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Kate Molleson explores the life and music of Domenico Scarlatti

Domenico Scarlatti was well placed to build himself a glittering career in the music business. He was prestigiously talented and born into a family with powerful connections in the music business. His home city of Naples was a major centre for the fashionable new art form of opera. But there were challenges, too. Competition was fierce and musicians often found their fates helplessly tied to the fickle fortunes of their aristocratic patrons. On top of all that, Domenico faced another, distinctly personal, test to his career aspirations; he was working in the shadow of a much more celebrated Scarlatti – his own father! It would take several decades, and more than a few changes of direction, before Domenico finally found his right path, becoming one of the baroque period’s most significant composers. Today, he’s rightly revered for the extraordinary catalogue of over 550 keyboard sonatas he left to posterity. This week, Kate Molleson traces Scarlatti's story and looks at what else there is to discover in his legacy alongside his celebrated keyboard works.

Music Featured:

Sonata in D, K 96
Sonata in Dm, K 9
Sonata in E, K 20
Antra, valles, divo plaudeant
Sinfonia in C
Sinfonia in G
Sonata in Am, K 109
Sonata in A, K 279
Sonata in G, K 425
Amor d'un Ombra e Gelosia d'un'aura (excerpts)
O qual meco: Sinfonia & Aria, ‘Per che non dirmial meno’
Sonata in Dm, K 32
Sonata in C, K 308
Sonata in Gm, K196
Sonata in G, K 284
Messa breve 'La Stella': Kyrie
La Dirindina (extract from Scene 1)
Sonata in D, K 443
Sonata in F, K 17
Stabat Mater
Contesa della stagione: VIII. ‘Giorno felice’…‘Sia dolce e caro e grato’
Sonata in A, K 39
Sonata in A, K 208
Sonata in Am, K 175
Laetatus sum
Sonata in Eb, K 434
Sonata in Eb, K 475
Missa quatuor vocum, Gloria, Sanctus & Benedictus, Agnus Dei
Pur nel sonno almen tal’ora: (extracts)
Avison: Concerto grosso after Scarlatti, No. 5 in Dm (extracts)
Salve Regina in A
Sonata in Cm, K11
Sonata in G, K547

Presented by Kate Molleson
Produced by Johannah Smith

For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Domenico Scarlatti (1685-1757) /programmes/m001m56g

And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z