In around 1580, Rome's most important musicians joined forces in the Compagnia dei Musici di Roma under the patronage of the Pope. This composition, a twelve-part mass for Cecilia, the patron saint of church music and of the Compagnia, is the work of six composers including Stabile, Soriano, Dragoni, Giovanelli, Santini, Mancini. A Palestrina motet for St. Cecilia was taken as a theme which each composer was invited to elaborate as part of the Mass. With so many collaborators keen to demonstrate their compositional prowess, the result is a magnificent example of Renaissance vocal music.