The office of the Choir                                                                     inside

The office of the Choir is located in   the historical center of Matera, in  Piazza del Sedile n° 3.  

Piazza del Sedile, center of the "Sedile" (that is the Communal Parliament) from 1540 to 1944, has been widened between the 1500's and the 1600's with the destruction of   houses and shops occupants the  zone, becoming therefore the political and trade of the city, that began to extend beyond the old town-walls. In the new rectangular square the Municipal palace - today center of the Conservatory “Egidio R. Dunes” - occupated the minor side, while to greater sides were located on a side the laboratories of painters and silversmiths and a inn, on the other side, instead, the Jails (local to flat earth were located - of which one it is the one currently used from the Choir) and the center of the Governor, than from 1663 has become center of the Regia Udienza della Basilicata. In 1575 the "Sedile" has been restructured and widened, in the 1759 has restructured the facade, on which has been opened an arc.

On the square we can see the palaces belonged to some ancient noble families, as Alvino - Cipolla, Firrao - Giudicepietro, Bronzini and Ridola.  The unit used as center of the Choir was, as already said, one of those used for the Jails. Measure approximately m² 50 and introduces the typical structure with "volta a botte" very frequent in the houses of the “Sassi”, and a deep “niche” used as a comfortable wall-closet.  It has been already office of  the “old” Polifonica Materana, in 1940's, and from that period we still have two paintings: a wood panel representing horses in race, made by the artist Giuseppe Mitarotonda, and a painting on the wall made by the Arch. Lorenzo Rota. After suspension of the choral activity, the office has been used as bookcase, and only in 1999 the Choir, than meantime had carried out the activity using the neighbor church of Saint Francisco D' Assisi - where moreover it has lend liturgical service from 1990 to 1998, has been able to re-enter in the use of the office.

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