''The Pilgrim Woman'' (''La pellegrina'') is a 1579 play written by Girolamo Bargagli of

Siena Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centur ...

that had been performed for the first time on 2 May 1589 in

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany Regions of Italy, region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilan ...

, after the author's death in 1586, on the occasion of the marriage of

Ferdinand I de' Medici Ferdinando I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (30 July 1549 – 3 February 1609) was Grand Duke of Tuscany from 1587 to 1609, having succeeded his older brother Francesco I. Early life Ferdinando was the fifth son (the third surviving at t ...

, Grand-Duke of Tuscany, with

Christina of Lorraine Christina of Lorraine or Christine de Lorraine (16 August 1565 – 19 December 1637) was a member of the House of Lorraine and was the Grand Duchess of Tuscany by marriage. She served as Regent of Tuscany jointly with her daughter-in-law during ...

, granddaughter of the former queen-mother of France, Catherine de' Medici. This was enhanced with six musical interludes, the , with designs by

Bernardo Buontalenti Bernardo Buontalenti (), byname of Bernardo Delle Girandole ( 1531 – June 1608), was an Italian stage designer, architect, theatrical designer, military engineer and artist and inventor of italian ice cream. Biography Buontalenti was born in ...

, known as the master of Florentine spectacle.Banham (1998, 545). Six then-famous composers from Florence contributed music, including some of the most virtuosic vocal writing of the period, early examples of

monody In music, monody refers to a solo vocal style distinguished by having a single melodic line and instrumental accompaniment. Although such music is found in various cultures throughout history, the term is specifically applied to Italian song of ...

. The opening aria, ''Dalle piu alte sfere'', is believed to be by Emilio de' Cavalieri (Palisca, Norton Anthology of Music/ Heller, Music in the Baroque, p 23), although it is sometimes attributed to Antonio Archilei, whose wife Vittoria had sung it in the role of Armonia in the 1589 production. The ''intermedi'' have been played by the

Huelgas Ensemble The Huelgas Ensemble is a Belgian early music group formed by the Flemish conductor Paul Van Nevel in 1971. The group's performance and extensive discography focuses on Renaissance polyphony. The name of the ensemble refers to a manuscript of pol ...

, in 1998; by th
Hollands Vocaal Ensemble
in 2003; by the Capriccio Stravagante Renaissance Orchestra, in 2007; and, in selections, by Consort Astræa, in 2009. A staged version was mounted in 1989 in

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

by the Ex Machina Baroque Opera Ensemble. In 2014 th
Texas Early Music Project
in Austin, gave the first U.S. performance of the 21st century.

Notes

References

* Banham, Martin, ed. 1998. ''The Cambridge Guide to Theatre.'' Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. . * D. P. Walker, D. P. 1963. ''Musique des Intermedes de "La Pellegrina"'', (CNRS, Paris), (reprinted 1986). * New Grove Dictionary entries under INTERMEDIO and INTERMEDE, (there were also intermedes at the French court).
www.operabaroque.com
(in French) * Massimo Colella, ''Rinascimento ludens: Girolamo Bargagli e i «giuochi» delle veglie senesi'', in «La parola del testo», 2023. Italian plays 1589 plays European court festivities {{16thC-play-stub