8.5 Conclusions
It is likely that the Master of the Roman Songbook was not a professional artist but an amateur, given the repetition of subjects and and his or her method of constructing landscapes. The fact that the draughtsman drew many elements from works by earlier, well-known artists also points in this direction.1 It is safe to say that the activities of the artist unfolded in the Roman milieu of the mid-17th century, when the city was a melting pot for artists from all over Europe. The style of the drawings of the Master of the Roman Songbook reflects that of the Flemish landscapists working in Rome, such as that of Paul Bril and his pupils, which also explains the earlier attributions of the drawings to mainly Flemish masters.
The subjects of the drawings are inspired by literature, especially in the illustrations of musical manuscripts. The figures in the representations are often members of the upper classes who are engaged in noble activities, such as hunting, walking among ruins and making music in the open air. Antique garden vases, lavishly decorated musical instruments and specific topographical details seem to have been studied after life, as if these were part of the world of the draughtsman, possibly a dilettante (male or female) in the art of drawing [26].
The music repertoire with its designs also belongs to an elite context. Although it is difficult to find traces of payments of any kind or signs of commission and patronage for the decorations, there may be some telling details in the vignettes in the Casanatense manuscript that point to a close connection with the Mattei family [58].2 The style of the decorations would certainly suit the family's interests, as the Mattei brothers Counts Ciriaco (1545-1614), Asdrubale (1556-1638) and Cardinal Girolamo (1547-1603) were collectors and patrons of Paul Bril.3
Moreover, if the artist drew the Roman cityscapes on site, he or she must have sat on the upper floors of the Palazzo Torres to draw the view of Piazza Navona [12]. The Mattei and de Torres families became related through the marriage of Giovanni de Torres and Giulia Mattei in the early 1580s, and the Palazzo Torres was their residence. Besides the representations of the rest in Celimontana's garden, there could also be a reference to one of the famous Antichitá displayed in the villa. In the first drawing [1], the announcement of the death of Patroclus to Achilles is partially copied on the pedestal to the right.4 On the one hand, such a specific detail recalls Alexander's visit to Achilles' tomb by Tassi, Poussin and Lauri, who are presented here as the iconographic sources for this vignette, and on the other, it reinforces the possible connection of the manuscript and the artist with the Mattei family.
Although archival research proved difficult in the late years, there are indications of private musical activities within the family in the literature.5 Moreover, recent studies have shown the personal relationships between the Mattei and composers and musicians.6 In addition, the 1652 inventory of the property of Count Girolamo Mattei (1606-1676) and his wife Dorotea mentions a harpsichord and an organ.7 To conclude, I would like to draw the attention to a curious detail in the Berlin drawing that hitherto has escaped notice [36].8 The woman with the violin looks directly at the viewer and points with the tip of her bow to the severed branch of a tree on the right. Here the artist included what appears to be a monogram: 'a / d', although there are other small marks on such a small surface. Is this perhaps a clue to discover his identity?
26
Master of the Roman Songbook
Rest in the gardens of the Villa Celimontana, 1652 or 1653
Rome, Biblioteca Casanatense, inv./cat.nr. MS2478
58
Illustration of one of the Mattei Antiquities: Antiochus announces the death of Patroclus to Achilles
Source: Venturi 1776–1779, Tav. XXXIV
12
Master of the Roman Songbook
View of Piazza Navona in Rome, 1652 or 1653
Rome, Biblioteca Casanatense, inv./cat.nr. MS2478
1
Master of the Roman Songbook
Landscape with a visit to a tomb, 1652 or 1653
Rome, Biblioteca Casanatense, inv./cat.nr. MS2478
36
Master of the Roman Songbook
Merry company in the open air, c. 1650
Berlin (city, Germany), Kupferstichkabinett der Staatlichen Museen zu Berlin, inv./cat.nr. KdZ 30295
36a
Detail of fig. 36 with the possible monogram
Notes
1 Rinaldi 2013, p. 197.
2 The only record of payment known in the literature is that to Silvestro Nolla (fl. 1650–1677) for the decorations of some manuscripts for Cardinal Flavio Chigi (1631–1693). Lionnet 1980, p. 302. A possible means of payment for the received music lessons from Andrea Adami da Bolsena (1663–1742) are the decorations by Pier Leone Ghezzi (1674–1755) found in two manuscripts, one in Yale and one in Cambridge, as there is no trace of their commission from the castrato. Strohm 1987; Rostirolla 2001. It is generally assumed, however, that the decorators were employees in the scribes’ workshops, or that they were works of the scribes themselves. Ruffatti 2007; Jeanneret 2009.
3 Cappelletti/Testa 1994.
4 Venturi 1776–1779, Tav. XXXIV.
5 Unfortunately, the Coronavirus pandemics reduced travel possibilities and access to archives.
6 Marzani 2021, p. 62–65.
7 Barbieri 2012, p. 64.
8 I am grateful to Lucia Colombo for providing me detailed photos of the drawing.