In Questo Proposito: Formal Innovations in the Vespers by Chiara Margarita Cozzolani

Abstract

The focus of the current study is the use of form in the collection of Vespers music by Chiara Margarita Cozzolani (1602-c.1678), an Italian Benedictine nun living in Milan who spent her entire life cloistered within the walls of the Santa Radegonda convent. Although her life was typical of upper-class Milanese women, her compositions demonstrate that her approach to music is anything but typical. She composed in every genre of her day and published a large amount of music during her lifetime. Cozzolani’s collection of Vespers music comes from her final publication of 1650. With the exception of a few historians who have focused specifically on convent music, such as Robert L. Kendrick and Craig Monson, this music has largely been overlooked. The reasons for this are unclear given the wealth of material and the quality of musical aesthetic of this music. It is, however, heartening to see the body of research into Cozzolani’s music grow due to the renewed interest in music by female composers both past and present.