It was not enough that the Mass of Pope Marcellus should have satisfied the congregation.  It had next to receive the approval of the Pope, who heard it on June 19.  On this occasion, if the Court Chronicle be correct, Pius made a pretty speech, declaring that ’of such nature must have been the harmonies of the new song heard by John the Apostle in the heavenly Jerusalem, and that another John had given us a taste of them in the Jerusalem of the Church Militant.’  He seems, indeed, to have been convinced that the main problem of preserving clearness of enunciation in the uttered words had been solved, and that there was now no reason to deprive the faithful of the artistic and devotional value of melodious music.  He consequently appointed Palestrina to the post of composer for the Papal Chapel, and created a monopoly for the performance of his works.  This measure, which roused considerable jealousy among musicians at the moment, had the salutary effect of rendering the new style permanent in usage.

Of Palestrina’s voluminous compositions this is not the place to speak.  It is enough to have indicated the decisive part which he took in the reformation of Church music at a moment when its very existence was imperiled, and to have described the principles upon which he laid down new laws for the art.  I must not, however, omit to dwell upon his subsequent connection with S. Filippo Neri, since the music he composed for the Oratory of that saint contributed much toward the creation of a semi-lyrical and semi-dramatic style to which we may refer the origins of the modern Oratorio.  Filippo Neri was the spiritual director of Palestrina, and appointed him composer to his devout confraternity.  For the use of that society the master wrote a series of Arie Divote on Italian words.  They were meant to be sung by the members, and to supersede the old usages of Laud-music, which had chiefly consisted in adapting popular street-tunes to sacred words.[211]

[Footnote 211:  See Renaissance in Italy, vol. iv. pp. 263, 305.]

To the same connection with the Oratory we owe one of the most remarkable series of Palestrina’s compositions.  These were written upon the words of an Italian Canzone in thirty octave stanzas, addressed as a prayer to the Virgin.  Palestrina set each stanza, after the fashion of a Madrigal, to different melodies; and the whole work proved a manual of devotional music, in the purest artistic taste, and the most delicately sentimental key of feeling.  Together with this collection of spiritual songs should be mentioned Palestrina’s setting of passages from the Song of Solomon in a series of motetts; which were dedicated to Gregory XIII., in 1584.  They had an enormous success.  Ten editions between that date and 1650 were poured out from the presses of Rome and Venice, to satisfy the impatience of thousands who desired to feed upon ’the nectar of their sweetness.’  Palestrina chose for the motives of his compositions