therefore, nothing remains for me to do except to inform Your Excellency, as I do with this letter, if you wish to honor me a second time by adding anything, either in the dedication, the title, or the coat of arms (which is now different from the one printed on the frontispiece of my books) be pleased to command it, so that I can immediately inform the printer to comply with Your Excellency’s desires.24 It is interesting that Paolo Giordano II commanded Zoilo and some of his other musicians to have their music printed (as the case of Petratti). As the above letter shows, Zoilo gladly accepted that his music was reprinted to obey Orsini’s

108  Gloriosa orsa latina instruction, and because he was no longer financially responsible for the costs of publication. Zoilo had in fact paid Magni 65 scudi for the first edition, but it is unclear if Paolo Giordano II reimbursed him, or paid something for the dedication. Perhaps, Zoilo was cheekily asking his protettore to pay more money for the second dedication, even though the printing was free. However, the composer could count on a stable salary as a musician, and took on administrative duties at the Orsini court acting as an agent for the duke until 1625, when he left Rome.25

Non-salaried musicians (1626–1635) In the three years that followed Zoilo’s departure, Paolo Giordano continued to maintain various musicians in his entourage, even though his correspondence with poets and freelance composers seems to have been more sporadic.26 By the summer of 1629, Paolo Giordano established patron-client ties to the composers Stefano Landi and Giovanni Rovetta. Landi seems to have participated in the musical pastimes at the Orsini castle in Bracciano. This can be deduced from a letter in which Paolo Giordano’s relative, Hipolita Savelli, requested the composer. The latter did not write directly to the duke, but used his brother Ferdinando Orsini as an intermediary: With confidence from the other favors received from Your Excellency, I write this letter to ask a further request to you. As I have to dress my daughter in Santa Lucia next Sunday, I requested Signor Stefano Landi and Signor Fabio, his nephew, for that day. He replied that he must be in Bracciano in two days. I, therefore, beg Your Excellency to ask your Most Excellent brother [Paolo Giordano] to allow them to remain here this time, so that, through his favor, I may obtain my wish.27 The Fabio mentioned in the letter is Oldradi, a relative of Landi and a musico of Paolo Giordano in this period (Table 4.2). While some compositions by Oldradi and Landi were likely performed in Orsini’s circle, they did not appear in print. In contrast, their colleague Giovanni Rovetta dedicated to Paolo Giordano II a collection of madrigali concertati.28 Rovetta was working in Venice and his aspiration to receiving protection, perhaps a position at the Orsini court in Rome, transpires in the dedication placed at the beginning of the work. The composer, exalting the liberality and the noble virtues of Paolo Giordano II as a prince and a patron of the arts, expresses his desire to obtain a place among those who benefited from the protection of Orsini.29 Further evidence of the composer’s intention to strengthen patronage relations with Orsini is the presentation to him of a copy of his book, as revealed by his letter to Paolo Giordano: The same feelings that inspired me to dedicate my music to the name of Your Excellency, now lead me to present it to you in the certainty that you will see nothing in

Gloriosa orsa latina  109 it other than my purest devotion, which I consider to be the only fitting response to your Excellency’s incomparable goodness. I, therefore, implore you to ignore any other shortcomings and to receive, together with my devotion, this first gesture of my servitude.30 In addition to multi-part concerted madrigals, the work features duets, a dialogo, and the Lacrime d’Erminia, a lament for solo voice and continuo.31 The text (five stanzas in ottava rima) was written by Guido Casoni, a poet also active in Venice. Rovetta set the poem as an arioso and employs florid rhythmic passages to enhance the semantic connotation of specific words. This compositional approach, which resembles the stile concitato used in Rovetta’s preceding dialogo, is particularly efficacious in portraying the character’s anguish and agitation, as may be seen on the words tremante (trembling) and fiamme (flames). Rovetta’s attention to musical expressivity transpires in other passages. Rovetta was not the only composer active in Venice to be connected to Paolo Giordano II. From there, on 29 June 1635, Francesco Manelli sent to the duke a letter and a composition. The latter apparently did not satisfy Orsini.32 Manelli’s letter to Paolo Giordano II brings to fore the question of the reception of poesia per musica in Rome and Venice at this time, and is revelatory in its testament to the careful attention patrons gave to cantata poetry. The poetic style in vogue at the Orsini residence and in Roman

Example 4.3  Giovanni Rovetta, “Lacrime d’Erminia,” mm. 4–16

110  Gloriosa orsa latina aristocratic circles seems to have not attained the same popularity among the Venetian nobility: It grieves me sorely to see Your Excellency with little or no satisfaction from the words and music sent to you, which, in my humble opinion, were considered perfect, coming from one whose poetry is so highly esteemed and equal to that of any other place. In truth, however, considering the varying moods that are seen in this city, the poetry of Rome may well or may not be appreciated here, as with that of Venice there. Furthermore, yesterday evening, on the request of Monsignor della Valletta, in homage to the Lord Prince of Ghisa, I organized a floating concert with 300 gondolas for those present, with entertainment in the form of poems, both from Rome and by those priests of Venice. The latter were most appreciated, whereas the former did not meet with approval. You would honor me, however, by sending me some poems by those gentlemen, so that I may address this issue and make known their true worth, whose warmth I shall not fail to enhance through music.33 Notwithstanding Manelli’s apparent use of the eloquence of contemporary letter writing, this letter moves far beyond the typical obsequious rhetoric. Orsini’s relationship with the composer was probably not limited to a brief epistolary exchange, and must have begun in Rome, before the composer’s relocation to Venice.

Andrea Fei stampatore ducale In this period, Paolo Giordano’s financial situation was not ideal. Yet, a scrutiny of account books shows that when it came to music, he did not opt for austerity.34 Apart from the payments bestowed upon his musicians, his musical interest is shown by the recurrent expenditures for the acquisition of music books and instruments. The musical collection of Orsini is lost, and only a short inventory of the items that were preserved in the castle of Bracciano survives. In it, various musical instruments are listed, from small harpsichords and organs, to flutes and different types of wind instruments (App. C, doc. 25). Additional archival documentation indicates that the Duke of Bracciano spent substantial sums of money to repair, purchase and build new instruments.35 His debts did not prevent him from spending 14,000 scudi on a new instrument referred to by his contemporary Marin Mersenne as the sordellina.36 Paolo Giordano was also the inventor of the rosidra, which bore the heraldic coat of arms of the Orsini family.37 An ample number of music and non-music books also seem to have been part of Paolo Giordano’s private library. This is hardly surprising, considering that the Duke of Bracciano could count on his own publishing press. Paolo Giordano assigned the privilege of stampatore ducale to Andrea Fei, providing him with a stable salary and exclusive rights to printing in Rome and within the Duchy of Bracciano. Furthermore, account books report additional

Gloriosa orsa latina  111 monetary compensations to Fei for the printing of various books.38 This suggests that Paolo Giordano exerted a direct influence on Fei’s publications, which reflect the artistic and literary taste of his patron. But Fei’s music publications were more sporadic when compared with his output of non-music books. The question of how financially profitable music printing was for Fei can be answered only conjecturally by looking at his overall production. Out of the nearly 300 publications, only nineteen are music editions, and more than three decades elapsed between Fei’s first music book in 1615 (cantus ecclesiasticus) and his last one in 1647 (Floridus modulorum). In spite of modest numbers, it is evident that Andrea Fei had sufficient competency and resources to print music (Table 4.3); hence the decisions of Zoilo and Petratti to have their compositions published in Venice may seem surprising. With the financial sustenance of Paolo Giordano, Fei published music by composers who generally were not in his patron’s household, and who were active in Rome within a wider aristocratic circle; this included the theorist Doni and the composers Sabbatini and Frescobaldi.39 Some cantatas by the composer Giovanni Marciani, who was in Orsini’s regular employ from November 1634 to October 1641 (Table 4.2), were also published by Fei in two collections.40 Table 4.3  List of music books printed by Andrea Fei AUTHOR

TITLE

PLACE, DATE, AND REMARKS

Giovanni Domenico Guidetti Giovanni Domenico Guidetti Vincenzo Ugolini

Cantus ecclesiasticus passionis D. N. Iesu Christi Directorum chori ad usum omnium ecclesiarium Motecta, sive sacrae cantiones in festis mobilibus Il Primo libro dei madrigali a quattro voci

Rome, 1615

Jacob Arcadelt Gregorio Veneri Giovanni Battista Steffanini Girolamo Frescobaldi Pietro Paolo Sabbatini Giovanni Battista Doni Giovanni Domenico Guidetti

Rome, 1615 (reprinted in 1619, 1624, 1641, 1642) Rome, 1619 Bracciano, 1620 (reprinted in 1642) Bracciano, 1620

Armonia di Venere madrigali a cinque voci, et in fine due, con un echo a otto con il basso continuo Mottetti concertati a 2,3,4 et 5 voci Rome, 1626 con il basso dell’ organo. Libro Primo, opera settima Liber secundus diversorum modulationum Rome, 1627 singulis, binis ternis, quaternis vocibus Il sesto: opera ottava Bracciano, 1628 Compendio del trattato dei generi e dei modi della musica Cantus ecclesiasticus passionis D. N. Jesu Christi

Rome, 1635 (reprinted with annotations in 1640) Rome, 1637 (Continued)

112  Gloriosa orsa latina Table 4.3 (Continued) AUTHOR

TITLE

Giovanni Pierluigi Palestrina

Messe a quattro voci

Lorenzo Corsini Orazio Scaletta Bernardino Lupacchino Grammatico Metallo Florido Silvestri Pier Francesco Valentini Various composers Silvestri Florido

PLACE, DATE, AND REMARKS

Rome, 1639 (three masses of Palestrina re-scored for four voices by Giov. Franc. Anerio and one mass of Anerio with basso continuo Musiche a uno e tre voci, libro quinto Rome, 1640 Scala di musica molto necessaria per i Rome, 1642 (reprinted by principianti his son Iacomo Fei in 1664 and 1666) Di Bernardino Lupachino et di Ioan Bracciano, 1642 Maria Tasso il primo libro a 2 voci con l’aggiunta di alcuni canti di diversi autori Del Metallo ricercari a due voci per sonare Bracciano, 1643 e cantare accresciuti di nuova aggiunta Floridus concentus sacras continens laudes Rome, 1643 (contains music of Antonio Maria Sabatini, Stefano Fabri, etc.) Propriae et novae inventionis canon Rome, 1645 quatuor compositus Ariette di musica, a una e due voci Bracciano, 1646 (music collected by Florido de Silvestris) Floridus modulorum hortus ab Rome, 1647 excellentissimis musices

Fei later gave to press two poetic works by Paolo Giordano, the Rime (1648) and the Paralello fra la citta e la villa satire vndici (1648).41 In the Rime, we find poems dedicated to various members of the Barberini and the Medici families, as well as sonnets to the poets Giovanni Battista Marino and Francesco Balducci.42 The book also contains an Idillo in honor of the painter Fabio della Cornia and the celebrated singer Leonora Baroni. That the Duke of Bracciano was connected with Baroni is not documented, nor can I provide evidence in this regard. However, the duke supported Fei’s publication of a collection of encomiastic poems for the singer.43

In search of giovani virtuosi Paolo Giordano was often looking outside of Rome to recruit young singers. His attention turned, in particular, to Florence, where, thanks to his solid familial connections with the Medici court, he could count on a network of trusted agents and courtiers. Even the famous Galileo Galilei, an old family acquaintance, recommended a singer to the Duke of Bracciano. At least, this is what appears from a copialettera of Paolo Giordano II to Galilei:

Gloriosa orsa latina  113 I remember that recently, I was there, in Florence, when your lordship praised and recommended to me a talented Roman girl, who in addition to playing and singing, enjoyed drawing, and you showed me some little sketches that this young girl had copied from prints. At the moment, there could easily be a possibility to taker her in (my) home, so may your lordship do me the favor of giving me news of the aforementioned young girl, where she is, what her name is, and also the name of her father.44 Of all the female singers active in Florence who remained connected to Paolo Giordano, Francesca Caccini and Vittoria Archilei were the most celebrated. Francesca had served Paolo Giordano and his father Virginio on several occasions, and, in 1641, she attempted to obtain a place in Orsini’s palace.45 Additional documents reveals that in 1643, Vittoria Archilei still maintained close contact with Orsini.46 Archilei introduced to the duke a young female musician, who, in their correspondence, is identified as Margherita and who received from him 3,000 scudi for her dowry. Paolo Giordano was also offered a female singer by the Florentine ambassador Alessandro del Nero,47 and Michelangelo Vacca, his agent in Rome, proposed to him another young virtuoso musician (13 July 1644). Vacca describes him as a talented composer, instrumentalist, and former maestro di cappella at Ferrara cathedral: I know how much Your Excellency appreciates virtuosos, (and) especially when they have certain qualities that Your Excellency enjoys, therefore, as I am an obsequious servant of the person of Your Excellency, I have thought about proposing to you a young man whom I believe can be of satisfaction to you. He will serve as aiutante di camera, he is good looking, adorned with beautiful clothes, and very talented in (playing the) archlute, guitar, keyboard instruments and a good composer, as he was the chapel master at Ferrara cathedral from where he has brought (with him) beautiful arie. He has outstanding manners, very modest, and in sum; he has all the qualities that can make a virtuoso amiable, and because I wish to accommodate the taste of your Excellency, and your Excellency is coming to Rome; I will have you see and hear him, and if he seems suitable for his service, I will hire him on a favorable salary.48 The letter provides an idea of the artistic qualities that were expected from a musician seeking a place in Roman aristocratic society, and depicts an image of the ideal uomo di corte at a baronial court. Since Paolo Giordano hired no new musicians in this period, it is possible that the virtuoso in question did not meet the duke’s expectations. The search for a new musician was perhaps motivated by Orsini’s intention to fill the position left open by the departure of the composer Angelo Cecchini. Cecchini served the Duke of Bracciano for twenty-one years (from March 1622 to July 1643, see Table 4.2), and maintained a distinctive reputation in Rome. Although officially a musico of Orsini, Cecchini participated in the production of operatic spectacles at other residences of Rome. He collaborated with librettist Ottaviano Castelli providing the music to four of the

114  Gloriosa orsa latina earliest operas composed there, most of which were sponsored by and dedicated to members of the Barberini family.49

The late years (1644–1656) The end of the Barberini pontificate (1644) marked the beginning of new era for the papal city. With the election of a Pamphili pope (Innocent X), the Barberini family fled Rome to settle in Paris, where they counted on the political protection of the French king and the powerful Cardinal Mazarin. In this period, Paolo Giordano maintained close diplomatic and artistic relations with Mazarin and the Barberinis.50 It is likely through these connections that the duke established a relationship with the composer Luigi Rossi. The correspondence between Rossi and Orsini seems to have started a few months after the premiere at the French court of Rossi’s Orfeo. On 24 January 1648, the composer notified Paolo Giordano of his return to Paris: From Lyon I had to continue the voyage with the messenger, but I found it so inconvenient that in Roanne, I was determined with a comrade to take the more convenient way on the Loire, and so we did, thus I did not pass through Moulins. I reached Paris on the 15th of the present month, and Her Highness the Queen was immediately informed.51 Paolo Giordano’s response is not recorded, but on 6 March 1648, he sent to Rossi a letter pertaining to his oratorio about Saint Agnese, which was set to music by Marcorelli, another composer linked to the Orsini court.52 For the performance of his oratorio, the Duke of Bracciano relied on a Roman circle of musicians, among whom was the bass papal singer Bartolomeo Nicolini and two of the most celebrated castrati of Rome, Giuseppe Bianchi and Argenti Buonaventura.53 The same letter reveals that the duke retained in his entourage four additional singers for the purpose of musical performances, but whose names are not recorded in Orsini’s account books: I received your letter with much pleasure, and was pleased to know that you are safe and sound, and that you have been warmly treated by the Queen and Cardinal Mazarin. I must also offer thanks for the honorable mention that you made of me to Her Highness and with His Excellency, and the trouble that you took to let me know this. I made my tragedy of Saint Agnese an Oratorio, which was first sung at the oratory of the Chiesa Nuova, and then in San Salvatore in Lauro, where it was much appreciated, the music was composed by Marcorelli, and it was sung by Bonaventura, my two sopranos, Bianchi, and my tenor, my contralto, Nicolini, and the bass singer of my nephew the Cardinal (Virginio Orsini).54 The connection of Paolo Giordano to the aforementioned singers, and to composers such as Landi and Rossi, shows that the mechanism of musical patronage in Rome was often characterized by loose relationships between patrons and musicians. These musicians were not members of Paolo Giordano’s household, as they work within a broader network of ecclesiastic institutions and aristocratic

Gloriosa orsa latina  115

Figure 4.3  Copialettera of Paolo Giordano II Orsini to Luigi Rossi, 19 October 1648 (by permission of the Archivio Storico Capitolino)

families. Likewise, Rossi provided service to Orsini on an ad hoc basis. In October 1648, the latter received from the composer a number of arie (Figure 4.3): I received your letter, from which I was delighted to read the news you gave me that this revolution will soon be ended. I have not yet received the arias that you said you would send me, which leads me to believe that we have been delayed by the person to whom you sent them, who is perhaps having them copied and giving them to whomsoever he pleases, so that when I finally receive them, God knows through how many hands they

116  Gloriosa orsa latina will have passed. I recommend that from now on, whenever you want to mail me anything, you send it to me sealed and covered, so that they may be less inclined to open it.55 It is unclear which arie the letter refers to, but a week later Paolo Giordano informed the composer that “finally, this morning, after such a long time, I found the arie on my table and was told that they had been sent by your brother . . . we have played them today, and they turned out beautiful.56 This is the last evidence of Paolo Giordano’s rapport with Rossi. Two of the singers involved in Rossi’s Orfeo were Domenico dal Pane and Venanzio Leopardi, who entered Orsini’s famiglia respectively in 1647 and 1649. Del Pane was a salaried musician of the Orsini court until September 1650 (Table 4.1). His abilities as a castrato and composer soon captured the interest of the Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand III, who requested him for his musical establishment.57 This artistic exchange between Ferdinand III and Paolo Giordano II was the result of their solid political alliance,58 which was consolidated in 1651 when Ferdinand III married Paolo Giordano II’s cousin, Eleonora Gonzaga. Given that Orsini was a trusted client of the emperor, it is hardly surprising to find references to music and musicians in the correspondences between him and his agents at the imperial court. After del Pane’s departure from Rome, the duke was immediately informed about the young del Pane and the performance there of Leopardi’s music: He sang the sonnet made in honor of his majesty who asked whose the music was, and he said it was by Venantio Leopardi . . . . the singing of Domenichino is liked, and it is believed that he will always gain increasingly the emperor’s favor.59 Few of Leopardi’s compositions have survived, some of which were composed during his period at the Orsini court. The presence of cantatas by Leopardi, Marciani, and Rossi in an inventory compiled by the Orsini musician Giovanni Battista Volpi (or Vulpio) seems to confirm this hypothesis. Volpi was a salaried member of Paolo Giordano II’s household in May 1650 (Table 4.2). Later in the seventeenth century, he served other members of the Orsini family (specifically Flavio and Lelio Orsini), and was a singer of the papal chapel. The inventory that Volpi compiled lists more than 200 music manuscripts and printed works of various composers active in Rome (Stradella, Carissimi, Pasquini, among others). It represents an important testimony of the extraordinary corpus of music that formed the Orsini collection, which is now lost.60 Poetry for music in the form of cantatas, laments, serenades, and dialogues prospered in Paolo Giordano’s entourage. The serenate were particularly en vogue at the Orsini residence of Monte Giordano, where they were performed, as it was typical in Rome, in the palace loggia.61 Other poetic works composed by the duke himself, and by poets connected to him were often set to music by his musicians. The Orsini composer Carlo Rainaldi, for example, prepared the music for a lament by the poet Niccolo Doni: I understand from Your Lordship’s letter that you have received your Lament of Doralice, that you were pleased with it, and that it was highly praised by all who heard it. More praise is due to the composer of the words, however, than that of the music. I was happy to hear that it was to your liking, and so was the composer of

Gloriosa orsa latina  117 the music, Cavaliere Carlo Rainaldi, who wears the habit of San Maurizio. Lazarus also gives a fair account of himself with his harpsichord playing, as well as on the harp. Your Lordship will have received works by my two servants and composers. The first is the above, and the other is called Venanzio, who composed the music for my serenade, which was much appreciated in the city by those of the profession (and Your Lordship has received some of his ariettas, which I sent you).62 The letter attests that during his two years in Orsini’s household, Leopardi composed several vocal compositions for his patron, which circulated in and outside Rome. With regard to Rainaldi, he remained a stable salaried musician at the Orsini court from April 1642 to February 1649 (Table 4.2).63 Rainaldi, along with his wife and singer Margherita Maffei, was back in the service of Paolo Giordano II at least for the last four months preceding the duke’s death in March 1656. Rainaldi remained connected to the Orsini family even after the loss of Paolo Giordano II, for he seems to have benefited from the protezione of Cardinal Virginio Orsini.64 The cantatas of Rainaldi and his contemporaries are preserved only in manuscripts, most of which cannot be dated with specificity.65 It is therefore problematic to establish the relation between their compositions and the musical activity at the Orsini court. But there is one composition among Rainaldi’s Roman cantatas that allows a step beyond hypothesis. Ho il cuor costante was composed for Paolo Giordano II, and serves as a further illustration for the type of music favored by him. It was set by Rainaldi for soprano and continuo and survives in a manuscript collection now preserved in the Biblioteca Estense in Modena.66 I have a constant heart ready to suffer affliction and pain. In love, the one who suffers is the true lover. For me snare, arrow, and fire are not much. Sweet and cherished are the wounds and are pleasing to one who knows the art of loving. For me, pain is not death but joy. Ho il cuor costante da soffrir pena e dolore. In amore quel che soffre è vero amante. Per me laccio, strale, e fuoco è puoco. Son dolci e care le punture, e son gradite a chi sa l’arte d’amare. Per me il duol, benché ne muoia, è gioia. As common in mid-seventeenth-century Roman cantata, the text idealizes romantic and virtuous love, and the rhetorical paradox associating spiritual grief (“wounds” and “pain”) with true love and joy. The music consists of two (unrhymed three-verse) stanzas with no rigorous verse forms and in simple binary form (with both stanzas repeated). Rainaldi’s sensitivity to the intimate link of the words with the vocal line

118  Gloriosa orsa latina

Example 4.4  Carlo Rainaldi, “Ho il cuor costante,” mm. 28–40

transpires in the verse “for me snare, arrow and fire are not much,” which is emphasized by an unexpected rhythmic change to quadruple meter. This textual fragment is then reiterated with melodic and harmonic alterations before the beginning of the second section. The words laccio (snare) and fuoco (fire) are idiosyncratically set with longer melismas to enhance their dramatic connotation. The author of the text is unknown, but it cannot be excluded that it was Paolo Giordano himself, who wrote several other works of poetry for music. The latter continued to be at the center of the Duke’s interests even during the late years of his life. His last poetic composition was a dialogo, which attracted the consideration of writer Vincenzo Nolfi: I very much liked the dialogue, and it is the best composition that you have ever created until the present; it is full of wit, vivacity, quality, and excellently conducted, so that you not only can write it all down in a book, but also set it to music and to the stage; it will surely receive thousand applauses.67 The dialogo has not survived, and it is unclear if it was ever set to music. Yet, it represents a further indication of Paolo Giordano’s reputation as an amateur poet outside of Rome. Even Queen Christine of Sweden, to whom the duke sent two sonnets for music, esteemed his poetic abilities. In various letters, she inquired of Paolo Giordano II about various aspects of the artistic and musical life of the Eternal City.68 The arrival in 1655 of the queen in Bracciano was celebrated with musical performances at court. A contemporary chronicle reports, “Her Majesty was entertained that evening, with a concerted harmony of musicians, with which she was delighted, as being pleasing to her genius.”69 A few months later, Paolo Giordano died. But his fame did not fall into obscurity. Later historians, such as Giovanni de Crescimbeni, accorded him some merit, and assigned him a place in Italian poetic history.70

Appendix C

1. 23 December 1614, Cesare Zoilo to Paolo Giordano II. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 297/2, fol. 350. Zoilo served Virginio Orsini in more than one occasions. In 1617, the composer entered officially the household of Paolo Giordano II. With this letter, he sends his Christmas wishes to Orsini.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signor padron mio colendissimo   Con convenienza d’obligo all’abito di servitù che tengo con vostra eccellenza il ricordarle in ogni tempo la molta mia devozione. Ora tanto più devo, come faccio con l’occasione che mi si porge dalle prossime feste di questo santissimo Natale, che le auguro a vostra eccellenza colme di quelle maggiori grazie che ella per se stessa desidera. Sarà effetto della molta benignità di vostra eccellenza il gradir quest’officio non come ordinario, ma come fatto da me con straordinario affetto, come quello che le desidero maggior felicità. Di questo supplico vostra eccellenza e de suoi comandamenti, con che le faccio umilissima riverenza. Di Roma il di 23 di dicembre 1614. Di vostra signoria illustrissima e eccellentissima umilissimo e devotissimo servitore Cesare Zoilo 2. 8 December 1615, Ottavio Archilei to Paolo Giordano II. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 307/2, fol. 328. Archilei thanks Paolo Giordano II for his intercession in a dispute with Giulio Caccini, and for having advanced him to the rank of aiutante di camera. He also greets the recent appointment of his brother (Alessandro Orsini) to cardinal.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signor e padrone mio osservandissimo   Doppiamente viene obbligato di più l’animo mio all’eccellenza vostra di quello che li era primieramente tenuto, e deve onore che così cortesemente mi ha fatto in rimettere a Giulio romano in mia grazia quell’offesa, che in me particolarmente rifletteva, e del favore di levarmi dal grado dell’aiutante di camera. E perché all’uno e all’altro più che ordinare grazie si richieggono quanto io posso, tanto efficaci le rendo a vostra eccellenza confermandomi per quell fidelissimo che sempre le sono stato, non potendo d’avvantaggio più offerirle e prometterle, e con rallegrarmi infinitamente seco che si sia rinovata nella casa sua, nella persona del signore abate suo fratello (Alessandro Orsini) la grandezza del cardinalato, reverentemente le bacio la mano per

120  Gloriosa orsa latina fine. Di Fiorenza li 8 di dicembre (1615). Di vostra eccellenza umilissimo e obbligatissimo servitore Ottavio Archilei. 3. 2 April 1616, Jacopo Cicognini to Paolo Giordano II. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 160/1, fol. 132. Portions of this letter were transcribed in Boyer, Les Orsini, 309, and Kirkendale, The Court Musicians, 208, 342. The poet attempts to persuade Paolo Giordano II to have his opera Adone performed, and proposes to him a list of singers. Cicognini’s plan, however, did not come to fruition.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo mio signore e padrone colendissimo   L’illustrissimo signor cardinale Capponi ha resoluto in questa primavera, per onorare l’illustrissimo signor cardinale Leni e altri signori cardinali che si troveranno in Bologna, oltre alle giostre che seguiranno con bellissime invenzioni e una mia commedia, rappresentare ancora l’Euridice del signor Ottavio Rinuccini, che si trova qui per questo effetto col signor Jacopo Peri, e per architetto e capo della pittura si è il signor Cosimo Lotti, quel Lotti dico che fa si ben la parte di Claudione, e del Battilano in commedia all’improvviso, che mostrerà il suo valore, particolarmente nella prospettiva d’inferno, con tutto abbia scarsità di tempo. In questa occasione io mi sono accorto che il medesimo signor Jacopo Peri, che presto sarà costì per far servitù all’illustrissimo e reverendissimo signor cardinale de’ Medici, avrebbe gran gusto di poter far recitare l’Adone quando vostra eccellenza si risolvesse, perché a lei sta come quello che ne è protettore e padrone, ricordandole quelle parole, “principi rose, principi rose,” e l’occasione è prontissima, e si spuntarebbe una volta la mala fortuna che sempre ha vietato che non risplenda così degna fatica del signor Peri. Poiché la morte del granduca Ferdinando, e successivamente quella del re di Francia così tanto brusca, la fuga della signora Settimia che doveva rappresentare la parte di Venere, e poi la diversità delle feste che hanno mutato il gusto, hanno impedito che non se ne venga al fine. Io per un mese rivederei la bellissima Roma, e son più che certo che il signor cardinal legato che sentirebbe gusto che per tal causa venisse a servire vostra eccellenza, come quello che l’ama e reverisce con tutto l’affetto del core, e se è vero che la signora Francesca Caccini venga costì ancora lì, che è serva antica dell’illustrissima casa, la festa non avrebbe difficoltà a negare, che questo dia la via di far risuscitare Adone a dispetto di Marte. Per grazia vostra eccellenza senta la distribuzione delle parti: Il prologo, la bellezza La signora Francesca Caccini Venere La signora Hipolita [Recupito] Adone Il signor Giovanni Battista Signorini, ovvero il signor Zoilo Il Dio Pan Il signor Cosimo fiorentino, basso di cappella Cupido Illustre Francesco Severi, castrato dell’illustrissimo signor Cardinal Borghese Marte Signor Giovanni Domenico Puliaschi Mercurio Signor Pellegrino

Gloriosa orsa latina  121 Tirrena Nuncia La medesima signora Francesca, ovvero la signora Cleria Carino Nuncio Il signor Zoilo, ovvero il marito della signora Francesca.

Basta che si accomoderebbero. Uno farebbe l’Adone e l’altro Carino, e Venere la potrebbe rappresentare la signora Francesca, e il signor Giovanni Battista far la parte d’Adone, poiché il Signorini ha bellissimo aspetto, e ciò sia detto senza pregiudicare alla bellezza del signor Zoilo. Il medesimo signor Lotti verrà sempre a servire vostra eccellenza, egli è presente e le fa umilissima reverenza, et come fo ancor io pregandole come anco all’illustrissimo e reverendissimo signor cardinale suo fratello (Alessandro Orsini) dal nostro signore lungo corso di vita e di continuate grazie. Da Bologna il di 2 aprile 1616. Di vostra eccellenza illustrissima devotissimo e obligatissimo servitore Jacopo Cicognini

4. 31 December 1616, Vittoria Archilei to Paolo Giordano II. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 160/2, fol. 311. Archilei sends her Christmas and New Year’s wishes to Orsini.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signor mio e padrone osservandissimo   Per che talvolta all’interno degli altrui cuori debbe concorrervi qualche dimostrativo segno, ecco che il mio tutto affettuoso ora all’eccellenza vostra dimostro, con farla certa che questo Capodanno e altri appresso le vengono augurate da me con ogni sorta di prosperità e grandezza, si come le prossime passate feste del Natale di Cristo io le ho interamente con tutto lo spirito bramate, e a vostra eccellenza umilmente bacio le mani per fine, da Fiorenza li 31 di dicembre 1616. Di vostra eccellenza serva obbligatissima Vittoria Archilei 5. 2 April 1620, Cesare Zoilo to Ferdinando Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 140/1, fol. 41. Zoilo is in Verona with Virginio II Orsini. He writes to Ferdinando to thank him for the support and protection.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signore e padron mio colendissimo   Tra gli altri molti favori che il signor don Virginio si è compiaciuto farmi, ha voluto mostrarmi la lettera che vostra eccellenza gli scrisse in mia raccomandazione, presentata da me medesimo all’eccellenza sua, onde vedendo che vostra eccellenza non saprà di portarmi, favorirmi, e proteggermi in Roma. Se gusta tuttavia in eccesso di benignità ad onorarmi della sua protezione, si come godo estremamente di questi effetti dell’inclinazione che ha verso di me in corrispondenza della mia devotissima servitù, e godo che mi si aggiunghino nuove cause che multiplicano in infinito gli oblighi miei verso l’eccellentissima sua persona, così molto m’affliggo in considerar che le sono sempre così inutile e così debole che dispero affatto di poter meritar si benigno patrocinio, con altro che con una devotissima voluntà che in me vivrà eterna di perpetuamente servirla. Vedendo dunque vostra eccellenza la mia debolezza si appaghi, la supplico non potendo non far altro che la ringrazio, come faccio umilissimamente con tutto l’affetto del cor mio, del onor che mi ha fatto appresso l’eccellentissimo mio signore qua con sì

122  Gloriosa orsa latina benigna lettera, che certo non può esser mai più affettuosa, sapendo anco il buon effetto che ha fatto appresso questa eccellenza che stima quanto deve di servirla e di proteggere, e favorire tutte le cose verso le quali vostra eccellenza ha inclinazione. Ieri si cominciò qua ad abitare la casa nova, avendo lasciata libera la casa del signor conte, che quanto prima dovrà da Vicenza condurre la signora sposa, questa nesce buona abitazione e spero che sua eccellenza ci debba star con sodisfazione più a lungo, se sarò sicuro di non infastidirla darò conto a vostra eccellenza spessissimo di quanto occorre, e le minutie della casa come de servitori e di altri gusti che si hanno ancor qua, se ben non siamo a Roma, si come intanto supplicandola a far riverenza in nome all’eccellentissima signora Giustiniana sua consorte, pregandola a voler continuar con la sua protezione verso mia sorella, a vostra eccellenza per fine umilissimamente bacio le mani. Di Verona, 2 aprile 1620. Di vostra eccellenza umilissimo e devotissimo servitore Cesare Zoilo 6. 11 July 1620, Cesare Zoilo to Ferdinando Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 140/1, fol. 40. The composer traveled to Venice to supervise the printing of his madrigals. He thanks Orsini for having taken Zoilo’s uncle (Giovanni Battista Grifoni) under his protection.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signor e padron mio colendissimo   Se inclusa nella presente non mandassi a vostra eccellenza lettere del signor don Virginio suo fratello, dal campo nello quali avrà ciò che di nuovo sarà seguito la sin a quest’ora, che disse l’eccellenza sua di voler fare. Ho ardire di dargli qualche avviso che tengo dal medesimo luogo, ma per questo mi resto. Non devo già però restar di notificar a vostra eccellenza, non dirò le obligazioni infinite che le tengo che non possano ricevere argumento, ma le nuove cagioni e nuove grazie con le quali si compiace l’eccellenza sua accrescer la cognizione di quanto se le deve. Mentre vengo avvisato dal signor Giovanni Battista Grifoni, mio zio, della tanta umanità con la quale si è degnata ammetterlo avanti all’eccellentissima sua presenza, e con quanto eccesso di grazia si è degnata promettere la sua benignissima protezione. In mio zio vostra eccellenza trovarà un incomparabil devozione, che servendosene ella come di suo attualmente servitore per onorar egli e me, che ne la supplico umilissimamente forte che con la pronta voluntà che in lui scorgerà di perpetuamente servir a vostra eccellenza, lo giudicarà capace del favor della grazia di lei, alla quale rendo umilissimamente grazie degli onori fatti alla persona di signor mio zio, come se io li avessi ricevuti nella mia persona, che tali li reputo, e con il fine faccio a vostra eccellenza umilissima riverenza. Venezia, 11 luglio 1620. Di vostra eccellenza umilissimo e devotissimo servitore Cesare Zoilo 7. 22 November 1620, Virginio Orsini to Paolo Giordano II. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 164/3, fol. 406. Virginio II Orsini informs Paolo Giordano that Zoilo did not go to Florence because their brother Alessandro Orsini requested him in Rome. He is very satisfied with Zoilo’s service.

Gloriosa orsa latina  123   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signor fratello e padron mio colendissimo   Mentre io ero per rispedire il Zoilo a Firenze per negozio molto importante, con intenzione che arrivavo poi costì per dar minuto conto all’eccellenza vostra dello stato in che mi ritrovo e delle mie occorrenze, è arrivato un ordine del signor cardinal nostro fratello col quale lo richiama al suo servizio, del che mi son rallegrato argumentando di qui la conservata grazia di sua signora illustrissima verso un servitore tanto a me grato e da cui confesso che sono stato ottimamente servito. Che perciò vedendolo ritornare in luogo dove potra impiegare il suo talento nel servizio di loro miei signori fratelli e padroni, e nel istesso tempo assistere a qualche mio interesse, stimo conveniente accompagnarlo con questa mia all’eccellenza vostra, raccomandandoglielo umilissimamente e efficacissimamente insieme, mentre io l’assicuro di aver ricevuto, in questi mesi che si è trattenuto qui, servizio tale da lui che non potevo desiderare d’avantaggio, ne per sufficienza, ne per fede, ne per destrezza, ne i negozi che gli ho adossato, molti dei quali sono stati da lui condotti felicissimamente. Speravo io che sia per riuscir anche tale all’eccellenza vostra, alla quale si come godo che abbia a servire così, mi dovrei nell’allontanamento se pensassi che fosse per applicarsi altrove, o se la malignità di quest’aere troppo freddo per la sua testa non lo mettesse in necessità di provedersi di clima più temperato, col qual fine faccio all’eccellenza vostra umilissima riverenza. Di Verona a di 22 novembre 1620. Di vostra eccellenza umilissimo e devotissimo servitore e fratello Virginio Orsini. 8. 13 June 1621, Lorenzo Martellini to Paolo Giordano II. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 130/1, fol. 36. Martellini sends various music books (including those composed by Pomponio Nenna and Cesare Zoilo) to Paolo Giordano II.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signor e padron mio colendissimo   Per via del maestro delle poste de Siena, mando a vostra eccellenza numero 11 libri di musica, una muta de Pomponio Nenna e quelle del Zoilo, quali vostra eccellenza riceverà incartati e bene confezionati, che quanto mi occorre, e per fine umilmente fo umilissima riverenza col pregar il santo signor iddio li desse quanto desidera. Di Roma il di 13 di giugno 1621. 9. 31 March 1622, Cesare Zoilo to Ferdinando Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 168/2, fol. 319. Zoilo asks Ferdinando Orsini to provide his brothers with a number of letters.   Molto illustre e molto eccellente signor mio osservandissimo   Mi favorisca subito subito [sic] dar l’incluse lettere in proprie mani all’illustrissimo signor abbate padrone, non essendo partito per Ravenna, che se l’avviso è in tempo sicuramente. Sua signoria illustrissima non partirà più per Ravenna, e essendo partita di poche ore, potrà vostra signoria aprir le lettere che io invio a sua signoria illustrissima, che ci troverà inclusa una lettera del signor don Virginio, che aprendola potrà mostrarla al signor duca, se forse si risolvesse a spedirgli dietro, o vero le presenti tutte così come stanno a sua eccellenza. Del resto nel mio negozio non si poteva dir meglio di quello

124  Gloriosa orsa latina che vostra signoria mi scrisse, e se cosi avrà eseguito sarà stato ottimo. Io sarò costì lunedi e in fretta a vostra signoria illustrissima. Roma, 31 maggio 1622. Di vostra signoria molto illustre e molto eccellente servitore affettuoso di devozione Cesare Zoilo 10. 6 September 1624, Cesare Zoilo to Paolo Giordano II. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 173/2, fol. 286. Zoilo, on behalf of Virginio II Orsini, requests to Paolo Giordano II the money he had promised him. The sum is needed to pay the rent of the Palace of Campo dei Fiori in Rome, and the moving expenses (horses, carriages, etc.).   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signore e padron mio colendissimo   Mi persuado che vostra eccellenza sia per ricordarsi che quando fu levato al signor don Virginio l’assegnamento del palazzo di Campo di Fiora con le casette attorno, l’eccellenza vostra si compiacque di far riflessione sopra a questo, e disse voler dare un altro assegnamento equivalente, il che mai è seguito, e sono passati qui tanti mesi, che non dovrà parer poi strano a ministri se il credito del medesimo signor don Virginio sarà assai cresciuto. E poiché questo signore, che tanto sicuro della benignità di vostra eccellenza, non può persuadersi che non si abbia qualche pensiero a questo suo sì grave danno, attribuisce il tutto a mia negligenza e mi scrive lettere che mi trafigano. Onde dopo essermi raccomandato al signor don Ferdinando e al signor Antonio, che Dio sà son sforzato d’infastidir anco vostra eccellenza con questa mia, supplicandola a restar servita, ordinar qua con le piggioni che si paghino al signor don Virginio seicento scudi o altri cinquecento a conto delle sue entrate, che con questi verrò quetandolo per adetto. Se ben dovendo per ordine publico trasferirsi in conferma le sopragiunge addosso una grossissima spesa, dovendo comprar cavalli, carrozze, e trasportar la casa, da che può veder vostra eccellenza che il sudetto signore è in necessita grande, non che in bisogno di voler del suo. Che perciò restando ella servita di dare il sudetto ordine, si come umilmente la supplico, sarà necessario nominare specificamente il luogo di dove si dovrà cavare questo denaro, e che sia di potersi effettuar subito, come sarebbe dando licenza che per questo effetto si venda tanto grano o assegnamento simile acciò, che l’eccellenza vostra dà un ordine generale che si paghino dei pigioni denari che si riscuotono non è il caso. Con questa occasione ricordo a vostra eccellenza la mia devotissima servitù, e con il fine le faccio umilissima riverenza. Roma, 6 settembre 1624. Di vostra eccellenza umilissimo e devotissimo servitore Cesare Zoilo 11. 19 August 1625, Cesare Zoilo to Ferdinando Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 174/2, fol. 238. Zoilo acknowledges receipt of Paolo Giordano’s permission to receive the amount needed to cover the rent of Monte Giordano. He also asks Orsini to pay him back for the money Zoilo gave to a certain Viviani.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signore e padron mio colendissimo

Gloriosa orsa latina  125   Leggo l’ordine del signor duca per riscuoter le piggioni di Monte Giordano che vostra eccellenza si è compiaciuta mandarmi, e come non ci voleva altro che l’autorità e maniere dell’eccellenza vostra per ottenerlo, così anco come trattato da quella sta ottimamente bene, ne credo si dovrà aver alcuna difficultà, e in nome del signor don Virginio ne rendo a vostra eccellenza le dovute grazie. Sento anco la necessita risoluzione che vostra eccellenza deve prender nell’altro particolare quanto prima, e che però vorrà scriverne sabato. Spero da qui a la star meglio, e quando anco io mi ritrovi in stato, cioè senza peggioramento, farò ogni sforzo per esser a far riverenza a vostra eccellenza, a sentire quello comandarà. Intanto se vostra eccellenza avesse nova alcuna che si desse ordine qua a ministri del signor duca che mi pagassero li 710.27 che io rimisi al signor Viviani, e si come io ne la supplicai e resterei molto favorito, che è quanto posso dir per ora a vostra eccellenza, alla quale faccio umilissima riverenza. Di casa questo di 19 agosto 1625. Di vostra eccellenza umilissimo e obligatissimo servitore Cesare Zoilo 12. 20 April 1626, Francesco Balducci to Paolo Giordano II. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 176/1, fol. 86. Balducci, one of the leading poets in Rome, sends a poem to Orsini.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signore   Vengono a sottoporsi alla censura di vostra eccellenza questi miei pochi versi. Potrà così di lontano la sua ingenuità essercitar con mio profitto più liberamente la severità del giudizio, poiché spesso avviene che gli uomini ben accostumati, per tema che altri non arrossisca, inchinino alla lode, ove per avventura modesta riprensione richiederebbe il bisogno. E a vostra eccellenza profondamente m’inchino. Di Roma li 20 di aprile 1626. Di vostra eccellenza servitore umilissimo Francesco Balducci 13. 24 June 1636, Costanza Savelli to Paolo Giordano II. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 183/3, fol. 336 (partial letter). Savelli informs Orsini about a poem that was set to music, and asks him to send other vocal compositions.   . . . Nina ha messo le parole in musica e sta prontissima, e dice che Margarita non farà una composizione come la sua, se il vostro compare ha portato qualche cosa de bono da cantare, me ne farete grazia de mandarle. Affettuosissima nonna Costanza Savelli. 14. 3 August 1636, Costanza Savelli to Paolo Giordano II. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 183/3, fol. 335 (partial letter). Savelli comments positively on the music for the serenate that Paolo Giordano II composed, and on the quality of the compositions written by her musicians.   E reverendissimo signor nipote mio amatissimo tutti voi non ci rispondete, con tutto ciò io non voglio lasciar di scrivervi. Nina ha havuto spia che non c’è città che parli, ne cagnolino di francia ci fa argomento da questo, che manco ci sia la spinetta delle corde d’oro. Quanto alle musiche delle vostre serenate, cioè di quelle che si fanno sotto la vostra finestra, e

126  Gloriosa orsa latina del vostro idilio alla signora Marina, non ve si avemo un invidia al mondo, perché qua avemo don Comacone, Ricciutello, e don Giovanni che si sono consertati, che fanno cose del diavolo in questa materia. E le composizioni delle musiche sono tutte di don Comacone, e la maggior parte delle parole ancora, e tra l’altre cose hanno consentato un motetto per questa festa che se fosse vivo il Palestrina stracciarebbe tutte le sue messe . . . 15. 30 November 1643, Alessandro del Nero to Paolo Giordano II. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 187/1, fol. 93. Del Nero regrets (due to an expected illness) not having provided Paolo Giordano with additional information regarding a young singer at the Medici court, in Florence.   Illustrissimo e eccellentissimo signor mio e padron colendissimo   L’occupazioni del serenissimo principe Giovanni Carlo, con il quale hanno conferito il negozio della giovane che canta, e l’esser io stato nel letto per una buona infreddatura, sono le cagioni che non ho dato prima risposta a vostra eccellenza. Lo quello hanno potuto effettuare che stante la qualità de sempre poco ho possuto fare, avendone risposto ieri il signor serenissimo principe che per ora la signora principessa, avendo tralassato in qualche parte la musica, non si vuole agravare d’altra speca. Mi duole per non aver avuto fortuna di servire vostra eccellenza, la quale suplico ad onorarmi di nuovi suoi comandamenti, acciò non sarà la mia servitù ora nel servizio di vostra eccellenza, e qui facendole umilissima reverenza le prego ogni felicità. Di Firenze li 30 novembre 1643. Di vostra signoria illustrissima eccellentissima umilissimo devotissimo servitore Alessandro del Nero 16. 12 October 1648, copialettera of Paolo Giordano II to Luigi Rossi. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 312/1, fol. 111. Paolo Giordano expresses his contentment for the improved political situation in France after the revolution. He complains about not having received the arias (or cantatas) that Rossi sent him.   Ho ricevuto la sua lettera nella quale ho inteso con molto gusto le nuove che mi dà che cessasse presto quella revoluzione, non ho già ricevuto ancora le arie che mi dice mandarmi il che mi fa credere che siamo fatte state trattenute da quello a chi ella le averà inviate, forse per farle copiare e darle a chi gli pareva di modo che quando io le riceverò, Dio sa in quante mani saranno andate. Io glie lo avviso avviso [sic] acciò che quando ella da qui innanzi me ne volesse inviare alcuna, la mandi sigillata e con la coperta a me che così forse non andranno di aprirla. Io volevo indugiare a responderle e ringraziarlo doppo aver ricevute le arie mandate, ormai tanti giorni che ho ricevuta la lettera e non ancora son apparite le arie, non le più parrebbe di far mancamento se non accusassi la ricevuta almeno della lettera, e non le rendessi grazie e dell’arie e delle accortezze di cui non posso dubitare che non siano più belle, perché se non fossero tali non sarebbero parto di lei. È comparso qua uno il quale ha un segreto di commetter congiunger tanto

Gloriosa orsa latina  127 bene insieme la tartaruga che alla vista, e al tatto par tutto un pezzo, e perché havere comodi vorrei far fare dal sudetto artefice due buffetti, e forse e rigalarne la regina con altre galanterie averà caro che ella m’avvisasse subito se costà è arrivato il sudetto segreto o no. non ci essendo ogni tanto La prego a non communicar con nessuno questo mio pensiero ______farmi piacere. Se perverranno in mia mano l’arie che ella mi avvisa inviarmi, le ne accuserò la ricevuta. 17. 19 October 1648, copialettera of Paolo Giordano II to Luigi Rossi. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 312/1, fol. 122. Paolo Giordano II notifies Rossi that the arias arrived and turned out beautiful; however, he remarks that they should have been sent in a sealed envelope.   Finalmente questa mattina, doppo tanto tempo, mi son visto su la tavola le arie, e mi hanno detto dopo esser state mandate dal fratello di lei. Vi era in camera mia il signor cardinale mio nipote e vide quelle di sopra, e disse che appunto gli era stata portata il giorno innanzi da una persona mercennaria a voler se la voleva. Di che maniera ved’ella si che maniera mi fanno godere delle sue virtù e fatiche, di che ella mi è si liberale, però la prego di nuovo quelle che mi vorrà mandar da qui innanzi mandarle sigillate, perché in altre mani vanno potranno appieno d’aver fatto gran viaggio innanzi che mi arrivarono. La ringrazio di novo. Le abbiamo provate oggi e riescono bellissime veramente, saria gran meraviglia essendo opere sue se fossero il contrario. Roma, 19 ottobre 1648. 18. 10 October 1649, copialettera of Paolo Giordano II to Niccolò Doni. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 312/2, fol. 311. Paolo Giordano apologizes for not having been able to respond sooner. He states that his serenata is complete, turned out well, and that his court musicians will set to music the “Lament of Doralice” that Doni had sent him.   Alcune occupazioni non mi hanno dato luogo di salutarla e rispondere alle lettere di vostra signoria. Le devo in risposta dire che io feci la mia serenata ed è riuscita bellissima competente, e perché ella ne goda, ne farò far l’argomento e gle l’inviarò. Farò parimente mettere in musica da questi miei virtuosi il suo lamento di Doralice, e a suo tempo si gli manderà, mi conservi vostra signoria la sua grata benevolenza mentre le bramo dal signore iddio felicità. 19. 26 October 1649, Nicolò Doni to Paolo Giordano II. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 189/2, fol. 181. Doni informs Paolo Giordano that the serenata was beautifully done. He also tells Orsini to instruct one of his court composers to write the music for a lament that he composed, and to do so in accordance with the new changes made to the text.   Serenissimo signor mio signore   Come cosa di vostra altezza serenissima non può la serenata se non esser riuscita di mirabil esquisitezza, e io con somma mia obligazione e gusto compiacendosi vostra altezza farmene degno ne riceverò quando comanderà

128  Gloriosa orsa latina l’argomento, e con obbligo doppio similmente se in esso o con esso fosse qualche musica o arietta non molto sentita. Si come poiché con tante grazie tanto mi onora a suo tempo la musica al mio lamento di Doralice, nel quale supplico l’altezza vostra a ordinare che il signor compositore muti quattro parole conforme all’aggiunta annotazione, e a vostra altezza serenissima con umilissimo ossequio bacio reverentissimo le mani. Da Fiorenza li 26 d’ottobre 1649. Di vostra altezza serenissima umilissimo e obligatissimo servitore vero Niccolò Doni 20. 13 November 1649, copialettera of Paolo Giordano II to Niccolò Doni. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 312/3, fol. 372. Orsini acknowledges that Doni requested the text of a serenata that he composed. Paolo Giordano II also informs Doni that his lament will be set to music soon.   Ho ricevuto la lettera di vostra signoria con molto gusto, nella quale mi quanto al particolare nel quale mi domanda le parole della mia serenata, copia di che io veramente desidererei di copia vedere un poco a una mandargliele, non avendo gusto che per ancora subito fuora piglierò un poco di tempo a pensarci, e di poi gli risponderò. Quanto al suo lamento, presto sarà messo in musica, sin ad ora non è potuto ella restar servita perché quello che ne molto versato in intender simile materia suol far bene simili lamenti è stato occupato molto per negozi, ora che ha avuti di prender l’abito di San Mauritio e Lazzaro, quale ha preso questa settimana. 21. No date, copialettera of Paolo Giordano II to Niccolò Doni. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 312/3, no folio number. Orsini notifies Doni that one of his court composer has started to work on the lament. He also requests another copy of Doni’s corrections, and promises that he will send the music to him by Saturday.   Ho comandato che si metta Già si è cominciato a mettere in musica il lamento di vostra signoria, e potrebbe essere che fossi all’ordine per inviarglielo lunedi prossimo per il corriero di Lione, il che non gle prometto lo posso promettere, ma per sabato venturo ella ne resterà servita anderà al sicuro. Ho smarrito il foglio che m’inviò nel quale ci stavano quelle correzioni, veda vostra signoria mandarmene un altro, ma intanto non si perderà tempo senz’esso, e poi si finirà con la correzzione e qui per averle fussi inviato costà, si potrà aggiungere la correzione. 22. 3 November 1651, Vincenzo Nolfi to Paolo Giordano II. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 190/1, fol. 10. Nolfi praises the dialogo that Orsini wrote, and suggests that it be set to music and staged.   In parola di buon servitore di vostra eccellenza che il dialogo mi è piacciuto molto sommamente, e che è la miglior composizione che ella abbia fatto fin ora. Egli è pieno di sali, di vivezze, e di proprietà e ottimamente condotto, si che non solo può metterlo al libro, ma anche farlo metter in

Gloriosa orsa latina  129 musica e comparir in scena, che vedrà conseguire mille applausi. E io per me non ho havuto in che ubbidire ai favori soliti che mi fanno i comandamenti di vostra eccellenza, e me ne rallegro perchè veggo che la di lei penna si va affinando, e si eserciti pure in simil sorte di composizione perché in queste concorre il suo giudizio, piacesse a Dio che io potessi esser presente quando si rappresenterà. Come sempre __ desidero, qui rassegnando sempre viva la mia umilissima servitù a vostra eccellenza, le fo profondissimo inchino. Fano il di 3 novembre 1651. Di vostra eccellenza umilissimo devotissimo e obligatissimo servitore Vincenzo Nolfi 23. No date, anonymous to Paolo Giordano II. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 312/2, fol. 539 (317). This is a description of a musical event that took place at the imperial court, and involved various musicians, singers, and castrati. An anonymous writer informs Paolo Giordano II about the musical activity of Domenico del Pane, who sang a composition by Venanzio Leopardi, another composer associated with Orsini.   Sua maestà, che si trova tuttavia a Heberstorf, se bene il giorno di San Francesco avia sentito cantar Domenichino la matina a messa alli cappuccino, e il giorno a Vespro alli Zoccolanti in Vienna, volse che andasse colà per dargli audienza e sentirlo cantare in cammera onde tutti i musici e li loro amici lo volsero accompagnare con una assai numerosa cavalcata, nella quale fece come il direttore, o come vogliamo dire il mastro di campo, il cavalier Ferri. Venendo appresso tutti li musici, e poi nella penultima prima fila, e nella seconda il basso venuto ultimamente da Roma in mezzo a due altri bassi di questi di sua maestà, e nell’ultima Domenichino messo in mezzo dal mastro di cappella che li cavalcava a man dritta, e dal castrato venuto di Francia che li cavalcava a man mancate. Perché nel mettersi in ordine la cavalcata e nel marciare si era perso un poco di tempo, non trovano passata mezza strada un staffiero dell’imperatore che sollecitava onde confusamente, e senza altro ordine si misero a galoppare. Arrivato alla presenza dell’imperatore, sua maestà gli diede la mano, la quale dopo aver baciato fece a parte del Illustrissimo Signor Nostro Duca duca già suo Padrone Signore fece umilissima riverenza alla maestà sua, avendogli già presentata la lettera nel choro di cappuccino nel passar che fece sua maestà, la quale commandò che cantasse alcuna cosa, e egli cantò il sonetto fatto in lode di sua maestà, il quale domandò chi l’havesse posto in di che era la musica, e egli disse esser di Venanzio Leopardi il quale era stato al servizio del serenissimo arciduca fratello di sua maestà, e essersi trovato con sua altezza in casi molto perigliosi e fieri. Sua maestà rispose di averne memoria, esser bon dopo sua maestà fece mettere innanzi alcune sue arie nelle quali si portò molto bravamente. Poi si cantarono altre arie a due e a tre con diversi concerti, et dopo le quali sua maestà li licenziò, ma essendo apparecchiato la buttigliaria, ordinò che prima di partire l’andassero a bevere alla sanità sua come fecero. E poi montarono a cavallo tornandosene a Vienna col medesimo ordine di cavalcata, nella quale fu osservato che li

130  Gloriosa orsa latina castrati cavalcarono sopra a cavalli anch’essi castrati per osservare il concerto, e li bassi sopra certi fregioni grossi ma bassi bassi [sic]. Il maestro di cappella poi cavalcava un cavallo baio castagno stellato in fronte la cui stella formava giusto in un b mollo, e la ballana, che aveva al piede dritto dinanzi, formava un b quadro. Il cantare di Domenichino generalmente piace, e si crede che s’anderà sempre avanzando nella grazia di sua maestà. 24. 19 August 1656, Carlo Rainaldi to Ferdinando Orsini. I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 192/2, fol. 269. After the death of Paolo Giordano II, Rainaldi remained connected with Ferdinando Orsini and his brother cardinal Virginio. This is the last letter of the musician to a member of the Orsini family.   Serenissimo signore e padron mio colendissimo   La benignità di vostra altezza serenissima si compiacque con esibizioni cortesi quando venni a rassegnar la mia divota servitù nell’occasione della perdita del signor duca, d’eroica memoria, che sia in cielo, di volermi onorare della continuazione della sua protezione, e che all’occorrenze ne averti conosciuto gli effetti di quella. Ora mi si rappresenta di supplicar vostra altezza serenissima per alcuni miei interessi con la serenissima sua casa, affinché, con l’onore dei suoi commandamenti, io venghi ad esser sbrigato dai suoi ministri, e anche favorito per mezzo di vostra altezza serenissima dal signor cardinale mio singolarissimo signore (Cardinal Virginio Orsini), acciò che con la sua solita generosità facci effettuare gli suoi rettissimi ordini. Non mi estenderò in infastidirla nel particolare, supponendo esser del tutto ben informata, e mentre riverentissimamente la suplico a farmene la grazia, faccio a vostra altezza serenissima profondissima riverenza. Roma li 19 agosto 1656. Di vostra altezza serenissima umilissimo e devotissimo servitore Carlo Rainaldi 25. “Inventario di tutte le robe esistenti nel castello di Bracciano. Instrumenti diversi da sonare,” I-Ras, fondo Odescalchi, busta 2 H 3, fol. 110. This list of musical instruments is drawn from an inventory of all the items that were kept in the Castle of Bracciano (compiled in 1646). Un graviorgano quale si sona per gravicembalo e organo, con cassa di ebano dorata in alcuno luogo, e sopra cassa di legno colorito di diversi colori con suoi mantechi sotto, ed è in camera di sua eccellenza. Una spinetta con cassa d’ebano e sopra cassa coperta di velluto roscio, quale è in camera del signor don Ippolito Maria Orsino. Una spinetta quadra con tastatura d’avorio, con cassa rabescata alla veneziana, con coperchio rotto Una spinetta piccola lunga un palmo e mezzo con cassa d’ebano, e sopra cassa d’abbieto con tastatura d’avorio Un violone con suo archetto Tre tiorbe con una cassa Due chitarre alla spagnola con sue casse, una delle quali di sua eccellenza è in camera Nove cornette storte da musichi di buso negro

Gloriosa orsa latina  131 Tre altre simili (cornette) Sette traverse di buso, una delle quali è rotta Dieci flauti tra grandi e piccoli in una cassa fatta a posta Due boccagli d’ottone fatti a S per due flauti grandi Un cornetto da sonare quando si curre la posta coperto di corame negro

Notes   1 The Duchy of Bracciano still remained a fief from the papacy. In the late sixteenth century, another Orsini residence was built on the ruins of the ancient Theatre of Marcellus in Rome. Apart from brief stays, the Orsini palaces at Campo de Fiori and Pasquino were rented to many prominent political figures, including Cardinal de’ Medici, Caterina Sforza, and various foreign ambassadors. Paolo Giordano II’s primary residences remained Monte Giordano and Bracciano. For the importance of the Orsini palaces in the history of art, architecture, and urbanism of early modern Rome, see Kristin Triff, “Patronage and Public Image in Renaissance Rome: Three Orsini Palaces” (PhD diss., Brown University, 2000).   2 Accounts of Paolo Giordano II’s life and financial situation are Pompeo Litta, Famiglie celebri italiane, ser. 2, vol. 5., Orsini tav. 7 (Milan, 1818–1881); Giuseppe Marchetti Longhi, I Bovechi e gli Orsini. Le Grandi Famiglie Romane 12 (Rome: Istituto di Studi Romani, 1960), 105–106; Giuseppe Colonna Brigante, Gli Orsini (Milan: Ceschina, 1955), 250–257; Vincenzo Celletti, Gli Orsini di Bracciano: glorie, tragedie e fastosità della casa patrizia più interessante della Roma dei secoli XV, XVI, e XVII (Rome: Palombi, 1963), 138–182.   3 A brief account of Paolo Giordano’s role as patron of painters and sculptors is Francis Haskell, Patrons and Painters: Art and Society in Baroque Italy (New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1980), 95–98. His patronage of Bernini, Leoni, and other artists is discussed by Carla Benocci, Paolo Giordano II Orsini nei ritratti di Bernini, Boselli, Leoni e Kornmann (Rome: De Luca, 2006). Bernini’s busts for Orsini are examined in Italo Faldi, “I busti berniniani di Paolo Giordano and Isabella Orsini,” Paragone 57 (1954): 13–15.   4 See, for instance, the letter of Antonio Archilei to Virginio Orsini (July 1601) in App. B, doc. 19: “vengo con questa insieme con Vittoria a far umilmente reverenza a vostra eccellenza. Andammo giovedì a servire il signor Paolo Giordano in camera sua.” At this time, Paolo Giordano II was only 10 years old. Like his father Virginio, he was raised at the Medici court in Florence.   5 See the letter of Caccini to Paolo Giordano II in Kirkendale, The Court Musicians, 158.   6 “Con la benignissima lettera di vostra eccellenza illustrissima, ho ricevuto da lei tutte quelle grazie maggiori che io poteva sperar giamai in questa vita, poiché in corrispondenza di quei disgusti che ignorantemente io possa aver dati a vostra eccellenza, invece di castigo ella mi ha perdonato e rimesso ogni mio passato e commesso errore . . . e perché io professo e sono servitore ereditario di vostra eccellenza illustrissima, avendo servito i suoi antenati, avolo e avola, e successivamente la felice memoria del signor don Virginio suo padre, sia in gloria l’anima sua, supplico vostra eccellenza illustrissima che m’abbia in fede e creda certo che al pari di ogni altro suo servitore esporrò sempre la vita.” Florence, 16 January 1616, Caccini to Paolo Giordano II, I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 387/2, fol. 372.   7 “Nell’ultima partenza che fece vostra eccellenza di Firenze per la volta dei bagni di Lucca, mi si offerse, con la sua solita cortesia e gentilezza, di ricevere il cavaliere Ottavio mio figliolo nella sua benigna protezione, in ogni sua onesta occorrenza e farli dar luogo nella sua eccellentissima casa. Ora, essendo egli venuto a Roma a fabbricare il principio della sua fortuna, lo raccomando da madre e da serva nativa di casa sua all’eccellenza vostra.” Florence, 23 December 1624, Vittoria Archilei to Paolo

132  Gloriosa orsa latina Giordano II in Rome, I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 172/3, fol. 391. In December 1616, the singer had sent to Paolo Giordano her New Year’s wishes, see App. C, doc. 4. As we will see shortly, their correspondence continued until 1642.   8 Paolo Giordano’s involvement in the printing of the rime is attested by a letter of Cicognini to Bentivoglio, which is published in Dinko Fabris, Mecenati e musici, documenti sul patronato artistico dei Bentivoglio di Ferrara nell’epoca di Monteverdi, 1585–1645 (Lucca: Libreria musicale Italiana, 1999), 263.   9 See also App. C, doc. 3. 10 The death of Grand Duke Ferdinando I occurred on 7 February 1609. The King of France (Henri IV) was assassinated on 14 May 1610, and Settimia Caccini left Florence (with her husband Alessandro Ghivizzani) on 13 October 1611. For this last aspect, see Kirkendale, The Court Musicians, 341–342. 11 Zoilo’s performance in Cicognini, Amor pudico is attested by Romolo Paradiso, Copia d’una lettera del signor Romolo Paradiso, con la quale da avviso dell’apparato e grandezza con che si è rappresentato il festino dell’Eccellentis Ss.i g. Principe Peretti (Rome: Discepolo, 1614), 66. The most extensive coverage of the work to date is John Hill, Roman Monody, Cantata, and Opera from the Circles around Cardinal Montalto (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1997), 279–97. 12 “che è serva antica dell’illustrissima casa,” see App. C, doc. 3. 13 Two years later (1619), Paolo Giordano’s sister Camilla Orsini married Marcantonio II Borghese, Prince of Sulmona. The marriage formalized the political union of the two families. 14 “Se nel felicissimo nome dell’eccellentissimo principe di Sulmona, il mio Adone o la mia Andromeda non si risvegliano, o almeno se qualche comandamento di vostra eccellenza non risveglia la mia addormentata musa, io voglio ben dire d’esser al tutto morto nella grazia e memoria di vostra eccellenza, la quale io umilmente supplico a non si scordare d’un servitore tanto devoto, tanto obligato, tanto beneficiato dalla sua illustrissima casa, e se prendo troppo ardire ne incolpo il mio infinito desiderio di riveder Roma, e riveder in Roma vostra eccellenza e l’illustrissimo cardinale suo fratello.” Bologna, 19 September 1616, Jacopo Cicognini to Paolo Giordano II in Rome, I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 160/2, fol. 280. 15 The first performance of Andromeda (with music by Domenico Belli) took place on 9 March 1618 at the Florentine residence of the Rinaldi family, see Magda Vigilante, “Jacopo Cicognini.” Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani 25 (1981), at www.treccani.it. 16 “Iacomo (or Jacopo) Cicognini si partì da questa città, e il serenissimo di Toscana si compiacque di gratificarlo della cancelleria del tocco alla mercantia, e de quando qui va facendo qualche commedia,” I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 162/1, fol. 64. It has been incorrectly assumed that Cicognini left Bologna permanently in 1617. See Magda Vigilante, “Cicognini, Jacopo.” 17 Unfortunately, the surviving account books are silent regarding the type of musical performances favored by the duke and his musicians. We must therefore rely on the scarse general references contained in dedications and contemporary chronicles. 18 The document was written on 29 December 1618, and notarized on 21 January 1619. It is preserved in the library of UCLA (special collections), Orsini Family Papers, box 33, volume 1, I.A.IX.31, 36. 19 “La nostra chiesa di Santa Apollinaire onorata dal signor Francesco [Petratti] in sonar la cetera tiorbata per alcune volte e ci ha favorito, ora nella festa di detto santo tanto più li desidera.” Rome, 17 July 1618, Annibale Orgas to Paolo Giordano II in Rome, I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 162/1, fol. 12. 20 Francesco Petratti, Il primo libro d’arie a una et due voci con un dialogo in fine (Venice: Vincenti, 1620). For Monteverdi’s connection with Paolo Giordano and Petratti, see Denis Stevens, “Monteverdi, Petratti and the Duke of Bracciano,” Musical Quarterly 64, no. 3 (July 1978): 275−94. Monteverdi set some of the texts of these arias to music. Stevens suggests that he may have become acquainted with them, in particular with

Gloriosa orsa latina  133 the aria Sì dolce il tormento, when studying Petratti’s book (page 292). The correspondence between Paolo Giordano II and Monteverdi has been transcribed, translated, and discussed in Denis Stevens, The Letters of Claudio Monteverdi (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1995), 151–158, 164–165, 182–183. 21 “Queste mie arie, assicurate dagli umanissimi imperi di vostra eccellenza, lasciarono quel nido ove già nate timide del precipizio nascoste si stavano, ed alla presenza di lei felicemente spiegarono i primi lor voli . . . ed allevate nella sua corte, dove ho io in sorte d’essere annoverato tra coloro che, servendo lei, godono quella dolce libertà.” Francesco Petratti, Il primo libro d’arie, dedicatory preface (no page number). 22 App. C, docs. 5,6,7. 23 “Se ne vengano i miei madrigali alla presenza di vostra eccellenza per ricordarle riverentemente la devotissima servitù del loro autore, e per prender licenza, ora stampati, di poter andar vagando per il mondo, già che così umanamente l’eccellenza vostra si è degnata onorarli della sua benignissima protezione, assecurandoli da ogni detrazione.” Venice, 18 July 1620, Cesare Zoilo to Paolo Giordano II, I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 164/2, fol. 386. 24 “Mi scrive da Venezia Bartolomeo Magni, stampatore quale già stampò quei madrigali a 5 [voci], che avendogli smaltiti tutti e desiderando ristamparli di nuovo, io gli ne mando una muta con quelle agiunzioni o correzioni che ci desidero, che ristamperà con ogni diligenza quella medesima che gli manderò. Io, che per obedir al comandamento di vostra eccellenza, riceverei per grande onor di lasciargli stampar la prossima volta, ancor che di fusse di spesa di 65 scudi, senza averne ritratto pur un giulio d’utile, molto più volentieri devo concorrer ora che si ristampino, non dovendo io spender cosa alcuna. E poiché il sudetto stampator mi scrisse tutto questo sin dalla fine del mese di Luglio passato, e io lo pregai a darmi tempo un paio di mesi, che spirano alla fine del corrente, in questo tempo ho già corretto una muta a mio modo da mandargli. Ora dunque non mi resta altro se non di darne conto a vostra eccellenza come faccio con la presente, acciò se ella per onorarmi anche questa secunda volta volesse aggiunger o nella dedicatoria, o nel titolo, o nell’ arme, che è di presente assai diversa da quella che fu impressa all’ora nella prima facciata dei miei libri, si compiaccia comandarlo perché ne darò subito avviso al sudetto stampatore, e vostra eccellenza sarà servita.” Rome, 20 September 1624, Cesare Zoilo to Paolo Giordano II, I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 173/2, fol. 247. 25 App. C, docs. 9, 10, 11. 26 In 1626, Paolo Giordano was in correspondence with the poet Francesco Balducci, one of the most prolific authors of texts for cantatas in Rome. Balducci dedicated his first book of Rime amorose to Paolo Giordano II, and sent other poetic works to him (App. C, letter 11). For Balducci’s poetic contribution to vocal chamber music in Rome, see Robert Holzer, “Music and Poetry in Seventeenth-Century Rome: Settings of the Canzonetta and Cantata Texts of Francesco Balducci, Domenico Benigni, Francesco Melosio, and Antonio Abati” (PhD diss., University of Pennsylvania, 1990). 27 “Confidata nelle altre grazie ricevute da vostra eccellenza, vengo con questa a suplicarla di questa nova grazia, che dovendo io vestir mia figlia domenica prossima in Santa Lucia, ho recercato al signor Stefano Landi e signor Fabio suo nipote per quel giorno. Lui ha risposto che deve trovarsi a Bracciano fra due giorni. Supplico vostra eccellenza a voler ottenere dal eccellentissimo suo fratello [Paolo Giordano] licentia di poter trattenerli questo tempo, acciò possi ottener il mio intento mediante al suo favore.” Rome, 9 July 1629, Hipolita Savelli dal Monte to Ferdinando Orsini, I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 140/3, fol. 385. 28 Giovanni Rovetta, Madrigali concertati a 2. 3. 4. & uno à sei voci, & due violini con un dialogo nel fine & una cantata à voce sola (Venice: Magni, 1629). 29 A passage in Rovetta’s dedication states “As I would obtain, most Excellent Lord, to be among those who you honor with your most noble protection (come io ottenga, eccellentissimo signore, d’esser nel numero di coloro che ella onora con la sua nobilissima protezione).” A few years earlier (26 June 1625), the emperor Ferdinand II had conferred to Paolo Giordano II the title of Prince of the Holy Roman Empire.

134  Gloriosa orsa latina 30 “Il medesimo stimolo che mi ha mosso a consacrare al nome di vostra eccellenza queste mie musiche, mi spinge ora a presentargliele e a creder che ella non sia per considerare in esse altro che la pura mia divotione, a quale mi ho presuposto che solo possa esser corrispondente alla singolare umanità di vostra eccellenza. A questa la supplico di condonare ogni altro mancamento e di accoglier con l’istessa questo primo atto della mia servitù.” Venice, 13 October 1629, Giovanni Rovetta to Paolo Giordano II, I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 181/3, fol. 582. 31 Rovetta’s duets, and the dialogue La gelosia placata, have been examined in John Whenham, Duet and Dialogue in the Age of Monteverdi (Ann Arbor: UMI Research Press, 1982), 171–216. For other aspects of Rovetta’s madrigals, see John Whenham, “Aria in the Madrigals of Giovanni Rovetta,” in Con che soavità: Studies in Italian Opera, Song, Dance, 1580–1740, ed. Iain Fenlon and Tim Carter (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1995), 135–156. The lament has been discussed by Nigel Fortune, “Italian Secular Song from 1600 to 1635: The Origins and Development of Accompanied Monody” (PhD diss., University of Cambridge, 1954). 32 It is possible that this composition was included in Manelli’s collection Musiche varie a una due e tre voci. Cioè cantate, arie, canzonette et ciaccone con l’aggionta della Luciata, which was published the following year but is now lost. 33 “Molto mi preme il veder l’eccellenza vostra con poca o nulla sodisfazione delle parole e musica inviatoli, che veramente da mio poco giudizio erano stimate perfette per esser nate da soggietto tale estimatissimo nella poesia al pari d’ogni altro luogo. Ma veramente, con considerando la varietà d’umori succedendo in questa città, possa o nulla esser stimata la poesia di Roma, si come costì si stima questa di Venezia, aggiungendo di più che ier sera appunto, ad istanza di monsignor della Valletta, per regalar il signor principe di Ghisa, con 300 gondole fu fatta da me una musica in barca alli presenti onde con diversioni di poesia, si di quelle di Roma come di preti veneziani, queste sono state estimatissime come non aprobbate quelle. Mi onori pero d’inviarmi alcuna poesia di cotesti signor, acciò possi reprimer questo concetto e far conoscer il loro valore che da me non sarà mancato di darli quel maggior calore con musica.” Venice, 29 June 1635, Francesco Mannelli to Paolo Giordano II, I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 183/1, fol. 144. 34 Due to financial difficulties, Paolo Giordano attempted to sell some of his consolidated properties (including the Roman palace of Monte Giordano). See Triff, “Patronage and Public Image,” 384–386; Sabine Eiche, “Towards a Study of the Palazzo di Monte Giordano in Rome: A Plan by Orazio Torriani,” Mitteilungen des Kunsthistorischen Institutes in Florenz 29, no. 1 (1985): 190–196. 35 Various payments (often to the court composer Angelo Cecchini) to repair string and keyboard instruments, and to purchase new ones can be found in I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, registri 1820, 1822. Some of these payments are cited also in Benocci, Paolo Giordano II Orsini, 16. The contemporary writer Francesco Angeloni describes Paolo Giordano II as a “fabricatore di armoniosi instrumenti.” Francesco Angeloni, La historia augusta da Giulio Cesare infino a Costantino il Magno (Rome: Cesaretti, 1641), 376. 36 The payment of 14,000 scudi is mentioned in Patrizio Barbieri, “Michele Todini’s Galleria Armonica: Its Hitherto Unknown History,” Early Music 30, no. 4 (November 2002): 571. This is an exorbitant sum of money if one considers that it equaled to approximately fourteen times the amount paid to Bernini for the famous statue of Apollo and Daphne, and represented more than double the amount of the annual income of an ordinary cardinal living in Rome. For this and further information regarding costs of living in Baroque Rome, see Franco Mormando, Bernini: His Life and His Rome (Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 2011), xii–xiv. 37 According to Mersenne, the sordellina had “an added keyed contrabass pipe that extended its range down of the F below the bass stave, so that one could play all manner of four-voice chansons.” See Marin Mersenne, Harmonie universelle (Paris: Cramoisy, 1636–1637), 293–294; Benocci, Paolo Giordano II Orsini, 25; Barbieri, “Michele Todini’s galleria armonica,” 569–71.

Gloriosa orsa latina  135 38 For Martellini, see App. C, doc 8, and for Marenzio’s books, see I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, registro 1822, fol. 71. For a general account on Andrea Fei as printer, see Saverio Franchi, Le impressioni sceniche. Dizionario bio-bibliografico degli editori e franchi stampatori romani e laziali di testi drammatici e libretti per musica dal 1579 al 1800, Vol. 1 (Rome: Edizioni di Storia e Letteratura, 1994); Marco Menato, Ennio Sandal and Giuseppina Zappella, Dizionario dei tipografi e degli editori italiani, il cinquecento (Milan: Editrice Bibliografica, 1997); Stanley Boorman, “Andrea Fei,” Grove Music Online, at www. oxfordmusiconline.com. 39 Francis Haskell, without providing documentary references, asserts that Frescobaldi was also a protégé of Orsini. While this would be hardly surprising in view of Paolo Giordano’s prominent position in Rome, I am not able to confirm this information; see Haskell, Patrons and Painters, 95. 40 They appear, among other cantatas by composers active in Rome, in Ariette di musica, a una e due voci e Floridus modulorum hortus ab excellentissimis musices (Table 4.2). Marciani’s position at the Orsini court seems to have coincided (1634–1646) with his activity as singer at the church of St. Apollinaris under the guidance of Giacomo Carissimi. In 1645 he entered the service of Pompeo Colonna, and was later a singer at the church of St. Maria Maggiore. Thirty-six cantatas by Marciani, along with a number of sacred compositions, survive in manuscript and print. For Marciani’s biography, see Arnaldo Morelli, “Giovanni Marciani,” Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani Online, at www.treccani.it. 41 Paolo Giordano II Orsini, Rime di Paolo Giordano II Orsini duca di Bracciano (Bracciano: Andrea Fei, 1648). In the opening pages, Fei asserts that two other poetic works by Paolo Giordano, dramma in verso sciolto and a poemetto in ottava rima, waited for ducal authorization before being printed. However, it seems that those works were never issued. An edition of the rime has been published in Anna Luisetti, Paolo Giordano Orsini: rime diverse (Turin: Edizioni Res, 1996). 42 Fei included two additional sonnets by Marino, for Virginio Orsini and Cardinal Alessandro Orsini. These compositions are eulogies of their military and moral virtues. 43 Francesco Ronconi, Applausi poetici alle glorie della Signora Leonora Baroni (Rome: Andrea Fei, 1643). The book contains works by various contemporary poets. 44 “Mi ricordo quando io fui costì ultimamente in Firenze, mi lodò e propose vostra signoria una giovine zitella romana molto virtuosa, che oltre al sonare e al cantare si dilettava di disegnare, e mi fece vedere alcuni disegnetti che dalle stampe detta giovine aveva copiate. Adesso facilmente ci potrebbe in casa esser occasione di averne a pigliare, mi faccia dunque piacer vostra signoria di darmi notizia di detta giovine, dove stia e come si chiama, e anco il nome del padre.” No date, Paolo Giordano II to Galileo Galilei, I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 309/3, fol. 700. In this case, all erasures and corrections found in the original dispatch have been omitted. 45 Paolo Giordano had to turn down Francesca Caccini’s request. See the letter of Caccini to Paolo Giordano II published in Suzanne Cusick, Francesca Caccini at the Medici Court: Music and the Circulation of Power (Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 2009), 330. The two words transcribed by Cusick as ordinario and borso should read ordinaria and luogo. These minor corrections, however, do not affect the meaning and the content of the letter. 46 This also confirms that she was still alive (her last known letter was dated 1619). For the problem of Vittoria Archilei’s death date, see Kirkendale, The Court Musicians, 275−6. 47 Copialettera of Paolo Giordano II to Vittoria romana (Archilei), 311/1, fol. 47, 1643 (last page, no exact date): “A Margherita che canta si erano dati tremila scudi di dote.” Copialettera of Paolo Giordano II to Padre Fra Lorenzo, I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 311/1, fol. 49v, 1643 (no exact date): “Quella giovane che canta che dice donna Agnese essersi maritata con dote di tremila scudi.” Copialettera of Paolo Giordano II to Alessandro del Nero, Rome, April 1643, I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 311/1, fol. 83: “metter al suo servizio quella zitella che io feci sentir cantare vostra signoria.”

136  Gloriosa orsa latina 48 “Io so quanto siano grati a vostra eccellenza li virtuosi, e massime quando sono accompagnati di certe qualità che vostra eccellenza apetisce, che perciò mi è parso, come servitore sviscerato che io sono alla persona di vostra eccellenza, di proponerle un giovane che credo possi esser di sua sodisfazione, il quale servirà per aiutante di camera, è di bellissima presenza, ornato di bellissimi vestiti, è virtuosissimo di arciliuto, di chitarra, e de tasti bravo compositore, essendo stato maestro di capella della cattedrale di Ferrara, da dove ha portato bellissime arie, e è di costumi rari, modestissimo, e insomma in lui concorrono tutte quelle qualità che possano render amabile un virtuoso; e perché io desidero incontrare il giusto (gusto) di vostra eccellenza, venendo l’eccellenza sua a Roma, lo farò veder e sentire, che parendoli facci per il suo servizio l’acquistarò per piacevole provisione.” Rome, 13 July 1644, Michelangelo Vacca to Paolo Giordano II, I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 187/2, fol. 357. 49 Unfortunately, the music for these operas has not survived. They were staged in Rome between 1635 and 1639, and were Primavera urbane col trionfo d’Amor pudico, Il trionfo dell’autunno, L’intemperie d’Apollo, and La Sincerità trionfante. For the latter, see Margaret Murata, “Why the First Opera Given in Paris Wasn’t Roman,” Cambridge Opera Journal 7, no. 2 (July 1995): 90. 50 A number of letters between Paolo Giordano and exponents of the Barberini family are preserved in the Fondo Orsini of the archivio capitolino. For Paolo Giordano’s political and artistic relationship with Cardinal Mazarin, see Barbara Furlotti, “From Paolo Giordano II Orsini to Cardinal Giulio Mazarino: The Journey from Rome to France of a Painting by Jacopo Bassano,” Studiolo 10 (2013): 243−6. 51 “Dovevo da Lione seguitar il viaggio con il messaggero, ma lo trovai tanto in comodo che a Roano mi risoluti con una camerata di prendere la comodità della Loera, sì come faccettino, e così non son passato per Molines. Giunsi a Parigi a 15 del corrente, e ne fu subito avisato la maestà della regina.” Letter of Luigi Rossi to Paolo Giordano II dated 24 January 1648, in I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 189/1, fol. 96. 52 Marcorelli’s connection to Orsini has remained unknown. The most detailed biography of the composer is Biancamaria Brumana, “Il dialogo di s. Francesco di Marcorelli ed altre musiche dedicate al santo nel XVII secolo,” in Atti del convegno internazionale di musica sacra in occasione del centenario di fondazione del PIMS, ed. Antonio Addamiano and Francesco Luisi (Rome: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2013), 613-38. Marcorelli was the chapel master of the Chiesa Nuova (see Morelli, Il tempio armonico, 1991), and this is probably why he was asked to set to music the oratorio of Saint Agnese written by Paolo Giordano II. 53 There were no indications of Bianchi’s activity in Rome during these years. It has been hypothesized that after 1641 Bianchi left the city; see Frederick Hammond, Music and Spectacle in Baroque Rome: Barberini Patronage under Urban VIII (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1994), 83. 54 “Ho ricevuto con gusto la lettera sua, e per scorgermi il suo salvo animo e l’esser ella stata accarezzata dalla regina e dal cardinale Mazarino. Lo devo poi ringraziare dell’onorata menzione che ha fatta costà di me con sua altezza e con sua eccellenza, e della briga che ha voluta pigliare in darmene conto. Io dalla mia tragedia di Santa Agnese ne ho cavato un oratorio che è stato cantato prima all’oratorio della Chiesa Nuova, e poi in San Salvatore in Lauro, ed è assai piaciuto, la musica l’ha fatta Marcorelli e l’hanno cantato Bonaventura e li due miei soprani, il Bianchi, e il mio tenore, il mio contralto, il Niccolini, e il basso del signor cardinale mio nipote.” 16 March 1648, copialettera of Paolo Giordano II to Luigi Rossi, I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 312/2, fol. 183. 55 “Ho ricevuto la sua lettera nella quale ho inteso con molto gusto le nuove che mi dà che cessasse presto quella revoluzione, non ho già ricevuto ancora le arie che mi dice mandarmi, il che mi fa credere che siamo state trattenute da quello a chi ella le averà inviate, forse per farle copiare e darle a chi gli pareva, di modo che quando io le riceverò, Dio sà in quante mani saranno andate, io glie lo avviso acciò che quando ella da qui innanzi me ne volesse inviare alcuna, la mandi sigillata e con la coperta a me che

Gloriosa orsa latina  137 così forse non andranno di aprirla.” 12 October 1648, copialettera of Paolo Giordano II to Luigi Rossi, I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 312/1, fol. 111. 56 “Finalmente questa mattina, dopo tanto tempo, mi son visto su la tavola le arie, e mi hanno detto dopo esser state mandate dal fratello di lei . . . le abbiamo provate oggi, e riescono bellissime veramente.” Rome, 19 October 1648, copialettera of Paolo Giordano II to Luigi Rossi, I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 312/1, fol. 122. 57 By the end of 1552, del Pane was already in the service of the emperor, to whom he dedicated his Libro di madrigali a cinque voci. 58 On 26 June 1625, Ferdinand III had conferred to Paolo Giordano II the title of Prince of the Holy Roman Emperor (confirmed on 6 May 1638). 59 “Egli cantò il sonetto fatto in lode di sua maestà, il quale domandò di che era la musica, e egli disse esser di Venanzio Leopardi . . . il cantare di Domenichino generalmente piace, e si crede che s’anderà sempre avanzando nella grazia di sua maestà.” The letter has no sender and date, but its place in the carteggio and the content suggest that it was written shortly after dal Pane’s arrival at the imperial court (App. C, doc. 23). 60 For a discussion of Volpi’s inventory, see Eleonora Bonini and Arnaldo Morelli, “Gli inventari dei ‘libri di musica’ di Giovan Battista Vulpio (1705–1706): Nuova luce sulla original Stradella collection,” Recercare 28, no. 1–2 (2016): 175–215. Bonini and Morelli mentions that Volpi was a musician of Ferdinando Orsini in March 1652, because a document refers to him as a musician of the duke of Bracciano. However, Ferdinando Orsini acquired the title of duke only after the death of his brother Paolo Giordano II in 1656; therefore, Volpi continued to serve the latter for at least two years after his initial appointment. 61 A famous serenata was performed at Monte Giordano during the carnival’s season of 1642. It was organized by Cardinal Antonio Barberini in honor of Paolo Giordano’s wife, see Filippo Clementi, Il carnevale Romano nelle cronache contemporanee (Rome: Tipografia Tiberina, 1899), 415. Paolo Giordano was also a composer of serenate; see, for instance, the two letters of his aunt Costanza Savelli to him (App. C, docs. 13, 14). 62 “Intendo dalla lettera di vostra signoria come lei aveva ricevuto il suo lamento di Doralice, e che riusciva di suo gusto, e era stato molto lodato da chi l’aveva udito, ma più si deve dar lode al compositore delle parole che della musica, ho goduto bene che ella ne sia stata servita, e veramente il compositore della musica, che è il cavaliere Carlo Rainaldi, dell’abito di San Maurizio e Lazzaro non si porta male, come parimente nel sonar il cimbalo e l’arpa. Vostra signoria averà avuto opere di due miei servitori e compositori. L’uno è il medesimo, e l’altro nominato Venanzio che fu il compositore della musica della mia serenata, che nella città tra quelli della professione è stimato assai (e vostra signoria ne ha avute certe ariette mandateli da me).” Rome, 12 December 1649, copialettera of Paolo Giordano II to Nicolò Doni, I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 312/2, fol. 335. There are three additional letters regarding Doni and Paolo Giordano II, the latter of which shows that the composition of the lament went through several corrections; see App. C, docs. 18–21. 63 Previous studies on Rainaldi as musician and composer are Hans Marx, “Carlo Rainaldi architetto del popolo romano,” Rivista Italiana di Musicologia 4 (1968): 48–76; Arnaldo Morelli, “Carlo Rainaldi musicista gentiluomo: Una riconsiderazione e qualche novità,” in La festa delle arti: Scritti in onore di Marcello Fagiolo per cinquant’anni, ed. Vincenzo Cazzato, Sebastiano Roberto and Mario Bevilacqua (Rome: Gangemi, 2014), 454–457. 64 On 13 May 1656, Rainaldi and Maffei were paid 41 scudi for their four-month service in Paolo Giordano’s household (I-Rasc, F.O. Serie II, 1848, fol. 8). Ferdinando Orsini issued these payments shortly after the death of his brother. He then inherited the title of fourth Duke of Bracciano. For Rainaldi’s connection to Cardinal Virginio Orsini, see his letter to Ferdinando Orsini in appendix (App. C, doc. 24). 65 On the production and dissemination of cantata manuscripts, see Margaret Murata, “Roman Cantata Scores as Traces of Musical Culture and Signs of Its Place in Society,” in Atti del XIV Congresso della Società Internazionale di Musicologia: trasmissione

138  Gloriosa orsa latina e recezione delle forme di cultura musicale, ed. Angelo Pompilio, Donatella Restani, Lorenzo Bianconi and Franco Alberto Gallo (Turin: EDT, 1990), 272–284; Arnaldo Morelli, “Perché non vanno per le mani di molti: La cantata romana del pieno Seicento: questioni di trasmissione e di funzione,” in Musica e drammaturgia a Roma al tempo di Carissimi, Atti della Giornata di Studio, ed. Paolo Russo (Venice: Marsilio, 2006), 21–39. 66 The call number is Mod Mus. G. 167. This manuscript contains 140 cantatas, which were written by composers active in Rome. See Alessandra Chiarelli, I codici musicali della raccolta estense: ricostruzione dall’inventario settecentesco (Florence: Olschki, 1987), 74. 67 “Il dialogo mi è piaciuto molto sommamente, e che è la miglior composizione che ella abbia fatto fin ora, egli è pieno di sali, di vivezze, e di proprietà, e ottimamente condotto, si che non solo può metterlo al libro, ma anche farlo metter in musica e comparir in scena, che vedrà conseguire mille applausi.” Fano, 3 November 1651, Vincenzo Nolfi to Paolo Giordano II, I-Rasc, F.O. Serie I, 190/1, fol. 10. 68 In a letter dated 2 August 1652, for example, Paolo Giordano informed her about the most prominent musicians active in Rome. The correspondence is published and discussed in Carl Bildt, “Cristina di Svezia and Paolo Giordano II, Duca di Bracciano,” Archivio della società Romana di storia patria 29 (1906): 5–32. 69 English quotation from Galeazzo Gualdo Priorato, The History of the Sacred and Royal Majesty of Christina Alessandra Queen of Swedland, trans. John Burbury (London: T.W., 1660), 344. Original Italian in Galeazzo Gualdo Priorato, Historia della Sacra Real Maestà di Christina Alessandra Regina di Svetia (Rome: Stamperia della Reverenda Camera Apostolica, 1656), 225. 70 Giovanni de Crescimbeni, Commentarii (Rome: Antonio de Rossi, 1720), 319.

Conclusion

The Orsini-Colonna circle represented a musical bridge between Naples, Rome, and Florence. It was an interfamilial web for the circulation of musicians, and it is in this broad context of patronage that the development of the madrigal, villanella, and monody in Rome should be viewed. When studying such a complex subject as monodic practice, we must remember that we are not dealing with a homogeneous and centralized phenomenon. The attempt to attribute the stylistic evolution of monody in Rome to a single patron is reductive. The situation is further complicated by the lack of an identifiable corpus of sixteenthcentury solo songs, which does not allow for the evaluation of specific aspects of compositional technique. There is, however, ample evidence of the presence in the Eternal City of musicians from Naples, whom the members of the Orsini family and other nobility patronized. The Neapolitan vocal style, which is the root of the solo singing of Caccini and his contemporaries, was cultivated in the Orsini-Colonna circle well before the turn of the seventeenth century. A hybrid form of Roman-Neapolitan monody, which was associated with different patrons and was not uniform in its manifestation, may have started to take shape in mid cinquecento. This invites us to reconsider the patronage of poetry and music in Rome in a wider civic context. We must also take into account the fluidity of the clientage system and its effects on Roman aristocratic society. The Orsinis had extensive connections beyond Rome. This is significant because it resulted in musical interactions inside and outside of the city. The familial union of the Medici and the Orsini families established a bidirectional network for musical and artistic exchange. It started with Paolo Giordano I Orsini, who introduced Neapolitan musicians to Florence and who paved the way for a system of patronage that continued with his son Virginio. The latter assumed a crucial role as a patron-intermediary by supporting a Roman-Florentine circle of poets and musicians, who were also involved in the first operatic experimentations. By the end of the sixteenth century, the collaboration and circulation of poets, singers, and composers within the circle of the Orsinis – Giulio and Francesca Caccini, Vittoria and Antonio Archilei, Cavalieri, Strozzi, and Rinuccini, just to name a few – show that there was a very clear geo-musical line between Florence and Rome. This suggests that the developments of monody in these cities were not utterly independent.

140 Conclusion The scions of the baronial nobility seem to have turned their attention predominantly (but not exclusively) to secular music. An interesting picture emerges when one compares the patronage of Paolo Giordano II Orsini with that of other contemporary curial families. Patronage seems to have shaped Orsini’s noble identity significantly. He was aware of the importance of creating a public front and projecting his image to the aristocratic world. In conformity with contemporary ideas of decorum, he maintained the living standards of an aristocrat of his rank, and he cultivated close connections with well-known artists. However, his interests focused on vocal chamber music and more intimate musical entertainments, rather than sumptuous public spectacles. Indeed, there are no indications of Paolo Giordano II’s involvement as sponsor of theatrical performances at court. Musicological studies have emphasized the social function of music in enhancing political power though the patronage of lavish operas. In certain cases, the wealth and ambitions of Italian ruling families exercised a critical influence on the creation of large-scale operatic works. But there were also forms of aristocratic patronage that had fewer ostentations, such as that exercised by Paolo Giordano II, who nurtured music for personal recreation and pleasure. Because of figures like Orsini, secular music penetrated the private sphere of the Roman nobility. The case of Paolo Giordano II and his predecessors brings to fore another aspect of musical patronage in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Italy – namely the circulation of music, poetry, and musicians in a wider geographical context. This entails also the migration of Italian composers and singers to northern Europe, a phenomenon related to the musical activities at other Italian courts, such as those of Ferrara, Mantua, and even Venice. Studies on the patronage of noble families like the Orsini show that the dissemination of musical culture cannot be confined within restricted civic boundaries. Conversely, the production and consumption of secular music in Italy should be situated in an ever-shifting and performative musical world where styles and genres are less clearly defined than our music history textbooks would wish them to be.

Bibliography

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Index

Note: Page numbers in italic indicate a figure, and page numbers in bold indicate a table on the corresponding page. accademia 63 Accademia degli Alterati 58, 74 Accademia degli Intronati 48 Accademia degli Umoristi 74 Accademia della Crusca 74, 75 accademia fiorentina 70 Accoramboni, Flaminio 48 affetti 70 Ahime quest’occhi (Venturi) 28 Aldobrandini, Cinzio 61 Alessandro (comedy) 23 alta Colonna 17, 19 Amor pudico (Cicognini) 101 Andrea, Giovanni 48 Andreini, Isabella 68 Annibaldi, Claudio 1–2 Appiani, Isabella 98 Archilei, Antonio 68, 83–84, 86–87, 98, 139 Archilei, Ottavio 73, 98, 119–120 Archilei, Vittoria 68–69, 84–87, 98, 101, 113, 121, 139 arie 72, 104 Aristotle 70 Balducci, Francesco 125 Barberini family 114 Bardi, Giovanni 70 Bargagli, Girolamo 57 Baroni, Leonora 112 Barrè, Antonio 17, 44 Bartoli, Giorgio 70 Basile, Adriana 68, 88 Battle of Lepanto 13, 28 Bellano, Francesco 17 Bellezza ch’empi il ciel (dell’Arpa) 25

Bernini, Gian Lorenzo 98 Biagioli, Mauro 2 Bocchinensis, Carlo 55 Boethius 70 Boniface VIII, Pope 10 Borghese, MarcAntonio 102 Borghetti, Vincenzo 2 Bottegari, Cosimo 25, 45–46 Bracciano Castle 42 Brancaccio, Giulio Cesare 24, 48–49 Brandi, Antonio (il Brandino) 74–75 Brown, Howard 1 Buonarroti, Michelangelo 75 Caccini, Francesca 2, 68, 72–73, 90, 102, 113, 139 Caccini, Giulio 23, 24, 47, 58, 68–70, 72–73, 98–101, 139 Caccini, Settimia 101 Caioli, Artemisia 104 Calderari, Giovanni Battista 77 camerata 58, 70 Campiglia, Maddalena 60–61 Cangialosi, Mario 23 cantatas 117 canzonelle 28 Canzoni villanesche al modo napolitano a 3 voci (Cimello) 23 cappella musicale 22 Cardona, Maria di 24 Carro di fedeltà d’amore (Quagliati) 73–74 Carter, Tim 2 Casoni, Guido 109 Castelli, Ottaviano 113 Cavalieri, Emilio de’ 57, 58, 72–73, 76, 79, 82, 139

152 Index Cecchini, Angelo 113 Charles V, King of Spain 11 Chiabrera, Gabriello 75 Chiaula, Mauro 23 Chiros, Bernardo de 49 Chi vol dell’alta prole (Vinci) 20, 21 Christine of Lorraine, 2 Cicognini, Cosimo 64, 86 Cicognini, Jacopo 75, 87, 98, 101–102, 120–121 Cimello, Giovanni Tommaso 16, 19, 23, 47 Colonna, Ascanio 13, 15, 22, 30, 32–33 Colonna, Costanza 20 Colonna, Fabrizio 15, 16 Colonna, Geronima 13, 23, 28, 30, 31 Colonna, Marcantonio III 57 Colonna, Marco Antonio II: at Battle of Lepanto 13; copialettera of Philippe II to 33; death of 30; dedicatory preface of Martelli to 31–32; dedicatory preface of Vinci to 34; dell’Arpa and the villanella in house of 23–30; genealogy 13; marriage 11–13; patronage in Sicily 20–23; patronage of 10–30; patronage of Neapolitan musicians 47; portrait of 11; printed music books dedicated to 16; sacred music composed by Vinci in honor of 21; Vinci and patronage of 20–23; wedding of 42 Colonna, Oddone 10 Colonna, Vittoria 13, 15, 24 commedia dell’arte 19 Compagnia del Gesù 74, 75 concerto delle donne 46 Corsi, Jacopo 75 Corteccia, Francesco 45 Cummings, Anthony 47 Cusick, Suzanne 2 dal Pane, Domenico 116 Danielli, Francesco 60 d’Aragona, Giovanna 13, 14, 15, 23–24, 31 De Institutione Musica (Boethius) 70 De la purgatione de la tragedia (Giacomini) 70 della Cornia, Fabio 112 della Rovere, Felice 42 dell’Arpa, Giovanni: anonymous poet composition for 31; letter of Felice to 29–30; letter to Felice 29, 32, 33–35; “O bella man ch’avanzi” 25, 26; villanella in casa Colonna and 23–30; villanellas

composed by 27, 47; “Vorria crudel tornare” 26 della Valle, Pietro 73 delle Palle, Scipione 19, 23, 24, 30, 47–48, 69 Delle più fresche rose (Tasso) 64–68 del Nero, Alessandro 113, 126 Dentice, Luigi 23–24, 30 Dentice, Scipione 68, 81–82 Doni, Niccolò 116–117, 127–128 Dorati, Michel 28 Duchy of Bracciano, 43 Due dialoghi della musica (Dentice) 23 Farnese, Costanza 42 Fei, Andrea 110–112 Fei, Virginia Mannelli 90 Felice alta Colonna (Venturi) 28 Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor 116 Festa, Costanzo 15 Fidati, Oberto 74 Fiorino, Gaspare 28 Flori (Campiglia) 61 Francesco, Giovanni 49 Furor poetico (Giacomini) 70 Gaci, Gaci 80–81 Galilei, Galileo 74, 88–89, 112–113 Galilei, Vincenzo 70 Gallo, Cesare 16 Ghellini, Giovanni Battista 77 Giacomini, Bernardo 44–45, 46 Giacomini, Lorenzo 70–72; De la purgatione de la tragedia 70; Furor poetico 70; Orationi et discorsi 70, 71, 75 Giordano, Paolo 48–49, 50, 51, 101; Paralello fra la citta e la villa satire vndici (Giordano) 112; Rime 112 Giustiniani, Vincenzo 48 Gli ingannati (comedy) 23 Glixon, Jonathan 2 Gonzaga, Curzio 61 Gonzaga, Vincenzo 60 Greek classical ideas 70–72 Grifoni, Giovanni Battista 107 Guarini, Giovanni Battista 58, 75 Guerrero, Pedro 22, 32–33 Harness, Kelley 2 Hernandez, Paulo 83 Hill, John 47 Ho il cuor costante (Rainaldi) 117–118 Hor che di tanti (Rossetti) 45

Index  153 Il Lamento di Olimpia (Rossetti) 45 Il piu forte di Roma (Monte) 45 il refugio delle muse poetry/music 55–75 Il rogo amoroso (Tasso) 64 Il secondo libro delle villanelle a tre voci (Venturi) 28 imitatio 70 Innocent X, Pope 114 Lacrime d’Erminia (Rovetta) 109 Landi, Stefano 108 La nuova, et armonica compositione a quattro voci (Martelli) 19 La pellegrina (Bargagli) 57 Leoni, Ottavio 98 Leopardi, Venanzio 116 L’Hercolano (Varchi) 48 Libro primo de canti a quatro voci (Cimello) 16 Libro primo della serena (madrigal collection) 15 Libro terzo di canzonelle (Fiorino) 28 Losco, Pietro 28 Lotti, Cosimo 101 Maddalena, Maria 2 madrigale arioso 17, 19, 24, 25 madrigals 17, 19, 20, 24, 44–45, 49, 57, 60–63, 72, 107, 109 Maffei, Giovanni Camillo 23 Malvezzi, Alberigo 73 Malvezzi, Cristofano 57 Manelli, Francesco 109–110 Marenzio, Luca 2, 57, 60–68 Martelli, Giovanni Battista 19–20, 31–32 Martin V, Pope 10 Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor 45 Mazarin, Jules Raymond 114 Medici, Cosimo de’ 42, 44, 48 Medici, Eleonora de’ 60 Medici, Ferdinando I de’ 55, 60, 61, 68, 74, 101 Medici, Isabella de’ 30, 42, 45, 47–48 Mei, Girolamo 70 Messia, Antonio 28, 30 Mezzocannone 15 Michelangelo 13 mimesis 70 Monente, Michel 28 Mongani, Antonio 62 monody 19, 47, 68–75 Montalto, Alessandro 47, 48, 57–58, 68–69, 74, 81, 84, 85, 102

Montalto, Felice Orsina Peretti 57 Montalto, Flavia Peretti 57, 62, 68, 81, 86–87 Monte, Philippe de 16, 44–45, 57; Il piu forte di Roma 45; Orni un piu bel smeraldo 45; Sesto libro di madragali a sei voci 57; Spiran l’aure feconde 57 Monteverdi, Claudio 104 motets 45 Muratto, Paulo 104 Musica Nova del Rossetto, a cinque voci (Rossetti) 45 music books 16, 16, 35, 110–112, 111–112 musicians: Neapolitan 47–51; non-salaried 108–110; salaried 102–108, 103 Naldi, Antonio (il Bardella) 72 Nanino, Giovanni Maria 45 Neapolitan monody 19, 47 Neapolitan musicians 47–51 Nobil coppia gradita (Giacomini) 44–45, 46 Nolfi, Vincenzo 118, 128–129 “O bella man ch’avanzi” (dell’Arpa) 25, 26 Oldradi, Fabio 108 Ongaro, Antonio 64 operatic singing 72–73 Orationi et discorsi (Giacomini) 70, 71, 75 Oratorians 15, 20 Orfeo (Rossi) 114, 116 Orni un piu bel smeraldo (Monte) 45 Orsini, Eleonora 46 Orsini, Felice: Barrè’s association with 44; coded dispatches of 13–14, 14; eulogistic quotations to 61; genealogy 13; interest in villanellas and Neapolitan songs 30; letter of dell’Arpa to 29, 32, 33–35; letter to dell’Arpa 29–30; marriage 11–13; patronage of Neapolitan musicians 47; pious and morally upright depiction of 19–20; portrait of 12; role in patronage decisions 14–15; wedding of 42 Orsini, Ferdinando 107, 108, 130 Orsini, Flavio 16, 45, 47, 49 Orsini, Girolamo 13 Orsini, Giustiniana 73–74 Orsini, Paolo Giordano I: celebrated in madrigals by Monte 45; connection with Palestrina 50–51; death of 55; dedicatory preface of Giacomini to 44; early years

154 Index 13; move to Florence 42; Neapolitan musicians at Orsini court 30; patronage of 40–51; patronage of Neapolitan musicians 47–51; political aspirations of 42; portrait of 41; sonnet exalting valor of 40 Orsini, Paolo Giordano II: anonymous letter to 129–130; assignment of privilege of stampatore ducale to Andrea Fei 110–112; association of Galilei with 74; inventario di tutte le robe esistenti nel castello di Bracciano 130–131; late years 114–118; letter from Rossi to 114; letter of Balducci to 125; letter of Caccini to 99–100, 100; letter of Cicognini to 120–121; letter of del Nero to 126; letter of Martellini to 123; letter of Nolfi to 118, 128–129; letter of Ottavio Archilei to 119–120; letter of Savelli to 125–126; letter of Virginio Orsini to 122–123; letter of Vittoria Archilei to 121; letters of Zoilo to 119, 121–125; letters to Doni 127–128; letters to Rossi 115–116, 115, 126–127; letter to Galilei 112–113; marriage 98; musici di corte 102–108; patronage of 98–118, 139–140; portrait of 99; relationship with Rossi 114–116; in search of giovani virtuosi 112–114; use of nonsalaried musicians 108–110 Orsini, Virginio: association of Galilei with 74; at center of broader poetic networ 74–75; correspondence of Rinuccini with 74–75; death of 98; early years 55; il refugio delle muse poetry and music at the court of 55–75; inventario dei beni di 90; letter of Antonio Archilei to 83–88; letter of Basile to 88; letter of Caccini to 68–70; letter of Dentice to 81–82; letter of Giovanni Battista Strozzi to 69–70; letter of Hernandez to 83; letter of Piero Strozzi to 89; letter of Priuli to 82; letters of Cavalieri to 58–59, 59, 76, 79, 82; letters of Cicognini to 87; letters of Cosimo Cicognini to 86; letters of Gaci to 80–81; letters of Galilei to 88–89; letters of Jacopo Cicognini to 87; letters of Rasi to 60, 80; letters of Strozzi to 76–79; letters of Tasso to 79–80; letters of Vittoria Archilei to 84–86; letter to Paolo

Giordano II 122–123; Marenzio at court of 60–68; marriage 57; OrsiniMedici connection 55–60; poetry and monody in circle of 68–75; portrait of 56; relationship with Zoilo 107; Tasso’s poems dedicated to 64 Ortiz, Diego 22 Palestrina, Giovanni Pierluigi da 22, 50–51 Palisca, Claude 70 Paralello fra la citta e la villa satire vndici (Giordano) 112 Paredes, Giovan 28 passaggi 23, 69 patronage: definition of 1; musical 1–6 Paul IV, Pope 11 Peri, Jacopo 2, 101 Persico, Panfilio 2 Petratti, Francesco 104 Philippe II, King of Spain 21, 33 Piangete occhi miei (Rossetti) 45 Piccioli, Antonio 63–64 Pirrotta, Nino 47, 72 Pitigliano, Abate 30 poetry 73–75, 116–117 Poggi, Domenico 73 Ponte, Simone 44 Primo libro de la musica (Rampollini) 44 Primo libro delle muse (madrigali ariosi collection) 17 Primo libro di madrigali a cinque voci (Zoilo) 107 Priuli, Pietro 82 Prose tiberine (Piccioli) 63 pseudo-monody 19 Puliaschi, Giovanni Domenico 102 purgatione (purification) 70 Quagliati, Paolo 73–74 Questa Roma (Fiorino) 28 Quinto libro di madrigali a sei voci (Marenzio) 62 Quinto libro di madrigali a sei voci (Marenzio) 57 Rainaldi, Carlo 116–118, 130 Rampollini, Matteo 44 Rasi, Francesco 60, 80 Ricci, Angelo 60 Rime (Giordano) 112 Rinuccini, Ottavio 74–75, 139 Risposta di Roma a Plutarco (Tasso) 64

Index  155 Rossetti, Stefano: active in Florentine musical scene 44; Hor che di tanti 45; Il Lamento di Olimpia 45; Musica Nova del Rossetto, a cinque voci 45; Piangete occhi miei 45 Rossi, Luigi: letters of Paolo Giordano II to 115, 126–127; letter to Paolo Giordano II from 114; Orfeo 114, 116; relationship with Paolo Giordano II 114–116 Rovetta, Giovanni 108–109 Roy, Bartolomeo 48 sacred music 16, 21 Salvetti, Andrea 102 Sannazzaro, Jacopo 15 Savelli, Costanza 125–126 Savelli, Hipolita 108 Scheggia, Livia 75 Sesto libro di madrigali a sei voci (Monte) 57 Severi, Francesco 102 Sforza di Caravaggio, Faustina 20 Sforza di Caravaggio, Francesco I 20 Sforza di Santa Fiora, Guido Ascanio 13, 17, 19, 42 Sforza, Francesca 13 Signor fin dove il mar (Petratti) 104–106 sonnets 15, 40 Sorgi superbo Tebro (Barrè) 18 Sorgi superbo Tebro (Bellano) 17–18 Spiran l’aure feconde (Monte) 57 SS. Apostoli 13, 15 stile concitato 109 stile melodrammatico 73–74 Strozzi, Giovanni Battista 58, 64, 69–70, 72, 74, 76–79, 139

Strozzi, Piero 58, 89 Susena, Francesco 47 Tasso, Torquato: Delle più fresche rose 64–68; Il rogo amoroso 64; letters to Virginio Orsini 79–80; madrigals 107; poems dedicated to Virginio Orsini and Flavia Peretti 64; Risposta di Roma a Plutarco 64 Tastavin, Geronimo 49, 50 Tempio armonico della Beatissima Vergine (three-voice laude collection) 30 Trattatello Aristotelico dell’armonia (Aristotle) 70 Treaty of Cave 11 Vacca, Michelangelo 113 Varchi, Benedetto 47–48 Velo, Velleio 60, 64, 77, 78 Venturi, Pompilio: Ahime quest’occhi 28; Felice alta Colonna 28; Il secondo libro delle villanelle a tre voci 28 villanella alla napoletana 23–30 villanellas 19, 25–28, 30, 47–49 Vinci, Pietro 20–23, 34 Virgili, Honofrio 16 Viva la casa Colonna (Vinci) 20 Volpi, Giovanni Battista 116 “Vorria crudel tornare” (Bottegari) 27 “Vorria crudel tornare” (dell’Arpa) 25, 26 Wert, Giaches de 24 Zoilo, Cesare 73, 101, 104, 105–108, 119, 121–125 Zoppino, Cesare 30