Arcangelo Corelli

Italian musician and composer

• Born: February 17, 1653
• Birthplace: Fusignano, Papal States (now in Italy)
• Died: January 8, 1713
• Place of death: Rome, Papal States (now in Italy)

Corelli was one of the most significant violin virtuosos of the late Baroque period. He composed sonatas and concertos for string instruments, which became famous throughout Europe for their pedagogical and musical value.

Early Life

Arcangelo Corelli (ahr-KAHN-jay-loh koh-REHL-lee) was born in Fusignano, a small village midway between Bologna and Ravenna. Corelli became the only accomplished musician in a family of wealthy landowners who generally preferred other professions, such as medicine and law. The high social status of the wealthy Corelli family definitely helped Corelli as he matured musically during his early years. He received his first music lessons from a priest in the nearby town of Faenza; other music lessons followed at Lugo. Since his early teachers and their qualifications are unknown, these music lessons could have been devoted to the rudiments of music rather than to violin playing, as has often been assumed.

In 1666, Corelli moved to Bologna, one of the most important centers for instrumental music in seventeenth century Europe. From his studies in Bologna, he acquired an excellent violin technique and a knowledge of improvisation. It is likely that his teachers included some of the most significant Bolognese musicians of the day (Giovanni Benvenuti, Leonardo Brugnoli, and B. G. Laurenti). Corelli’s improvement on the violin is attested by the fact that he was admitted as a member of Bologna’s Accademia Filarmonica in 1670. Nothing is known of his activities between 1670 and 1675; he may have left Bologna for another Italian town in 1670, but he probably did not arrive in Rome until 1675, the year in which he began his career as a professional violinist.

Life’s Work

Beginning in 1675, Corelli rapidly became one of the most important violinists in Rome. He performed for various local church functions, including the Lenten oratorios in the church patronized by Cardinal Pamphili. In 1679, Corelli became chamber musician to Queen Christina of Sweden, who hosted well-known musical gatherings at her palace in Rome. Two significant events of the year 1684 indicate his growing stature as a violinist: He was accepted as a member of the prestigious Congregazione dei Virtuosi di Santa Cecilia and he began to play every Sunday for musical functions at Cardinal Pamphili’s palace.

Corelli formally entered the service of Cardinal Pamphili as his music master on July 9, 1687. Three years later, when Cardinal Pamphili moved to Bologna, Corelli became first violinist and music director to the young Cardinal Pietro Ottoboni, nephew of Pope Alexander VIII. At Cardinal Ottoboni’s palace, concerts were normally held every Monday evening. Corelli was thus an important part of Roman musical life, an accomplished violinist patronized by two wealthy Roman church officials, and a musician whose talents were esteemed so highly that he served as music director to these officials and was allowed to take up residence in their respective palaces.

While his reputation was increasing during the last two decades of the seventeenth century, Corelli published four books of trio sonatas for two violins and continuo (1681, 1685, 1689, 1694). Each of these books consists of twelve sonatas, distributed equally between major and minor keys. The first and third books of these publications belong to the more contrapuntal and learned church type of sonata, while the second and fourth books belong to the lighter and more dancelike chamber type of sonata. While Corelli’s church and chamber sonatas can still be distinguished from one another, one of Corelli’s major achievements was the intermingling of church and chamber styles to the point where his church sonatas begin to acquire some dancelike traits, while his chamber sonatas became more contrapuntal.

More than half of Corelli’s church trio sonatas have four movements that alternate between slow and fast tempos. The opening slow movements all achieve variety by the use of several standard devices (motion in parallel thirds, close points of imitation, dissonances at cadential preparations, and chains of suspensions). The second movements are quicker, with three-part imitation between the two violins and bass. Usually the third movements are in a slower meter, which suggests the influence of the saraband dance. The inclusion of dance elements in these church sonatas is seen most clearly in the fast finales, which are reminiscent of a gigue in compound meter or another type of dance in a quick triple meter. The finales often juxtapose imitative sections with homophonic sections, and some finales have the binary form associated with dance pieces.

Corelli’s chamber trio sonatas may have three or four movements. In those sonatas that open with slow preludi, the influence of the church sonata is evident in their use of through-composed form, active bass lines, and interweaving polyphonic lines. In addition to the polyphony of the preludi, these dance movements occasionally show church sonata influence by having sections that begin with imitation. The prevailing dancelike style is retained, however, through the use of the following stylistic features: movements in binary form, sections where the two violins move in similar rhythms and/or parallel thirds, an active bass part with two sustained violin parts, and a dominant first violin part over a slower-moving second violin part and bass line. Despite the intermingling of church and chamber sonatas in Corelli’s sonatas, all these devices tend to make his chamber sonatas lighter and less complex than his church sonatas.

Corelli’s most famous work is his fifth book of sonatas (1700), written for solo violin and continuo. Six of these sonatas are church sonatas, while five are chamber sonatas (the final piece is a set of variations). The church sonatas have five rather than four movements. Their opening slow movements have an active dialogue between violin and bass, and their quick second movements incorporate two melodic lines within the solo violin part to create a three-part imitative texture. Of the third and fourth movements, one will be slow and tuneful, while the other will be a virtuosic fast movement, using rapid scales and arpeggios. The finales will often show the influence of a quick dance, such as the gavotte or the gigue. The chamber sonatas have either four or five movements and open with the usual slow, contrapuntal preludi. They also have one interior slow movement and fast movements that are based on the rhythms of the allemanda, gavotte, or gigue. Their lighter, dancelike style is shown in the use of two-part rather than three-part imitation, the predilection for binary forms, and the frequent dominance of either the violin or bass part over the other. In all the sonatas in this fifth book, the presence of only one violin part leads Corelli to compose movements that are much more virtuosic, movements that became well known throughout the eighteenth century for both their musical and pedagogical value.

During his later years, Corelli was admitted to the Arcadian Academy, the most exclusive society in Italy. Since he published no more books of sonatas after 1700, his later years must have been devoted to his concertos, which were published posthumously in 1714. These may have been partially revised from earlier works, but the overall style suggests that they were primarily late creations. In general, Corelli’s concertos are not innovative because they use the forms and textures of his trio sonatas. They are, however, significant for their mingling of church and chamber styles, for their increased tendency toward homophonic writing, and for their virtuosic display.

Corelli did not perform in public during the last few years of his life. After a period of failing health, he died on January 8, 1713. He was buried in the Pantheon, where his concertos were performed annually for some years to commemorate the anniversary of his death.

Significance

Corelli’s great reputation has created considerable disagreement over his personality, the attribution of additional works to him, and the performance of his music. Despite his fame and wealth, Corelli, many biographers claim, was courteous, modest, and mild-tempered; other biographers claim that he was more passionate and aggressive. Of the many manuscripts and prints that contain additional music attributed to him, only a few have sonatas that may actually have been composed by Corelli (a trumpet sonata, four solo sonatas, and eight trio sonatas have been included in the new edition of Corelli’s works, although the authenticity of at least four of these pieces is in doubt). His solo sonatas are found in numerous manuscripts and prints with many ornaments added, and although these ornaments differ considerably, many sources claim that they are based on Corelli’s own performances.

Corelli had a tremendous impact on his contemporaries and eighteenth century successors. By the end of the eighteenth century, his various books of sonatas had been reprinted more than one hundred times. Some sonatas were arranged for other instruments or as concertos for strings. Many composers wrote works dedicated to Corelli or wrote original pieces that adopted many of his stylistic features. His music influenced composers in Italy (Antonio Vivaldi), France (François Couperin), Germany (Johann Sebastian Bach), and other European countries. Eighteenth century violin methods were based on his principles and recommended the daily study of his music for didactic purposes. He was the most outstanding violin teacher of his day, and many of his students had successful careers in Germany, France, and England (Francesco Geminiani, Michele Mascitti, and others).

The tremendous impact of Corelli’s music stems from a number of factors—the mixture of church and chamber styles, the balance between contrapuntal and homophonic textures, the clear-cut sense of tonality, and the tendency toward thematic unity. Because of these stylistic features, his music became the basis for all other late Baroque sonatas and was widely disseminated during the eighteenth century.

Bibliography

Allsop, Peter. Arcangelo Corelli: New Orpheus of Our Times. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999. A reassessment of Corelli’s life and work, disputing eighteenth century critics who viewed the composer as a consolidator of past trends, not an initiator of new styles. Allsop provides a more balanced portrait of Corelli’s role in the development of instrumental music.

Deas, Stewart. “Arcangelo Corelli.” Music and Letters 34 (January, 1953): 1-10. A good summary of Corelli’s early life and years in Rome. Recounts various anecdotes that suggest Corelli was modest and mild-tempered. The general description of Corelli’s works indicates some prejudice against his chamber sonatas and emphasizes his sense of balance and proportion.

Libby, Dennis. “Interrelationships in Corelli.” Journal of the American Musicological Society 26 (Summer, 1973): 263-287. A detailed, valuable study of Corelli’s style that stresses his overall sense of harmonic progression and tonality, and his tendency toward thematic unity within and between movements.

Marx, Hans Joachim. “Some Corelli Attributions Assessed.” Musical Quarterly 56 (January, 1970): 88-98. Discusses five manuscripts with works attributed to Corelli, noting these pieces are by other composers. Also lists ten manuscripts and three prints with works attributed to Corelli, arguing only one or two of these sources may contain authentic works.

‗‗‗‗‗‗‗. “Some Unknown Embellishments of Corelli’s Violin Sonatas.” Musical Quarterly 61 (January, 1975): 65-76. Discusses some embellished versions of Corelli’s solo sonatas, suggesting that some may have a didactic as well as artistic purpose. Concludes with a valuable list of sources that have embellished versions of Corelli’s opus five sonatas.

Pincherle, Marc. Corelli: His Life, His Work. Translated by Hubert Russell. New York: W. W. Norton, 1956. A detailed account of Corelli’s life and work. The biographical account is somewhat romanticized, but the description of Corelli’s works and influence is thorough. Includes a valuable bibliography of the various seventeenth and eighteenth century editions and arrangements of Corelli’s sonatas and concertos.

Talbot, Michael. “Arcangelo Corelli.” In The New Grove Italian Baroque Masters, by Denis Arnold et al. New York: W. W. Norton, 1984. An objective summary of Corelli’s life, style, and influence. Focuses mostly on known biographical details but also includes useful information on Corelli’s influence and style, without discussing specific works in detail. Includes a brief list of Corelli’s known and probable works, and an excellent bibliography.