Sonate a quattro 1

Naples, at the turn of the XVIIIth century, was the capital of Southern Italy and Sicily, and the home of orphanages which functioned as superlative music schools providing the city with first-rate musicians. Consequently the Neapolitan court orchestra was one of the best musical ensembles in Europe. Ragazzi received musical training in the S. Maria di Loreto orphanage and later attained the position of concertmaster of the Neapolitan court orchestra.

The works at hand, though they are entitled Sonate a Quattro, can be described as violin concertos, which thanks to formally experimental combinations of Sonata, Solo Concerto and Concerto grosso achieve a varied and delightful musical effect. The solo violin part is technically demanding.