- Francesco Cellavenia
Francesco Cellavenia (fl. c. 1538 – 1563) was an Italian composer of the Renaissance, active in
Casale Monferrato .Little is known about his life, and the few details once thought secure are contested. He may have been from
Cilavegna , a town nearPavia , judging by his name, and he likely spent a large portion of his career inCasale Monferrato , a town in northwesternItaly . He may have been "maestro di cappella" at the cathedral there, or perhaps held a similar post at S Maria di Piazza. [Fenlon, Grove online]The cathedral in Casale Monferrato possesses several important manuscripts which contain the surviving work by Cellavenia. One of the manuscripts, "Casale Monferrato, Duomo, Archivio Capitolare, D (F)", includes seven compositions by Cellavenia out of a total of 66 compositions, mostly
motet s (other composers with works in the collection includeJean Mouton ,Jean Richafort ,Jacquet of Mantua ,Cristóbal de Morales , and others). Another manuscript, "I-CMac (N(H)", has four motets by Cellavenia. Both were copied in the period from 1538 to 1545. [Hamm/Call, Grove online]Cellavenia's music shows a mixture of Italian elements and stylistic traits of the Franco-Flemish composers from the north. Many of his
motet s are based on pre-existing material: canti firmi are drawn from composers such asJean Richafort andAndreas da Silva , composers which are, not surprisingly, represented in the same manuscripts which contain his work – he was familiar with their music from his work at the cathedral. Others of his motets are based onGregorian chant s. [Fenlon, Grove online]His complete works, edited by David Crawford, and are in volume 80 of "
Corpus mensurabilis musicae " (1978).References
*Iain Fenlon: "Francesco Cellavenia", Grove Music Online, ed. L. Macy (Accessed June 17, 2007), [http://www.grovemusic.com (subscription access)]
*David Crawford: "Casale Monferrato", Grove Music Online, ed. L. Macy (Accessed June 17, 2007), [http://www.grovemusic.com (subscription access)]
*Charles Hamm/Jerry Call: "Sources, MS, §IX: Renaissance polyphony", Grove Music Online, ed. L. Macy (Accessed June 17, 2007), [http://www.grovemusic.com (subscription access)]
*Gustave Reese , "Music in the Renaissance". New York, W.W. Norton & Co., 1954. ISBN 0393095304Notes
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