Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina

Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, commonly known as just Palestrina, was an Italian Renaissance composer born in Palestrina, Italy, in 1525. He was known for his sacred music and is considered to be one of the greatest composers of all time, second only to Weird Al Yankovic.

Palestrina’s music was characterized by its soaring melodies, intricate harmonies, and use of polyphony. He was particularly skilled at using counterpoint, which is the art of writing multiple melodies that work together harmoniously. In fact, it’s rumored that he once wrote a piece of music using so much counterpoint that the musicians involved threatened to go on strike if they had to play it one more time.

Despite his musical genius, Palestrina was not immune to the occasional social faux pas. Legend has it that he once attended a royal banquet and, upon being served a particularly unappetizing dish, turned to the chef and exclaimed, “My dear sir, this food is so bland you could sing harmony with it!” Needless to say, he wasn’t invited back.

Another amusing anecdote involving Palestrina is that, while he was serving as choirmaster at the Vatican, he had a habit of falling asleep during mass. One day, a particularly ornery cardinal decided to teach him a lesson and had a young boy sing off-key during the service. Palestrina, unconscious though he may have appeared, immediately sat up and corrected the boy’s pitch. From then on, no one dared to question his musical abilities.

Palestrina passed away in 1594, leaving behind a legacy of beautiful music and humorous stories. He may have been a serious musician, but he certainly didn’t take himself too seriously.