Giovanni Girolamo Kapsberger

Kapsperger was a highly individual composer and leading virtuoso of the lute family who pioneered the development of the chitarrone (a large lute with long bass strings). Born in Venice around 1580, of noble German descent, he spent most of his life in Rome, enjoying patronage at the highest level and performing only in the most exclusive circles. Between 1604 and 1640, he published four volumes of music for the chitarrone, two for lute, and pioneering books of chamber music. He is less well known for his vocal music, which includes motets and masses performed in the Sistine Chapel, and numerous volumes of serious and popular secular works. By his death in 1651, his music had spanned the limits of popular simplicity and Baroque opulence. His famous Arpeggiata (Book 1, 1604) shows his fondness for arpeggiation, with continuous broken figuration decorating a simple underlying harmonic sequence to virtuoso effect. In their free mixture of styles, the chitarrone toccatas reflect his instinctive performing technique, paralleling the keyboard works of Frescobaldi.