These two "simphonie come from Maurizio Cazzati s Il Secondo Libro delle Sonate a una, doi, tre, e quattro ... Opera ottava ... Venice, Alessandro Vincenti, 1648, a collection consisting otherwise of more complex pieces. The four parts are labelled "violino primo , "violino secondo , "viola and "violone . For reasons of space, we have printed a single part for both the basso and the basso continuo, as the two parts are virtually identical. The original note values have been halved in the triple sections in no. 2, but retained elsewhere.
Maurizio Cazzati (c. 1620-1677) was one of the most prolific Italian composers of instrumental music of his time. An ordained priest, he worked as maestro di cappella in Mantova, Ferrara and Bergamo, before settling down in that capacity at S. Petronio in Bologna, where he greatly expanded the musical establishment. Cazzati s music is often unorthodox, and can appear a little crude on paper: indeed he was the victim of a vilification campaign by the organist at S. Petronio, a certain Arresti, who found "errors in one of his masses. However, practical experience has brought his work into a more positive light, and much of his music turns out to be charming and most effective.
