Italian composer of madrigals (in the earlier sense) and other vocal works; said to have been also a virtuoso of the harp.

Jacopo da Bologna composed madrigals and motets and gave voice to some theoretical interests ("L'arte del biscanto misurato secondo el maestro Jacopo da Bologna").

Jacopo was a contemporary of Petrarch, was probably acquainted with him on a personal basis and was the first composer to put Petrarch's writing to song.

"Non al suo amante," for example, is the only known arrangement of a text by Petrarch done by a contemporary.

Jacopo served at the Visconti court during the reign of Luchino (1339-49), in the court of Mastino II della Scala (1351), continued with the Visconti court until approximately 1360, and may have survived to work in the Spanish court until 1378 (perhaps 1386), the records to which Jacobo de Bolunga and Jacquet de Bolunya refer.

His early works contained numerous parallel fifths and enunciation of syllables at the same time in the respective voices (though the text may have differed).

The parallel movement occurred in closer intervals: "Aquil'altera" and "Sotto l'imperio" survive in three voice form with the two upper voices moving above the tenor and he employed the sporadic use of imitation.

Interestingly as well was Jacopo's use of the same note for the initial and closing tone giving his works a sense of key-realted structure.