Language and identity: the axes of configuration of the musical map of Catalonia during the early modern period

Abstract

After the death of Ferdinand II, the absence of courtly life in the Principality and the cautious patronage of the nobility – more dependent on alliances with Castile than on strengthening Catalan lineages – rendered ecclesiastical patronage the only stable alternative for the former singers of the Catalan royalty and nobility. Several of them, aside from enjoying ecclesiastical benefits under royal protection, served as singers, vocal instructors or organists in their cathedrals in Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, Zaragoza, Tarragona, Tortosa, Valencia and Vic. Beginning in the mid-15th century, the establishment of the first chapels in cathedrals, later emulated by those in major urban basilicas and, to a lesser degree, by the more modest collegiate churches, parishes, and monastery and convent churches, transformed these institutions into the only musical production and teaching centres for the inhabitants of their towns and cities. In this regard, the leading role of ecclesiastical institutions was almost exclusive and remained so until the end of the Ancien Régime. The variety of ecclesiastical chapels depended on the category of their respective churches and their financial capacity to support one or two magisterial positions, that is, the chapel master and organist. The map of ecclesiastical chapels was shaped by musicians looking for the best artistic and economic conditions, within the framework of the linguistic and sociocultural reality shared among the Catalan-speaking countries.