Robert Valentine (c. 1671 – 26 May 1747), also known as Roberto Valentini and Roberto Valentino, was an English composer,

recorder Recorder or The Recorder may refer to: Newspapers * ''Indianapolis Recorder'', a weekly newspaper * ''The Recorder'' (Massachusetts newspaper), a daily newspaper published in Greenfield, Massachusetts, US * ''The Recorder'' (Port Pirie), a news ...

player,

oboist An oboist (formerly hautboist) is a musician who plays the oboe or any oboe family instrument, including the oboe d'amore, cor anglais or English horn, bass oboe and piccolo oboe or oboe musette. The following is a list of notable past and pres ...

and

violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...

ist, who moved to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

and became a naturalised Italian. He is noted for his large number of compositions for the recorder.

Biography

Born c. 1671, he was baptized in

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

on 16 January 1674.Lasocki (1999), p. 11 He was the son of Thomas Follentine or Follintine, who lived in Leicester from c. 1670 and worked as a town musician there accompanied by his elder sons Thomas and Henry. The family became a prominent one in the musical life of Leicester; descendants included John Valentine, who was the grandson of Robert's eldest brother Thomas, and John Valentine's daughter

Ann Valentine Ann Valentine (11 January 1762 – 13 October 1842 or 13 October 1845) was an English organist and composer, part of a talented family of Leicester musicians. Life Ann Valentine was born on 11 January 1762 in Leicester and christened on 15 Marc ...

.Drage. Robert Valentine seems to have spent little if any of his adult life in England before moving to Italy, where he became known by the Italian versions of his name. He settled in Rome and took a Roman wife, marrying Giulia Bellatti in September 1701 in the parish of

Sant'Andrea delle Fratte Sant'Andrea delle Fratte ("Saint Andrew of the Thickets") is a 17th-century basilica church in Rome, Italy, dedicated to St. Andrew. The Cardinal Priest of the ''Titulus S. Andreae Apostoli de Hortis'' is Ennio Antonelli. History The current chu ...

. They had nine children, although only three of these survived their parents. He died in the same Roman parish on 26 May 1747, only 12 days after the death of his wife, and not back in England at some other date, as was formerly thought.

Works

Valentine is particularly known for his large output of compositions for the recorder, as well as for his reputation as a highly skilled player of that instrument. He also played the oboe and violin. His compositions were instrumental. They include a number of collections of

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 and

trio sonata The trio sonata is a genre, typically consisting of several movements, with two melody instruments and basso continuo. Originating in the early 17th century, the trio sonata was a favorite chamber ensemble combination in the Baroque era. Basic str ...

s, as well as some examples of

concerto grosso The concerto grosso (; Italian for ''big concert(o)'', plural ''concerti grossi'' ) is a form of baroque music in which the musical material is passed between a small group of soloists (the '' concertino'') and full orchestra (the ''ripieno'', ''tut ...

. His initial style closely followed that of

Arcangelo Corelli Arcangelo Corelli (, also , , ; 17 February 1653 – 8 January 1713) was an Italian composer and violinist of the Baroque era. His music was key in the development of the modern genres of sonata and concerto, in establishing the preeminence of ...

, but he gradually progressed towards the

Galante Galante is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Galante (pedigree), a family of Jewish scholars which flourished in the Middle Ages ** Abraham ben Mordecai Galante (died 1560), kabalist and author ** Mordecai Galante (died 1781), r ...

style, as evidenced by his later collections of sonatas published in Northern Europe. His works were popular in the amateur market for flute and recorder music, which flourished in England in the early 18th century, a time when the recorder was also fashionable in concert performance there. Valentine's prominence was recorded by

John Hawkins John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

in 1776 in his ''General History of the Science and Practice of Music'':

References

Sources

* * * * *

External links

* 1671 births 1747 deaths English classical composers Italian male classical composers Italian Baroque composers British recorder players 17th-century English composers English male composers 18th-century English musicians 18th-century Italian male musicians People from Leicester Musicians from Rome Musicians from Leicestershire 18th-century Italian composers 18th-century British composers 17th-century male musicians 18th-century English composers {{UK-composer-stub

Biography

Works

See also

References

Sources

External links