Miserere Mei, Deus
Gregorio Allegri
Browse 1 Sheet
Sort:
Song library
Browse piano sheets by Gregorio Allegri on Zen Virtual Piano. Allegri's broken voice opened his place to his younger brother Domenico, whose own place passed in the same way to Bartolomeo Allegri. He served as bandmaster of the cathedral in Fermo from 1607, probably until 1621, when he went back to Rome as bandmaster at S. Spirito in Saxia. A choirboy whose place passed on to younger brothers, and a path through several churches, make his early life look tied to church posts. Late in 1629 he received a benefice in the cathedral in Tivoli and, at the same time, joined the Sistine Band as a singer; he was its bandmaster from 1650 until his death. The pope appointed him to a place in the chapel choir in 1629. The singers themselves elected the Maestro of the Sistine Choir every year, and Allegri held that position from 1650, a Year of Jubilee. An election of the maestro by his fellow singers hints that the post depended on the respect of colleagues. Some of his works belong to the post-Palestrina stile antico, which he handled quite freely, interpreting the text with dissonant chords and chromaticism. He published concerti for five voices in two volumes in 1618 and 1619 and motets for six voices in two volumes in 1621, and he also wrote five masses and two settings of the Lamentations of Jeremiah. A composer who treated an older style freely suggests someone willing to bend a tradition he worked inside. His fame rests on the Miserere, scored for nine voices in two choirs and probably written in 1638 at the pope's request. Performance was reserved for the Sistine Chapel alone, where it was sung every Holy Week until about 1870. Tradition holds that Allegri was a virtuous man, good-natured and generous to the poor and to prisoners. A single piece that stayed inside one chapel for centuries leaves a name widely known for a work few could hear, which may be part of why it drew such lasting interest.
Browse piano sheets by Gregorio Allegri on Zen Virtual Piano.
Allegri's broken voice opened his place to his younger brother Domenico, whose own place passed in the same way to Bartolomeo Allegri. He served as bandmaster of the cathedral in Fermo from 1607, probably until 1621, when he went back to Rome as bandmaster at S. Spirito in Saxia. A choirboy whose place passed on to younger brothers, and a path through several churches, make his early life look tied to church posts.
Late in 1629 he received a benefice in the cathedral in Tivoli and, at the same time, joined the Sistine Band as a singer; he was its bandmaster from 1650 until his death. The pope appointed him to a place in the chapel choir in 1629. The singers themselves elected the Maestro of the Sistine Choir every year, and Allegri held that position from 1650, a Year of Jubilee. An election of the maestro by his fellow singers hints that the post depended on the respect of colleagues.
Some of his works belong to the post-Palestrina stile antico, which he handled quite freely, interpreting the text with dissonant chords and chromaticism. He published concerti for five voices in two volumes in 1618 and 1619 and motets for six voices in two volumes in 1621, and he also wrote five masses and two settings of the Lamentations of Jeremiah. A composer who treated an older style freely suggests someone willing to bend a tradition he worked inside.
His fame rests on the Miserere, scored for nine voices in two choirs and probably written in 1638 at the pope's request. Performance was reserved for the Sistine Chapel alone, where it was sung every Holy Week until about 1870. Tradition holds that Allegri was a virtuous man, good-natured and generous to the poor and to prisoners. A single piece that stayed inside one chapel for centuries leaves a name widely known for a work few could hear, which may be part of why it drew such lasting interest.
Search the library
Gregorio Allegri
Common questions
Gregorio Allegri was a singer and composer who became a singer in the Sistine Band at the end of 1629 and its bandmaster in 1650.
It is a work for nine voices in two choirs, probably written in 1638 at the request of the pope.
It was reserved for the Sistine Chapel and performed there during Holy Week until approximately 1870.
His works include concerti for five voices, motets for six voices, five masses and two settings of the Lamentations of Jeremiah.