Oratory of St Philip Neri by Borromini

Map

Oratorio dei Filippini (Oratory of St Philip Neri)

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The Oratorio dei Filippini (Oratory of St Philip Neri) was built between 1637 and 1650 by the architect Francesco Borromini (1599-1667). The Oratory stands next to Santa Maria in Vallicella, better known as the Chiesa Nuova, the mother church of the Oratorians. 

The Oratory's brick facade, with its shallow concavity and quirky window designs, is quintessential Borromini.  

Set up by St Philip Neri (1515-95), a Florentine who came to be known as the 'Third Apostle of Rome', the Oratorians held gatherings for both religious and lay participants in which music and song played a major role. The Oratory, the venue for such performances, not only gave Neri's Order its name but also lent its name to a later form of musical composition, the oratorio. 

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Oratorio dei Filippini & Chiesa Nuova