Musica para el virrey de Napoles

On 1 March 1620, the Festa a ballo Delizie di Posillipo was performed in the Royal Palace of Naples to celebrate the recovery of King Filips III. The spectacle, sponsored by viceroy Pedro Girón, 3rd Duke of Osuna, featured splendid sets by Bartolomeo Cartaro and music by some of the best composers of Naples: Pietro Antonio Giramo, Giacomo Spiardo, Andrea Ansalone and, in particular, Francesco Lambardi and Giovanni Maria Trabaci, maestro di cappella and organist of the Viceregale Chapel. As in the great court intermezzi, the performance combined arias, canzonettes and dances with alternating instrumental groups. On stage, Pan and Venus, symbols of the earthly and maritime realm, compete for Posillipo, but the contest ends with a festive closing dance. La Grande Chapelle faithfully recreates this magnificent ballo, embedded in the religious ceremonies and musical events of the Spanish court in Naples, which brilliantly reflected power, multicultural identity and baroque splendor.