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