Life
A hinge figure between two eras, his training was completed in the final phase of Mannerism, absorbing its anxieties and experimentations, only to reach full artistic maturity at the beginning of the Baroque period, contributing to the definition of the new concerted style.
Born in Siena on December 2, 1578, Agostino Agazzari established himself in the musical landscape of the early seventeenth century as a figure of extraordinary versatility: a prolific composer, a virtuoso organist, and, above all, a theorist of acute intelligence. His talent flourished early in the vibrant cultural atmosphere of his hometown, so much so that at only eighteen years old, in 1596, he published his first book of madrigals; an artistic maturity immediately recognized with his appointment, the following year, as organist of the Cathedral, a role he honored until 1602.
Driven by the desire to engage with broader horizons, he subsequently moved to Rome, the beating heart of Christianity and art. There, between 1602 and 1606, he held the prestigious post of Praefectus musicae at the Collegio Germanico. It was in this fervent Roman climate that his only theatrical work, Eumelio (1606), came to light—a pastoral drama successfully performed at the Roman Seminary that holds a significant place in the genesis of opera.
In 1607, strengthened by his Roman experience, Agazzari returned permanently to his beloved Siena. Becoming a central protagonist of the city's scene, he was admitted into the exclusive Accademia degli Intronati (under the name "Armonico") and crowned his career by becoming maestro di cappella of the Duomo. In this capacity, he continued his prolific activity as a composer and theorist until his death in 1640, leaving an indelible mark on the history of Italian music.
Aneddoto
An innovative theorist
Agazzari was not only a practical musician but also a theorist. His 1607 treatise Del sonare sopra 'l basso is one of the first and most important manuals on the practice of basso continuo and offers musicians and scholars a precious guide to understanding the new musical trends of the time.
Works
Agostino Agazzari's activity was vast and diverse, ranging from sacred to secular music, and into musical theory. As a composer, he primarily dedicated himself to the sacred repertoire, producing a large number of masses, motets, psalms, and litanies, which testify to his profound knowledge of the liturgy and his mastery in polyphonic and concerted writing.
In the field of secular music, he distinguished himself with his books of madrigals, a genre he cultivated from his youth. His most significant contribution to musical theater is the pastoral drama Eumelio, composed in 1606, an important work for understanding the development of opera at the beginning of the seventeenth century.
The work is a pastoral drama enriched by allegorical figures, stylistically akin to the famous Rappresentatione di anima e di corpo by Emilio de’ Cavalieri. Its first performance took place in Rome, at the Oratorio del Santissimo Crocifisso, during the Carnival celebrations between 1605 and 1606. Structured in a prologue and three acts, the work was composed in a very short time—less than two weeks—and staged with splendid success by the students of the Roman Seminary. Although the author of the text remains unknown and there are no records of editions of the libretto, the score was published in Venice in 1606. A copy of this print is now held at the Santa Cecilia Library in Rome.
A deplorable musicological inertia today condemns Agazzari's scores to silence, often leaving them to rot in archives instead of valuing them as they deserve. While in Italy people work tirelessly on the performance of ultramontane musicians like Bach, one witnesses with disdain the oblivion of one's own national treasures, so much so that practically nothing of this author is heard in concert halls. Consequently, Agazzari's fame remains inextricably linked only to his activity as a theorist, particularly for the treatise Del sonare sopra 'l basso con tutti li stromenti e dell'uso loro nel conserto. Published in Siena in 1607, this writing represents a document of exceptional importance, standing as one of the first and most complete guides to the practice of basso continuo and offering precious instructions not only on accompaniment but also on the aesthetics of "concerting" that influenced generations of musicians. His intellectual profile is completed by La musica ecclesiastica of 1638, where the art of sounds is defined as a science. Yet his compositional output is vast and varied: it ranges from the pastoral drama Eumelio of 1606 to an imposing corpus of sacred music, which includes numerous collections of Sacrae cantiones, psalms, magnificats, masses, and litanies published between 1602 and 1640. Equally noteworthy are his forays into devotional music, with two books of Madrigaletti (1607) and the collection Stille soavi di celeste aurora (1620), as well as those into secular music, evidenced by three books of Madrigali printed between the end of the sixteenth century and the first years of the seventeenth.
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Del sonare sopra 'l basso con tutti li stromenti e dell'uso loro nel Conserto
Published in Siena in 1607 and dedicated to Cosimo Beringucci, this treatise represents a milestone in Baroque musical theory, being one of the first texts to attempt a systematic codification of basso continuo. However, its very pioneering nature makes the work complex and still a subject of lively debate: it is indeed not entirely clear whether the "bass" described by Agazzari should be understood in the modern harmonic sense or if we are facing a hybrid system. We are in an experimental historical phase, in which Agazzari moves like an explorer between the rigor of the figured bass and that improvisational practice that will later find full development in the teaching of partimenti.
Beyond theoretical issues, Agazzari opens the dissertation with a famous functional distinction of instruments within the "conserto," dividing them into two essential categories: those of "foundation" and those of "ornament." The former, such as the organ, harpsichord, and in certain cases the lute or harp, have the task of guiding and supporting the entire body of voices, maintaining a solid and continuous harmony. The latter, among which the violin, theorbo, lirone, and cittern stand out, have instead the task of "playing and counterpointing," making the harmony more pleasing through flourishes and melodic patterns. Curiously, wind instruments are excluded from this ideal vision, considered poorly suited to "good and sweet" conserti due to their lack of timbral affinity with strings, being relegated to noisier outdoor performances.
The heart of the treatise focuses on the skills required of the performer, for whom instrumental technique alone is not enough, given that whoever plays over the bass must possess a solid knowledge of counterpoint, know how to sing with confidence, and, above all, have a "good ear" to follow the movements of the parts. Agazzari provides precious and pragmatic instructions. When the instrument acts as a foundation, it must play with judgment, doubling the stops if there are many voices, or thinning the harmony if there are few, always taking care not to cover the singer and avoiding doubling the soprano line. The golden rule is discretion: the accompaniment must support without invading, avoiding virtuosic passages that could "obscure the goodness of the voice."
A very different approach is required of the ornament instruments. Here Agazzari invites creativity and nobility of invention. For him, the musician must "season" the concerto with trills, groups, accents, and responses, varying the style between wide and narrow passages. However, the author warns against chaos, using a colorful and effective image. Instrumentalists, he says, must not all play together like a "flock of sparrows" (passeraio), trying to overpower one another, but must dialogue with prudence, waiting for their turn and leaving space for others. Specific indications are provided for each instrument, from the lirone which requires long and sonorous bowings, to the violin which lives on scherzi and fughette, to the theorbo, praised for the sweetness of its drones.
In the concluding part, the treatise transforms into a passionate defense of musical modernity. Agazzari explains that the use of basso continuo is made necessary by the new "recitative style," born to express affections and words, imitating natural speech. He harshly criticizes the old complex polyphony, described as a "soup of words" in which the meaning of the text was lost among fugues and textures, citing the example of Palestrina as the one who saved ecclesiastical music by bringing it back to clarity. Basso continuo, therefore, is not just a practical convenience to avoid writing immense scores for every Roman performance, but is the essential tool of a new aesthetic that places the word and emotion above contrapuntal artifice.