Giammateo Asola

Giammateo Asola(also spelledGian Matteo,Giovanni Matteo;Asula,Asulae;1532 or earlier – 1 October 1609) was an Italian composer of the lateRenaissance.He was a prolific composer of sacred music, mostly in a conservative style, although he may have been one of the first composers to write a part forbasso continuo.

Life

He was born inVerona,and began studying atSan Giorgio in Algain 1546 in the congregation of secular canons. While in Verona he most likely studied withVincenzo Ruffo.In 1569 he became a secular parish priest, and in 1577 becamemaestro di cappellaatTrevisoCathedral; however, in 1578 he went toVicenzaCathedral to take the equivalent job there, where the pay and musical opportunities were greater. He only stayed there four years, going toVenicein 1582,which was the center of activity in northern Italy for sacred music. Except for a short return to Verona c. 1590–1591, he lived in Venice until his death, working at the church of S Severo, as one of four chaplains; apparently he was never associated withSt. Mark's.

Music and influence

Asola was a rare case of a composer working in Venice who showed almost no stylistic influence from theVenetian school;indeed most of his works are in thePalestrinastyle, the idiom of theRoman Schoolof composers. In his later works he began using abasso continuo,and he may have been one of the first composers to do so.The only musical feature he borrowed from the Venetian composers elsewhere in his adopted city was the idea ofcori spezzati,spatially separated groups of singers; however, this musical style was widespread in northern Italy by the time he was writing, and by no means unique to Venice.Cori spezzatitechniques appear in particular in his 1588 publication ofmassesfor eight voices.

Among his copious works are manymasses,including aRequiemmass;psalmsettings,lamentations,vespers,antiphons,sacrae cantiones,and numerous other sacred works. He also composed secular music, including several books ofmadrigals,as well as one book ofmadrigali spirituali,which is lost.

One of his books of madrigals, theMadrigali,is unusual in that it consists ofcanonsfor two voices only; most madrigals of the time were for at least four voices, and rarely used strictcounterpoint.

References and further reading

• Fouse, Donald (1980). "Asola, Giammateo". InSadie, Stanley(ed.).The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians.Vol. i (1st ed.). London: Macmillan. pp. 657–658.
• Fouse, Donald. "Asola, Giammateo",Grove Music Online,ed. L. Macy (accessed January 15, 2005),grovemusic(subscription access).
• Gustave Reese,Music in the Renaissance.New York, W.W. Norton & Co., 1954.ISBN0-393-09530-4.

External links

• Free scores by Giammateo Asolaat theInternational Music Score Library Project(IMSLP)
• Free scores by Giammateo Asolain theChoral Public Domain Library(ChoralWiki)
• Free scores by G. AsolafromVistaMare Musicaearly music site
• Listen toa free recordings of Benedictus - Missa Pro Defundusin theUmeå Akademiska Kör.