ALLEGRI FAMILY. - Name of various musicians of the 16th century, of whom the greatest was GREGORIO, b. in Rome in 1582, d. there on 17-18 Feb. 1652. As a boy he was, like his brothers Domenico and Bartolomeo, a boy chorister in the church of St. Louis of the French, under the guidance of Giovanni Bernardino Nanino. When his voice changed, he ceased to belong to the chapel, but continued to take part in the services, especially on feast days, as a tenor, from 1601 to 1604, under the direction of the other Nanino, Giovanni Maria. After this period the information about him is fragmentary, such as that of a benefice he held in the cathedral of Fermo in 1619. On 6 Dec. 1620 we find him as a pontifical cantor in the Sistine Chapel, where, as a contralto, he remained for 22 years, that is, until his death. We know that he also held other benefices at Tivoli, but without the obligation of residence. In 1650 he was appointed director "pro tempore" of the Sistine Chapel and, as such, composed psalms, magnificats, improperia, Te Deum, motets (1621) and many masses (among which the one for 8 voices stands out: Christus resurgens ex mortuis), which pleased Urban VIII. Noteworthy among the works are two Lamentations (the 1st of the 3rd matins, written in 1640, was sung, as Baini testifies, with undiminished success for almost 200 years) and, more famous than any other, the celebrated Miserere for 2 choirs of 4 and 5 voices, which was performed on Holy Wednesday and Good Friday in the papal chapel: concerning it the episode of the young Mozart is well known, who, in 1770, transcribed it from memory, by hearing alone, since the chapel's regulations did not permit transcription from the original.
Other works, besides the Concertini for 2-4 voices with organ, are published in various collections. We recall, after the Sinfonia or sonata for 4 strings (1650), in the Wasilewski collection, some motets in the Scelta di Mottetti di diversi eccellentissimi Autori, for 2, 3, 4, 5 voices, published in Rome in 1618 under the editorship of Fabio Costantini; in the Sacri affetti of Fr. Sommaruco (A. Soldi, Rome 1625), there is the motet for 4 voices Quasi Libanus dedi odorem; in the collection of Giovanni Robletti (Robletti, Rome 1621) the other motet Cor suum Bentius N.; in the collection of Zaccaria Zanetti (A. Vincenti, Venice 1619) 3 other compositions: Surge amica mea, Tota pulchra et, for 2 voices, and O suavissime Iesu Christe, for 3 voices. The Miserere is also found in modern collections, by Choron and by Proske. Many of his compositions still remain in manuscript in archives and music libraries of Rome, Bologna, etc. A. had various pupils, among whom we recall Antimo Liberati and Matteo Simonelli, who graduated in composition, together with A. Corelli, around 1670.
DOMENICO, b. in Rome in 1585, d. there on 5 Sept. 1620, brother of Gregorio. He too was a boy chorister at St. Louis of the French from 1595 to 1601. In 1616 he was appointed maestro di cappella in the basilica of St. Mary Major.
BARTOLOMEO, b. in Rome around 1592, d. there in 1609, brother of the two preceding. From 13 Jan. 1602 to the end of 1607 we find him as a boy chorister at St. Louis of the French, and from Dec. 1607 until the end of June 1609 as a contralto added to the chapel with a stipend of two scudi. After that time there is no further information about him, nor is anything known of his musical compositions.
LORENZO, a contemporary, but perhaps not a relative of the three above. Of him it is known only that he published the I libro delle musiche (B. Magni, Venice 1618), dedicated to the Grand Duke of Tuscany and containing sinfonie for 6 parts, vocal and instrumental pieces.
Bibliography
Luisa Cervelli