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This particular page was created 19/04/2004 and last updated 30/11/2004
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| | This is the preface of a collection of guitar music by Pietro Pettoletti written while I was still a student at the Grieg Academy. I haven't had time to upload the actual music yet except for the guitar duet Divertissement facile Op. 11 sur un thème suédois.
Pietro Pettoletti came from an Italian family of musicians with strong Scandinavian connections. His father, Carl Johan (1758-e.1801) was the chappelmaster of Casorti's pantominetroup that introduced the comedie del'arte style to Christiania, Norway's capital. His brothers, Phillipo og Joachim, worked as theater impressario at the Coepnhagen Tivoli and chappelmaster at "det musikalske selskab" in Trondheim. Pietro Pettoletti himself toured Europa as a guitar virtuoso. Many of his works were published in Copenhagen or in Stockholm, so he must have visited these towns. Considering his father's and brother's Norwegian connections it seems likely that he also toured that country, although there seems to be no evidence to support Ophées claim that he was "mainly active in Norway and in Russia". Pietro Pettoletti's date of birth is not known, but it must have been some time between 1775 and 1800. According to Prat he died in Russia at the age of 75.A number of Pettoletti's worsk are written for the Russian seven-stringed guitar. According to Prat this was his main instrument. If that is true, it would have been very unusual. The seven-stringed guitar was always regarded as a unique Russian instrument and it is very unlikely for an Italian musician to specialise on it. Less than half the works I have managed to find by Pettoletti are written for the seven-stringed guitar, and none of them were published outside Russia. It is likely that Prat (who always ust be read with some sceptisism) was wrong and that Pettoletti mainly played the standard guitar (possibly with extra bass strings like Mertz and Coste did), although he may wel have mastered the Russian guitar as well. Pietro Pettoletti's worklist is dominated by variation works. This form was very popular during the 19th century and composers of that time priduced a vast number of such variations on opera arias, folk songs etc for violin, guitar, piano or other instruments. Qualitywise he belong to the higher range of the field. Although he of course never reached the level of worsk like Sor's "Mozart variations" or Beethoven's "Diabelli variations," Pettoletti demonstrates in most of his works a thorough knowledge about the form and the instrument he wrote for. His compositions are often highly effective music. The published works seem to have been aimed at the amateur guitarist who wanted something that sounded great without requiring too high technical skills.
This collection includes facsimiles of some selected works. There doesn't seem to be a complete list of Pettoletti's compositions. Bone mentions a few, but far from all. The ones I have managed trace down, are:- Op. 1 Six waltzes (guitar) (N. Simrock, Bonn & Cologne)
- Op. 7 Variations pour la Guitarre (guitar) (Gjöthström & Magnusson, Stockholm)
- Op. 8 Si Variations faciles & agreables sur l'air de La Tyrolienne (guitar) (Gjöthström & Magnusson, Stockholm)
- Op. 11 Theme w/variations (guitar) (Schott, Mayence)
- Op. 11 Divertissement facile (2 guitars) (C. C. Lose, København - også utgitt av P. Jurgenson, St. Petersburg) (The opus no. 11 is used by two different publishers for two widely different works.)
- Op. 14 Troika - theme w/variations (seven-stringed guitar) (P. Jurgenson, St. Petersburg)
- Op. 15 Fantasie sur l'hymne national Russe (guitar) (P. Jurgenson, St. Petersburg)
- Op. 17 Divertissement on themes from Montechi e Capuleti (seven-stringed guitar) (P. Jurgenson, St. Petersburg)
- Op. 18 God bless the Tzar! - fantasy (seven-stringed guitar) (P. Jurgenson, St. Petersburg)
- Op. 19 The Red Safran - fantasy (seven-stringed guitar) (P. Jurgenson, St. Petersburg)
- Op. 21 How have I made you sad? - variations (seven-stringed guitar) (P. Jurgenson, St. Petersburg)
- Op. 22 Fantasia (guitar) (C. C. Lose, København)
- Op. 23 Waltz, march and two themes w/variations (guitar) (P. Jurgenson, St. Petersburg)
- Op. 24 Fantasia (guitar) (C. C. Lose, København)
- Op. 26 Variations sur la Cavatine favourite de l...opera Le Pirate de Bellini (guitar) (Schott, Mayence)
- Op. 28 Fantasia (guitar) (Schott, Mayence)
- Op. 29 Impromtou (guitar) (Schott, Mayence)
- Op. 31 Fantasie sur une somance favourite de Pashkoff (guitar) (A Büttner, St. Petersburg)
- Op. 32 Fantasie sur une melodie Russe (guitar) (Schott, Mayence)
Kilder:- Matanya Ophée: Some considerations about...
- Domingo Prat: Diccionario de Guitarristas (Buenos Aires, 1934)
- Philip Bone: The Guitar and the Mandolin
More information:Kenneth Sparr: The Guitar in Sweden Until the Middle of the 19th Century Kenneth Sparr also has some Pettoletti works I didn't know of listed at Music for the Guitar Printed in Sweden 1800-1860
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