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The adventure begins in Venice at the beginning of the 16th century, when a family of musicians originating from Bassano, a small nearby town, established itself there. The probable reason for their move? The Bassanos were of Jewish descent, and the town of Bassano most likely expelled them. They found in Venice a city more tolerant, for the moment. The first document mentioning a musician by the name of Bassano comes from the archives of the Scuola di San Marco, concerning a procession in which “Ser Alvise da Bassan di maestro Jeronimo” figured as trumpeter or cornettist: Alvise de Bassano, son of Jeronimo, for whom other documents attest his existence as member of the Doge’s band of piffari. To give the details of Alvise’s career in Venice, and later Bologna, would take us too far afield, but for those interested in the lives of the Bassanos, we mention a basic work which has been most valuable to us in the preparation of this article: The Bassanos, Venetian Musicians and Instrument Makers in England, 1531–1665, by David Lasocki and Roger Prior, published by Scholar Press.
In the 1520s, Alvise seems to have made a trip to England as a player of the sackbut. In fact, the documents concerning the musicians at the court of Henry VIII mention, in addition to the four (!) English musicians stemming from the court orchestra (which had sunk quite low since it had been left to Henry by his father) six newly arrived Italians, among the names of which one finds “Alvisy de Blasia.” If the transcription of Alvise for Alvisy seems obvious, what can “Blasia” mean? There are various opinions: perhaps it can be traced to San Biasio, one of the churches in Venice? Whatever the case may be, what is certain is that Alvise returned to Venice in 1528. In 1531, he went back to England, this time with three of his brothers, Jasper, John, and Anthony, all in the musical service of Henry VIII. They returned to Venice in 1536. Then, in 1537, another brother, Baptista, left for England. This brother is even more interesting, since he is the future father of... Emilia. The fascinating quadrille continued, with the departure for London in 1538 of Anthony, followed by Jacomo, another brother, as instrument maker / wine importer!
To say the least, the Bassano family was not put off by traveling! What also seems evident is that the talent of the six sons of Jeronimo (in order of birth, Jacomo, Alvise, Jasper, John, Anthony, and Baptista), as instrumentalists and makers of wind instruments, was recognized not only in Venice but also in London. In the years 1535–1540, Henry VIII decided to improve the musical staff at his court, and he charged his Venetian agent, Edmond Harvel, to recruit the Bassano brothers. The Bassanos demanded substantial guarantees, for in order to leave Venice, they were required to obtain the authorization of the Doge and would lose their employment there. Even more important, the Bassanos were of Jewish origin, which meant that they ran certain risks in the contemporary political climate of London, even if Henry VIII, who had broken definitively with Rome, sought their goodwill.
The negotiations were successful, and at the end of 1539, Alvise, John, Baptista, and Jasper, along with their respective families, made a definitive departure from Venice for England, rejoining Anthony there. (Jacomo had returned to Italy on the death of his father, Jeronimo, probably to take over his business as instrument maker). Here we are unable to follow their adventure: for this one should consult the book mentioned above. In three generations, the Bassanos—musicians, jurists, and merchants— became, through a few solid alliances, one of the more respectable families of the English “gentry,” endowed with a family crest and several properties.
And now, finally, to our female character, Emilia. (This preamble was necessary to introduce our character and understand her personality.)
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