In 1975 Italy issued a single stamp to commemorate the 450th anniversary of the birth of the musician Pierluigi da Palestrina. Scott 1195 describes him as a "composer of sacred music." Indeed he was. His influence of musical art cannot be overestimated. The stamp shows the composer with a book of music, and his dates (died 1594). the postmark is text plus a posthorn. The cachet on my cover shows a portrait of the composer along with a representation of an organ: two keyboards (with many, many notes!) and a row of pipes. Palestrina's career carried him around Italy with stints at the Vatican in Rome. He is known for his sacred choral and instrumental works more than his secular pieces, but all of it demonstrates his mastery of polyphony and counterpoint.
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