Pietro Domenico Paradies (also Pietro Domenico Paradisi) (170725 August 1791) was an Italian

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

harpsichordist A harpsichordist is a person who plays the harpsichord. Harpsichordists may play as soloists, as accompanists, as chamber musicians, or as members of an orchestra, or some combination of these roles. Solo harpsichordists may play unaccompanied son ...

and music teacher, most prominently known for a composition popularly entitled "''Toccata in A''", which is, in other sources, the second movement of his Sonata No. 6. A reviewer of a modern edition of his sonatas, all first edited by the composer, noted in passing "Paradies (never Paradisi, it seems)" suggesting that Paradisi might be a modern adaptation.

Life and work

Paradies was born in

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

. Probably a student of

Nicola Porpora Nicola (or Niccolò) Antonio Porpora (17 August 16863 March 1768) was an Italian composer and teacher of singing of the Baroque era, whose most famous singing students were the castrati Farinelli and Caffarelli. Other students included compose ...

, he dedicated himself at first to composing for the theater. He spent a few years around 1740 in Venice, where he taught and wrote music at the

Ospedali Grandi The four great Venetian Ospedali (Ospedali Grandi, also referred to as the Ospedali Maggiori) - the Ospedale della Pietà, the Ospedale degl'Incurabili, the Ospedale di Santa Maria dei Derelitti, and the Ospedale di San Lazzaro dei Mendicanti - were ...

. There, he composed two semi-dramatic, occasional serenatas, including a serenata in honor of Frederick Christian, the Prince of Saxony and Heir to Poland. In 1746 he moved to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, where he became known as a teacher of harpsichord and singing; among his students was

Gertrud Elisabeth Mara Gertrud Elisabeth Mara (née Schmeling) (23 February 1749 – 20 January 1833) was a German operatic soprano. Life She was born in Kassel, the daughter of a poor musician, Johann Schmeling. From him she learnt to play the violin, and while st ...

, probably around 1750 and possibly

Thomas Linley the elder Thomas Linley (17 January 1733 – 19 November 1795) was an English bass and musician active in Bath, Somerset. Born in Badminton, Gloucestershire, Linley began his musical career after he moved to Bath at age 11 and became apprentice to the o ...

. In 1770 he returned to Italy. He died in

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

Instrumental and vocal music

His reputation is due to his music for the harpsichord, esteemed by music historians. His musical style was influenced by

Alessandro Alessandro is both a given name and a surname, the Italian form of the name Alexander. Notable people with the name include: People with the given name Alessandro * Alessandro Allori (1535–1607), Italian portrait painter * Alessandro Baricco ...

and

Domenico Scarlatti Giuseppe Domenico Scarlatti, also known as Domingo or Doménico Scarlatti (26 October 1685-23 July 1757), was an Italian composer. He is classified primarily as a Baroque composer chronologically, although his music was influential in the deve ...

. Especially celebrated above all were his twelve

sonata Sonata (; Italian: , pl. ''sonate''; from Latin and Italian: ''sonare'' rchaic Italian; replaced in the modern language by ''suonare'' "to sound"), in music, literally means a piece ''played'' as opposed to a cantata (Latin and Italian ''cant ...

s for

clavicembalo A harpsichord ( it, clavicembalo; french: clavecin; german: Cembalo; es, clavecín; pt, cravo; nl, klavecimbel; pl, klawesyn) is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. This activates a row of levers that turn a trigger mechanism ...

(London, 1754). The Toccata in A that is still played often today is an Allegro movement from his sonata VI in

A major A major (or the key of A) is a major scale based on A, with the pitches A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. Its key signature has three sharps. Its relative minor is F-sharp minor and its parallel minor is A minor. The key of A major is the only k ...

, which has established for itself a considerable discography, although there has been a revival of more of his music recently, at least regarding the keyboard sonatas. He was also the author of

concerto A concerto (; plural ''concertos'', or ''concerti'' from the Italian plural) is, from the late Baroque era, mostly understood as an instrumental composition, written for one or more soloists accompanied by an orchestra or other ensemble. The typi ...

s for

organ Organ may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a part of an organism Musical instruments * Organ (music), a family of keyboard musical instruments characterized by sustained tone ** Electronic organ, an electronic keyboard instrument ** Hammond ...

and for harpsichord, individual pieces for harpsichord, arias and

cantata A cantata (; ; literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian verb ''cantare'', "to sing") is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir. The meaning of ...

Dramatic music

(Year produced, place, name) * 1738

Lucca Lucca ( , ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the Serchio River, in a fertile plain near the Ligurian Sea. The city has a population of about 89,000, while its province has a population of 383,957. Lucca is known as one o ...

- ''Alessandro in Persia'' * 1740

- ''Il Decreto del Fato'' (The Decrees of Fate) * 1740

- ''Le Muse in gara'' * 1747 London - ''Fetonte'' * 1751 London - ''La forza d'amore'' * ''Antioco'

References

External links

*
Short bio at Move record label site
* * The famous Toccata in A, played in different temperaments
meantoneKirnberger IIIjust intonation
an
31 equal temperament
{{DEFAULTSORT:Paradisi, Pietro 1707 births 1791 deaths 18th-century Italian composers 18th-century Italian male musicians Italian Baroque composers Italian Classical-period composers Italian male classical composers Italian harpsichordists Italian opera composers Male opera composers 18th-century keyboardists