LibGuides: Music: Primary Sources: Corelli, Arcangelo 1653-1713

Corelli, Arcangelo: Sonate a violino e violone o cimbalo Op.5

Corelli, Arcangelo. 1700. [Op. 5]. Sonate a violino e violone o cimbalo; dedicate all Altezza serenissima Elettorale di Sofia Carlotta Elettrice di Brandenburgo... Parte Prima [Parte Seconde Preludii Allemande Correnti Gighe Sarabande Gavotte e Follia]. Opera Quinta. Incisa de Gasparo Pietra Santa. London : Printed for and sold by B. Cooke.

Sonatas op.5 violin and violone or harpsichord

Call no. : U 787.2183 C79 s6 op.5 I

Oblong folio. Full contemporary vellum. 2ff. (title and dedication, printed on the recto of each leaf and numbered "1" and "2" respectively), 3-39 music; [40] (secondary title), pp. 41-68 pp. Engraved. With manuscript annotation to free front endpaper dated 1735 indicating that the present copy was formerly in the collection of Baron [Johann] Matthias de Ascheberg.

First Edition, second issue.

The first six sonatas are "church" sonatas, while the second six (with a separate title) are "chamber" sonatas, the last of which is actually the Follia, one of the most renowned compositions of Baroque string literature.

"Despite the modest size of his output, comprising six collections of instrumental music and a handful of other authentic works, and its virtual restriction to three genres – solo sonata, trio sonata and concerto – Corelli exercised an unparalleled influence during his lifetime and for a long time afterwards. This influence, which affected form, style and instrumental technique in equal measure, was most closely felt in Italy, and in particular in Rome, where he settled in early manhood, but soon spread beyond local and national confines to become a European phenomenon. As a violinist, teacher of the violin and director of instrumental ensembles Corelli imposed standards of discipline that were unusually strict for their period and helped to lay the groundwork for further progress along the same lines during the 18th century. To Corelli belong equally the distinctions of being the first composer to derive his fame exclusively from instrumental composition, the first to owe his reputation in large part to the activity of music publishers, and the first to produce ‘classic’ instrumental works which were admired and studied long after their idiom became outmoded." Michael Talbot in Grove Music Online.

An excellent example of the art and craft of Italian music engraving and printing of the period, continuing a tradition dating from the time of Frescobaldi.

Image and descriptions provided by J & J Lubrano Music Antiquarians