Hidden in Plain Sight: Musical Treasures in the Penn Library Curated by Marjorie Hassen Otto E. Albrecht Music Library University of Pennsylvania

A Chronicle of Events in Florence Cronica dopo la morte del Duca Alessandro de'Medici, fino al 1555 Manuscript, 16th century 1 v. (83 leaves) : paper, music ; 36 cm. U. of Penn. Codex 564 A chronicle of events in Florence beginning with the assassination of Alessandro de'Medici in 1537, to the year 1555, this volume details numerous civic festivals and celebrations. The single musical work found among the volume's pages is a partsong, transcribed alongside the description of its performance on carnival night, 16 February 1550. The chronicler recorded that one of the floats in the carnival procession featured the jaws of Hell and a large devil, flames spewing from his mouth. A group of singers, accompanied by ducal troops dressed in red, sang the song "Uscite dello inferno, anime furiose." This anonymous work is written in the tradition of the Florentine canti carnascialeschi, which were typically performed at festivals during the late 15th and early 16th centuries. Much of the surviving repertory remains unattributed, though the genre is also known from settings by, among other composers, Heinrich Isaac and Alexander Agricola.

Table of Contents Introduction Manuscript Collections: Institutions Manuscript Collections: Individuals Sheet Music Images Conducting Scores Music Manuscripts: 15th-18th Centuries Music Manuscripts: 19th & 20th Centuries Landmarks of Music Theory