Madonna Mia!
Rome, 17th century. A city of splendour, devotion, and restless creativity. Enter Christina of Sweden: a queen without a kingdom, who trades her throne for a new realm—the arts. Her salons become a meeting place for poets, painters, and musicians; her influence shapes an entire generation.
Practical information
- Komponisten
- Melani · Stradella · Scarlatti · Carissimi · Pasquini
- Besetzung
- SSATB and continuo (organ)
- Dauer
- Around 60 min; can be adjusted.
- Stimmung
- A=440 Hz, quarter-comma meantone
- Anforderungen
- Organ required. Continuo can be extended (e.g. with harpsichord)
- Bühnenaufbau
- 5 singers plus continuo. Standard concert setup.
Programme
Melani — Quae est ista
- SSATB bc
- Concerti Spirituali, op. 3 (1682).
Quae est ista
Wer ist sie,
novi luminis aurora consurgens,
diese Morgenröte neuen Lichts, die aufsteigt,
quae progreditur aeternis
die voranschreitet, von ewigen
irradiata fulgoribus,
Glanzstrahlen erleuchtet,
quae tanta laetitia,
von solcher Freude,
qui tantus nitor,
von solchem Glanz,
quae nam ista est?
wer ist sie denn?
Coeli de super rorate
Ihr Himmel, träufelt Tau von oben,
prata floribus ridete
ihr Wiesen, lacht in Blumen,
novae lucis et beatae gaudete,
freut euch des neuen, seligen Lichts,
novi luminis gaudete.
freut euch des neuen Glanzes.
Haec est Maria
Dies ist Maria,
quae pulchra, quae pia
schön und fromm,
diffundit in ortu
die bei ihrem Aufgang
coelestes nitores,
himmlischen Glanz verbreitet,
date rosas, date flores,
bringt Rosen, bringt Blumen,
tantae Virgini favete.
huldigt dieser erhabenen Jungfrau.
Coeli de super rorate
Ihr Himmel, träufelt Tau von oben,
prata floribus ridete.
ihr Wiesen, lacht in Blumen.
Quae nox dispergitur
Die Nacht weicht,
oritur, quae dies.
der Tag bricht an.
Augustis facibus
Mit erhabenen Fackeln,
telluris incole
ihr Bewohner der Erde,
aeterno lumini,
preist das ewige Licht,
coelorum ordines,
ihr Chöre der Himmel,
plaudite
jauchzt!
exultat in cantu
Er jauchze im Gesang,
cui grata lux est
wem das Licht lieb ist,
et fremat in planctu
und er wehklage,
cui pulchra nox est.
wem die schöne Nacht lieb war.
Iam dulcis in via,
Schon süß auf ihrem Weg,
formosa et decora,
schön und anmutig,
exultat aurora,
jubelt die Morgenröte,
incedit Maria.
schreitet Maria einher.
Translation: Tempera Mente
Stradella — Ave regina coelorum
- SA bc
- Alessandro Stradella, Composizioni Sacre da Chiesa (Modena, Biblioteca Estense Universitaria, Mus. F. 1140), cc. 41–48.
- Scarlatti — Toccata fuga in sol maggiore
- Org solo
Melani — Salve regina
- SSATB bc
- A. Melani (attrib., after 1667), Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome, RISM I-Rism 94/19.
Carissimi — O dulcissimum Mariae nomen
- TB bc
- A. Poggioli, Delectus sacrarum cantionum 2–5vv (1652).
O dulcissimum Mariae nomen,
O süßester Name Mariens,
nomen vere sanctissimum,
Name, wahrhaft heiligster,
O nomen gratiae,
O Name der Gnade,
semper cogitandum;
stets zu bedenken;
O solatium animarum,
O Trost der Seelen,
nomen venerandum;
Name, der zu verehren ist;
O nomen caelicum,
O himmlischer Name,
et vere angelicum,
und wahrhaft engelgleich,
resonent ergo in ore omnium.
er erklinge im Munde aller.
O Maria, mater pia,
O Maria, gütige Mutter,
nos defende in hac via;
verteidige uns auf diesem Weg;
nos tuere, nos guberna,
beschütze uns, leite uns,
duc nos tecum ad superna
führe uns mit dir zu den Höhen droben.
Translation: Tempera Mente
Melani — Alma redemptoris
- SSATB bc
- Münster, Diözesanbibliothek, Santini-Sammlung, Sant. Hs. 2658(11) (after 1667).
Carissimi — Salve amor noster
- SA bc
- Scelta de’ motetti da cantarsi […] Parte Prima (1665).
Salve amor noster,
Sei gegrüßt, unsere Liebe,
Salve nostra spes et vita,
sei gegrüßt, unsere Hoffnung und unser Leben,
Salve, o Maria.
sei gegrüßt, o Maria.
Vulnerasti me sagitta amoris tui,
Du hast mich verwundet mit dem Pfeil deiner Liebe,
inflammasti me incendio charitatis tuae
du hast mich entflammt mit dem Feuer deiner Liebe,
amor meus, ardor meus,
meine Liebe, meine Glut,
o Maria.
o Maria.
Ecce cor meum in desiderio,
Siehe, mein Herz ist voll Sehnsucht,
in desiderio decoris tui,
in Sehnsucht nach deiner Schönheit,
o pulcherima mulierum
o schönste der Frauen,
solum ardet, solum languet.
es brennt nur, es schmachtet nur.
Fulcite me floribus,
Stärkt mich mit Blumen,
stipate me malis
umgebt mich mit Äpfeln,
quia cor meum, amore Virginis,
denn mein Herz, aus Liebe zur Jungfrau,
totum ardet, solum languet
brennt ganz, schmachtet nur,
quam pulchri sunt gressus tui
wie schön sind deine Schritte,
quam in calceamentis filia principis.
wie die einer Fürstentochter in ihren Schuhen.
Trahe nos post te,
Zieh uns dir nach,
curremus in odorem unguentorum tuorum
wir eilen dem Duft deiner Salben nach,
quam decora es, Regina caeli
wie schön bist du, Königin des Himmels,
in vestito deaurato,
in golddurchwirktem Gewand,
circumdata varietate.
umgeben von buntem Schmuck.
Voca nos, suscipe nos
Ruf uns, nimm uns auf,
et serviemus tibi Regina coeli
und wir werden dir dienen, Königin des Himmels
et mundi Domina
und Herrin der Welt,
Virgo potens, Virgo dulcis,
mächtige Jungfrau, sanfte Jungfrau,
o Maria.
o Maria.
Te circumdent flores rosarum
Es mögen dich Rosenblüten umgeben,
te coronet serta stellarum
es mögen dich Sternenkränze krönen,
Virgo pulchra terrae,
schöne Jungfrau der Erde,
Virgo fulgens caeli lux
strahlende Jungfrau, Licht des Himmels,
florete flores Virginis
blüht, ihr Blumen der Jungfrau,
fulgete serta siderum
leuchtet, ihr Sternenkränze,
Virgo noster odor est
Jungfrau, du bist unser Wohlgeruch,
Virgo nostrum iubar es
Jungfrau, du bist unser Glanz,
agite, dulcite, dicite laudes.
auf denn, in Süße, verkündet Lobpreis.
Laudes dicamus Virgini
Lasst uns der Jungfrau Lobpreis singen,
dicamus illi canticum
lasst uns ihr ein Lied singen,
que noster amor est
denn sie ist unsere Liebe
et consolatio nostra
und unser Trost
et delectatio nostra,
und unsere Freude,
spes nostra,
unsere Hoffnung,
amor noster.
unsere Liebe.
Translation: Tempera Mente
Pasquini — Variazioni dedicate a Monsignor Kaunitz
- Org solo
- Wien, Minoritenkonvent (?), Ms. Wien XIV 743.
Scarlatti — Magnificat
- SSATB bc
- Münster, Diözesanbibliothek, Santini-Sammlung, Sant. Hs. 3874 (“Magnificat a cinque…”).
Programme notes
Madonna mia
Rome, 17th century: city of popes, palaces, and processions. Among its baroque facades and secret gardens, a queen without a kingdom arrives in 1665: Christina of Sweden. She leaves behind her homeland’s crown and throne to found a new realm, here in the heart of the Catholic world: the kingdom of the arts. After her abdication and conversion to Catholicism, she becomes one of the most influential patrons in the city. Her Palazzo Ruspoli turns into a meeting place for poets, painters, and musicians – a laboratory where an entire era takes shape.
Rome in the 17th century is also the city of Marian devotion. Even today more than eighty churches in the city are dedicated to the Virgin. In baroque Rome, Mary is not only a religious symbol but also a projection of comfort, hope, and protection. Antiphons such as Salve Regina, Ave Regina caelorum, and Alma Redemptoris Mater form the musical heartbeat of this devotion.
In this way, Mary and Christina of Sweden stand side by side in a mysterious parallel: one as queen of heaven, the other as a queen without a crown who finds her spiritual home in Rome. Both are figures of inspiration, both shaping the artistic landscape in which the music in this programme was born.
Giacomo Carissimi (1605–1674), a close artistic reference point for Christina, worked at the Collegio Germanico in Rome. This Jesuit seminary enjoyed an outstanding musical reputation, which Carissimi enhanced still further after his appointment. Composers such as Charpentier and Christoph Bernhard travelled to Rome to study with him. His works bridge the seconda pratica and the emerging forms of the cantata with its arias and recitatives. In pieces such as O dulcissimum Mariae nomen or Salve amor noster, he transforms words into music with daring harmonic turns, paving the way for the High Baroque.
Slightly younger but within the same tradition, Alessandro Melani (1639–1703) is already firmly rooted in the High Baroque. His music is marked by clear text declamation and melodic inventiveness, as heard in his motet Quae est ista. Melani served as chapel master at Rome’s great basilica of S. Maria Maggiore. Alongside sacred works he also composed operas performed in Christina’s presence. Though fewer of his works are known today, in his lifetime Melani was a prolific and highly esteemed composer with strong ties to Europe’s princely courts.
As patron, Christina also supported Alessandro Stradella (1643–1682) generously, even providing the plot for a serenata that he set to music. His turbulent life, filled with intrigues, affairs, and flight, later inspired at least four operas. This passion and restlessness resonate in his compositions. His Ave Regina caelorum unfolds like a small sacred drama: full of contrasts, tension, and expressive turns. Stradella shows how Marian music could be imbued with theatrical intensity without losing its spiritual depth.
Bernardo Pasquini (1637–1710) was celebrated as one of the most brilliant musicians of his age – renowned as harpsichordist, organist, and composer. His variations dedicated to the diplomat Kaunitz are refined and witty musical games of themes and figures. But his œuvre also includes operas and sacred vocal music that won him great recognition in 1670s and ’80s Rome. He was admitted to the Accademia dell’Arcadia, a society of poets and thinkers devoted to the fine arts – founded, unsurprisingly, by Christina of Sweden. Like Melani, and later Scarlatti, Pasquini also served as organist at S. Maria Maggiore.
Finally, Alessandro Scarlatti (1660–1725), a generation younger, also became associated with S. Maria Maggiore some years after Melani and Pasquini. Supported by Christina, he laid the foundations for the Neapolitan school and thus for the Late Baroque. His Magnificat reveals even in sacred music the signs of new beginnings: contrapuntal rigor paired with the expressive force of baroque opera. The text itself, a cornerstone of Marian devotion, speaks passionately of Mary’s faith in God – a revolutionary hymn of upheaval and hope.