I just finished reading this post from the excellent Anne Boleyn Files about Queen Elizabeth I’s bout with smallpox on this day in 1562 and it made me think of how many people throughout history that were affected by this terrible disease. Rich and poor alike, this disease was nasty, and there were varying strains of the disease. The worst, called Hemorrhagic smallpox, was almost always… Read on
Heinrich Schütz was born on this day 8 October (O.S) 1585. Now, some of you may wonder why I’m celebrating the birth of someone in the 16th century, so the reason is this: Schütz was a very influential composer of the Baroque. I’m only sorry that I didn’t know about this composer until only in the past five years,… Read on
Mary of Modena, second wife of James, Duke of York, and his Queen consort upon his becoming King James II, was born on this day the 5th of October, 1658, in the Ducal Palace in Modena. She was a beautiful woman, with black hair and dark eyes – what we’d call an Italian beauty now. As you can… Read on
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn, better known simply by his forename, Rembrandt, died on this day the 4th of October, 1669. During his life, the Dutch Republic, aka the United Provinces, was in its Golden Age (gouden Eeuw) and this region prospered not only economically, but culturally – with some of the most beautiful works of Baroque art being… Read on
Why did I decide to make a page for her? Well, I think she’s always overshadowed by her husband, William III of Orange, and whilst that’s understandable, she was too good a person for us to forget about. For Mary II, Princess of Orange and Queen of England, please go to: http://www.facebook.com/MaryStuartII
Antonio Cifra, Italian Baroque & Late Renaissance composer, died on this day the 2nd of October, 1629. Cifra is important in Early Music because he straddled the Late Renaissance and the Early Baroque movements and made beautiful music in both. So, in honour of Antonio Cifra, here is “Era la Notte:” Links about Antonio Cifra: http://www.hoasm.org/VG/Cifra.html http://www.last.fm/music/Antonio+Cifra http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antonio_Cifra (I normally don’t like to link… Read on