Bernardo Pasquini (1637-1710); ITA

Bernardo Pasquini (1637–1710) was an Italian composer, keyboard virtuoso, and teacher born at Massa in Val di Nievole. After early appointments in Tuscany, he moved to Rome, where he became one of the city’s most celebrated keyboard players and entered the service of prominent patrons. He served for decades as organist at Santa Maria in Aracoeli and participated in the musical life of the Roman aristocracy. In 1706 he was admitted, with Arcangelo Corelli and Alessandro Scarlatti, to the Arcadian Academy.

Pasquini composed operas, oratorios, cantatas, and a large body of keyboard music, but his historical importance rests especially on his works for harpsichord and organ. His toccatas, variations, suites, and contrapuntal pieces helped transmit the Italian keyboard tradition from Frescobaldi toward the eighteenth century. His surviving keyboard works include numerous Toccatas, Partite, and variation sets. As a teacher he was highly influential.