Date of Award

2014

Type

Thesis

Major

Music

Degree Type

Bachelor of Music

Department

Schwob School of Music

First Advisor

Dr. Andree Martin

Second Advisor

Dr. Bradley Palmer

Third Advisor

Dr. Susan Tomkiewicz

Abstract

Patronage, as it will be discussed in this context, is the "money and support...given to an artist, organization, etc." (Merriam-Webster.com). The word itself comes from "patronus" in the Latin language, meaning "defender, protector...advocate" (Harper, Online Etymology). The concept of patronage existed long before the Renaissance (14th - 17th centuries), but did not come into the forefront in terms of artistic support until the 1300s. There is no specific, definite date to the start of patronage. In fact, it could be said that a hired person working to complete a singular product is being patronized, meaning that this occurred much earlier than the era known as the Renaissance. Historian Mario Biagioli writes that "Cicero thought that the origins of Roman clientela were so ancient that it must have been brought to Rome by Romulus himself (15), a hyperbolic statement used to get the point across that patronage and the system it thrived in had been around long before the aristocrats of the more modern world. During this time of transition, patronage underwent many changes, generally in terms of how the participants related as well as how patronage was used.

The importance of the patronage system in the arts can be a tricky concept to describe due to the circularity involved in the relationship between the patron and the client. To explain, artists needed to make products worthy of the attention of patrons, but needed patrons in order to make the products proving them worthy of the attention from a patron. Once the system got started, it would make sense that it would be self-sustaining, at least for artists already in this cycle. The support of an artist who has completed products before becoming involved in the patronage system is an important concept for the cycle of the modern age of patronage.

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Honors Thesis

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