Top 10 Baroque composers<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
Vivaldi: Six of his best works<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>
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A common thread running through many Italian composers is a determination to do things their own way. Whether it\u2019s the harmonic adventurousness of Scarlatti<\/strong><\/a>, the complex mixture of operatic drama and mysticism that permeates Pergolesi\u2019s Stabat Mater<\/em>, or the downright weirdness of Gesualdo\u2019s madrigals, Italian music often has a very distinctive tang of its own.<\/p>\n
So who are the best Italian composers? Here is our pick of the ten greatest Italian composers to have put pen to paper.<\/p>\n
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Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (1525-94)<\/a><\/h3>\n
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Composing in the Renaissance era at around the same time as Thomas Tallis<\/strong><\/a>, Palestrina wrote much beautiful sacred music. Arguably, Renaissance polyphony and counterpoint reached a peak with Palestrina\u2019s dynamic, highly melodious compositions. He is now viewed as a key figure in what is termed the\u00a0Roman School, alongside fellow composers Orlande de Lassus<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0Tom\u00e1s Luis de Victoria<\/a><\/strong>,<\/p>\n
Key work:<\/strong> There are various candidates to choose from, but we\u2019ll opt for the Missa Papae Marcelli<\/a><\/em><\/strong>, a wonderful example of Palestrina\u2019s mastery of complex polyphony.<\/p>\n
Key recording:<\/strong> We have to opt for the Tallis Scholars under Peter Phillips here, in part because the disc also contains what may be the finest-ever performance of the famous Miserere<\/em> by a slightly later Italian composer, Gregorio Allegri. This must be one of the best recordings of Allegri\u2019s <\/strong>Miserere<\/strong><\/em><\/a>. It\u2019s largely down to this exquisite performance, in fact, that this disc made our list of the 50 greatest classical music recordings of all time<\/strong><\/a>. But the Palestrina is also beautifully sung,<\/p>\n