'senza che il Maestro di Capella ne sappia cosa alcuna'--some new light on imperial court repertory in the collection of Karl von Liechtenstein-Castelcorno at Kromeriz

‘senza che il Maestro di Capella ne sappia cosa alcuna’—some new light on imperial court repertory in the collection of Karl von Liechtenstein-Castelcorno at Kroměříž For scholars of 17th-century music in the Habsburg lands, the importance of the music collection of prince-bishop Karl von Liechtenstein-Castelcorno at Kroměříž Castle can hardly be over-emphasized. Amongst other things, it preserves numerous copies of otherwise lost works from the imperial court in Vienna. This article investigates aspects of the transmission of works from the Viennese Hofkapelle to the prince-bishop’s collection, using the sacred music of imperial chapelmaster Antonio Bertali (c.1605–69) as a case study. A comparison of surviving sources and an examination of the available historical information concerning the circumstances of the copying suggest that, despite the fact that the music was obtained directly from the imperial court, certain aspects of it (especially the instrumental parts) may not stem from the composer