Giovanni Benedetto Platti (1697-1763) - Concerto (A-Dur). | co V.|n|o conc:
VV.|n|i V.|l|a e Basso | 5. St.[immen] (c.1730)
Performers: Sergei Filchenko (violin); Pratum Integrum
Further info: Giovanni Benedetto Platti - Antologia
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Italian composer. Almost nothing 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. While he was still in
Italy (until 1722), he probably saw the recently invented fortepiano
and a few of his keyboard solo sonatas and concertos might have been
composed for it instead of the harpsichord but this point is debatable.
In the chamber works (duets and trios) the harpsichord is clearly the
instrument required. No "piano" or "forte" indications are on Platti's
keyboard parts in his concertos for harpsichord and strings, though.
Also, the extension of at least one of these concertos asks for a D that
is beyond Cristofori's instrument's compass (4 octaves CC to c4). In
1722, he was called to Würzburg to work for the prince-bishop of Bamberg
and Würzburg, Johann Philipp Franz von Schönborn. There he married
Theresia Langprückner, a soprano singer with whom he had at least two
children. Platti spent the rest of his life in Würzburg, working as a
singer, instrument virtuoso, composer and conductor. His duties included
finding musicians for the court , as one can read in one of his
autograph letters that are available. His music consists of three
Masses, a Requiem, a Stabat mater, three cantatas, an offertory, 48
concertos (many lost), 22 trio sonatas, and 20 keyboard sonatas.
