UConn Collegium: Soul of Rome – Palestrina at 500
Born five hundred years ago this year, Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina composed music that has been studied and emulated by composers and theorists for over four hundred years due the remarkably consistent quality of its counterpoint. Yet Palestrina’s music is not rigid in its consistency and is always expressive. A persistent but unlikely story relates that a performance of his most famous work, the Missa Papae Marcelli, convinced the Council of Trent not to ban polyphony from the Catholic liturgy. Despite this legendary status, even classically trained musicians know few works by him beyond what they hear in surveys of music history. Our concert explores Palestrina’s compositional methods, reputation, and style to reveal why for many his music continues to exemplify the soul of Rome.
For more information, contact: Music Department at music@uconn.edu