Last
time we introduced Carlo Gesualdo, a Renaissance composer who was also a
prince. While some scholars say that he was ahead of his time in the way he
dealt with harmonies, would he be as famous as he is if he wasn’t also
associated with murder?
On
October 16, 1590, Carlo Gesualdo committed a double murder after finding his
wife in bed with Don Fabrizio Carafa, the Duke of Andria. The Duke was a
handsome man and reports say that he was found wearing “a woman’s nightdress
with fringes at the bottom, with ruffs of black silk.” The murder was bloody
and gruesome, both bodies left in a horrific state. Eyewitnesses verified
Gesualdo as the murderer however there were no consequences since he was a
prince.
While
Gesualdo may not have suffered the consequences of his actions during his
lifetime, he has certainly paid for them after his death as musicologists for
centuries have referred to him in negative ways, not being able to get past his
jealousy that ended in murder. Can you blame them?
