Malandrini, Manuel
Filippo Maria Gherardeschi: Three Sonatas For Keyboards
Filippo Maria Gherardeschi (1738-1808) was a first-rate figure among Italian musicians of the second half of the eighteenth century. He had had the privilege of studying under the guidance of Padre Martini, the legendary Franciscan friar who was among the greatest musicians and musicologists of his time. Gherardeschi, later a member of the Accademia Filarmonica of Bologna (an honor reserved for a very limited elite of musicians), was to be employed as a music director in several important musical chapels in central Italy. Most notably, he was the chapel master at the court of the Grand-Duke of Tuscany, later to become Emperor of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Gherardeschi authored works in virtually all field of his times music, including operas on lyrics by Carlo Goldoni. This Da Vinci Classics recording includes three keyboard Sonatas published by Gherardeschi during his lifetime and dedicated to the Archduchess of Austria, Maria Theresa. These works were among the most appreciated compositions of Gherardeschi, along with the celebrated Requiem he penned for the funerals of the King of Etruria, Louis I Bourbon.