St. Cecilia with a Choir (oil on canvas) Domenichino (Domenico Zampieri) (1581-1641)
Music has long performed a vital role in Christian worship and prayer. From the earliest time, Christians have used various instruments together with the human voice to symbolically recall the divine music which as we read in scripture fills the heavenly realm. Alongside the angels who were believed to address God in celestial music-making, certain saints also were associated with music. The early Christian noblewoman, Cecilia, is venerated as the patron saint of music. This Roman martyr according to legend was martyred in the third century by the pagan Roman emperor. Her association with music comes from the belief that in her wedding to a pagan nobleman, Valerian, Cecilia expressed her fidelity to Christ by singing of her love for Christ. Valerian subsequently became a Christian. Eventually, Cecilia, Valerian and several companions were martyred for their refusal to sacrifice to pagan gods. The Bolognese artist Domenichino painted several images of St Cecilia. In the version reproduced we see the beautiful young woman playing the violin. Over the centuries artists have depicted her with various instruments including the flute, organ, harp or cello. At the left of the painting we see the pipes of a small organ, such instruments were typical in Europe in the seventeenth century. St Cecilia became a favourite subject of artists in the seventeenth-century following the discovery of her body in 1599 in the Roman church dedicated to her.
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