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Dall'Abaco, Evaristo Felice, 1675-1742

 Person

Dates

  • Existence: July 12, 1675 - September 12, 1742

Biography

(b Verona, 12 July 1675; d Munich, 12 July 1742). Italian composer. He was born into a family of high social standing, his father being a jurist. As a boy he learnt the violin and the cello, possibly under Torelli until the latter's removal to Bologna in 1685. In 1696 Dall'Abaco went to Modena, where his services as a musician were much in demand despite his not being attached to the court orchestra. His noted penchant for the French style may date from his Modena days, since the director of the orchestra, Ambreville, was French. After 19 September 1701 no further trace of Dall'Abaco exists in Modena, and the next mention of him is early in 1704 as a cellist in the Bavarian court, where one of his colleagues was J.C. Pez. The defeat of the reigning elector, Maximilian II Emmanuel, in the War of the Spanish Succession forced him to flee to the Netherlands, where he brought a large retinue including many of his own musicians. Setting up court in Brussels, Maximilian continued to patronize the arts extravagantly, but further French reverses caused him to withdraw to Mons in 1706. The capitulation of Mons following the battle of Malplaquet in 1709 sent the elector back to France, and a relatively impoverished court was established in Compiègne by grace of Louis XIV. Throughout these unsettled times Dall'Abaco remained at the elector's side. He had married Marie Clémence Bultinck in the Netherlands, and their son Joseph-Marie-Clément was born in 1709 or 1710.

Dall'Abaco must have deepened his acquaintance with the French style after prolonged residence in the Low Countries and France, though it was only after Maximilian's eventual triumphant return to Munich in April 1715 that specifically French traits began to creep into his published music. Dall'Abaco's loyalty and competence were rewarded by his appointment as Konzertmeister in the reconstituted court orchestra and his elevation to the rank of electoral councillor in 1717, a fact proudly advertised on the title-page of his fifth publication, a set of concertos for various combinations. He also participated as a soloist in ‘academies’, the precursors of the musical soirées of the 19th century, some of which were held at his own house. Dall'Abaco remained in the service of the Bavarian court after Maximilian's death in 1726 and the accession of the new elector, his son Karl Albrecht. Though a music lover like his father, the new elector favoured a more up-to-date style of music than his Konzertmeister would, or could, supply, with the result that Dall'Abaco's musical activities became increasingly relegated to the background. A second set of concertos, published by Le Cène in 1735 as Dall'Abaco's op.6, is the sole proof of his continued creative work during this final phase. He seems to have retired on a pension in 1740.

Dall'Abaco's surviving output is restricted to the 66 works published in his lifetime as opp.1–6. Like Corelli, he seems to have taken unusual care in preparing his works for publication. The result is a consistently high standard of craftsmanship allied to an original and inventive turn of mind, which shows itself in individual details no less than in the broad design. Although the musical materials Dall'Abaco worked with are accurately described as post-Corellian, he did not hesitate to adapt or embroider them for special effect. His movements, whether binary or unitary, are mostly long and restate material systematically, using large units. The French influence in his music does not often extend to harmony, melodic style or ornamentation, but is seen in the occasional adoption of the rondeau form and in French dance movements, such as the passepied, with no traditional cultivation in Italy, and in a marked fondness for the parallel key (also, more unusually, its satellite keys). Thus an excursion to G major in the course of a movement in E major, such as occurs in the opening movement (Ciaccona) of the 12th sonata in his op.1, is no novelty for him.

Source: Michael Talbot. ""Dall'Abaco, Evaristo Felice."" In Grove Music Online. Oxford Music Online, http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com.ezproxy.mnl.umkc.edu/subscriber/article/grove/music/07074 (accessed February 16, 2011).

Found in 1 Collection or Record:

Evaristo Felice Dall’Abaco, 1712

 File — Box 1, Folder: 5
Scope and Contents From the Collection: The Classical Music Manuscript contains a wide array of score and parts, in both manuscript and printed form, from composers and music educators dating back to the Eighteenth Century. Along with recognizable names such as Domenico Scarlatti, there are many far lesser known composers from the time of Mozart and Beethoven that are represented here in this collection, with rare scores and pedagogical manuals. Not only are the items an interesting glimpse into virtually unknown works, they are a...
Dates: 1712