Giovanni Giorgi (composer)

Giovanni Giorgi (late 17th or early 18th century – June 1762 ) (Latin: Joannis de Georgiis) was a priest and an Italian composer. His style of polychoral church compositions are influenced by earlier Roman School composers such as Orazio Benevoli, but also incorporate later Roman Baroque features and (after about 1758) some elements of early Classical style. Life Giorgi is reputed to have originated from Venice, but few details of his life are known. In 1719 he was appointed maestro di cappella at the papal Basilica of St. John Lateran, Rome, and was the successor of Giuseppe Ottavio Pitoni. Many of Giorgi’s early compositions were written during his time in Rome. By January 1725 he was in Lisbon where he took up the post of court mestre de capela. He died in Lisbon in 1762. Works Many Portuguese records were lost in the 1755 Lisbon earthquake, but in Giorgi’s case around 600 compositions have been preserved both in the Lateran archives in Rome and at Lisbon Cathedral. His extant works include: * 162 motets, some for 2 to 4 voices; also some for 8 or 16 voices * 33 mass settings for 2, 4, 8 and 16 voices; some with instrumental parts * 145 gradual settings for 2, 4 and 8 voices; so