A Dictionary of Music and Musicians/Gasparini, Francesco
GASPARINI, Francesco, born at Lucca in 1665 [App. 646 "Mar 5, 1668"], according to Fétis, but the date is possibly somewhat too early. He was a pupil, first of Corelli and afterwards of Bernardo Pasquini, was Maestro di Coro at the Ospedale di Pietà in Venice, and a member of the Accademia Filarmonica. In 1725 [App. p.646 "1735"] he was elected maestro by the Chapter of St. John Lateran, but he was already in broken health at the time of his appointment, and retired upon halfpay in August of the following year. He retained his post nominally, with Girolamo Chiti for a coadjutor, until April 1727 [App. p.646 "1737"], when he died. The celebrated Benedetto Marcello was his pupil for many years both at Venice and at Rome, and a correspondence between them, continued up to a few weeks before the death of Gasparini, testifies to the esteem in which the great scholar held his master. A professional conflict between Gasparini and A. Scarlatti, the origin of which was unknown to Baini, took the form of an exchange of cantatas, by no means a regretable method of retort between rival and disputative artists. [[App. p.646 "These dates are given by Cerù in his 'Cenni storici dell' insegnamento della musica in Lucca.'"]
Gasparini wrote equally well for the church and for the stage, and Fétis gives a list of no less than thirty-two of his operas. Several of them were favourites in London in the early part of the century. He also composed several cantatas. But the work by which he is now best remembered is his treatise upon accompaniment intituled 'L'Armonico prattico al cembalo, ovvero regole, osservazioni ed avertimenti per ben suonare il basso e accompagnare sopra il cembalo, spinetta ed organo.' This work was republished so lately as 1802 at Venice, and has maintained its position in Italy even since the appearance of the clearer and better arranged treatise of Fenaroli.[ E. H. P. ]