«Questa nova Angioletta, non saprei se più bella o più canora». Angela Pontini virtuosa di musica di monsignor Lorenzo Corsi a Roma (1629-1633)

Based primarily on first-hand documents, the article focuses on the neglected singer Angela Pontini, during the few years of her service with mons. Lorenzo Corsi in Rome (1629-1633). Starting from the identification (the identity of the singer is hidden in documents behind the encryption ‘100’) and a biographical reconstruction, the article offers a detailed perspective that places the singer in relation to the context and social cultural networks. In a ‘push and pull’ to enjoy her musical virtues, and among several instances, the singer’s private life and wedding negotiations are linked to her career opportunities. The observation concerns the sphere of patronage and protection as well as the methods and areas of musical training, the teachers, and strategies of promotion / limitation of Angela Pontini’s career and life. Thanks to the nature and contents of the documents, it is also possible to outline, in the background, both the picture of an unexpected Roman musical daily-life outside the ‘larger’ palaces of Roman aristocracy, and the deep interconnections between many networks and the different musical spaces of the papal city.