City in Italy. Although of modest size and until the 17th century lacking a local court to patronize music, Modena has long maintained a lively musical tradition supported by the cathedral and the city government.
The earliest musical sources, dating from the 9th century (I-MOd Cod.O.I.4) and preserved in the cathedral, are linked to the cult of St Geminian; they contain a nightwatchman's song (in diastematic notation), O tu qui servas armis, celebrating the unsuccessful siege of the city by foreign invaders. After the translation in 1106 of the body of St Geminian, Modena's patron saint, the musical life of the city centred mainly on the Romanesque cathedral (1099). Two 14th-century plainchant sequences written in honour of the saint survive (I-MOd Cod.O.I.16, Glorietur letabunda and Haec sunt sacra festa). Only from 1453, however, do the Atti della fabbrica di S Geminiano record the musicians attached to the cathedral's cappella musicale. In that year Alessandro de Galvan was appointed first organist, a post he held for 20 years; in 1463 Zohane de Marchatelo completed the construction of a new organ, installed next to the old one built by Giacomo Guidini da Regio in 1438. The costs of running the chapel are documented from 1472 in the Atti della fabbrica di S Geminiano. About 1530 Cardinal Morone, one of the main ‘reformers’ of sacred music at the Council of Trent and then Bishop of Modena, made the first attempt to reform polyphony there; he aimed to make the text better understood and focus the attention of the congregation on the liturgy rather than the music. During the first four decades of the 16th century the cathedral's polyphonic repertory (I-MOd Cod.I–XIII) reflected the styles of internationally renowned composers, and Modena maintained strong ties with Rome and Ferrara (Modena became part of the Este domain in 1336 and became a duchy in 1543 under Duke Borso d'Este). During these decades about ten professional singers and instrumentalists were active in the cathedral in addition to the organist. However, the focus of the city's musical affairs moved from the cathedral to the local court after Duke Cesare d'Este moved the family seat from Ferrara to Modena in 1598.
Maestri di cappella at the cathedral included Giacomo Fogliano (1479–97, 1504–48), Vecchi (1584–6, 1593–1604), Capilupi (1604–14), Stefanini (1615–26), Bravusi (1626–30), Uccellini (1647–65), Agatea (1665–73), G.M. Bononcini (1673–8), Giuseppe Colombi (1678–94), Pacchioni (1694–1738) and Catelani (1848–66); renowned organists were Fogliano (1479–97, 1504–48), Lodovico Casali (1638) and Cornetti (1639–43, 1646–8).
In the early 17th century the status of Modena's musical activities was raised through the patronage of the Este family (see fig.1). The reputation of the musical establishment of the Este court was sufficient to attract significant composers and artists both from nearby areas and from other parts of Italy. The virtuoso cornettist Nicolò Rubini and the harpsichordist Michelangelo Rossi held court positions in 1610 and 1614 respectively. Sigismondo d'India was there in 1623–4 and again in 1626, and composed his eighth book of madrigals for the Este court, ‘a gathering … of the best singers to be heard in Europe’ (preface, Ottavo libro di madrigali, Rome, 1624). Throughout the 17th century Modena vied with other centres to attract the most celebrated singers.
The court helped to establish a local tradition of string playing and composition which antedated comparable developments in nearby Bologna. Although it is not possible to determine the size of the court orchestra in the second half of the 17th century (it varied with the importance of the functions, as is suggested by the many ad lib parts in works written for the court), its high level of performance attracted significant artists, particularly from Bologna. This vitality was stimulated by the violinist Marco Uccellini during his stay in Modena (1641–65); his novel treatment of violin playing (with scordatura, double stopping and highly embellished passages) and use of instrumental puzzle canons remained characteristic features of the Modenese school, later continued by Giuseppe Colombi, G.M. Bononcini, G.B. Vitali, Domenico Gabrielli and T.A. Vitali. The marriage in 1665 of Alfonso IV d'Este to Laura Martinozzi, niece of Mazarin, opened the Modenese court to French influences, demonstrated not only in the works labelled ‘in the French style’, but also in the fusion of Italian and French elements in dance forms and in the sonata da camera.
During the two decades of Francesco II d'Este's reign (1674–94) music at the court reached its most splendid phase. The young duke stimulated many musical performances, mostly of oratorios and sacred and instrumental music; from 1680 to 1691 about 100 oratorios, many of them dedicated to Francesco II, were performed at Modena. He also made efforts to establish a good library and university there, and played a part in the founding (c1683) of the Accademia de' Dissonanti, which held most of its meetings at the court and whose repertory emulated the experiments in novel concerto grosso instrumentation influenced by contemporary Roman practice. The academy became federated with Messina's Accademia Peloritana in 1728, and was renamed Ducale Accademia dei Dissonanti in 1752 and Regia Accademia di Scienze, Lettere ed Arti di Modena in 1817; it is still active, maintaining a sizable library.
Under Francesco II the court cappella musicale was led by two maestri (Benedetto Ferrari and Giuseppe Paini), two sottomaestri (Colombi and G.B. Vitali) and one capo degl'istromentisti (G.M. Bononcini), thus providing an exceptional environment for the cultivation of the current instrumental forms. The increasing demand for music during this period also stimulated the activity of many printers, the most representative being those of the Cassiani family, the Soliani family, Cristoforo Canobi, Gasparo Ferri and Antonio Vitaliano.
Among the directors of the cappella musicale (a complete list can be found in I-MOe Misc.It.L.9.27, f.405–8) were Cornetti (1633–5, 1643–8), Ferrari (1653–62, 1674–81), Colombi (sottomaestro, 1674–92), G.B. Vitali (sottomaestro, 1674–92), Antonio Gianettini (1686–1721), Pacchioni (sottomaestro, 1699–1720, and maestro, 1722–38) and A.M. Bononcini (1721–6).
Francesco II was succeeded by his uncle Rinaldo d'Este in 1694, and musical life at Modena entered a period of decline, particularly with regard to instrumental music, although operatic performances increased. During the French occupation of Modena (1702–7) all musical activities at court were suspended while the duke lived at Bologna. On his return the cappella musicale was reduced in size and by 1713 it included only four instrumentalists, seven singers and two maestri; a further reduction to a total of nine members was made in 1734.
In 1771 the Accademia Filarmonica Modenese was founded, and by 1777 supported a chorus and orchestra. In 1780 it was renamed the Accademia Ducale dei Filarmonici and from 1817 it was known as the Società Filarmonica Modenese. It was dissolved in 1845.
The Società Artistico-Filarmonica was instituted in 1881 with the aim of promoting all artistic activities, including public and private concerts, particularly during Holy Week. A choral society, the Corale Rossini, was founded in 1887 and remained active until 1937. A music school supported by city funds was instituted in 1864; it was renamed the Scuola Comunale di Musica Orazio Vecchi in 1914, and in 1950 came under state control.
The earliest theatre in Modena, the Sala or Teatro della Spelta, was in the Palazzo Comunale, and dramatic and musical performances were held there from 1539. Vecchi's madrigal comedy L'Amfiparnaso was given there in 1594, but no reports of subsequent musical performances remain from before 1654, when Duke Francesco I d'Este rebuilt the old hall into a large theatre with graded seating, columns and galleries (cap. 3000). It was named the Teatro Ducale di Piazza and inaugurated in 1656. The first operas staged there were Rima's Sancio (1656) and Ferrari's L'Erosilda (1658). After 1710 the theatre mounted comedies, served as a site for ‘azioni accademiche’ and eventually became a warehouse; it was demolished in 1769.
A smaller theatre, the Teatro di Corte (also known as the Teatro Ducale), was built in 1669 and inaugurated in 1686 with L'Eritrea, overo Gl'inganni della maschera (composer unknown) and was used irregularly, mostly for courtly events. Renovated and enlarged in 1749 and 1768, it was renamed Teatro Nazionale in 1800, Teatro Regio in 1804 and again Teatro Ducale in 1815. It was closed in 1848 and demolished in 1862; a new theatre, the Teatro Aliprandi, was built on the site and used mostly for performances of comedies and musical comedies until it burnt down in 1881.
The Teatro Valentini, which staged comedies from 1643, likewise burnt down, in 1681. It was reconstructed and renamed the Teatro Fontanelli (after its new owner) in 1683. During its short autumn season a few operatic performances were given there such as Carlo Pallavicino's Vespasiano in 1685. It was renamed Teatro Rangoni in 1705, Teatro di Via Emilia in 1807, Teatro Comunale in 1816 and Teatro Vecchio in 1841. The city administration built a larger theatre, the Teatro Comunale Nuovo, which was inaugurated in 1841 with Alessandro Gandini's Adelaide di Borgogna al castello di Canossa.
A small but elegant and comfortable theatre used at Modena during the 18th century was the Teatro Molza, built next to the Teatro della Spelta in the ducal palace and inaugurated in 1713 with F. Gasparini's La fede tradita e vendicata; it was used between 1720 and 1735, when the Rangoni, which was at the disposal of the court from 1724 to 1730, was not staging opera. The Teatro Storchi, which opened in 1889, was the most important opera house in the period 1916–21. After World War II operatic standards rose considerably in Modena, partly owing to the presence of such singers as Freni and Pavarotti, both natives of the city. Since the late 1950s the Teatro Comunale has imported foreign productions and exchanged productions with other theatres within the region.
The court's music library formed the bulk of the musical collection of the Biblioteca Estense (I-MOe), which also contains the music libraries of Maximilian, youngest son of Maria Theresa and Maximilian Franz, Elector of Cologne. The collection of the Modenese musicologist L.F. Valdrighi is in the Modena Museum.
DEUMM (M. di Pasquale)
ES (A. Torelli, B. Brunelli and A.M. Bonisconti)
A. Catelani: ‘L'archivio di musica della cattedrale di Modena’, GMM, xix (1861), 175–204 passim; xx/1 (1862), suppl.
A. Gandini: Cronistoria dei teatri di Modena dal 1539 al 1871 (Modena, 1873/R)
G. Ferrari Moreni and V. Tardini: Cronistoria dei teatri di Modena dal 1873 a tutto il 1881 (Modena, 1883)
V. Tardini: I teatri di Modena (Modena, 1899–1902)
G. Roncaglia: ‘Di insigni musicisti modenesi (documenti inediti)’, Atti e memorie della R. Deputazione di storia patria per le provincie modenesi, 7th ser., vi (1930), 7–18
E.J. Luin: ‘Repertorio dei libri musicali di S.A.S. Francesco II d'Este nell'Archivio di Stato di Modena’, La bibliofilia, xxxviii (1936), 418–45
E. Pancaldi and G. Roncaglia: ‘Maestri di cappella del Duomo di Modena’, Deputazione di storia patria per l'Emilia e la Romagna, new ser., iii/1 (1939), 26–40; iv/1 (1940), 15–25; 8th ser., iv (1952), 149–61; vi (1954), 67–101
E. Pancaldi and G. Roncaglia: ‘La cappella musicale del Duomo di Modena’, Deputazione di storia patria per l'Emilia e la Romagna, new ser., ii (1943), 179–98; 8th ser., i (1948), 90–157
G. Vecchi: ‘Il “Canto delle scolte modenesi”: la notazione musicale’, Cultura neolatina, x (1950), 49–62
E. Schenk: ‘Osservazioni sulla scuola istrumentale modenese nel Seicento’, Atti e memorie dell'Accademia di scienze, lettere ed arti di Modena, 5th ser., x (1952), 1–30
A. Torelli: Notizie storiche, documenti, cronache sul Liceo musicale ‘Orazio Vecchi’ nel 90° della istituzione (1864–1954) (Modena, 1954)
G. Roncaglia: ‘Maestri di cappella del Duomo di Modena’, Atti e memorie della Deputazione di storia patria per le provincie modenesi, 8th ser., vii (1955), 112–55
G. Roncaglia: ‘La scuola musicale modenese’, Musicisti della scuola emiliana, Chigiana, xiii (1956), 69–82
G. Roncaglia: La cappella musicale del duomo di Modena: catalogo delle musiche dell'archivio (Florence, 1957)
G. Roncaglia: ‘Gli Ambreville, musicisti modenesi (con documenti inediti)’, Atti e memorie della Deputazione di storia patria per le antiche provincie modenesi, 8th ser., xi (1959), 126–37
D.H. Crawford: Vespers Polyphony at Modena's Cathedral in the First Half of the Sixteenth Century (diss., U. of Illinois, 1967)
O. Jander: ‘The Cantata in Accademia: Music for the Accademia de' Dissonanti and their Duke, Francesco II d'Este’, RMI, x (1975), 519–44
L. Bianconi: ‘Provincia di Modena’, Orchestre in Emilia-Romagna nell'Ottocento e Novecento, ed. M. Conati and M. Pavarini (Parma, 1982), 227–96
G.M. Braglia: ‘Contributi per una storia dell'effimero nel ducato modenese tra Sei e Settecento: Tommaso Bezzi’, Aspetti e problemi del Settecento modenese (Modena, 1982), 131–68
M. Calore: Spettacoli a Modena tra Cinquecento e Seicento: dalla città alla capitale (Modena, 1983)
A. Chiarelli: Collezionismo musicale nel tardo Seicento: le raccolte manoscritte di arie da opere italiane nella Biblioteca Estense di Modena (diss., U. of Bologna, 1985–6)
G. Gherpelli: L'opera nei teatri di Modena (Modena, 1988)
C. Giovannini: Antichi organi italiani: la provincia di Modena (Modena, 1991)
V. Crowther: The Oratorio in Modena (Oxford, 1992)
G. Gherpelli: Un teatro, una storia: centocinquanta anni di spettacoli al Teatro Comunale di Modena, 1841–1991 (Modena, 1992)
ELVIDIO SURIAN/ALESSANDRA CHIARELLI