Today the building hosts the city’s music academy that has been dedicated to Guido Cantelli, the promising Novara-born music director who died young in a plane crash. The structure dates back to the 17th century, and in the old days it was known as “casone” or “hospital of the Spaniards”. In 1753 the building began a new phase of its existence thanks to the Gallarini family. Antonio Maria was born in a humble family of farmers. He became rich, and in his last will he used part of his enormous fortune to set up a school to educate the young. The institution, which initially was to be built in Sillavengo, a small town a few kilometers away from Novara, was moved to the city after his son Francesco Antonio asked the Vatican for a special permission to change his father’s testament. In 1766 bishop Aurelio Balbis Bertone granted Francesco Antonio permission to use the building for that purpose, and during that same year the structure was enlarged and thoroughly restored. Other intensive restoration works were carried out in the 1830’s and early 1840’s. The building has a square plan with an inner courtyard. The façade is embellished with a tympanum and pilasters.The roof made using glazed tiles as well as the terracotta decorations which have been added to the façades dates back to a period between 1854 and 1905, and were both designed by Ercole Marietti, a local priest with a passion for architecture. Over time these charming elements proved to be fragile, and have been partially removed. A roomy dormitory on the Western side was built in 1880, where today the auditorium is. In 1883 the refectory was enlarged and an extra room was conveniently built next to the rector’s apartment, so that he could keep a close eye on the entryways to the internal courtyards while sit-ting at his desk. Between 1915 and 1920 the Collegio served as military hospital, and in 1945 it hosted the parti-sans of the Italian Resistance Movement, who at the time acted as auxiliary police. After years of abandonment and decay it was re-stored in the 1980s.