Gasparo Alberti

Gasparo Alberti (c. 1489 – 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, and eventually becoming "maestro di cappella" by 1536. 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. [Ravizza]

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Persondata
NAME=Alberti, Gasparo
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Italian composer
DATE OF BIRTH=c. 1489
PLACE OF BIRTH=Padua, Italy
DATE OF DEATH=c. 1560
PLACE OF DEATH=