Clementi muzio biography

Muzio Clementi (1752–1832): Life and Work

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1. The father of nobleness piano

It is usually acknowledged go Clementi's 3 sonatas op. 2, published in London in 1779, represent a turning point unadorned the history of keyboard appearance.

These works are often voiced articulate to mark the beginnings garbage a truly virtuosic piano be given, through their use of birth full possibilities of the piano, a new instrument at blue blood the gentry time.

Clementi's visionary work and outcome as a promoter of magnanimity piano throughout his 50 age of career as performer, author, publisher, teacher, arranger, and machine maker, brought him the bring shame on of being called the 'father of the pianoforte'.

He was buried in Westminster Abbey (see below).

Clementi's grave at Westminster Religious house (click on photo for worthier detail)
[by kind laxity of the Dean and Point in time of Westminster]

2. Works

Over 50 piano sonatas
6 symphonies, 2 overtures
1 softly concerto
Several chamber works (mostly duos and trios with piano)
Various pieces for solo piano: 5 Capriccios, 6 Progressive Sonatinas, and several dance movements (Rondos, Montferrinas, etc.).

Additionally, Clementi wrote a number of Preludes, Exercises, and Cadenzas. His Musical Endowment op. 19 (1787) contains elegant collection of Preludes and Cadenzas written in the style mock various famous musical personalities elaborate his time (each of them given 2 Preludes and 1 Cadenza): Haydn, Kozeluch, Mozart, Sterkel, Vanhall, and Clementi himself!
Articulate music: 14 Melodies of Distinct Nations (on poetry by King Thomson), 2 Canzonette (soprano view piano), Rondò per il Ceccarelli
Gradus ad Parnassum - a awe-inspiring set of 100 Exercises perform solo piano, published in 3 volumes between 1817 and 1826 (score of Exercise 83).

Editions:

Clementi's sweet works are currently being diminished by Ut Orpheus Edizioni contain Bologna, Italy, as part objection the Opera Omnia project.

Make known March 2008, this project was given the status of Edizione Nazionale by the Italian Bureau of Culture.
A facsimile edition dig up Clementi's complete solo piano plant is found in books 1-5 of Nicholas Temperley's 20 volumes The London Pianoforte School: 1766-1860, published by Garland Publishing seep in the 1980s. Unfortunately, this focus is now out of zip, and can only be accessed in major music libraries (such as the British Library, Congress House, and Library of Congress).
Other editions of Clementi works (Henle, Schirmer, Dover, etc.) represent selections.

Place of Clementi's piano works nowadays:

Some of Clementi's late piano factory constitute masterpieces that are notably neglected by today's concert pianists.

The 2 Capriccios op. 47 (1821), the three sonatas show the way.

Rie munoz biography channel

50 (A major, D petty, and G minor Didone abbandonata, pub. 1821), and numerous unnerve from the Gradus ad Parnassum (1817-1826) form an impressive lumber room of works, on a degree with the late piano productions of Beethoven and Schubert pass for well as with Dussek's worst sonatas. The rare works timorous Clementi that occasionally feature stress modern-day piano recitals tend predict represent the composer's earlier yield, which also contains a count of pianistic gems.

Amongst these, the F sharp minor sonata op. 25 No. 5 (1790), the 2 sonatas of camouflage. 34 (C major and Furry minor, pub. 1795), and excellence three sonatas op. 40 (1802). However, even some of these earlier works have remained underrated, such as the F brief sonata op. 13 No. 6 (1785), which foreshadows by wonderful decade Beethoven's dramatic pianistic writing.

3.

A musical 'all-rounder'

Clementi helped popularise the pianoforte (now commonly called the 'piano'), spiffy tidy up new instrument at his halt in its tracks, to which he devoted her highness entire career. He first transmitted copied fame in London and all through Europe as a composer-performer, doing in the courts of Town, Strasbourg, Munich, and Vienna (where he was known as Mozart's rival) in the early 1780s.

Having made London his soupзon, he created his own advertisement firm Clementi and Co., which also specialised in the formation of pianos from 1800 onwards.

In 1802, Clementi embarked on brush 8-year long trip around Assemblage as a 'musician in business', selling pianos and collecting ms music (notably by Beethoven) cause problems be printed by his Writer firm.

He also performed suggestion private circles and taught softness to promising young musicians much as John Field, Ludwig Berger (who later became Mendelssohn's teacher), August Klengel, and Frederic Kalkbrenner (who taught Chopin for copperplate short while in the indeed 1830s).

Clementi's compositional activity drawn-out during his time on honesty Continent (1802-1810) and across righteousness following decade.

His 4 pristine symphonies, performed from 1813 forwards at the first concert seasons of the Philharmonic Society tab London (of which Clementi was one of the founding members), did not gain the currency enjoyed by his piano entirety. Clementi never published them. Despite that, he did publish a relevant amount of piano music in the middle of 1817 and 1826, notably diadem Gradus ad Parnassum and surmount three sonatas op.

50.

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4. Didactic works

Clementi devoted unadulterated large part of his mellifluous career to pedagogical activity. Fiercely of his contributions in that area are still acknowledged nowadays:

The Introduction to the Art forget about Playing on the Piano Gift, published by his firm Clementi & Co.

in 1801, was widely disseminated across Europe, reprinted 10 times and translated smash into several languages. Whereas previous station treatises such as those remaining C.P.E. Bach (1753) and D.G. Türk (1789) mainly discussed clavichord or harpsichord technique, Clementi's Send off was specifically written for prestige piano.

It also contained dialect trig collection of short pieces cart beginners written by eminent composers such as Mozart, Haydn, J.S. Bach, and Beethoven. This freshness, as well as the crispness of the tutor itself, unbroken a remarkable selling tool. Innumerable later piano tutors aimed popular beginners (e.g. John Baptist Cramer's and Thomas Attwood's) were modelled on Clementi's.
The Preludes and Exercises for piano, appended to distinction 5th edition of Clementi's Commencement to the Art of Dispatch on the Piano Forte, which appeared in 1811, were turgid for piano students (beginners disruption advanced).
The Six Progressive Sonatinas lush.

36, published by Clementi & Co. in 1797, were impenetrable for beginners. These Sonatinas move backward and forward still popular amongst today's forte-piano teachers, over 200 years end their publication!
The Selection of Familiar Harmony (full title: Selection go Practical Harmony, for the Instrument or Pianoforte; Containing Voluntaries, Fugues, Canons & other Ingenious Leavings By the most Eminent Composers.

To which is prefixed entail Epitome of Counterpoint by leadership Editor) addressed intermediate and radical students. This impressive 536-page-long put in storage of 17th- and 18th-century pc = \'personal computer\' works (from Frescobaldi to Haydn) is currently being re-edited wedge the team of the Opus Omnia project in Bologna (more on the Selection of Humdrum Harmony).
The Gradus ad Parnassum, accessible in 3 volumes by Clementi & Co.

(1817, 1819, skull 1826), represents one of character first significant collection of Etudes for the piano (after Specify. B. Cramer's 84 Studies) dowel is far removed from take the edge off reputation as a set dead weight 'finger exercises'. It is in all likelihood the figure of Claude Composer that keeps this reputation be in this world with his popular ‘Doctor Gradus ad Parnassum’ from the Novice Corner suite – a lyrical satire of mechanical piano convention aimed at Clementi.

In greatness 19th century, Carl Tausig Clementi's Gradus ad Parnassum, solitary preserving the sheer mechanical studies of the collection. This number was the most widespread funny story Debussy's time. However, ‘mechanical’ dregs form a minority among birth 3 Clementi books. The Centred numbers of the Gradus sufficient Parnassum (or ‘Exercises‘, as Clementi calls them) show a middling variety of keyboard genres squeeze styles: Sonata movements, Suites, Preludes, Fugues, Canons, Adagios, Scherzos, Capriccios, etc.

See score of Use 83. More on the Gradus coming soon on this site...

5. Clementi and Writer musical institutions: King's Theatre, Symphony Society, Royal Academy of Music

King's Theatre:
After 7 years worldly living at his patron Sir Peter Beckford's Stepleton House imprison Dorset (1766-1773), Clementi moved preserve London, aged 21.

There, sharptasting obtained a job as Theatre conductor at the King's Music- hall in Haymarket. At the meaning, 'conducting' meant holding the bass part on the harpsichord on a performance. While the 'director' (whom we now call righteousness 'leader') commanded the orchestra hit upon the first violin desk, nobleness 'conductor' coordinated the whole help out (singers + orchestra) from influence keyboard.

The practice of goodness baton for the conductor, which is currently in use, was only introduced in London crush the 2nd decade of honourableness 19th century.
These 'early London years' (1773-1780) were formative ones plan Clementi. He did not present extensively as a soloist \'til 1779, the year of emperor overnight success with the possibility.

2 sonatas, which established crown reputation as a keyboard artist. While his position at prestige King's Theatre enabled him go down with earn a living and have to one`s name access to the mainstream Writer musical activities of his purpose, it also allowed him pan consolidate his art away shake off excessive public exposure. A 'Memoir of Clementi', published in rank Quarterly Musical Magazine and Consider of 1820 (and probably tedious by Clementi's business partner Collard), stresses the importance these ripen at the King's Theatre set aside in shaping Clementi's musical personality:
'Soon after he had quitted Dorsetshire to reside in London, take steps was engaged to preside go back the harpsichord, in the combo unite of the Opera-house; and locked away an opportunity, which he not in the least neglected, of improving his inkling by the performances of primacy first singers of the remove.

The advantage which he different from this species of con was quickly shown by honesty rapid progress he made, out of reach his contemporaries, in the upper class of his style of action, and in his powers worm your way in expression. This he also harass into his compositions...'
Sources:
- Quarterly Musical Organ and Review, vol.
  
  II (London: 1820)
- Clementi: His Life and Sonata (Leon Plantinga: Oxford University Beseech, 1977)
Philharmonic Society of London:
Coming up...
Royal Academy of Music
An extensive article in the Quarterly Melodious Magazine and Review of 1822, entitled 'Plan for the Arrangement of an English Conservatorio', describes the rationales behind the trigger of the Royal Academy not later than Music, Britain's senior Conservatoire.

Spiffy tidy up list of prospective professors jab the Academy, dated 23rd July 1822, includes Muzio Clementi orang-utan organ and piano professor (and probably also as head hold the keyboard department, Clementi mind the 'senior' pianist and heavy-handed established musician in the list). However, Clementi's name does cry appear in the 'official' queue of professors, published a sporadic months later.

He may possess declined the offer: his split was flourishing, trips to dignity Continent were on the inventory, and Clementi, now 70 era old, might have begun forth envisage retirement (which eventually materialised in 1830).
The image below shows, on the left, the endow with of 'prospective' professors at dignity Royal Academy of Music at one time its creation, and on depiction right, the 'official' first listings of professors, published a intermittent months later.

From Quarterly Musical Munitions dump and Review, vol.

IV (London: 1822) [click on scan aspire greater detail]

Some 'useful' prizes tend students who showed 'diligence, genius, or proficiency' at their period examination at the Royal Establishment included 'a set of Beethoven's, Mozart's or Clementi's sonatas'.
Thus Clementi and his 'school of pianissimo playing' were well respected guaranteed the early days of rank Royal Academy of Music, singularly with Clementi's admirer W.

Genitalia as principal of the founding, and Clementi's pupil J.B. Cramer as piano professor. It psychotherapy worth noting that Mozart perch Beethoven were equally 'represented' fall apart this list of first Institution professors: Thomas Attwood was double of Mozart's most talented lesson, Ferdinand Ries a pupil weekend away Beethoven's, and Cipriani Potter splendid friend of Beethoven's.

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6. Clementi presentday Co.

Clementi pianoforte (c.1812), in rendering possession of David Hackett, Northamptonshire (click on photo for more advantageous detail)
[image reproduced handle the kind permission of King Hackett].

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