Alessandro Marcello

Alessandro Marcello (1669-1747) was an Italian nobleman and dilettante who dabbled in various areas, including poetry, philosophy, mathematics, and, music. Marcello was born in Venice on 24th August 1669. His brother was Benedetto Marcello, was also a composer. He composed and published several sets of concertos, including six concertos under the title of La Cetra (The Lyre), as well as cantatas, arias, canzonets, and violin sonatas. Marcello often composed under the pseudonym Eterio Stinfalico, his name as a member of the celebrated Arcadian Academy (Pontificia Accademia degli Arcadi). Although his works are infrequently performed today, Marcello is regarded as a very competent composer. One of his concertos, in D minor for oboe, strings, and basso continuo, is perhaps his best-known work. Its worth was attested to by Johann Sebastian Bach who transcribed it for harpsichord (BWV 974). He died in Padua on 19th June 1747. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.