Philip II is welcomed at the convent of Santa Maria de Valldonzella (Barcelona) with music in 1564

Mazuela Anguita, Ascensión
Universidad de Granada
0000-0002-7144-1335

Abstract

A printed account of the visit of Philip II in Barcelona in 1564 offers details on his arrival at the convent of Santa Maria de Valldonzella, and the welcoming of the nuns, who went out in procession and met the king singing the responsory Tua es potentia. This text is connected to royal power. For instance, it was included by Hernando de Talavera in a liturgical Office commissioned by Queen Isabel to commemorate the conquest of Granada. In this way, the nuns made a musical contribution to the urban networks of political power.

Keywords

royal entry , heraldic music , street music , nuns of the convent of Santa Maria de Valldonzella (Barcelona) , Felipe II (king) , trumpeter , drum players , wind players , singers


One of the clearest cases of the musical contribution of convents to the political life of Barcelona is that of the convent of Santa Maria de Valldonzella, located outside the walls of the city, near the gate of Saint Anthony. It served as a residence for royalty, who, before making their high-profile entries into the city were welcomed at the convent with music. According to custom, the city councilors met the monarchs outside the city walls and accompanied them to the convent. The royal retinue proceeded to the sound of trumpets and drums (of both the city council and the king), together with wind-players, usually placed on platforms at strategic points along the route to the convent as an aural symbol of power. For instance, in 1503, Philip the Handsome stayed at this convent before carrying out his triumphal entry into Barcelona accompanied by drums, trumpets, and wind-players. The abbess in that period was the singer Caterina Boïl, a noblewoman who had been praised in a poem for her musical skills. A printed account of the visit of Philip II in Barcelona in 1564 offers details on his arrival at this convent and the welcoming of the nuns, who went out in procession and met the king singing the responsory Tua es potentia. This text is connected to royal power. For instance, it was included by Hernando de Talavera in a liturgical Office commissioned by Queen Isabel to commemorate the conquest of Granada. In this way, the nuns made a musical contribution to the urban networks of political power.

Source:

Cases i Loscos, Lluïsa, y otros (eds.), Dietaris de la Generalitat de Catalunya. Volum V. Anys 1623 a 1644. Barcelona: Generalitat de Catalunya, 1994.

Hierro, Baltasar del, Los triumphos y grandes recebimientos dela insigne ciudad de Barcelona ala venida del famosissimo Phelipe rey delas Españas &c. Con la entrada de los serenissimos principes de Bohemia. Barcelona: Iayme Cortey, 1564.

"Tua es potentia", in Secundo nocturno, Oficio de maitines, en: Hernando de Talavera (†1507), Oficio de la toma de Granada (MS, 1493). Fuentes: Santa Fe (Granada), Archivo Parroquial, cantoral nº 20. 

Archivo General de Simancas, sección Patronato real, sign. 25-41.

Bibliography:

Albacete i Gascón, Antoni, y Margarida Güell i Baró, El Reial Monestir de Santa Maria de Valldonzella de Barcelona (1147-1922). Història i Art en un centre Barceloní d’espiritualitat cistercenca. Barcelona: Publicacions de l’Abadia de Montserrat, 2013.

Mazuela-Anguita, Ascensión. “«Una Celestial armonía»: los conventos femeninos en la vida musical de Barcelona en el siglo XVI”, Quadrivium. Revista Digital de Musicologia 6 (2015). 

Paulí MeléndezAntonio, Santa Maria de Valldonzella. Barcelona: Emporium, 1972.

Created: 25 Jun 2019
Modified: 18 Dec 2023
Referencing: Mazuela Anguita, Ascensión. "Philip II is welcomed at the convent of Santa Maria de Valldonzella (Barcelona) with music in 1564", Historical soundscapes, 2019. e-ISSN: 2603-686X. https://www.historicalsoundscapes.com/en/evento/977/barcelona.
Este artículo está disponible bajo una licencia Creative Commons Reconocimiento-NoComercial 4.0 Internacional (CC BY-NC 4.0).
Resources

Detail from: Johann Stridbeck (1666-1714), ‘Barcelona, die Haupt Stattdes Fürstenthums Catalonien’, in Curioses Staats und Kriegs Theatrum, Augsburgo, Johann Stridbeck, 1711-1714. Barcelona, Institut Cartogràfic i Geològic de Catalunya

Baltasar del Hierro, Los triumphos y grandes recebimientos dela insigne ciudad de Barcelona a la venida del famosissimo Phelipe rey delas Españas &c. Con la entrada de los serenissimos principes de Bohemia, Barcelona, Iayme Cortey, 1564.

External link

Tua es potentia. In secundo nocturno. Responsorio. Modo II. Oficio de Maitines. Oficio de la Toma de Granada. Fray Hernando de Talavera. Oficio de Maitines. Interpretes: Schola Antiqua. Director: Juan Carlos Asensio. Pneuma, 2010

Tua es potentia. In secundo nocturno. Responsorio. Modo II. Oficio de Maitines. Oficio de la Toma de Granada. Fray Hernando de Talavera. Oficio de Maitines. Interpretes: Schola Antiqua. Director: Juan Carlos Asensio. Pneuma, 2010