Description:
<p>The Spinola family of Genoa was among the city’s most prominent in several respects: politics, diplomacy, the arts of war, and in particular the construction of palaces. Ten such <italic>palazzi</italic> bore the Spinola name, a number far exceeding those of such patricians as the Grimaldi (four) or the Balbi (two). The Spinolas commissioned some fine <italic>trompe l’œil</italic> frescoes of musicians performing on balconies for several of their palaces. Painted by the artists Giovanni Carlone, Giovanni Andrea Ansaldo and Giovanni Battista Carlone between 1625 and 1630, they are of special interest in terms of musical iconography, as they portray the rise of the guitar in early 17th-century Genoa as an accompaniment instrument suitable for high society. Similar frescoes on the ceiling of the nearby SS. Annunziata church, featuring angel guitarists in mixed ensembles, suggest that the instrument was even considered suitable for the performance of sacred music. The latter possibility is corroborated by the appearance around the same time in Italy of books of <italic>canzonette sacre</italic> with guitar accompaniment.</p>
<p>Finally, the balcony frescoes, with their prominent guitars and the occasionally Hispanic dress of the nobles portrayed in them, point to the strong ties that Genoa had with Spain in the early 17th century—presumably through trade or through its connections with Naples. The Spinola family in particular, acknowledged <italic>filospagnoli</italic> of the highest order, would have welcomed the performance of music involving the Spanish guitar, as the frescoes of their <italic>palazzi</italic> suggest.</p>