Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina
1525-1594

The greatest master of Roman Catholic church music, Palestrina was the name of a small town near Rome where he was born. Palestrina began his musical training when he was seven, starting out as a choirboy in the local cathedral similar to many other composers. He traveled to Rome, still a member of the choir, and continued to study music there. In 1544, Palestrina returned to his hometown, showing everything he learned, as organist and choirmaster of the cathedral. When the bishop of the cathedral became Pope Julius III, he took Palestrina with him to Rome as choirmaster of the Cappella Giulia.

Palestrina's first book of masses, printed in 1554, was dedicated to the pope, and the pope returned the favor by assigning him as a member of the Sistine Choir in the Vatican. Palestrina went on to serve as music director of several churches after he was relieved from his position in the Sistine Choir once the pope was replaced. When offered posts at several courts of music, he demanded such a high salary that he was never hired. In 1571, he returned to the Cappella Giulia, where he stayed as music director for the rest of his life.

The works of Palestrina were like those of no other. He inhabited the musical style that had started in fifteenth century Netherlands. He used that smooth, echo of voices to create his own style of characteristic styles of the church, the type of music one ruminates about when visiting the great cathedrals of Rome, or the vast hillsides of Italy. Such a smooth sound to the ears, combined with natural human voices implies an ethereal, majestic mood to Palestrina's works. The long and flowing melodies match with the ingenious harmonies, sending the listener to a deep relaxation of vast unspecified thinking.

Although all of Palestrina's compositions - ninety-three masses, almost 200 motets, and more than a hundred hymns and offertories - they were all those of the Roman Catholic church, and were all very religious. At his time, music was only known as those of religion, thus he had no need to gain fame and fortune. It was said that the fathers of the church felt that Palestrina's music was so complicated that it interfered with the sacred text. But it is that smooth, gliding complication of notes and rhythms which enable us today to enjoy his heavenly sounds.

© 1999 H.Tsai

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