‘The terror of death enters my soul and, forced to think of the events of my life, I think of many dear friends who died and their sweet words and faces that I will never see again.’ The words of Petrarch highlight the destructive personal impact of plague outbreaks. By the 17th century, Northern Italy continued to be devastated by plague outbreaks that killed thousands and traumatised survivors. In Venice, the 1630 plague resulted in the loss of at least 35 per cent of its population and caused lasting changes to the city’s economic and cultural institutions.

During this period, the Basilica di San Marco in Venice was a leading musical institution in Europe, with renowned composer Claudio Monteverdi serving as Maestro di Capella. Music and plague were interconnected from the very beginning of the outbreak as it was Alessandro Striggio, Monteverdi’s closest friend and librettist of his opera Orfeo, who carried the plague into the city.

This talk examines the plague and music in Venice in 1630, and discusses recently discovered archival documents that implicate Alessandro Striggio as the index case of the 1630 plague in Venice. Further, it explores how Monteverdi’s friend’s death and the subsequent outbreak impacted him personally and influenced his later life and career. By studying the plague’s impact on the city’s leading musician, this talk will elucidate how the plague of 1630 impacted the musical culture of Venice.

Brigette De Poi is a final year PhD candidate in Musicology at the University of Sydney. Her dissertation analyses the plague of 1630 in Venice and its impact on the musical communities of the city. Her research interests are interdisciplinary: music in Venice in the early Seicento as well as the socioeconomic impact of Venetian plagues on different sections of society.
Brigette’s research is supported by the Australasian Centre for Italian Studies - Dino De Poli Scholarship for Research on North-East Italy and Save Venice Fellowship, and by the University of Sydney’s James Kentle Memorial Funds Scholarship. Brigette De Poi is a final year PhD candidate in Musicology at the University of Sydney. Her dissertation analyses the plague of 1630 in Venice and its impact on the musical communities of the city. Her research interests are interdisciplinary: music in Venice in the early Seicento as well as the socioeconomic impact of Venetian plagues on different sections of society. Brigette’s research is supported by the Australasian Centre for Italian Studies - Dino De Poli Scholarship for Research on North-East Italy and Save Venice Fellowship, and by the University of Sydney’s James Kentle Memorial Funds Scholarship.