Un portal on escoltar i gaudir de l'art musical dels segles XVI, XVII, XVIII i XIX. Compartir la bellesa de la música és l'objectiu d'aquest espai i fer-ho donant a conèixer obres de compositors molt o poc coneguts és el mètode.
Croatian composer and violinist. The son of a Venetian nobleman, he
received his education in Padua, where he studied under Giuseppe Tartini
and Antonio Sberti. Sometime between 1758 and 1763 he moved to
Sanguinetto, a town near Verona, where he accepted the position of
vicario. Also there, he wrote his treatise, Trattato di musica, as well
as taught pupils. Due to his family connections, he had little need to
find employment, and thus he could concentrate on his own theories and
musical composition. His works still need a thorough study and include
35 symphonies, 61 violin concertos, 15 violin duos, 170 violin sonatas,
six string quartets, and 50 trios, as well as a number of smaller
chamber works. His finest compositions are his concertos for the violin,
which are strongly influenced by Tartini, and his six string quartets.
His brother Symeon Filippos Stratigos (1733-1824) was a prominent
physician, educator and scientist known to Goldoni and Voltaire.
Polish composer and violinist. Nothing is known about his early years.
He was a member of the musical establishment of the Paulite Fathers at
Jasna Góra in Częstochowa, in which he was active during 1748-65 and
around 1780 as composer, violinist, bass vocalist and teacher. The work
of the composer which has come down to us represents a richer output, of
which the greatest part is kept in the archives of the Paulite Fathers
at Jasna Góra in Częstochowa: thirty entries under twenty one catalogue
numbers. Moreover, fragments of Żebrowski's work are to be found in the
collections of the following chapel music establishments: the parish
musical establishment in Szalowa and the musical establishment of the
Dominican Fathers in Gidle. In respect of the volume of preserved works
Żebrowski belongs thus among the foremost l8th century Polish composers
known today. This applies not only to vocal-instrumental, but also to
purely instrumental music: his Sonatae pro processione are an
exceptionally valuable part of the heritage of Polish instrumental music
of the pre-classical period. Among the vocal-instrumental works, which
form the main current of Żebrowski's output, his Mass compositions
deserve particular attention. At present there are five known
manuscripts containing his Masses, out of which four, kept at Jasna
Góra, are complete, and one - belonging to the collection of the parish
musical establishment in Szalowa - incomplete. All the Jasna Góra
manuscripts have been preserved in very good condition. These are: Missa
ex D, Missa Pastoralis, Missa Pastoritia, Missa in B. These
compositions were still part of the repertoire of the Kapelle in 1819.
Comparing Żebrowski's work with the preserved output of other
contemporary composers we can see that he is superior to them in his
mastery of compository technique, and above all in inventiveness and
creativity in shaping the melodic line.
Austro-Hungarian composer. After studying violin and other instruments
as a child, he was in the service of Baron Skrbenský in Hoštálkovy
(c.1762-67) and Count Ignâc Dominik Chronský in Velké Hoštice (1767-77).
After further training in Vienna in 1773, he was music director at
Olomouc Cathedral from 1778 in a position he held the rest of his life.
Apart from his duties in the cathedral, he took part in the musical
academies which Archbishop Colloredo organized in his palace, and he
continued to keep up his musical contacts with his former employer,
Count Chorinský. He composed both secular and sacred music, of which his
instrumental works are in an early Classical style with Rococo traits.
His dramatic works and cantatas are known only through the printed
librettos. Among his works were 7 symphonies (4 for use as graduais), 5
serenades, a Violin Concerto, a Viola Concerto, an harpsichord concerto,
4 partitas for Winds, a Requiem, a Te Deum, and other sacred pieces.
Irish composer and pianist. Son of a professional violinist, Robert
Field, and Grace Field (née Marsh). It was from his grandfather, the
organist John Field, that he received his first instruction in music. At
the age of 9 he began study with Tommaso Giordani, making his debut in
Dublin on March 24, 1792. He went to London in 1793, and gave his first
concert there that same year. He then had lessons with Muzio Clementi,
and was also employed in the salesrooms of Clementi's music
establishment. He began his concert career in earnest with a notable
series of successful appearances in London in 1800-01. He then
accompanied Clementi on his major tour of the Continent, beginning in
1802. After visiting Paris in 1802, they proceeded to St. Petersburg in
1803; there Field settled as a performer and teacher, giving his debut
performance in 1804. He made many concert tours in Russia. Stricken with
cancer of the rectum, he returned to London in 1831 for medical
treatment. He performed his piano concerto in E-flat major at a
Philharmonic Society concert there on February 27, 1832. Later that year
he played in Paris, and then subsequently toured various cities in
France, Belgium, Switzerland, and Italy until his health compelled him
to abandon his active career. He eventually returned to Moscow, where he
died. Field's historical position as a composer is of importance, even
though his music does not reveal a great original talent. He developed
the free fantasias and piano recitative, while following the basic
precepts of Classical music; he was the originator of the Nocturne and
of the style of pianism regarded as ‘Chopinesque’. He composed 7
concertos (1799, 1814, 1816, 1816, 1817, 1819 [rev. 1820], 1822), 4
sonatas (1801, 1801, 1801, 1813), about 30 nocturnes (1812-36?),
polonaises, etc., as well as a quintet for piano and strings (1816) and 2
divertimenti for piano, strings, and flute (c.1810-11).
Bohemian composer. His parents were servants of the Counts of Morzin. He
also started to work for them as a musician. In 1724 Count Václav
Morzin sent him to Venice in order to improve his musical skills. His
teacher there was probably Antonio Vivaldi since the Count Václav Morzin
was financially supporting Vivaldi (the famous Four Seasons concertos
were dedicated to him). In 1726 he came back to Prague where he worked
as a violinist in the Prague ensemble of Václav Morzin. After the death
of his patron in 1737 he left Prague and settled in Dresden, where he
was employed by Heinrich von Brühl. After the death of Heinrich Brühl in
1763 he remained in Dresden the rest of his life. As a composer, he
wrote instrumental music (sonatas, concertos and symphonies) all of them
strongly influenced by Vivaldi's musical style.
François-Joseph Krafft (1721-1795)
- Levavi oculos meos in montes (1766)
Performers: Grеta De Rеyghеrе (soprano); Mаrniz De Cаt (counter-tenor);
Jan Cааls (tenor); Dirk Snеllings (bass); Dominique Van Sаnde
(mezzo-soprano);
Il Fondamеnto; La Sfеra del canto; Paul Dombrеcht (conductor)
Flemish organist, conductor and composer, son of the engraver and music
publisher Jean-Laurent Krafft (1694-1768) and Marie Aubersin. He was
born in a Flemish family of composers and musicians of German descent.
His cousin François Krafft (1733-c.1790) was an harpsichordist and
composer active in Brussels, Liège and Germany. He was probably trained
by his father and during his youth as a chorister at the Ghent
cathedral. He may also have attended one of the Naples conservatories,
where his teachers included Francesco Durante and where it is claimed
that he won a prize for the motet In convertendo Dominus. When he came
back to Brussels, he probably served as organist at one of the churches
there until he was appointed, on 7 April 1769, music director of St Baaf
Cathedral in Ghent, a position he held until his resignation on 23
August 1794. He retired about a year before his death. His music has
been little studied but includes five Masses, a Requiem, 14 Psalms, a
Magnificat, 11 motets and instrumental music and often is mixed up by
the music of his cousin François Krafft since both of them signed his
works as a François (Francesco) Krafft.
Italian composer active in Naples. Almost nothing is known about him.
The only post it is known is as musician of the Teatro di San Carlo
orchestra and of the Reale Cappella, both in Naples. Even almost nothing
of his life and career is knwon, his output is well preserved. It was
mainly focused on sacred music, among them, several masses, cantatas,
psalms and other small sacred pieces. He also wrote an extense
collection of '16 Sonate per Flauto Traverso Solo, e Basso' (c.1800) one
of which, in manuscript, also appears in a version for bassoon.
German composer. He belonged to a widely ramified family of musicians
that originally came from the Allgäu. Judas Thaddäus Schnell
(c.1550-1619) was a south German choir director and church composer and
his father Bernhard Schnell (fl. 1704) was footman in the service of the
music-loving count Rudolf Franz Erwein von Schönborn [de] in
Wiesentheid. In 1714 he became oboist and violinist at the court of
Bamberg. In July 1727 he was appointed court and chamber music director
by the Bamberg prince-bishop Lothar Franz von Schönborn. Between 1734
and 1753 Schnell also appeared as a publisher of sacred music by other
composers. As a composer, he wrote sacred music, among them, Missae
neo-editae a vocibus 4. C. A. T. B. ... opus I (1729) and Vesperæ breves
duæ de dominica alteræ de B: V: Maria. ... opus XIII (1736), a set of 6
Concerta commode tractabila ... opus III (1731) and chamber music. His
music is fresh and inventive.
German lutenist and composer. Almost nothing is known about his life. He
probably was born in Breslau, the main city in Silesia region. Some of
the foremost lutenists in Europe were born there as well, among others,
Johann Jacob Weiss, Johann Sigismund Weiss, Silvius Leopold Weiss,
Esaias Reusner, Philipp Franz Le Sage de Richée, Ernst Gottlieb Baron,
Johann Kropffgans and Rudolf Straube. He probably received music lessons
by some of them before tooking over a post of lutenist and chamber
music at the court of Frédéric II of Saxe-Gotha in 1725. Unfortunately,
two years later, on 27 March 1727 he died at the age of 39 following a
fall from a horse. After his dead, Ernst Gottlieb Baron replaced him at
the court.
Italian composer active in Germany. Son of the organist Vinzenco Paolo
Grua (1657-1732) and nephew of Carlo Luigi Pietragrua (c.1665-1726),
almost nothing is known about his early years but he probably received
music lessons from his father through whom he joined the Mannheim
orchestra. Afterwards, he took over a Kapellmeister post in Mannheim
(1734), a position he held until his death. His role in Mannheim was
mainly focused on directing the city church music. However, he wrote at
least two operas; Meride, produced for the marriage of the future
elector Carl Theodor, and La clemenza di Tito, performed on the birthday
of the elector's wife on 17 January 1748. His style reflects the
Italianate Neapolitan and Lombardic models of his youth. Surviving works
include the two operas mentioned, seven oratorios, five Masses, a
litany and several smaller sacred works. His son Paul Grua (1753-1833)
was also composer active in Mannheim and Munich.
Austrian (?) composer and mandolinist active in Vienna. Almost nothing
is known about his life. The first reference by him is documented in
Vienna around 1800 as 'instrumentalist'. It is said he is reputed to
have wielded great influence in the development of rococo mandolin
playing, shortlived as it was. It is presumed that "Giovanni" is an
Italianization of the name "Johann". As a composer, he wrote several
chamber works and a mandolin concerto preserved at the Bibliothek der
Musikfreunde of Vienna and beneath the attractiveness of the solo
instrument lies a work that is remarkable for its thematic graciousness
and style. All his works were published in Vienna.
Spanish violinist and composer. Son of José Oliver and María Antonia
Astorga, he received early musical lessons at Iglesia Vieja in Yecla. He
later settled in Valencia before traveling to Naples. In 1760 he went
to Frankfurt am Main where he is mentioned as a musician in a concert on
18 April 1765. By 1767 he probably was living in London where he worked
under the patronage of Willoughby Bertie, 4th Earl of Abingdon. Also
there he published his first works, a set of Six sonates à violon et
basse, op.1 (1767), Twelve Italian Songs and Duets for Voice and
Harpsichord with Accompagnement for a Guittar, op.2 (1768) and Six
Sonatas for Two German Flutes or Two Violins and a Bass, op.3 (1769). In
his return to Spain, he assumed a post of violinist to the royal chapel
of Madrid in 1776. In 1789 he was appointed conductor of the Teatro de
los Caños del Peral in Madrid but Charles IV prevented him from taking
up this post, wishing him to remain exclusively in his own service in
the royal chapel. As a composer, his instrumental music is in the galant
style typical of the period. At the age of 97 he died at his home in
Cava Alta in Madrid.
Austrian composer, pianist and scholar. His father, David Neukomm
(1749-1805), was a schoolmaster and teacher in a teacher training
college; his mother, Cordula (née Rieder, 1753-1814), who was related to
Michael Haydn, was a singer in the service of the Archbishop of
Salzburg. He began his musical studies when he was 7, with Franz Xaver
Weissauer, the Salzburg Cathedral organist, then studied theory with
Michael Haydn. He also took courses in philosophy and mathematics at the
University there, being made honorary organist of the University church
(c.1792) and chorus master of the court theater (1796). He continued
his studies in Vienna with Joseph Haydn (1797-1804), after which he was
active as a teacher. After serving as conductor of the German Theater in
St. Petersburg (1804-08), he went to Paris, where he befriended
Cherubini, Gossec, Gretry, Monsigny, and other prominent musicians. He
was pianist to Prince Talleyrand, in which capacity he went to the
Congress of Vienna (1814), where his Requiem in C minor in memory of
Louis XVI was given (Jan. 21, 1815); that same year he was ennobled by
Louis XVII and was made Chevalier of the Legion d'honneur. He was taken
to Rio de Janeiro by the Duke of Luxembourg (1816), and became active at
the court of John VI of Portugal; after the outbreak of the revolution
(1821), he accompanied John VI to Lisbon, and then returned to Paris.
After again serving Talleyrand, he traveled widely (from 1826); visited
England in 1829, and thereafter made frequent trips between London and
Paris. Many of his articles appeared in the Revue et Gazette Musicak de
Paris. His autobiography was published as Esquisses biographiques de
Sigismond Neukomm (Paris, 1859). A prolific composer, he produced over
1300 works. These all demonstrate the solid Classical stylistic
foundations that characterized his later compositions. His music,
however, is best considered as part of the Classical trends of the 19th
century. Elisabeth Neukomm (1789-1816), his sister, gained fame in
Vienna as a soprano. One of his nephews, Edmond Neukomm (1840-1903), was
a French writer on music.
Italian composer. His death certificate gives his age as 64, which would indicate that he was born in about 1698, but information in a letter of 7 October 1764 from Domenico Palafuti to G.B. Martini suggests that the real date of birth could be 9 July 1697; however, Michael Talbot's discovery in Venice of a document mentioning Platti as belonging to the arte dei sonadori at the beginning of 1711 means that he cannot have been born later than 1692. Little is known about him before 1722, but in Venice his teachers might have included Francesco Gasparini, Albinoni, Vivaldi, Lotti, Alessandro Marcello or Benedetto Marcello. His father Carlo Platti (c.1661 - after 1727), a violetta player in the orchestra of the basilica of S Marco, may also have taught him. According to Palafuti in his letter to Martini, Platti travelled to Siena before 1722 and encountered Cristofori's recent invention, the ‘cembalo a martelletti’, but this is not backed up by any other evidence. It would, however, explain the harmony, style and technique of some of his harpsichord sonatas. In 1722 he went to Würzburg with a group of musicians under the direction of Fortunato Chelleri. There he entered the service of the court of the Prince-Archbishop of Bamberg and Würzburg, Johann Philipp Franz von Schönborn. On 4 February 1723 he married Maria Theresia Lambrucker, a soprano serving at the court. They had eight children, some of whom were musicians, but no music attributable to them has survived. Platti's position at the Würzburg court was as a kind of factotum: he was a singer, he played various instruments, including the violin, the cello, the oboe, the flute and the harpsichord, he performed and he composed. Three letters, only one of which is in Platti's hand, have survived at Würzburg, but they add nothing to our knowledge of his time in Germany. He met the artist Giambattista Tiepolo, who was in Würzburg between 12 December 1750 and 8 November 1753 to decorate the Residenz with frescoes, one of which includes the only known portrait of Platti. Platti continued to work at the Würzburg court until his death.
His surviving output is not very substantial in comparison with that of his contemporaries. It displays two constant characteristics: an exceptional sense of structure and, even in the least inventive pieces, a lively, elegant manner. He made use of both Baroque and pre-Classical forms, almost completely bypassing the galant style. Some of his pieces, including the op.1 harpsichord sonatas and the masses, employ the Baroque fortspinnung technique, while others, for example the Miserere, are more Classical in outlook, with a richer harmonic content. Some of his cello concertos, which can stand beside the best by Boccherini, are also in a more Classical vein, as is the Requiem, which was probably written on the death of one of the Schönborn prince-archbishops (possibly in 1754) and can be considered a masterpiece. The handling of vocal and instrumental resources is remarkable, and Platti's sensitivity is evident in the melodic writing, for example at the beginning of the Lacrimosa and in the soprano solo of the Benedictus. Some of his harpsichord sonatas and concertos not only constitute contributions to the developing sonata form but also convey a richness and inspiration that looks forward to the pre-Romantic age; rhythmically restless, the music races towards the final chord through ever-changing modulations. Platti seems to have been aware of the possibilities offered by the nascent pianoforte, for some of his pieces include passages in which the range of the keyboard is extended, and some of his adagio movements appear to have been conceived for an instrument that can vary its dynamics or that responds to a sensitive touch. The harpsichord concertos mark the transition from the Baroque to the Classical concerto. In nos.3, 4 and 5 the harpsichord plays a concertante role, and the structure of the Allegro is tutti–solo–tutti–solo–tutti. Nos.6 to 9, however, abandon this form: the strings move from a sustaining role to one where they are in dialogue with the harpsichord, which now has a genuine solo role, taking up and developing the themes announced by the orchestra.
German composer. Neither his date of birth nor that of his death is
known. We know only that he came from Hessen, lived in Zurich from the
mid- 1780s until 1799, and thereafter departed for St Petersburg. Of his
further career, nothing is known at all. He was somehow related on odd
terms with Philipp Christoph Kayser in Zurich. David Hess, a member of
Kayser’s masonic lodge and a friend of both men, wrote that ‘[Brünings
was] just as excellent an eccentric as our brother Kayser. . . These two
men, so similar in nature, never came together, although they lived for
ten years in the same place. Far removed from any petty tradesman’s
jealousy, they spoke with great respect of each other, but neither
wished to take steps that would have led to closer relations with the
other. And so they remained apart who could have done so much together.
Neither of these excellent musicians ever even heard the other play.’ As
a composer, only three opus numbers are known to have survived: 3 piano
sonatas op. 1; 3 piano sonatinas op. 2; and 3 piano trios op. 3.
Brünings is of importance to the history of music in Zurich since he was
the teacher of Hans Georg Nägeli, the Zurich pedagogue and music
publisher. It was also Nägeli who published Brünings’ sonatas.
English composer, organist, theorist and painter. He was an exceptional
child prodigy and became one of the most distinguished English musicians
of his day. He was the youngest son of Michael Crotch, a master
carpenter, and his wife Isabella. In his teens he attended Oxford
University, where he obtained a B.A. degree. His first oratorio (set
twice during his life), The Captivity of Judah, was performed at Oxford
successfully in 1789, and by 1797 he was awarded a professorship in
music at the university, receiving his doctorate two years later. From
1793 he began deputizing for the professor of music, Philip Hayes, as
the conductor of the Music Room concerts, which he continued to direct
until 1806. In 1806-07 he withdrew from Oxford, resigning his
organistships, and settled in London. In London he became well known as a
teacher, composer and scholar. Between 1812 and 1823 he gave courses
annually at the Surrey Institution and during the 1820s at the Royal
Institution and London Institution. On the establishment of the Royal
Academy of Music in 1822 Crotch was appointed its principal. He resigned
the principalship on 21 June 1832. He was also well known for his
paintings during the early part of the 19th century. His music written
prior to 1800 consists of the aforementioned oratorio, as well as two
symphonies, an organ concerto, and several anthems. During his later
years he continued to write sacred music but also turned toward the
catch and glee. The evidence of Crotch’s precocity is incontestable,
being based in part on contemporary printed accounts in many sources,
including those of such qualified observers as Barrington and Burney.
The fact that Crotch’s ultimate achievement as a composer hardly lived
up to this promise may perhaps be put down to the psychological damage
he suffered as a child. Crotch himself later confessed: ‘I look back on
this part of my life with pain and humiliation … I was becoming a spoilt
child and in danger of becoming what too many of my musical brethren
have become under similar circumstances and unfortunately remained
through life’.
German composer. Although little is known about his youth, Gluck
reported that he came from a musical family; his father, a forester, was
adept at various instruments. In 1731 he attended Prague University
studying logic and mathematics before moving to Italy to study music
under Giovanni Battista Sammartini in Milan. His first opera, Artaserse,
was performed there in 1741, followed by Demetrio in Venice a year
later. Thereafter, he composed works throughout Italy before moving to
London in 1746. Despite disparaging remarks by George Frederick Handel,
he achieved some success there, and joined the Mingotti troupe as their
Kapellmeister. He toured with them for several years until 1750, when he
married the daughter of a wealthy Viennese merchant, thus allowing him
economic stability. He then began to write operas for both Prague and
Vienna, the latter beginning in 1754 with Le cinesi. In 1756 he was
invested as a Knight of the Golden Spur by Pope Benedict XIV, thus
allowing himself to be known by the title Chevalier von Gluck. By 1758
he had turned toward the opéra comique, beginning with La fausse
esclave. During this period he also became acquainted with the director
of the opera, Count Giacomo Durazzo, choreographers Gasparo Angiolini
and Franz Hilverding, as well as librettist Raniero Calzabigi.
Discussions on the dramatic ballet led to the 1761 premiere of Don Juan,
followed the next year by the opera Orfeo ed Euridice, leading to an
important work, Alceste, of 1767, which contains a seminal preface
describing the concept of opera reform. In 1774 Gluck was called to
Paris around the same time as he was named hofKapellmeister in Vienna.
Here he produced a series of operas ranging from French revisions of his
Viennese works to original pieces such as Iphigénie en Aulide and
Armide. This led to the revival of the French opera, as well as a
controversy when the Théâtre Italien brought Neapolitan composer Niccolò
Piccinni to Paris to foment a rivalry similar to the Querelle des
bouffons two decades earlier. In 1779 Gluck returned to Vienna following
a stroke that occurred during his final opera, Écho et Narcisse. A
German opera, Hunnenschlacht, remained fragmentary, and a further
Parisian commission, Les Danïades, was given over to Gluck’s pupil
Antonio Salieri. Gluck wrote over 50 operas, ranging from opera seria to
opéra comique, as well as numerous additions to pasticcios, at least 40
ballets, ranging from divertissements to ballets d’action, 12 Lieder,
nine symphonies, eight trio sonatas, four Psalms/sacred works, and a
number of miscellaneous works. Gluck can be considered a seminal figure
in the development and reform of opera in the Classical period. His
influence ranged from Italy to Scandinavia and from Russia to France;
moreover, he wrote in virtually all of the styles of opera of the
period, as well as being a major contributor to the development of the
18th-century ballet. Of particular note is his ability to orchestrate
his operas, using timbre effectively to create dramatic moments. His
works bear Wq (Wotquenne) numbers.
German composer. From 1712 he attended at the University of
Innsbruck. In 1714 he was mentioned as organist at St. Jakob and on 9
Sep 1715 he was assigned to the court organist position (in the same
year he became oficial organist to St. Jakob). In 1717 he was appointed
court organist, but his application for the succession J. J. Grebers was
unsuccessful. In 1724, applied for a position in the Court Chancellery
and, as a representative of B. d'Aprile, received the title of Director
of Court Music. In 1748, the last four court musicians were relieved of
their service, so that he was dependent on his position in the court
chancellery. With the establishment of an Austrian law firm in Freiburg.
In 1753 he moved to this city, in which he was no longer active as a
musician. His one surviving publication, Alauda coelestis (Augsburg,
1750), contains six masses which are typical of much church music being
published in the mid-18th century, when such music was becoming rather
more elaborate than had been usual in the 1720s and 30s. There are also
some manuscsript instrumental pieces, some of them scored with the
participation of unusual instruments like hurdy-gurdy or jew’s harp as
the middle part of the score.
