The four great Venetian Ospedali - the Ospedale della Pietà, the Ospedale degl'Incurabili, the Ospedale di Santa Maria dei Derelitti, and the Ospedale di San Lazzaro dei Mendicanti - were charitable hospices, which provided a wide range of services for the needy of Venice. They are most famously recognized for educating select female pupils to professional levels of musicianship and attracting many European tourists to hear their all-female ensembles perform religious services and special concerts throughout the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The musical training in the Ospedali Grandi is often thought of as a precursor to the training in European conservatories of the 19th century.
Historical Background
Venice had a long history of caring for its sick, homeless, poor, and orphaned before the four Ospedali Grandi became recognized as a group musical institutions. The Ospedale degl’Incurabili, the Ospedale di Santa Maria dei Derelitti, and the Ospedale di San Lazzaro e dei Mendicanti all emerged from hospices that had been formed in Venice in the previous centuries. Each catered to a different need: the Incurabili took in all who contracted incurable diseases such as syphilis or the bubonic plague; the Derelitti provided a place of refuge for the homeless; the Mendicanti cared for beggars and orphans; while the Pietà, which was founded from an orphanage, exclusively took in foundlings. The Ospedali Grandi's all-female musical ensembles - called cori - originated in the middle of the sixteenth century. The cori first performed music only for religious functions, and all music was taught either by current residents of the institutions who were already musically proficient or by hired church musicians. During this time, the training in music was only meant to strengthen the liturgical services. Additionally, the figlie del coro were always required to perform in raised galleries, which had grating that hid the musicians from the eyes of the audience. By mid-seventeenth century, however, the Ospedali governors realized the economic potential of the cori, and they began to hire many professional external musicians and composers to teach performance practice, sight singing, ear training, music theory, and instrumental techniques. The higher-quality musical training yielded larger donations from patrons and visitors. Many of the figlie del coro would stay at the Ospedali for their whole lives, passing their musical knowledge and experience to younger residents, creating a continuing tradition of musical excellence for women in Venice. The Ospedali reached their pinnacle between 1720-80: the musical ensembles grew in number, and the governors hired even more instrumental teachers and composers. By the middle of the eighteenth century, the Ospedali Grandi had mostly moved away from having older figlie del coro teach beginning students. Instead, they adopted the master and pupil system of education: master teachers, who already held successful reputations, composed for the Ospedali and trained the figlie. Hiring the most famous composers became essential to attracting larger and wealthier audiences. A few special visitors also gained permission from the governors to view and listen to the women perform behind the grates. Due to the financial instability in Venice at the end of the eighteenth century, however, the Ospedali fell into bankruptcy. The Derelitti closed in 1791, followed by the Medicanti in 1795. After Napoleon’s invasion of Venice in 1797, all musical activities at the Ospedali were reduced. The Incurabili closed in 1805, leaving only the Pietà’s musical activity to survive Napoleon’s government takeover. The Pietà’s last known musical composition was performed in 1840.
