Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741) might be the most well-known Italian composer of the Baroque period, but he was certainly not the only great Italian composer of the era. We invite you to meet his contemporary Alessandro Marcello (1673-1747), another Italian master whose works exude unfailing charm and energy.
Signore e Signori, cari amici di Classical Archives,
I bid you a warm welcome. My name is Alessandro Marcello, born in the serene city of Venice in 1673—that incomparable jewel where art, music, and light blend upon the waters.
My life unfolded between two passions: the pursuit of philosophy and poetry, and the art of composition. I came from a noble family, and so my days were divided between civic duties and the divine pleasure of music. Venice, in my time, was alive with invention—Vivaldi, Albinoni, and Lotti all breathed the same air, and we shared that rare delight of hearing our works performed in the echoing churches and glittering salons of the Republic.
Among my most cherished creations is the Concerto in D minor for oboe, which, I am told, has continued to find favor through the centuries. Even the great Johann Sebastian Bach took interest in it, transcribing it for harpsichord—a gesture of artistic kinship that crossed both borders and generations. There is no higher honor for a composer than to feel his voice translated into another master’s tongue.
My music sought grace rather than grandeur, clarity rather than excess. I believed that beauty lies in restraint—that a single melodic line, sincerely drawn, can speak more deeply than the most elaborate display. In this I was Venetian, to the core: ever seeking harmony between ornament and order, between feeling and form.
I departed this world in Venice, the city of my birth, in 1747. But I like to imagine that somewhere, as the sun sets over the lagoon and the bells of San Marco ring, a few notes of my oboe concerto drift across the water—soft reminders of a time when Venice sang with endless invention, and when I too added my voice to her song.
Thank you.
A Selection of Works by Alessandro Marcello Available for Listening on Classical Archives
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Concertos
- Concerto for Oboe in D-, SF.935, S.Z799 (later transcribed by J.S. Bach, BWV974)
- Concerto for 2 Oboes in E-, SF.939
- Concerto for 2 Oboes No.5 in Bb, SF.944
- Concerto for 2 Oboes No.6 in G, SF.941
Chamber Works
Vocal Works
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