Gasparo Alberti
Encyclopedia
Gasparo Alberti (c. 1485 – c. 1560) was an Italian
composer.
He was born in Padua
, and worked through the ranks at the basilica
of Santa Maria Maggiore, in Bergamo
, starting as a cleric in 1503, he becoming choir master in 1508 and magister cappellae by 1525. He was forced to retire in 1550, but was reappointed and worked there until 1559. Alberti was one of the first composers to use a number of new techniques, including the use of cori spezzati and salmi spezzati, especially within the Passion
, where he used it for both the turba
and the words of Jesus, or vox Christi. Alberti's Passions were the first to set Jesus' words polyphonically. Although he was an early user of these techniques, he is not believed to have originated them or disseminated them significantly. Despite this, he was an important force in Italian sacred music, especially in the period before Palestrina
. His book of masses was the first to be published by a single Italian composer. Alberti's works were rediscovered by Danish musicologist Knud Jeppesen
in the 1960s.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
composer.
He was born in Padua
Padua
Padua is a city and comune in the Veneto, northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Padua and the economic and communications hub of the area. Padua's population is 212,500 . The city is sometimes included, with Venice and Treviso, in the Padua-Treviso-Venice Metropolitan Area, having...
, and worked through the ranks at the basilica
Basilica
The Latin word basilica , was originally used to describe a Roman public building, usually located in the forum of a Roman town. Public basilicas began to appear in Hellenistic cities in the 2nd century BC.The term was also applied to buildings used for religious purposes...
of Santa Maria Maggiore, in Bergamo
Bergamo
Bergamo is a town and comune in Lombardy, Italy, about 40 km northeast of Milan. The comune is home to over 120,000 inhabitants. It is served by the Orio al Serio Airport, which also serves the Province of Bergamo, and to a lesser extent the metropolitan area of Milan...
, starting as a cleric in 1503, he becoming choir master in 1508 and magister cappellae by 1525. He was forced to retire in 1550, but was reappointed and worked there until 1559. Alberti was one of the first composers to use a number of new techniques, including the use of cori spezzati and salmi spezzati, especially within the Passion
Passion (Christianity)
The Passion is the Christian theological term used for the events and suffering – physical, spiritual, and mental – of Jesus in the hours before and including his trial and execution by crucifixion...
, where he used it for both the turba
Turba
' literally means crowd in Latin. It may refer more specifically to any text in the biblical Passion of Jesus which is spoken by any group of people, including the disciples, the Jews, or the soldiers...
and the words of Jesus, or vox Christi. Alberti's Passions were the first to set Jesus' words polyphonically. Although he was an early user of these techniques, he is not believed to have originated them or disseminated them significantly. Despite this, he was an important force in Italian sacred music, especially in the period before Palestrina
Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina
Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina was an Italian Renaissance composer of sacred music and the best-known 16th-century representative of the Roman School of musical composition...
. His book of masses was the first to be published by a single Italian composer. Alberti's works were rediscovered by Danish musicologist Knud Jeppesen
Knud Jeppesen
Knud Jeppesen was a Danish musicologist, composer, and writer on the history of music....
in the 1960s.