Alessandro Scarlatti Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Alessandro Scarlatti

Born	Pietro Alessandro Gaspare Scarlatti (1660-05-02)2 May 1660 Palermo or Trapani, Sicily
Died	22 October 1725(1725-10-22) (aged 65) Naples
Occupation	Composer
Works	List of operas
Style	Baroque

Pietro Alessandro Gaspare Scarlatti (born May 2, 1660 – died October 22, 1725) was a famous Italian Baroque composer. He is best known for his many operas and cantatas. People often call him the most important composer of the Neapolitan school of opera.

His friends called him "the Italian Orpheus." Scarlatti worked in both Naples and Rome, where he learned music. A lot of his music was written for Rome. He helped shape the "Neapolitan school" of music. His ideas and influence were very important in Italy and across Europe.

Scarlatti was especially famous for his operas. He took the Italian opera style, started by Claudio Monteverdi, and made it even better. He helped create the final form of the Da capo aria. This was a type of song in operas that became very popular everywhere.

He also invented the Italian overture, which had three parts. This was very important for the development of the symphony. He also created the four-part sonata, which was an early version of the modern string quartet. Many composers, like George Frideric Handel, were inspired by his music. Scarlatti wrote many different types of music. These included sonatas, concerto grossos, masses, and oratorios. He was a true master of the cantata.

Alessandro Scarlatti was the father of two other composers: Domenico Scarlatti and Pietro Filippo Scarlatti.

Life of Alessandro Scarlatti
Scarlatti's Musical Style
Operas
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Life of Alessandro Scarlatti

Scarlatti was born in Palermo or Trapani, which was part of the Kingdom of Sicily at the time.

Many people believe he was a student of Giacomo Carissimi in Rome. Some think he was also influenced by composers from northern Italy. His early opera, Gli equivoci nel sembiante (1679), was a success. It helped him gain the support of Queen Christina of Sweden, who lived in Rome. He became her music director, known as maestro di cappella.

In 1684, he became the maestro di cappella for the viceroy of Naples. This might have happened because his sister, an opera singer, had connections there. In Naples, he wrote many operas and other music for special events. His music was known for being smooth and expressive.

In 1702, Scarlatti left Naples. He did not return until the city was ruled by the Austrians instead of the Spanish. During this time, he worked for Ferdinando de' Medici near Florence. He also worked for Cardinal Ottoboni in Rome. In 1703, he got a similar job at the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome.

After visiting Venice and Urbino in 1707, Scarlatti went back to Naples in 1708. He stayed there until 1717. By then, people in Naples seemed less interested in his music. However, people in Rome still loved it. In Rome, he created some of his best operas. These included Telemaco (1718) and La Griselda (1721). He also wrote beautiful church music, like the Messa di Santa Cecilia in 1721.

His last big work was an unfinished Erminia serenata in 1723. He died in Naples in 1725. He is buried in the church of Santa Maria di Montesanto there.

Scarlatti's Musical Style

Scarlatti's music is an important link between early Baroque styles and the later classical music of the 18th century. His style was more than just a bridge between eras. He understood how to change musical keys in a modern way. He also often used changing phrase lengths, which was common in the Naples school.

His early operas, like Gli equivoci nel sembiante (1679), used older ways of singing in their recitatives. They also had many charming little songs called arias. These were sometimes played with a string quartet or just a continuo (a bass instrument and a keyboard). By 1686, he had created the "Italian overture" form. He also started using the da capo aria, which was a three-part song form. His best operas from this time include La Rosaura (1690) and Pirro e Demetrio (1694).

After about 1697, his opera songs became more typical in their rhythm. His music for instruments was sometimes quick and simple, but also bright. He often used oboes and trumpets, and the violins often played together. The operas he wrote for Ferdinando de' Medici are now lost.

Mitridate Eupatore, written for Venice in 1707, is considered his masterpiece. The music in it was much more advanced than his earlier works. His later Naples operas, like Tigrane (1714), were more about showing off than deep feelings. The instruments played a bigger role in these operas. The string quartet often played the main part in accompanying the singer. In his opera Teodora (1697), he started using orchestral ritornellos. These are short musical parts played by the orchestra.

His last group of operas, written for Rome, showed deeper emotions. They had grand and beautiful melodies. They also had a strong sense of drama, especially in the accompanied recitatives. Scarlatti was one of the first to use this technique. He also used a more modern way of arranging instruments. For example, he used horns for the first time, and they sounded very striking.

Besides operas, Scarlatti also wrote oratorios and serenatas. He composed over five hundred chamber-cantatas for a single voice. These were very smart and complex pieces of chamber music for their time. It is a shame that most of them are still in handwritten form.

His church music, including his few remaining Masses, is not as well known. However, his great Saint Cecilia Mass (1721) is very important. It was one of the first pieces to show the style that later became famous in the Masses of Johann Sebastian Bach and Ludwig van Beethoven. His instrumental music, though interesting, seems a bit old-fashioned compared to his vocal works.