Musical Connections between Ferrara and Venice: The Sacred Music of Willaert and Rore

• In Event: Musical Style and Influence in Sixteenth-Century Polyphony

Abstract

One of the principal goals of Zarlino’s theoretical writings was to establish Venice as a preeminent musical center in the later sixteenth century. Yet Willaert and his younger contemporary Rore both spent much of the formative careers in Ferrara, and maintained those connections even after their respective appointments at the basilica of San Marco in Venice. Several important Ferrarese manuscripts contain the music of Willaert and Rore, sometimes in a retrospective collection, sometimes seemingly music composed specifically for Ferrara, while other prints of their music also carry Ferrarese dedications. The interest of Willaert and Rore in the music of Josquin, in particular in masses and motets, provides a further point of enquiry for this Ferrarese connection. A select repertory of masses and motets by Willaert and Rore built on this legacy, and thus established a musical and cultural link, not with Venice, but with the Ferrarese court.

Author

• David Kidger, Oakland University