Sonata in g minor for oboe and continuo
Source: Two-line manuscript found in the Biblioteca del Conservatorio di Musica “Nicolo Paganini” in Genova Italy with the title: Sonata Per Oboe Solo Con Basso Del Sig. Matteo Bissoli, possibly copied around 1750.
Positions for oboists in liturgical situations were rare in Italy in the eighteenth century, but Matteo Bissoli was clearly highly regarded for he held a full-time hautboy appointment at the famous church of San Antonio in Padua, Italy from 1736 to the end of his life. In that position he shared the same salary level as the famous violinist Tartini, best known today as the composer of the virtuosic “Devil’s Trill” sonata.
Bissoli’s activities were apparently largely restricted to the Padova area, but he is known to have made the arduous journey to Genova – some 360 kilometers, one-way, over mountainous roads. Later in his life he traveled 120 kilometers (again, one-way) to Bologna to perform for Padre Martini, a performance which resulted in a “prize” of a relic of St. Anthony – subsequently stolen, much to the anguish of the recipient.
This is the only known surviving work by Bissoli, and it’s a winner!
Sonata in g minor / ob, bass, continuo (score) / $14.00
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