Filipe da Madre de Deus
Encyclopedia
Frei Filipe da Madre de Deus (Lisbon
, c. 1630 – Seville
, c. 1688 or later) was a Portuguese
baroque
composer
.
at the court of Philip IV of Spain
(Philip III of Portugal until 1640).
In 1654, John IV of Portugal
hears about the notoriety of Madre de Deus and hires him to the Portuguese court. Two years later, John IV dies and is succeeded by Afonso VI. Sometime between April 1660 and August 1661, Afonso VI nominates Madre de Deus as mestre da câmara de música real ("master of the royal chamber music").
In 1668, Peter II is appointed regent for Afonso VI, his insane brother, and all his former employees are lopped off the royal payroll. Thus, Filipe da Madre de Deus had to return to Spain in 1668. He was succeeded by the renowned António Marques Lésbio as master of the royal chamber music of Portugal.
Madre de Deus retired to the monastery of the barefooted Mercedarians of San Laureano in Seville
. He continued as chapel master of this monastery until at least 1688, the year of his last known work. He probably died there c. 1688 or 1690.
s and tono
s for several occasions and holidays, including a 18th-birthday salute to Afonso VI, Ostente aplausos festivos ("Ostentate joyous applause"), and the famous negro villancico for Christmas, Antonya, Flaciquia, Gasipà. He also composed sacred
choral works with continuo accompaniment.
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
, c. 1630 – Seville
Seville
Seville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
, c. 1688 or later) was a Portuguese
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
baroque
Baroque music
Baroque music describes a style of Western Classical music approximately extending from 1600 to 1760. This era follows the Renaissance and was followed in turn by the Classical era...
composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
.
Life
Filipe da Madre de Deus was born in Lisbon, about 1630. Although he lacked a deep knowledge of music theory, he was a skilled composer and vihuelistVihuela
Vihuela is a name given to two different guitar-like string instruments: one from 15th and 16th century Spain, usually with 12 paired strings, and the other, the Mexican vihuela, from 19th century Mexico with five strings and typically played in Mariachi bands.-History:The vihuela, as it was known...
at the court of Philip IV of Spain
Philip IV of Spain
Philip IV was King of Spain between 1621 and 1665, sovereign of the Spanish Netherlands, and King of Portugal until 1640...
(Philip III of Portugal until 1640).
In 1654, John IV of Portugal
John IV of Portugal
|-|John IV was the King of Portugal and the Algarves from 1640 to his death. He was the grandson of Catherine, Duchess of Braganza, who had in 1580 claimed the Portuguese crown and sparked the struggle for the throne of Portugal. John was nicknamed John the Restorer...
hears about the notoriety of Madre de Deus and hires him to the Portuguese court. Two years later, John IV dies and is succeeded by Afonso VI. Sometime between April 1660 and August 1661, Afonso VI nominates Madre de Deus as mestre da câmara de música real ("master of the royal chamber music").
In 1668, Peter II is appointed regent for Afonso VI, his insane brother, and all his former employees are lopped off the royal payroll. Thus, Filipe da Madre de Deus had to return to Spain in 1668. He was succeeded by the renowned António Marques Lésbio as master of the royal chamber music of Portugal.
Madre de Deus retired to the monastery of the barefooted Mercedarians of San Laureano in Seville
Seville
Seville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
. He continued as chapel master of this monastery until at least 1688, the year of his last known work. He probably died there c. 1688 or 1690.
Works
Filipe da Madre de Deus composed mainly villancicoVillancico
The villancico was a common poetic and musical form of the Iberian Peninsula and Latin America popular from the late 15th to 18th centuries. With the decline in popularity of the villancicos in the 20th century, the term became reduced to mean merely "Christmas carol"...
s and tono
Tono
Tono can refer to:Locations*Bay of Tono, in Italy*Tono River, in East Timor*Tōno, Iwate, a city in Japan*Tōnō, a region of Gifu Prefecture, Japan*Tono, Washington, a town in Washington, USA*Pasar Tono, a town in East TimorPeople...
s for several occasions and holidays, including a 18th-birthday salute to Afonso VI, Ostente aplausos festivos ("Ostentate joyous applause"), and the famous negro villancico for Christmas, Antonya, Flaciquia, Gasipà. He also composed sacred
Sacred
Holiness, or sanctity, is in general the state of being holy or sacred...
choral works with continuo accompaniment.
Recordings
The following recordings include works by Madre de Deus:- 1994 - Canções, Vilancicos e Motetes Portugueses. Paul Van NevelPaul Van NevelPaul Van Nevel is a Belgian conductor, musicologist and art historian. In 1971 he founded the Huelgas Ensemble, a choir dedicated to polyphony from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Van Nevel is known for hunting out little known polyphonic medieval works to perform.He grew up in a musical...
and Huelgas EnsembleHuelgas EnsembleThe Huelgas Ensemble is a Belgian early music group formed by the Flemish conductor Paul Van Nevel in 1971. The group's performance and extensive discography focuses on renaissance polyphony...
. Sony Classical SK 66288. Track 12 "Antonya, Flaciquia, Gasipà". - 2004 - Maestros Andaluces en Nueva Espana. Cappella Mediterranea, Leonardo García-AlarcónLeonardo García-AlarcónLeonardo García-Alarcón is an Argentian conductor specializing in baroque music.He studied harpsichord and organ and was assistant to Gabriel Garrido for several years, before founding the ensemble Cappella Mediterranea, with whom he has performed at many festivals, particularly the Festival...
. Almaviva 2004 - Track "Retire su valentia" instrumental. - 2004 - Villancicos y Danzas Criollas. Hespèrion XX and Jordi SavallJordi SavallJordi Savall i Bernadet is a Catalan viol player, conductor and composer. He has been one of the major figures in the field of Western early music since the 1970s, largely responsible for bringing the viol back to life on the stage...
. Alia Vox. Track 9 "Antonya, Flaciquia, Gasipà". - 2007 - Flores de Lisboa - Canções, vilancicos e romances portugueses. A Corte Musical and Rogério GonçalvesRogério GonçalvesRogério de Sousa Gonçalves is a Portuguese football manager.-Coaching career:Gonçalves started his managerial career off with his local Viana do Castelo club Lanheses in 1990 to 1992, and has moved on to bigger and better clubs from the smaller leagues of Portuguese football to the Liga de Honra...
. Le Couvent K617195. Track 12 "Ostente aplausos festivos". - 2008 - Vilancicos Negros do Século XVII. Coro Gulbenkian conducted by Jorge Matta. Portugaler 1016-2. Track 3 "Antonya, Flaciquia, Gasipà".