The Art Monastery Project wishes to dedicate its debut in the ex-convent of Santa Brigida in Calvi dell’Umbria to its former denizens. The Order of St. Ursula was the first religious order to prioritize the education of girls. This environment fostered learning and produced the most celebrated female composer of the Baroque, Isabella Leonarda (1620-1704).
Likewise our performance in the church of the ex-convent on July 19, 2008, will also be a celebration of women: an all-female Baroque orchestra and chorus will faithfully reconstruct a vespers for the Feast of Mary Magdalene as it might have been celebrated in a Baroque Ursuline convent like Calvi’s. The liturgical reconstruction will be advised by Ursuline experts and music directed by Candace Smith, perhaps the world’s foremost authority on Baroque nun’s music.
The convent in Calvi played an important role for the massive Ursuline order. For many years, all Ursuline novices came to Calvi for their training. During an gathering of the international Ursulines in the convent in 1878, the Roman Union of the Order of St. Ursula was founded. It is an honor to inherit their beloved convent.
Experiencing a ritual inside an Ursuline convent during the Counter-Reformation (a highpoint for sacred music and art) was a rare and privilege for a few aristocratic patrons and clergy. The few allowed to witness one were amazed at the virtuosity of these cloistered women, sequestered far away from the musical and artistic trends. We hope to provide contemporary audiences with this rare privilege, by presenting glorious music from Isabella Leonarda’s two collections of vespers for four voices & two violins and appropriate motets, along with a dramatic dialogue by fellow nun, Chiara Margarita Cozzolani (1602-77): “Maria Maddalena stabat”. Ms. Smith, whose many recordings of Baroque nuns’ music with her ensemble Artemisa have provided ample opportunities to reconstruct the practices of the day, will re-arrange the pieces often scored for male and female voices into an all-women’s arrangement, creating the unique texture of nuns’ music. Together with the Gregorian chant portions of the rite, sung by all of the performers, the solemn rite constantly blossoming into virtuosic music.
Candace Smith (Music Director) founded Cappella Artemisia in Bologna in 1991: an ensemble of women whose repertoire is the music of Italian convents of the 16th & 17th centuries and has six CDs currently available on TACTUS. From 1978-89, her international ensemble, Concerto dele Dame was one of the first to specialize in Early Music composed by women. Ms. Smith holds degrees from CSU Northridge; Rabine-Institut für funktionale Stimmpädagogik; and the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis. She has collaborated and recorded with numerous ensembles of early music including Sequentia and Project Ars Nova and is on the faculty of the Bernstein School of Musical Theatre, Bologna.
This project is produced in conjunction with La Maddalena.
Contact: Info (@) ArtMonastery (dot) org
