240:– all copies had been lost. However, a copy of the mass was made in the early 17th century in France, presumably from the copy Striggio left in Paris for Charles IX. Because of several corruptions and copyist errors both on the manuscript and in the card catalogue, when the enormous document, which had been transferred to
298:
were probably not meant to be significantly spatially separated. Although
Striggio left no performance directions, the most likely arrangement was for the singers to be positioned in a large semicircle, with the instrumentalists in its center, in view of the singers. The exact instruments used, and
375:
The closing "Agnus Dei", with 60 voices in five groups of 12, has more independent parts than any other polyphonic composition of the
Renaissance. It begins with all sixty voices entering, one after another, in imitation; once they have all entered, they all sing until the end of the piece, forming
115:
In the realm of sacred music, the desire of the Medici for opulence was no less. Instead of decorating plays with madrigals interspersed between the acts, however, the Medici's court composer – who was
Striggio by the 1560s – chose to create works for larger groups of voices than had been attempted
371:
Textural contrasts abound. The "Credo", typically the longest section of any mass setting, uses 40 voices in many places, but intersperses many passages for smaller units. Sections of the mass which normally have a fuller, more exuberant musical setting, such as the "Et
Resurrexit" (and He rose
363:
Striggio saves the full complement of 40 and 60 voices for climactic sections. The opening "Kyrie
Eleison" begins with only one choir of eight voices; the "Christe Eleison" uses two choirs, totalling 16 voices; and the return of the "Kyrie" brings in yet another choir, totalling 24. The full 40
99:
to Cosimo I de' Medici, were particularly noted for their love of music. Keenly aware that their status depended on not only employing the most talented artists and musicians, but having them create spectacular works and having them disseminated, they encouraged composers to write music which
318:, i.e. one based on a pre-existing polyphonic work, in this case named "Ecco sì beato giorno". However, no song of this name has yet been found: it may be a lost work of Striggio himself, or may even be a reference to his similarly titled 40-voice motet
303:, a part which doubles the composite bass line of the entire composition. Presumably Striggio used this as a compositional tool, to keep track of the harmonies as he wrote forty to sixty voice parts above it; it also foreshadowed the development of the
274:. It is not stated there whether Visse identified the piece as being by Striggio, or whether he performed it, at that time. In 2011 what was claimed as the "World premiere recording" of the Mass had been issued by Decca; it is performed by
155:
When
Striggio completed the enormous mass setting, he carried it with him during a diplomatic trip across Europe to strengthen the dynastic relation brought on by the recent marriage of Francesco de' Medici to Johanna of Austria, who was a
270:, with His Majestys Sagbutts & Cornetts, conducted by Moroney. However, the website of the Spanish record company Glossa states that their recording of the work uses an edition made in 1978 by French counter-tenor
164:, the Holy Roman Emperor. It was necessary to give them something splendid, and this was likely a performance of the colossal 40 and 60 voice mass, along with a copy for their archives. Leaving
254:, the mass was attributed to an "Alessandro Strusco" and the "40 voices" had been amended to "4 voices" (presumably the copyist thought the "40" was in error, and removed the extra zero).
372:
again) have all 40 voices, while those which more sedate or sorrowful, for example the "Crucifixus", have the smallest groupings (in this case, only eight voices of one choir sing).
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After
Striggio's exhausting 1567 European tour with his work, it disappeared for more than four centuries. While he left copies of it at several locations he visited – the court of
258:
claims that it was only in July 2005 that he recovered and identified the work. What was subsequently publicised as its first performance in modern times was on 17 July 2007 at a
77:
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is the same as that which begins this closing Agnus Dei in the
Striggio mass, which has been seen as evidence that it was indeed this piece which Tallis heard in London in 1567.
683:
Catherine
Deutsch, "Lost in transcription: the ‘basse continuée’ of Striggio's Mass in 40 and 60 Parts as evidence for continuo practice in early 17th-century France",
322:. The repetition of musical phrases at certain key points in the Mass suggests use of the parody technique, but it has also been suggested that parts of the mass are
112:
designed to be performed between the acts of plays, sung by actors in costume and accompanied by instruments. This musical form was one of the predecessors of opera.
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their number, is not known, but probably varied from performance to performance. An unusual feature of the mass is the existence of two partbooks for a
122:
392:, in which another Striggio piece for 40 voices was heard. After Munich, the piece was performed in Paris, at the house of Luigi Ludovico Gonzaga,
148:. Both Rossetto and Malvezzi were associated with the Medici court. Preceding these works was a 40-voice motet produced in Munich in 1564 by
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406:. In this motet, the singers were probably arranged in a full circle around the listeners. The imitation pattern that begins
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with the specific purpose of meeting "the virtuosos in the profession of music that were there" (as he wrote in a letter to
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before, and to accompany these already massive vocal forces with instruments. His first attempt was apparently the
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697:
294:, in which performance groupings were positioned in lofts across from each other in a large space, the choirs in
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being for five separate choirs of 12 voices each; all of the voice parts are fully independent. With its huge
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524:
126:, a piece which has long been known. Some other gigantic polychoral works from the same time include
233:
197:
80:
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A commercial recording featuring voices and period instruments was released by the
British ensemble
250:
245:
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680:, 18 June 2007 (available for free download as an audio or video file, though not as a text file)
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136:, for 40 voices, which may have been a response to hearing either the motet or the Mass in 1567;
104:, who was the principal composer for the first part of Cosimo's reign, wrote series of elaborate
96:
83:, Striggio's correspondent regarding his Mass setting during his diplomatic journey. Portrait by
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673:
502:
338:
42:
400:. Only Tallis, however, seems to have been inspired to match or out-do it, with his 40-voice
644:
Iain Fenlon, "Alessandro Striggio", Grove Music Online, ed. L. Macy (Accessed 12 May 2007),
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237:
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was long known for its patronage of the arts, including music, and the Medici rulers, from
27:
8:
728:, 18 June 2007 (available for download as an audio or video file, as well as a text file)
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38:
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exceeded that of their contemporaries in size and scope. During the 1530s and 1540s,
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Like most settings of the Ordinary of the Mass, the work is in five major divisions:
263:
149:
34:
708:, October 28, 2007 (begins at 28:40 following performance and discussion of Tallis'
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David Nutter, "Intermedio", Grove Music Online, ed. L. Macy (Accessed 12 May 2007),
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Most of the mass is for five separate choirs of 8 voices each, with the closing
396:, and then it was performed in England, where it was heard by English composer
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The enormous work impressed many of its listeners, beginning in Munich, where
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160:. His trip consisted of a series of visits to new Medici in-laws, including
144:; and Cristofano Malvezzi's 30-voice intermedio for another Medici marriage,
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forces, climaxing on sixty fully independent parts, it is the largest known
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was in attendance; the event was similar to one a year later, described by
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23:
734:, historical notes and further information about the I Fagiolini recording
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419:
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Davitt Moroney, "Alessandro Striggio's Mass in Forty and Sixty Parts".
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61:
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voices sing together for the first time in the "Gloria", at the words
120:, and some time later he followed this with a 40-voice motet setting,
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282:. A third CD recording, by Moroney himself, has not yet been issued.
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was performed in a private residence – likely the London seat of the
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41:. It probably dates from 1565–6, during the reign of his employer,
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216:– in order not to offend the authorities (since performance of the
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200:, dated 18 May 1567). While in England, he almost certainly met
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638:, Vol. 60 No. 1., pp. 1–69. Spring 2007. ISSN 0003-0139
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610:"Striggio: Mass in 40 Parts; Tallis: Spem in alium, CD review"
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45:. Lost for more than 400 years, it was miscatalogued in the
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on 'Behold such a blessed day'") is a musical setting of the
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Mass was at that time prohibited in Protestant England).
368:(we glorify Thee), presenting the work's first climax.
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in London, where it was sung by the BBC Singers and
172:, and then made the difficult winter trek over the
290:Unlike the massive polychoral compositions of the
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326:– music originally written with different words.
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636:Journal of the American Musicological Society
49:and rediscovered in 2005 by the musicologist
657:. New York, W.W. Norton & Co., 1954.
204:, and it is now considered likely that the
722:"The Pope, the Emperor and the Grand Duke"
674:"The Pope, the Emperor and the Grand Duke"
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687:Vol. 45 No. 2 (2017), p. 249–265.
244:in 1726, from the library of composer
724:, lecture by Moroney on the piece at
676:, lecture by Moroney on the piece at
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748:Compositions by Alessandro Striggio
192:. In June 1567 he made his way to
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505:. glossamusic.com. 9 November 2014
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527:. ifagiolini.com. 9 November 2014
230:Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor
68:composition from the entire era.
312:Missa sopra Ecco sì beato giorno
296:Missa sopra Ecco sì beato giorno
206:Missa sopra Ecco sì beato giorno
118:Missa sopra Ecco sì beato giorno
47:Bibliothèque nationale de France
19:Missa sopra Ecco sì beato giorno
612:. Telegraph.co.uk. 5 March 2011
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718:on the rediscovery of the mass
629:References and further reading
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130:'s famous and often-performed
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376:a climax to the entire work.
168:in December 1566, he visited
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474:Moroney, pp. 17–19, p. 30-33
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7:
133:Spem in alium nunquam habui
30:, for 40 and 60 voices, by
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768:European court festivities
655:Music in the Renaissance
503:"GlosaaMusic Newsletter"
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236:in Munich, the court of
753:Polychoral compositions
278:under the direction of
152:, which has been lost.
142:Consolamini popule meus
97:Lorenzo the Magnificent
251:Bibliothèque nationale
198:Francesco I de' Medici
88:
81:Francesco I de' Medici
669:(subscription access)
646:(subscription access)
640:(subscription access)
525:"I Fagiolini Website"
307:in the 17th century.
246:Sébastien de Brossard
79:
698:Complete performance
456:Fenlon, Grove online
447:Nutter, Grove online
238:Charles IX of France
28:Ordinary of the Mass
280:Robert Hollingworth
102:Francesco Corteccia
43:Cosimo I de' Medici
39:Alessandro Striggio
146:O fortunato giorno
140:'s 50-voice motet
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758:Renaissance music
599:Moroney, p. 28-33
572:Moroney, p. 33-34
563:Moroney, p. 33-38
554:Moroney, p. 52-53
483:Moroney, p. 55-62
386:Orlande de Lassus
320:Ecce beatam lucem
301:Bassus ad organum
264:Royal Albert Hall
224:Loss and recovery
150:Orlande de Lassus
123:Ecce beatam lucem
91:The court of the
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390:Massimo Troiano
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366:Glorificamus te
292:Venetian School
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272:Dominique Visse
268:Tallis Scholars
232:, the court of
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210:Earl of Arundel
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773:1560s works
716:Documentary
706:BBC Radio 3
420:I Fagiolini
324:contrafacta
316:parody mass
276:I Fagiolini
262:concert in
176:, visiting
108:—groups of
35:Renaissance
742:Categories
531:9 November
509:9 November
414:Recordings
353:Benedictus
234:Albrecht V
106:intermedii
72:Background
66:polyphonic
62:polychoral
32:Florentine
380:Influence
358:Agnus Dei
110:madrigals
58:Agnus Dei
37:composer
712:, etc.)
242:Louis XV
166:Florence
158:Habsburg
700:by the
616:7 March
349:Sanctus
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339:Gloria
194:London
188:, and
186:Munich
178:Vienna
170:Mantua
93:Medici
426:Notes
344:Credo
334:Kyrie
286:Music
260:Proms
190:Paris
659:ISBN
618:2011
533:2014
511:2014
310:The
182:Brno
24:Mass
16:The
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