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First Recorded Instance of Musical Piracy in History

submitted by HistNerd

1 decade 7 years 8 months 1 week ago

This song was written by Gregorio Allegri during the 1630s. It was so coveted by the Catholic Church, that Pope Urban VIII forbid it to be copied or played anywhere but in the Sistine Chapel on Ash Wednesday, once a year. Mozart when he was 14 years old, came and listened to it and promptly wrote it out from memory. He gave it to a publisher in London, and after that the Catholic Church lifted the ban. Thus the first instance of musical piracy in history.

This particular version is sung by the New College Choir at Oxford. You may be intested to know that this choir is all male. The fantastic treble soloist you hear, is a boy, between the ages of 8 and 12.

I know that this one is not exactly a video . . . but, it's the Miserere, quite possibly one of the most famous accapella songs in history. I think it's worth sharing.

Click on part 2 to hear the rest.

To read up on the Miserere, click here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miserere_%28Allegri%29