Marino, Carlo Antonio (EN)

Marino, Marini, Carlo Antonio, *baptised 10 September 1670 Bergamo, †13 September 1735 Crema, Italian composer, violininst and cellist. He came from a family of musicians. Between 1681 and 1684, he was a singer in a boys’ choir, and from 1683 to 1707, he was also a violinist at the Cathedral of Santa Maria Maggiore in Bergamo, where he was probably the first teacher of P. Locatelli. He was active as a violinist or concertmaster in various church and opera orchestras in northern Italy. From 16 November 1709 until his death, he served as maestro di cappella at the cathedral in Crema.

Marino was a representative of the Bergamo violin school, continuing the tradition of T. Merula, M. Cazzati and G. Legrenzi. His interests focused on sonatas, both da chiesa and da camera. Most of the da chiesa sonatas consist of four or five movements in a typical sequence: slow – fast – slow – fast. An unusual feature is the predominance throughout Op. 3 of structures dominated by slow movements: slow – slow – slow – fast; slow – slow – slow – slow – fast. In these sonatas, alongside fanciful, homophonic grave movements, Marino also used fugal techniques in both the fast and slow movements. The Sonatas da camera from Op. 1 are still two-part cycles consisting of a balletto (or sinfonia) and a dance, while Op. 2 already features four-part suites with the following structure: balletto, corrente, giga, minuet, and Op. 5 – overture, corrente, giga, gavotte. In some ensemble sonatas, the prominent solo element foreshadows the violin concerto. In Opuses 3, 6 and 7, the cello part is treated on a par with the violin, while the quartet and quintet sonatas with viola reveal features of the concerto grosso, with the violin and cello contrasted by a four-part tutti. Following the example of the Bolognese composers, Marino performed these orchestral sonatas in Bergamo Cathedral. Marino’s instrumental works enjoyed great popularity; reprints of Opuses 6, 7 and 8 appeared shortly afterwards – alongside works by A. Corelli, G. Torelli, A. Veracini and T. Albinoni – in Amsterdam. Marino also demonstrated his compositional skills in the field of vocal music. The elaborate solo cantatas from Op. 4 are characterised by their well-thought-out structure, developed cantilena, power of expression and humour. Marino’s oeuvre, scattered across various European libraries, has not yet been compiled.

Literature: R. Bowman Musical information in the archives of the church of S. Maria Maggiore, Bergamo 1649–1720, in: Dart Festschrift, ed. I.D. Bent, London 1981; P.J. Everett A Roman concerto repertory: Ottoboni’s “what not?”, “Proceedings of the Royal Musical Association” CX, 1983/84; W. Apel Italian Violin Music in the 17th Century, Indiana 1990; A. Firrincieli Carlo Antonio Marino. Vita, opere ed edizione degli opera omnia, thesis, University of Pavia, 2001.