Giovanni Alberto Ristori (1692 - 7 February 1753) was an Italian

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

composer and conductor. He was the son of Tommaso Ristori, the leader of an opera troupe belonging to the King of Poland and

Elector Elector may refer to: * Prince-elector or elector, a member of the electoral college of the Holy Roman Empire, having the function of electing the Holy Roman Emperors * Elector, a member of an electoral college ** Confederate elector, a member of ...

Saxony Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...

August II the Strong Augustus II; german: August der Starke; lt, Augustas II; in Saxony also known as Frederick Augustus I – Friedrich August I (12 May 16701 February 1733), most commonly known as Augustus the Strong, was Elector of Saxony from 1694 as well as Ki ...

(based in

Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label=Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth larg ...

). August II lent his opera troupe to the Russian

Empress Anna Anna Ioannovna (russian: Анна Иоанновна; ), also russified as Anna Ivanovna and sometimes anglicized as Anne, served as regent of the duchy of Courland from 1711 until 1730 and then ruled as Empress of Russia from 1730 to 1740. Much ...

for the celebration of her coronation in Moscow. Ristori died in

. ''

Calandro ''Calandro'' is an ''opera buffa'' in three acts composed by Giovanni Alberto Ristori to a libretto by Stefano Benedetto Pallavicino. The libretto was based on the comedy '' Il Calandro'' by Bernardo Dovizi (Cardinal Bibbiena). In turn, Dovizi's ...

'', his opera in three acts to a

libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...

by Stefano Benedetto Pallavicino, was both the first ''

opera buffa ''Opera buffa'' (; "comic opera", plural: ''opere buffe'') is a genre of opera. It was first used as an informal description of Italian comic operas variously classified by their authors as ''commedia in musica'', ''commedia per musica'', ''dramm ...

'' written in Germany and also the first Italian opera performed in

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

. It was given under his, and his father's direction, with thirteen actors and nine singers including Ludovica Seyfried,

Margherita Ermini Margherita is an Italian feminine given name. It also is a surname. As a word, in Italian it means " daisy". Given name As a name, it may refer to: *Margherita Aldobrandini (1588–1646), Duchess consort of Parma *Margherita de' Medici (1612 ...

and

Rosalia Fantasia Rosalia or Rosalía (with diacritic) may refer to: Persons * Saint Rosalia (1130–1166), the patron saint of Palermo in Italy * Rosalia (given name) * Rosalía (born 1992), Spanish singer Places * 314 Rosalia, an asteroid * Rosalia, Pisidia, ...

, in 1731 in Moscow. In 1916 the German musicologist Curt Rudolf Mengelberg published the first study on Ristori and his music: Curt Rudolf Mengelberg, ''Giovanni Alberto Ristori: ein Beitrag zur Geschichte italienischer Kunstherrschaft in Deutschland im 18. Jahrhundert'' (Leipzig: Breitkopf & Härtel, 1916). Although short on biographical details it is a landmark publication because Mengelberg had access to many Dresden music sources now missing. This applies especially to Ristori’s sacred music; prior to 1945 Ristori’s sacred music was held both in score and parts by the Dresden State Library (today, Dresden State and University Library (SLUB)). Copies of Ristori's sacred music have been found in Czech and Polish music libraries. The Icelandic independent musicologist Jóhannes Ágústsson’s article "Giovanni Alberto Ristori at the Court of Naples 1738-1740" (Studi pergolesiani – Pergolesi studies 8, eds C. Bacciagaluppi, H.-G. Ottenberg and L. Zoppelli, Bern, Peter Lang, 2012, pp. 53–100), introduced many new biographical details about the Italian composer including previously unknown information about Ristori’s role as the royal music teacher of the Saxon princess Maria Amalia (1724-1760), later Queen of the Two Sicilies and Queen of Spain. Some of Ristori’s have been released on CD.

Works, editions, and selected recordings

Discography * Cantatas for Soprano and Oboe concerto. María Savastano (soprano), Jon Olaberria (oboe), Ensemble Diderot,

Johannes Pramsohler Johannes Pramsohler is a violinist, conductor and record producer, specialised in Historically informed performance, currently based in Paris. Biography Johannes Pramsohler was born 5 April 1980 in Sterzing in the autonomous Italian province of ...

(Audax Records 2017) * Missa - on ''Weihnachten am Dresdner Hof'' Kopp (Carus) *

- Batzdorfer Hofkapelle (KammerTon, 2005) * Divoti Affetti alla Passione di Nostro Signore. Echo du Danube (Accent, 2011) * Canto Divoti Affetti on ''La Voce Virtuosa: Lute and the Saxon Vocal Tradition'' PGM 106"Io vorrei saper, d'amore" by Johann David Heinichen Cantata: "La bella fiammo o Tirsi" by Johann David Heinichen "Lascia che nei suo viso" by Lotti "Felice io me n'andro di Giove" by Fux Allemande in F minor by Weiss Tamara Crout Matthews (soprano), Jennifer Lane (mezzo-soprano), Jorgan-Michael Schwarz and Karen Marmer (violins), Loretta O'Sullivan (cello),

Timothy Burris Timothy Allen Burris is an American lutenist. He studied under Toyohiko Satoh at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague, graduating in 1988. From 1990 to 1996, Timothy Burris was lute instructor at thRoyal Flemish Conservatory in Antwerp, Belgium ...

(lute & theorbo),

Eric Milnes Eric Milnes (born May 7, 1959) is an American harpsichordist, organist and conductor, especially in the field of Baroque music. He began a series of recordings of all Bach cantatas with singers performing one voice per part and the Montreal Bar ...

(organ & harpsichord) Includes the world-premiere recording of Ristori's "Canto Divoti Affetti" which was presumed until early 1995 to have been destroyed during the World War II bombings of Dresden.

References

External links

*
Giovanni Alberto Ristori
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ristori, Giovanni Alberto Italian Baroque composers Italian male classical composers Italian opera composers Male opera composers 1692 births 1753 deaths 18th-century Italian composers 18th-century Italian male musicians