have been attributed to him. Like Gesualdo and Luzzaschi, Fontanelli wrote madrigals which were intended to be appreciated by a small audience of connoisseurs, particularly the musica secreta of Alfonso II d'Este. Stylistically his music uses the most progressive techniques of the time, including chromaticism and cross-relations; unlike Gesualdo, however, the chromaticism is not a defining feature of his music. Most of Fontanelli's pieces are short, requiring less than three minutes to perform. None are obviously intended for arrangement for solo voice and accompaniment by a plucked chordal instrument (as are many of Luzzaschi's madrigals), being contrapuntal and disjunct in texture, and avoiding a dominant soprano line. Many of his madrigals, particularly from his first book, are written for two or three soprano voices, suggesting that they were written for the concerto delle donne. The second book of madrigals (1604), some of which must have been written in Rome (but were published in Venice), contains some pieces in a simpler polyphonic style, recalling the madrigalian style of decades before. This style was harmonious with the tastes of the Roman School composers, performers, and listeners, who were more conservative than the esoteric Ferrara school, and unaccustomed to its experimental music. Notes References "Alfonso Fontanelli", in The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, ed. Stanley Sadie. 20 vol. London, Macmillan Publishers Ltd., 1980. Alfred Einstein, The Italian Madrigal. Princeton, N.J., 1949. Anthony Newcomb: "Alfonso Fontanelli," Grove Music Online, ed. L. Macy (Accessed January 3, 2006), (subscription access) Renaissance composers Italian Baroque composers Italian male classical composers Italian murderers People from the Province of Reggio Emilia Deaths due to insect bites and stings 1557 births 1622 deaths 17th-century Italian composers 17th-century male musicians