Claudio Saracini (July 1, 1586 – September 20, 1630) was an Italian composer, lutenist and singer of the early Baroque era. He was one of the most famous and distinguished composers of monody. July 1 is the 182nd day of the year (183rd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 183 days remaining. ... Events November 19 - Henry Barrow, English Puritan and Separatist is imprisoned. ... September 20 is the 263rd day of the year (264th in leap years). ... Events February 22 - Native American Quadequine introduces Popcorn to English colonists. ... The lute is a plucked string instrument with a fretted neck and a deep round back. ... Baroque music is Western classical music from the Baroque era, after the Renaissance music era and before the Classical music era proper. ... Caccini, Le Nuove musiche, 1601, title page Monody is a kind of music distinguished by having a single melodic line and accompaniment. ...

Life

Saracini was born to a noble family, probably in Siena. Little is known for certain about his education, but it is presumed that he traveled widely while he was young, for not only did he establish numerous foreign connections—as evidenced by his dedications of music to foreign aristocrats—but he absorbed some of the musical styles of the lands he visited. He seems never held a professional musical position of which record has survived; indeed he seems to have been an extraordinarily talented amateur, one who was admired even by Claudio Monteverdi. The references to Saracini as "Il Palusi" seem to indicate that he was a member of an academy, although further details are lacking. This page is not about the form of limonite clay called sienna. ... Portrait of Claudio Monteverdi in Venice, 1640, by Bernardo Strozzi Claudio Monteverdi (May 15, 1567 (baptised) – November 29, 1643) was an Italian composer, violinist and singer. ...

All of his music was published in Venice between 1614 and 1624. Location within Italy Venice (Italian Venezia), the city of canals, is the capital of the region of Veneto, population 271,663 (census estimate 2004-01-01). ... Events April 5 - In Virginia, Native American Pocahontas marries English colonist John Rolfe. ... Events January 24 - Alfonso Mendez, appointed by Pope Gregory XV as Prelate of Ethiopia, arrives at Massawa from Goa. ...

Music and influence

Of his music, 133 songs have survived, and all are monodies—secular compositions for solo voice, generally sung in a highly ornamented style, with instrumental accompaniment. All but one are in Italian, and encompass a wide range of texts, including serious, humorous, and erotic. His style varies from diatonic to chromatic, and is comparable to that of contemporary monodist Sigismondo d'India in its experimental qualities. In music, chromatic indicates the inclusion of notes not in the prevailing scale and is also used for those notes themselves (Shir-Cliff et al 1965, p. ... Sigismondo dIndia (c. ...

A unique feature of Saracini's compositions is the occasional influence of folk music, including that of the Balkans, an extreme rarity in early Italian Baroque music. Presumably he heard folk music in those regions when he traveled there during his youth. This influence is most evident in his strophic songs, one of which is in 5/4 (although actually notated in duple meter); asymmetrical meters are a normal feature of Balkan folk music but are absent in Italian. Folk music, in the original sense of the term, is music by and of the people. ... The Balkans is the historic and geographic name used to describe southeastern Europe (see the Definitions and boundaries section below). ...

Saracini's works have had a resurgence of interest in the 20th century, after a long period of neglect. His experimental idiom first attracted the attention of musicologists, and later, performers; his compositions are now recorded relatively frequently, often on collections containing works of other composers of the same era, such as Monteverdi or Alessandro Grandi. (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999 in the... For the album by Prince, see Musicology (album). ... Alessandro Grandi (c. ...

References

• Nigel Fortune, "Claudio Saracini," The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, ed. Stanley Sadie. 20 vol. London, Macmillan Publishers Ltd., 1980. ISBN 1561591742
• Nigel Fortune, Peter Laki: "Claudio Saracini", Grove Music Online ed. L. Macy (Accessed June 2, 2005), (subscription access) (http://www.grovemusic.com)