Five Hundredth Anniversary of the Birth of composer Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina

Pope Leo XIV attended the presentation of the new philatelic issue promoted by the Bartolucci Foundation and produced by the Vatican Post Office.

Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina was, “in the history of the Church, one of the composers who most contributed to the promotion of sacred music,” for “the glory of God and the sanctification and edification of the faithful,” as written by Saint Pius X in the Motu Proprio Inter plurimas pastoralis officii sollicitudines, dated November 22, 1903, in the context of the momentous yet hopeful era of the Counter-Reformation.

Pope Leo XIV emphasized this in his address to the participants at the event promoted by the Domenico Bartolucci Foundation, commemorating the 500th anniversary of the birth of Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina.

The gathering—held on the afternoon of Wednesday, June 18, in the Sala Regia of the Apostolic Palace—aimed to celebrate “in words and music” the new philatelic issue promoted by the Bartolucci Foundation and created by the Vatican Post Office in commemoration of the Palestrina Quincentenary.

Recalling the great musician, the Holy Father explained that his compositions, solemn and austere, inspired by Gregorian chant, closely unite music and liturgy. Indeed, the Pope noted, polyphony itself is a musical form rich in meaning for both prayer and Christian life.

In her address to the Pope, Sister Raffaella Petrini, President of the Governorate of Vatican City State, highlighted how the Governorate had welcomed with great pleasure the proposal of the Domenico Bartolucci Foundation, and had wished to pay tribute to the great composer by dedicating a commemorative philatelic issue to him on the 500th anniversary of his birth.

In addition to the stamp—created by the Postal and Philatelic Service of the Directorate of Telecommunications and Information Systems—which was unveiled for the occasion, a CD was also produced, recorded by the Foundation’s choir.

Following her speech, Sr. Petrini unveiled a large image of the stamp displayed on an easel, and Cardinal Dominique Mamberti presented the design of the CD cover.

Pope Leo XIV signed a large-format postcard depicting the stamp and received the commemorative CD as a gift. After him, the President of the Governorate also signed the postcard.
The Foundation’s choir performed the Missa Papae Marcelli.

Among those in attendance were Cardinals Dominique Mamberti, Prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura and honorary President of the Domenico Bartolucci Foundation, Mario Grech, Secretary General of the General Secretariat of the Synod, Fabio Baggio, Under-Secretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, and Walter Brandmüller, former President of the Pontifical Committee for Historical Sciences. Along with the Cardinals, also present were Archbishop Emilio Nappa, Secretary General of the Governorate, Dr. Franco Biciocchi, President of the Foundation, Antonino Intersimone, Director of Telecommunications and Information Systems of the Governorate and Rev. Felice Bruno, Head of the Postal and Philatelic Service of the same Directorate.

Below we publish the greeting address to the Pope given by Sr. Raffaella Petrini:

I extend heartfelt and cordial thanks to His Holiness Pope Leo XIV who has honored us with his presence at this event. On behalf of the entire Governorate, I renew our expression of affection and filial devotion.
I greet Cardinal Dominique Mamberti, Prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura and honorary President of the Domenico Bartolucci Foundation, the members of the Foundation and all of you gathered here today.

Prince of music, genius of polyphony, the most important Italian composer of the sixteenth century.

This is how Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina—born in 1525 and died in Rome in 1594—has been described.

The Governorate of Vatican City State welcomed the proposal of the Domenico Bartolucci Foundation and wished to offer a tribute to the great composer by dedicating a commemorative philatelic issue to him on the 500th anniversary of his birth.

In addition to the postage stamp presented today, a musical CD was also produced, recorded especially for the occasion by the Foundation’s choir, to whom I express my sincere gratitude for their invaluable collaboration.

The commemorative philatelic issue is presented in an elegant package—with a special edition of 3,000 copies—containing the stamp and the CD. It features a previously unreleased recording of the Missa Papae Marcelli and other select compositions. On the cover of the package is a portrait of Pope Marcellus II, to whom the Mass composition is dedicated, taken from the collections of the Vatican Museums. Inside are a portrait of the great composer and a detail of the page containing the incipit of the Missa Papae Marcelli, both from original printed editions of the 17th–18th centuries, conserved in the Vatican Apostolic Library.

As we know, the Anno Pierluigiano opened on January 11, 2025, in the Cathedral Basilica of Palestrina, with a concert by the University of Minnesota Choir and will conclude on November 1 in the same Basilica with a concert by the Lex Pacis Choir of Tokyo.

During the celebrations for the quincentenary, the Postal and Philatelic Service of the Governorate could not fail to dedicate a commemorative stamp to the great composer. The date of issue was May 27. The image of the Prince of Music is the work of contemporary artist, Raúl Berzosa, and includes in the background a painting from the Vatican Pinacoteca titled Musician Angels by Giovan Battista Gaulli, known as il Baciccia (1639–1709); the selection of the images represents the link between faith, art, and music—a bond that transcends the centuries and renews itself in the present, generating harmony and lifting hearts to God, fostering joy and unity, building bridges and involving everyone through “a higher language,” as affirmed also by Pope Francis.

It is intended as a heartfelt tribute to Maestro Cardinal Domenico Bartolucci, himself a distinguished composer and director of the Sistine Chapel Choir, who accompanied the liturgies of the Successors of Peter for nearly fifty years, from Pius XII to Benedict XVI.

Thank you once again to His Holiness, to all of you who accepted our invitation and a very special thank you to the Foundation’s choir, who will perform for us the Missa Papae Marcelli.