Italian Dynasties

The great families and institutions of Renaissance Italy lavished their patronage on the cream of musical talent from all over Europe. Dukes of Ferrara and Mantua were significant patrons for Flemish musicians like de Wert and Josquin des Prez; the Vatican employed great singers like Josquin as well as Italians Allegri and Aneiro; and Spanish composers such as Victoria were drawn to Rome as the centre of the burgeoning Counter-Reformation. Home-grown talent also flourished in these cities, with Palestrina and Monteverdi becoming synonymous with music from their beloved Rome and Venice respectively. This concert takes a grand tour of these great 16th-century Italian centres of patronage: from Florence to Rome via courts in Ferrara, Manua and Venice.