First published at 11:42 UTC on August 21st, 2022.
Frottola: Si e debile il filo (Yes, the thread is weak) by Bartolomeo Tromboncino
It is difficult to confirm exactly when Italian composer Bartolomeo Tromboncino composed this short canzone (a ballad in the form of a madrigal), however it was likel…
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Frottola: Si e debile il filo (Yes, the thread is weak) by Bartolomeo Tromboncino
It is difficult to confirm exactly when Italian composer Bartolomeo Tromboncino composed this short canzone (a ballad in the form of a madrigal), however it was likely shortly before the work was first published 1507. The text is based on a poem by the Italian poet Francesco Petrarca (born 1304, died 1374).
Tromboncino was born in approximately 1470 in Verona, but would be raised in Mantua (central Italy). In 1499, it appears that Tromboncino fled Mantua after he was accused of murdering his wife after finding her with her lover. It is unclear whether Tromboncino actually did murder his wife, or if he only attacked her, or if he did nothing at all and was blamed for the actions of another. Tromboncino was in the employ of the powerful Gonzaga family of Mantua at the time, and was also a friend of the wealthy art and music patron Isabella d’Este. It is possible that his connection to these powerful individuals spared him facing jail or execution for his crimes, if there were any.
From 1502, Tromboncino would be employed by Lucrezia Borgia in Ferrara. During this time, it is possible that Tromboncino would meet Leonardo da Vinci, with da Vinci possibly inventing new types of string instruments for composers like Tromboncino to use in their works.
The cover picture for this video is the only confirmed image of Tromboncino. The image during the video is ‘The Battle of Anghiari’, a sketch Leonardo da Vinci made in approximately 1505 which was eventually meant to translate to a painting, but which da Vinci would not complete before his death in 1519.
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