Francesca Caccini 法兰洁丝

卡 · 卡契尼
MUS3000 Baroque Music
Week 3
Prof Tim Shephard
Florence
Palazzo Pitti, principal residence of the Grand Dukes of Tuscany
Villa del Poggio Imperiale, main residence of Archduchess Maria Magdalena
Via Valfonda in Florence, where Francesca lived with her first husband.
Florence and the Medici
佛罗伦萨和美第奇家族
Florence had been a republic until
1530
The Medici had been bankers and
wool merchants
They’d effectively controlled Florence
since the 1430s
Tuscan economy booming 15th/16th c;
declining 17th c

Pontormo, Alessandro de’ Medici, 1534-5.

Philadelphia Museum of Art.
During the 17 century, both the
th

Florentine court and the Medici family

were dominated by four very powerful
women…
Grand Duchess Christina of Lorraine
(1565-1637)
Granddaughter of Catherine de’ Medici
Married Ferdinando I de’ Medici, Grand
Duke of Tuscany, 1589
Main power at court when son Cosimo
II succeeded aged 19 in 1609
When grandson Ferdinando II
succeeded in 1621 aged 10, served as
co-regent with…

French school, Christine of

Lorranie, 1588. Uffizi.
Archduchess Maria Maddalena of Austria
(1589-1631)
Daughter of the Archduke of Austria; a
Habsburg
Married Cosimo II de’ Medici, Grand
Prince of Tuscany, 1608
On succession of son Ferdinando II in
1621, aged 10, served as co-regent
until 1628.

Frans Pourbus the Younger, Maria Maddalena of Austria,

c.1603-4. KHM Vienna.
Marie de’ Medici, Queen of France
(1575-1642)
Daughter of Francesco I de’ Medici,
Grand Duke of Tuscany
Married Henri IV, King of France, 1600
Earliest surviving opera, L’Euridice, by
Peri and Caccini, for her wedding
On succession of son Louis XIII in
1610, aged 8, acted as regent until
1617

Frans Pourbus the Younger,

Marie de’ Medici, 1609-10.
Louvre.
Grand Duchess Vittoria della Rovere
(1622-94)
Heir to the Duchies of Urbino, Rovere
and Montefeltro
Married Ferdinando II de’ Medici, Grand
Duke of Tuscany, 1633
Main power at court following
succession of her son Cosimo III in 1670

Workshop of Justus Sustermans, Vittoria della

Rovere, c.1640. Chambery.
 Francesca Caccini (1587-c.1645)
Son of Giulio Caccini, top singer, composer, teacher and
member of Medici famiglia
Probably performed first at Marie de’ Medici’s wedding
Job offer from Marie 1604-5
Hired by Christine 1607; married another court musician
Primo libro 1618 under patronage of Cardinal Carlo de’
Medici
Commissioned in 1625 by Maria Maddalena to write first
‘opera’ by a woman, La liberazione di Ruggiero
From 1633 working for Vittoria
La liberazione di Ruggiero dall'isola d'Alcina
(1625)
Commissioned by Florence's Regent
Archduchess, Maria Magdalena of Austria
Celebrated the recent victory over the
Turks of Prince of Poland, Wladislas
Sigismund
First performance was in Florence in the
Villa Poggia Imperiale in 1625, and
revived in Warsaw in 1628
Ludovico Ariosto's Orlando Furioso
(published 1516, final revised edition 1532)
In the days of Charlemagne (8th c), Saracens
and Christians are at war for the possession of
Europe.
The chief of the Paladins (= elite French
knights), Orlando, is lured by the beauty of
Angelica, a pagan princess. He forgets his duty
and pursues her.
More important is the love of the Saracen
Ruggiero for Bradamante, a female Christian
warrior.
La liberazione di Ruggiero - synopsis
There are two sorceresses, Alcina (who is evil), and Melissa (who is
good). Then there is the Saracen warrior Ruggiero, who is betrothed to
the Christian female knight Bradamante.
Alcina lures Ruggiero to her island and bewitches him into falling in love
with her, abandoning his duties as soldier and lover.
Melissa, disguised as Ruggiero’s old teacher, finds Ruggiero and uses
reason to unbind him from Alcina’s spells and persuade him to return
to Bradamante.
Alcina pursues Ruggiero and tries to win him back, but fails.
Melissa frees all the other men Alcina has imprisoned on her island
(she had turned them into trees).
 La liberazione di Ruggiero - structure
Sinfonia
Prologue – Neptune praises the
audience and introduces the story
Scene 1 – Melissa approaches
Alcina’s island
Scene 2 – Ruggiero in love with
Alcina; freed by Melissa
Scene 3 – Alcina tries to get him
back; Melissa frees the others
Scene 4 – Alcina leaves on a sea
monster
Ballo a cavallo (= horse-ballet)
Francesca as Monodist
Task in groups:
Around 1600 several musicians in Italy—among them
Francesca’s dad—were experimenting with new styles of
accompanied monody. Francesca built on their ideas.
Read the prefaces to Jacopo Peri’s L’Euridice and
Giulio Caccini’s Le nuove musiche, both from 1600.
What were their motivations and objectives in creating a
new song style?
Francesca as Monodist
Francesca as Monodist
Task in groups:
The Primo libro categorises its contents into several genres: sonnet,
madrigal, aria (d’ottave; Romanesca), motet, hymn, canzonetta.
What differentiates these genres? By looking through the Primo libro
and comparing examples, try to list the key features of each song type.
Here are some factors you could consider: text type and source;
strophic vs through-composed; periodic vs irregular phrasing; meter
and characteristic rhythms; melodic or harmonic patterns; length and
scoring; repetition schemes, segmentation and other structural devices;
prevailing note-lengths (i.e. fast or slow?) and ornamentation.
Wrap-Up
Ruling women maintained their own courts, including
patronage of music.
The Italian tradition of female professional singers created a
platform from which women could gain fame as composers.
(Most of the known women composers of the 17th c were
Italian.)
Solo song accompanied on a plucked-string or keyboard
instrument was the main currency of 17th c music. (We’ll
come back to this point a couple of times in future weeks.)