Tomaso Albinoni (1671-1751)

Yesterday was the anniversary of the birth of Venetian Baroque composer, Tomaso Albinoni in 1671. Although famous in his lifetime for his fifty operas, he is most remembered for instrumental music including his oboe concertos and the “Adagio in G minor”—a later reconstruction from some of his works. Of Albinoni’s operas, twenty-eight of them were produced in Venice in a period of 27 years.

J.S. Bach wrote at least two fugues based on themes from Albinoni and utilized his bass lines for instructing students in harmony.

The Erato recording of Adagios is a great place to start listening to Albinoni.