Sophia Giustina Dussek (née Corri; later Moralt;
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...
, 1 May 1775 – London, ca. 1831) was a Scottish singer, pianist,
harpist
The harp is a stringed musical instrument that has a number of individual string (music), strings running at an angle to its sound board (music), soundboard; the strings are plucked with the fingers. Harps can be made and played in various way ...
, and composer of Italian descent.
In 1792, Dussek married the composer
Jan Ladislav Dussek. Following Jan's death in 1812, Sophia married the
violist
; german: Bratsche
, alt=Viola shown from the front and the side
, image=Bratsche.jpg
, caption=
, background=string
, hornbostel_sachs=321.322-71
, hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded by a bow
, range=
, related=
*Violin family ...
John Alvis Moralt. The couple lived in
Paddington
Paddington is an area within the City of Westminster, in Central London. First a medieval parish then a metropolitan borough, it was integrated with Westminster and Greater London in 1965. Three important landmarks of the district are Padd ...
, where she founded a music school.
The opus 2 sonatas were published in at least 3 editions in the 1790s by the Corri-Dussek company in London as by Madame Dussek, and there is no reason to doubt that the 6 sonatas of opus 2, including the famous C minor sonata published and misattributed by Schott as by JL, are anything but the work of Sophia. Paris editions of opus 2 published by
Pleyel
Ignace Joseph Pleyel (; ; 18 June 1757 – 14 November 1831) was an Austrian-born French composer, music publisher and piano builder of the Classical period.
Life Early years
He was born in in Lower Austria, the son of a schoolmaster named Ma ...
only bear the name Dussek, leading
Zabaleta to his misattribution, but nobody actually claimed opus 2 as the work of JL rather than Dussek before the mid-20th century.
Life and family
Sophia Dussek was born into the Corri family. She studied voice with her father, composer, music publisher, and impresario
Domenico Corri
Domenico Corri (4 October 1746 – 22 May 1825) was an Italian composer, impresario, Music publisher (popular music), music publisher, and voice teacher.
Career
Corri was born in Rome and studied voice with Nicola Porpora in Naples. The son o ...
. Her uncle was composer Natale Corri and her cousin was soprano
Fanny Corri-Paltoni
Fanny Corri-Paltoni (born Frances or Francesca Corri) (1801 – 13 July 1861) was a celebrated British operatic soprano active in Europe between 1818 and 1835. It was said that she possessed a voice of remarkable beauty and that she had a fine s ...
. Her father provided Sophia with vocal instruction and had her performing from a young age. She was well known as a soprano and composer of songs.
After moving to London in 1788, she studied with Luigi Marchesi and Giovanni Battista Cimador. Dussek was a highly accomplished performer and she had her London debut at the prestigious
Salomon concerts in 1791 with Haydn directing from the harpsichord, and afterwards sang quite a bit of the series, taking part in the first performance of
Haydn
Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions to musical form have led ...
’s ''The Storm''. In 1792, she sang the lead in the premiere of
Harriet Wainwright
Harriet Wainwright Stewart (c. 1766–1843) was a British composer, singer, and writer. A musical entrepreneur, she developed a subscription list of several hundred people and sold at least two of her compositions (''Comala'' and ''Seringapatam'') ...
's opera ''Comala''.
She also played a big role in the introduction of
Mozart's music to London. She was a soloist in the London premiere of the
Requiem, given at John Ashley's Lenten Oratorios, Covent Garden, on 20 February 1801. In 1792 she married Jan Ladislav Dussek. She had been performing, singing and playing the piano and harp with him for some time before that. Their daughter, Olivia, was also a pianist, harpist, and composer.
In 1796, Sophia began having serious marital troubles with her husband. In an account of uncertain veracity, it was reported that Sophia, who had fallen in love with another man, asked Dussek for money to repair her harp. She then used the money to leave the house, removing her belongings in her harp case, and claiming to have left for dinner with a female friend. A suspicious Dussek went with his father-in-law to the man's house, where Sophia locked herself in. She and Dussek argued, and she cursed him, claiming to be pregnant by the other man. Dussek, relenting, promised her freedom to do what she wanted; this led to a reconciliation of sorts.
[Craw, Howard (1964). A Biography and Thematic Catalog of the works of J.L. Dussek. University of Southern California]
Sophia had to wait until she knew Dussek had died before she could remarry. After Jan Ladislav's death in 1812 Sophia married the viola player John Alvis Moralt. They lived in Paddington, where she established a music school. She published sonatas, rondos, variations, and numerous arrangements for the piano or harp.
Works list
;Keyboard
* Sonata for pianoforte (harpsichord) with violin or flute, Op. 1 (London, ca. 1793)
* 3 Sonatas for harpsichord (pianoforte) with violin, Op. 1 (Paris)
* Sonata for pianoforte (London, ca. 1805)
;Keyboard or Harp
* The New German Waltz - adapted as a Rondo for Harp or Piano Forte (1799)
;Harp
* 3 Sonatas with Scots Airs and Reels for the Adagios & Rondos, Op. 2 (Book I): B-flat, G, C minor (London, Corri & Co., 1794)
* 3 Sonatas with Scots Airs and Reels for the Adagios & Rondos, Op. 2 (Book II): E-flat, F, C (London, Corri & Co., 1795)
* 6 Sonatas (Sonatinas): C, F, G, B-flat, F, E (London, 1799), formerly attributed to
Jan Ladislav Dussek (Craw d160—d165)
* A French air with variations (London, Chappel & Co., 1820)
* "C’est l’amour": A 3rd French air with variations (London, Chappel & Co., 1820)
* Introduction and March (London, 1822)
* Variations on God Save the King (London, 1822)
* "La Chasse": An original rondo (London, Chappel & Co., 1824)
* at least 7 sets of Favorite Airs (London), some with flute or violin ad libitum
* arrangements
;Harp and piano
* Duett (London, ca. 1812)
* Introduction and Waltz (London, 1822)
* arrangements
Editions
Sophia Corri. Main Works for Solo Harp 6 Sonatas Op. 2 / French Air / C’est l’Amour / La Chasse. Ed.
Floraleda Sacchi.
Ut Orpheus Edizioni, 2010,
Selected discography
Sophia Giustona Corri: Works for solo harp Includes six ''Sonatas''. Performed (on historical instrument) by
Floraleda Sacchi (
Tactus Records
Tactus Records (Italian Casa Discografica Tactus) is an Italian classical music recording label based in Bologna, Italy. It was founded in 1986 by a local businessman Serafino Rossi (1927-3 December 2009). The Province of Bologna held a concert i ...
, 2009, TC.772801)
Sophia Corri Dussek: Works for solo harp Includes six ''Sonatas''. Performed (on historical instrument) by
Floraleda Sacchi (
Amadeus Arte, 2011, AAP11006)
Sophia Corri-Dussek: works for harp & piano Includes ''Piano sonata in A major''. Performed (on historical instruments) by
Floraleda Sacchi and
Marco Cadario (
Amadeus Arte, 2011, AAP11007)
Madame et Monsieur Dussek harp sonatas, sonatinas and pieces performed (on historical instrument) by
Masumi Nagasawa Masumi is a unisex Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include:
*, Japanese hurdler
* Masuumi Juma, a Japanese voice actor
*Masumi Aya, a Japanese hammer thrower
* Masumi Fuchise, a Japanese racewalker
* Masumi Hayashi (disambiguation ...
(
Etcetera Records Etcetera Records is a Dutch/Belgian classical music record label founded in Amsterdam in 1982. The original founders were David Rossiter and Michel Arcizet.
In 2002 Coda Distribution bought the label with the late Paul Janse (1967-2014) and Dirk De ...
, 2012, KTC 1439)
Jan Ladislav Dussek. Duos for harp & pianoforte Sophia's ''Introduction & waltz'' performed (on historical instruments) by
Masumi Nagasawa Masumi is a unisex Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include:
*, Japanese hurdler
* Masuumi Juma, a Japanese voice actor
*Masumi Aya, a Japanese hammer thrower
* Masumi Fuchise, a Japanese racewalker
* Masumi Hayashi (disambiguation ...
&
Richard Egarr
Richard Egarr (born 7 August 1963) is a British conductor and keyboard player.
Biography
Born in Lincoln, Egarr received his early musical training as a choirboy at York Minster and at Chetham's School of Music. He was an organ scholar at Clar ...
(
Etcetera Records Etcetera Records is a Dutch/Belgian classical music record label founded in Amsterdam in 1982. The original founders were David Rossiter and Michel Arcizet.
In 2002 Coda Distribution bought the label with the late Paul Janse (1967-2014) and Dirk De ...
, 2012, KTC 1436)
Dussek, Jan Ladislav & Sophia Harp sonatas by
Kyunghee Kim-Sutre
Kyung-hee, also spelled Kyong-hui or Gyong-hui, is a Korean unisex given name. The meaning differs based on the hanja used to write each syllable of the name. There are 54 hanja with the reading " kyung" and 25 hanja with the reading " hee" on th ...
(Sonarti records, 2013, RT01)
Notes
References
*
External links
*
3 Harp Sonatas, Op.2 Score by MUSOPEN3 Favorite Airs, Set 2 Score by MUSOPEN3 Favorite Airs with Variations for the Harp, Set 1 Score by MUSOPEN*
Advanced Wikipedia page of Sophia Dussek (As Sophia Corri)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dussek, Sophia
1775 births
1830s deaths
18th-century British composers
18th-century British women opera singers
18th-century classical composers
18th-century Scottish women singers
19th-century British composers
19th-century Scottish women opera singers
19th-century classical composers
British Romantic composers
Women classical composers
Italian British musicians
Musicians from Edinburgh
Scottish classical composers
Scottish classical pianists
Scottish women pianists
Scottish harpists
Scottish people of Italian descent
Women classical pianists
19th-century women composers
18th-century women composers
19th-century women pianists