Alessandro Ignazio Marcello (; 1 February 1673 – 19 June 1747) was an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

nobleman and composer.

Biography

Born in

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

, Marcello was the son of a senator, and as a nobleman, enjoyed a comfortable life that gave him the freedom to pursue his interest in music. He held concerts in his hometown and composed and published several sets of concertos, including six under the title of '' La Cetra'' (The Lyre), as well as cantatas,

aria In music, an aria ( Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompa ...

s, canzonetti, and

violin sonata A violin sonata is a musical composition for violin, often accompanied by a keyboard instrument and in earlier periods with a bass instrument doubling the keyboard bass line. The violin sonata developed from a simple baroque form with no fixed fo ...

s. A contemporary of Tomaso Albinoni, and a slightly older contemporary of Antonio Vivaldi, Marcello often composed under the pseudonym Eterio Stinfalico, his name as a member of the celebrated

Arcadian Academy The Accademia degli Arcadi or Accademia dell'Arcadia, "Academy of Arcadia" or "Academy of the Arcadians", was an Italian literary academy founded in Rome in 1690. The full Italian official name was Pontificia Accademia degli Arcadi. History F ...

(''Pontificia Accademia degli Arcadi''). Marcello died in Padua in 1747. Rosanna Scalfi, a singer and composer, was the widow of Alessandro's better-known brother

Benedetto Marcello Benedetto Giacomo Marcello (; 31 July or 1 August 1686 – 24 July 1739) was an Italian composer, writer, advocate, magistrate, and teacher. Life Born in Venice, Benedetto Marcello was a member of a noble family and in his compositions he is f ...

. As their 1728 marriage had not been sanctioned by the state due to her being of common birth, she was unable to inherit his estate, and in 1742 filed suit against Alessandro seeking financial support.

Works

Although most of Marcello's works are infrequently performed today, Marcello is regarded as a highly competent composer. His '' La Cetra'' concertos are "unusual for their wind solo parts, concision and use of counterpoint within a broadly Vivaldian style," according to Grove, "placing them as a last outpost of the classic Venetian Baroque concerto." The Concerto for Oboe and Strings in D minor op.1 is perhaps his best-known work. Its worth was affirmed by

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wo ...

, who

transcribe Transcription refers to the process of converting sounds (voice, music etc.) into letters or musical notes, or producing a copy of something in another medium, including: Genetics * Transcription (biology), the copying of DNA into RNA, the fir ...

d it for harpsichord (

BWV The (BWV; ; ) is a catalogue of compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach. It was first published in 1950, edited by Wolfgang Schmieder. The catalogue's second edition appeared in 1990. An abbreviated version of that second edition, known as BWV2 ...

974). A number of editions have been published, including an edition in C minor to accommodate the baroque oboe, which was played a whole tone lower than the modern oboe.

Notes and references

Sources

*''The Grove Concise Dictionary of Music'', Oxford University Press, 1994.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Marcello, Alessandro 1673 births 1747 deaths 18th-century Italian composers Italian Baroque composers Italian male classical composers Republic of Venice nobility 18th-century Italian male musicians Musicians from Venice