Ep 5. Violin maker Andrea Amati Part 2 Amati and the Reformation, bring out the violins!

Explore the captivating story of Andrea Amati, the pioneering violin maker whose artistry revolutionized the world of music. Discover his iconic designs, unrivalled craftsmanship, and enduring influence on violin making. Join us on this enchanting journey through history and immerse yourself in the legacy of Andrea Amati. Subscribe now to "The Violin Chronicles" and delve into the extraordinary world of violin making.

In this second episode we look at Andrea Amati's life in Cremona and how church music and the reformation influenced the world of the artisans in this city.

The music you have heard in this podcast is as follows.

Bloom – Roo Walker

Mafioso – Theo Gerard

Casuarinas – Dan Barracuda

Danny Yeadon Gamba

Industrial music box – Kevin MacLeod

Budapest - Christian Larssen

Music of Cathedrals and forgotten temples

Kevin MacLeod – Brandenburg Concerto No 4

Josquin des Pres – Missa l’homme Arme – Tallis Scholars

Palestrina – Missa Papae Marcelli – Tallis Scholars

Spem in Alium – Tallis Scholars

ACO – Live in the studio Boccherini

Transcript

  Hello and welcome to the Violin Chronicle. A podcast in which I, Linda Lespets, will attempt to bring to life the story surrounding famous, infamous, or just not very well known, but interesting violin makers of history

Welcome back to Cremona, city of industry and war like inhabitants. In the last episode about Andrea Amati, we looked at the city and its population top heavy with artisans. and a booming textile industry. We also saw Andrea Amati growing up in a world disrupted by war, but also uplifted with the artists, thinkers, and musicians of the Renaissance.

When Andrea Amati was in his 30s, the city of Cremona becomes part of the Spanish Empire, heralding in a more peaceful, or at least less deadly, age for the people of Lombardy.  But as people were taking a short break from invading northern Italy, the printing presses were ramping up. And an altogether new revolution was about to take place.

The Spanish monarchy took over from the Sforza in 1535 and would retain power that would last for the next 200 years or thereabouts.  This same period of Spanish occupation would coincide with a golden period of violin making in Cremona and would englobe the lives of the four next generations of our Amati family.

And so it was into this bubble of peace and prosperity that the now married Andrea Amati welcomed his first son into the world. They called their son Antonio Amati and as time went on, and with the help of all that new Spanish silver, Italians would invest their money in art and beautiful objects of every kind, including instruments.

These would be handed down in women's dowries or inherited by family members.

Today, where we might invest in property, in a peaceful, non war ridden country, and economy, it seems a sure bet, but if you lived in a town that was regularly trampled by the passing armies,  it may be more prudent to spend your money on mobile objects.

Among the artisans, and artists, who profited by this spending were the instrument makers, and Andrea Amati was one of those.

Andrea Amati was good at what he did, and thanks to the savings he had been making over the years, was almost ready to head out and set up his own workshop. But what was it like for a violin maker living in Spanish Lombardy?  The Spanish presence was fairly light. The pre-existing magistrates were mostly maintained, as was the process of electing them.

There was a Castilian, appointed by the king, with a handful of men.  The council around which the city politics revolved had about 150 members, and they would meet in the ancient town hall.  It was a mixture of local and, at the top end, Spanish representatives, and was responsible for public order, supplies, the budget, customs duties, and heritage.

They had a sort of parliament where for two or three times a month, topics were addressed and debates and voting took place.  It was one guy's job to provide arguments contrary to every proposal put forward.

I spoke to Dr. John Gagne about how the city of Cremona functioned under Spanish rule.

Yes, so, in a nutshell, the entire duchy of Milan is ruled by, well, a governor. In the Spanish period, there's a Spanish governor who sits in Milan and basically rules the entire duchy. The body that works for the governor is the Senate. Which is appointed for life, mostly elite men, 15 20 men.

Are they Cremonese?

No, they're all Milanese or they're actually, they're representative of the Duchy. So the Milanese Senate is, you know, often aristocrats from around the duchy in some cases some Spaniards, but it's mostly Italians.

Oh, yeah, so you're talking about Milan

Oh, yeah, which I'm setting up the so that's the kind of state right but then at the local level you've got t