Showing 26 - 50 of 199
Artist: Charles-Joseph van Helmont
Helmont composed numerous masses, motets, other sacred works and pieces for the harpsichord as well as pieces for the orchestra. He studied with Brehy and became an organist at Ste Gudule in Brussels. In 1737 he was choirmaster of the church of Notre Dame and in 1741 returned to Ste Gudule. His music was sacred and the motet was set for four... [+] Read More
Artist: Gottfried Keller
With Purcell and Battista, Keller was supposed to have taught keyboard at the proposed Royal Academy. He was one of the many foreign musicians who settled in England at this time, the late seventeenth century, and left only once, 1694, to travel to Holland. Keller would often perform in London on the harpsichord and though he died young... [+] Read More
Artist: Ilse Maria Koppel
Ilse Maria Koppel played harpsichord on the first three Savage Rose albums, The Savage Rose, In the Plain, and Travelin'. At the time she was married to one of the group's two principal keyboardist/composers, Thomas Koppel. A student of piano at the Royal Danish Academy of Music, she married Thomas in 1966, before Savage Rose was founded.... [+] Read More
Artist: Giovanni Benedetto Platti
Platti was an Italian composer who served the majority of his working life for the Wurzburg episcopate in Germany. Platti was an accomplished instrumentalist who excelled at the harpsichord, violin, flute, oboe, and cello. Though he composed an opera and other vocal works his approximately one hundred and twenty instrumental works including... [+] Read More
Artist: Igor Kipnis
Igor Kipnis is America's leading harpsichord and fortepiano player.
He is the son of the great Russian bass singer Alexander Kipnis (1891-1978). As such, he was exposed to music from his earliest days. His father was singing with the Berlin Opera when Igor was born. For the next eight years the family mostly moved about Europe, as Alexander's... [+] Read More
Artist: Elisabeth Jacquet de la Guerre
A child prodigy who appeared at the court of Louis XIV and so astonished her audience that the king undertook her education, which was supervised by his mistress, Madame de Montespan. A prolific composer of cantatas, operas, string and harpsichord music, she was the most famous woman composer of the baroque. ~ Mary K. Scanlan, All Music Guide [+] Read More
Artist: Gaspard Le Roux
Le Roux was one of the finest harpsichordists of his time. A fine example of his work is his Pieces de clavessin, a set of dances for the keyboard. An unusual feature of these works is that Le Roux also provided transcriptions of the pieces for other solo instruments in which the harpsichord or trio provides the missing parts. His compositional... [+] Read More
Artist: Frank Martin
A Swiss composer whose compositional style can be described as shifting tonality: the chords are regular, but the center is always moving. Similarly, the Petite Symphonie concertante utilizes a traditional classical setup of strings and a continuo made up of piano, harp, and harpsichord. The continuo gradually become solo instruments while the... [+] Read More
Artist: Manuel Blasco de Nebra
This short-lived Spanish composer and organist held the position of organist at Seville Cathedral until his death. Manuel may have held this position from the age of 20. Sight-reading was his forte and was as his emotional and expressive playing of the harpsichord, organ and piano. The compositions of Blasco de Nebra that survive require a great... [+] Read More
Artist: Guillaume Boutmy
The eldest son of Josse Boutmy who was the patriarch of this South Netherlands family of musicians. Like his father, Guillaume was a composer, harpsichordist and organist. He served in the court of the Prince of Thurn and Taxis where he was not only an organ builder but a composer and teacher as well. Guillaume composed a number of sonatas for... [+] Read More
Artist: John Camidge
The Camidge family held the position of organist at York Minster for a period of 103 years. John was the initial member of the family to hold the position in 1756. He composed a number of anthems which are still in use as well as "Six Easy Lessons for the Harpsichord". It may well be that John Camidge began the custom of singing choral works... [+] Read More
Artist: Narciso Casanovas
A famous Spanish organist and composer who took the habit of the Benedictine order. His compositions included sacred works for the service as well as masses, a magnificat, and psalms. Approximately 50 of his pieces are extant in manuscript form. Casanovas also composed fugue-like pieces for the organ but in the style of harpsichord music. (The... [+] Read More
Artist: Pietro Castrucci
An Italian composer and violinist he spent the majority of his professional life in London. He composed sonatas, concerto grossi, pieces for flute, harpsichord, and many sonatas. Castrucci was probably a student of Corelli's and most certainly was on more than familiar terms with Handel. (Castrucci conducted the opera orchestras of Handel for... [+] Read More
Artist: Carlo Francesco Chabran (Chiabrano)
An Italian composer and violinist whose last contribtion was a tutorial for the guitar ("Compleat Instructions for the Spanish Guitar"). This was published in London where he lived during the 1790s. His playing was unsurpassed on the violin and he composed "Six Solos for Violin, with a Thoroughbass for the Harpsichord" also in London.... [+] Read More
Artist: Joseph-Hector Fiocco
Working under his brother's direction at the royal chapel, Joseph-Hector resigned the post to become master of the chapel in Antwerp Cathedral. Fiocco was an organist, harpsichordist and composer who wrote a number of motets, numerous pieces for the Cathedral and a collection of harpsichord works. The latter consists of suites with pretentious... [+] Read More
Artist: Pierre Février
Not much information is available concerning positions in which Fevrier served; that which does occur remains unclear. It is probable that he held positions in Abbeville and Paris at St Roch and Sainte-Chapelle. He most likely studied the organ with his father and wrote a number of pieces for the harpischord. The "Pieces de clavecin" are unique... [+] Read More
Artist: Giovanni Francesco Giuliani
This Italian composer wrote a number of instrumental pieces. Genres included in the body of his compositions were symphonies, harpsichord concertos, violin and cello concertos, and three ballets. He was one of the few Italian composers to make a living composing instrumental music during the early Classical era. He had studied violin with... [+] Read More
Artist: Jakob Hassler
Learning the keyboard from his father, Jakob Hassler was later taught by Drechsel. Employed by the Fuggers, Hassler was granted monies to study in Venice. It took him until 1597, due to legal problems, to obtain a position. He became the court organist to Count Eitelfriedrich of Hohenzollern. His next position was in service to Rudolf II in... [+] Read More
Artist: Joseph I
The Holy Roman Emperor of the Hapsburg dynasty was the hereditary king of Hungary. In 1690 he was crowned the King of Rome in Augsburg. A patron of the arts and a student of Pinner in harpsichord, flute and other instruments, Joseph favored the dance and the aria. Between 1682 and 1699 he performed both as a singer and dancer at the court... [+] Read More
Artist: Luigi Mancia
It is possible that Mancia was present at the opening of the opera house for the Elector Ernst August in Hanover. It is also possible that he was the composer of the aria "Arione" performed for the emperor's birthday in 1694. Mancia wrote the libretto and music for a number of dramatic works including three operas for Rome, 1695-96, the... [+] Read More
Artist: William Walond
Walond was the first composer to set Pope's "Ode on St. Cecilia's Day" in its original form. He entered the University of Oxford in 1757 to obtain his Bachelor of Music degree. In addition to the aforementioned ode, Walond also composed a set of six organ or harpsichord voluntaries and a set of ten voluntaries. ~ Keith Johnson, All Music Guide [+] Read More
Artist: Ferdinand den aldre Zellbell
This Swedish musician was an organist who played the harpsichord and string bass exceptionally well. He was not only a member of the Royal Chapel but was the organist at the Storkyrkan. Zellbell was a music teacher whose compositions were adequate but highly methodical and repetitious. He served in the Royal Chapel from 1715 until 1751. ~ Keith... [+] Read More
Artist: Bob Van Asperen
Organist and conductor, Bob Van Asperen's works concentrate mainly on seventeenth and eighteenth century composers and musicians. Highly regarded as an organist, Bob Van Asperen also plays the harpsichord and clavichord proficiently. His style of playing can only be described as graceful and sensuous.
Born in Amsterdam, Bob Van Asperen studied... [+] Read More
Artist: Gustav Leonhardt
Gustav Maria Leonhardt is one of the best-known leaders of the Early Music movement. A harpsichordist and later a conductor, he is credited with being one of the most important figures in establishing the Netherlands as one of the main centers of period music performances.
He had a classical education, then entered the Schola Cantorum in Basle.... [+] Read More
Artist: Melchiorre Chiesa
An Italian composer possibly from Florence. It was noted that he played one of the harpsichords in Mozart's "Mitridate" and that he also served at La Scala. Chiesa's theatre compositions were appreciated by Leopold Mozart but his sacred and instrumental works were most noted (these are the only works that survive). An interesting relationship... [+] Read More
