lished at Antwerp (1554), which was reprinted with a Se-
gundo cancionero espiritual (1558). The latter, which
sought to render the style of the Psalms in Italianate hen-
decasyllabic verse, was banned by the Inquisition (1559).
Montemayor’s most important work, which introduced
the pastoral romance from Italy to Spain, was LA DIANA.
Monteverdi, Claudio (1567–1643) Italian composer
Monteverdi was born in Cremona and studied music at
the cathedral there. Before moving (1591) to Mantua as a
string player for Duke Vicenzo I Gonzaga, he published
books of MADRIGALSand motets, a discipline he kept up
throughout his career. His third book of madrigals (1592)
reveals dissatisfaction with traditional harmonics. To jus-
tify his bold use of dissonance, which he saw as a resur-
rection of the principles of music as taught by classical
antiquity, he posited two styles (or “practices”). His ex-
periments with the “seconda prattica” in which words
come before the music—as distinct from the “prima prat-
tica” taught by Gioseffo ZARLINO—were criticized in Gio-
vanni Artusi’s On The Imperfection of Modern Music (1600).
Monteverdi’s fifth book of madrigals (1605) was the first
to use basso continuo, a steady bass-line, which later was
to become a standard feature of BAROQUEmusic.
His pioneering philosophy of music drew on the Pla-
tonic doctrine of correspondence. He used three styles to
represent the three basic emotions: stile concitato, with
short repeated notes on a single pitch, conveyed agitation;
the softer stile molle, with its long notes, expressed ten-
derness; and stile temperato portrayed equanimity. L’Orfeo
(1607) stands out for its innovative retelling of the classi-
cal tale of Orpheus who used music to draw his beloved
Eurydice back from the Underworld. It is arguably the
first opera in the modern sense of the term, conceived as
a drama in music and depicting human psychology.
Monteverdi also wrote a court opera about Ariadne aban-
doned on the island of Naxos by Theseus after she had
rescued him from the Minotaur’s labyrinth; only the fa-
mous “Lament of Arianna” survives, as a solo song and
also in the form of a madrigal. The words are by Ottavio
Rinuccini (1562–1621), who also wrote texts for Mon-
teverdi’s ballets, including Il Ballo dell’ ingrate (1608) to
celebrate the marriage of Francesco Gonzaga to Mar-
guerite of Savoy, and Il Combattimento di Tancredi e
Clorinda (published 1624) taken from Tasso’s Geru-
salemme liberata.
With aspirations beyond Mantua, in 1610 Monteverdi
compiled a portfolio of sacred vocal works which he ded-
icated to Pope Paul V. Vespro Della Beata Vergine uses the
traditional vesper service of the Blessed Virgin Mary to
showcase the composer’s versatility. These qualities later
appealed to the officials at St. Mark’s basilica where, in
1613, he was appointed maestro di cappella, a prestigious
position he held for the rest of his life. From 1637 on, with
the opening of public opera houses in Venice, he revived
older works while also writing new ones such as Il Ritorno
d’Ulisse in patria about Ulysses’s homecoming. His last
opera, L’incoronazione di Poppaea, celebrates the love of
Nero and the courtesan whom he crowned empress. Just
as his music leaves the High Renaissance behind, Mon-
teverdi’s final opera opens the way to a new kind of har-
mony and a vision of humanity without the gods; the
result is a new kind of struggle and sweetness–and a new
freedom.
Further reading: Denis Arnold, Monteverdi (London:
Dent, 3rd ed. 1990); Paolo Fabbri, Monteverdi, transl. Tim
Carter (Cambridge, U.K. and New York: Cambridge Uni-
versity Press, 1994); Gary Tomlinson, Monteverdi and the
End of the Renaissance (1987; repr. Berkeley, Calif.: Uni-
versity of California Press, 1990).Montluc, Blaise de Lasseran-Massencôme, Seigneur
de (c. 1500–1577) French soldier
Montluc was born at St.-Puy and spent his early years at
court, as page and archer to the duke of Lorraine. His mil-
itary career began in 1521 and culminated in his appoint-
ment as marshal of France in 1574; during the intervening
years he had taken part in five pitched battles and more
than 200 skirmishes. As governor of Siena (1554–55)
Montluc distinguished himself in the heroic defense of
that city against imperial and Florentine forces; as lieu-
tenant-general of Guyenne and a supporter of the GUISEin
the early years of the Wars of RELIGIONhe was remem-
bered for his severe repression of the HUGUENOTS.
Montluc’s Commentaires, published posthumously in
1592, are an autobiographical record of his military career,
its successes and its failures: his colorful description of
16th-century warfare is particularly valuable for its de-
tailed accounts of individual operations.Montmorency, Anne de (1493–1567) French soldier and
nobleman
The boyhood friend of FRANCIS I, Montmorency was made
marshal of France (1522) after his bravery in the Wars of
ITALY. Himself captured at PAVIA(1525), he negotiated
Francis I’s release from captivity (1526). He exercised
great influence at court, becoming constable of France
(1538) after his successes against imperial forces in
Provence and Savoy, but intrigues brought about his
downfall (1541).
Restored to royal favor in the reign of HENRY II
(1547–59), Montmorency fought bravely against Spain
until his capture at ST-QUENTIN(1557). Although the
GUISE FAMILYdrove him from Francis II’s court (1559–60),
he joined the duke of Guise in the triumvirate against
Protestantism (1561) and fought on the Catholic side in
the Wars of RELIGIONuntil he was killed at the siege of
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