Nationality:
Italian
Born:
Naples,
October
26th
1685
Died:
Madrid,
July
23rd
1757
Type
of music: Harpsichord
music
Main
works:
Approximately
550
keyboard sonatas
Scarlatti
attained the position of organist the Neapolitan royal chapel at the
young age of 16. This combined with his vast output of keyboard music
has left a long standing legacy on the music world.
In
1709, Domenico served Queen Maria Casimria in Rome, where he met
Handel who was born in the same year. He worked briefly as maestro di
capella at the Julian Chapel in the Vatican until 1719 when he left
for Portugal.
In
Portugal, Scarlatti took the engagement of Maria Barbara, daughter of
the king. He taught her music and then followed her to Spain in 1728
when she married the Crown prince of Spain. He remained in her
service and dedicated all his keyboard sonatas to her.
The
sonatas are infamous for their virtuosity and demanded a good
technique. The music itself often engaged a fast tempo and numerous
note repetitions. Scarlatti explored many of Spain's musical
traditions in his sonatas, such as the Flamenco style.
"He
had broke through all the rules of composition” - Charles Burney
Spotify
link for the Classical Cafe playlist:
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