Simone Molinaro (c. 1570 – May 1636)
[''Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart''. Personenteil, Band 12, Kassel 2004, p. 308. ] was a composer of the late
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history
The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...
in
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
. He was especially renowned for his
lute music.
Life and career
Molinaro was born in
Genoa
Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian census, the Province of ...
. He studied music with his uncle,
Giovanni Battista Dalla Gostena, who was
maestro di cappella
(, also , ) from German ''Kapelle'' (chapel) and ''Meister'' (master)'','' literally "master of the chapel choir" designates the leader of an ensemble of musicians. Originally used to refer to somebody in charge of music in a chapel, the term ha ...
at
Genoa Cathedral
Genoa Cathedral or Metropolitan Cathedral of Saint Lawrence ( it, Duomo di Genova, ''Cattedrale di San Lorenzo'') is a Roman Catholic cathedral in the Italian city of Genoa. It is dedicated to Saint Lawrence (San Lorenzo), and is the seat of th ...
. In 1593, Gostena was
murdered, and Molinaro succeeded him in his post at the Cathedral in 1599.
[Cummings(n.d.)] The same year he published ''Intavolatura di liuto'', containing lute works both by himself and by Gostena. In addition to his lute works, Molinaro composed a large amount of sacred choral music, most of which does not survive completely because of missing
partbooks. However, some five-voice motets have been preserved in the collections of
Hasler
Hassler (also Haßler, Häßler, Hässler, Hasler, ...) is a toponymic surname derived from a number of places called Hasel or Hassel in German-speaking parts of Europe.
Notable people with this name include:
Musicians
*A musical dynasty in Nu ...
and
Schadaeus. Molinaro died in May 1636 in Genoa.
Molinaro also served as editor of the works of
Carlo Gesualdo, publishing editions of that composer's madrigals in 1585 and 1613.
Assessment
In his dances for lute, according to Eitner, Molinaro "despises all counterpoint, and shows himself as a pure melodist and harmonist, but both in so simple and pretty a way, that they all have something uncommonly attractive".
[cited in Grove (1907)] Molinaro wrote at the time when, according to Paul Henry Lang, lute music was reaching its apogee. Along with
Giovanni Terzi, Molinaro's lute music introduces "a finished, graceful, and sovereign instrumental style, capable of all shades of expression and of a technique which we usually associate only with the vocal music of the period".
The 1613 publication of the Gesualdo madrigals was ground-breaking because it presented Gesualdo's music in
full score
Sheet music is a handwritten or printed form of musical notation that uses musical symbols to indicate the pitches, rhythms, or chords of a song or instrumental musical piece. Like its analogs – printed books or pamphlets in English, Ara ...
as opposed to
partbook format.
Molinaro's music was used as the basis for "Balletto detto il Conte Orlando" of the ''
Ancient Airs and Dances
''Ancient Airs and Dances'' ( it, Antiche arie e danze) is a set of three orchestral suites by Italian composer Ottorino Respighi, freely transcribed from original pieces for lute. In addition to being a renowned composer and conductor, Respighi ...
Suite No. 1'' by
Ottorino Respighi.
Works
Lute
* ''Intavolatura di liuto libro 1'',
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 ...
, 1599
Secular Vocal music
* ''Il 1 libro di canzonette a 3 e 4 voci'', Venice, 1595
* ''Il 1 libro de Madrigali a 5 voci'', Venice, 1599
* ''Il 2 libro delle Canzonette a 3 voci'', Venice, 1600
* '' Madrigali a 5 voci'',
Loano
Loano ( lij, Leua) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Savona in the Italian region Liguria, located about southwest of Genoa and about southwest of Savona.
Loano borders the following municipalities: Bardineto, Boissano, Borgh ...
1615
Sacred Vocal music
* ''Motectorum quinis et Missae denis vocibus liber I'', Venice, 1597
* ''Il 2 libro de Mottetti a 8 voci'',
Milan
Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
, 1601
* ''Il 1 libro de mottetti a 5 voci, con la partitura per sonar l'organo'', Milan, 1604
* ''Il 1 libro de Magnificat a 4 voci, con basso continuato'', Milan, 1605
* ''Concerti ecclesiastisi a 2 e a 4 voci...con la sua part. per l'organo'', Venice, 1605
* ''Il 3 libro de Mottetti a 5 voci con il basso continuato'', Venice, 1609
* ''Fatiche spirituali...libro 1 a 6 voci'', Venice, 1610
* ''Fatiche spirituali....libro 2 a 6 voci'', Venice, 1610
* ''Concerti a 1 e 2 voci con la part. per l'organo'', Milan, 1612
* ''Passio Domini Iesu Christi secundum Matthaeum, Marcum, Lucam, et Ioannem'', Loano, 1616
References
Bibliography
* Article "Molinaro, Simone".
*
External links
*
Biographyat hoasm.org
Biographyat answers.com
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Molinaro, Simone
Renaissance composers
Composers for lute
Year of birth uncertain
Italian male classical composers
1634 deaths
1570s births
17th-century Italian composers
17th-century male musicians