- ments in Italy. From 1643 he was choirmaster at the Lateran, from 1661 at
S. Lorenzo in Damaso and from 1678 at Sta. Maria Maggiore. His abundant works (from 1642 or in MS.) are written in a pure and noble style, almost untouched by the concertistic drift. He was one of the first Italians to use the tonal as distinct from the real fugue (see sec. 103).
Bonifacio Gratiani (d. 1664), born in 1605, from 1649 choirmaster at the Seminario and the Jesuit Church, composed a prodigious amount of sacred music (published posthumously), which was highly regarded at the time.
Antimo Liberati (d. after 1685), after study with G. Allegri and Benevoli, is said to have worked at Vienna until about 1650, when he returned to Rome. In 1653 he was in the Papal Chapel, and later served two of the city churches. He left considerable church music, several oratorios and some literary remains.
Matteo Simonelli (d. after 1688), pupil of the same masters and a patient student of Palestrina's works, entered the Papal Chapel in 1662 and later was choirmaster elsewhere in Rome. His many works (left in MS.) were so finished and noble in style as to give him the name of 'the Palestrina of the 17th century.'
Giuseppe Ottavio Pitoni (d. 1743), born in 1657 and living far into the next century, was at once the last of the old school and the connecting link with a much later period. Musically precocious, he studied with Natale and Foggia, and was minutely acquainted with Palestrina's works. From the age of 16 he was choirmaster in provincial towns, from 1677 in the collegiate church of S. Marco at Rome, from 1708 at the Lateran and from 1719 at St. Peter's, besides connections with several other churches not fully explained. His works, besides being marvels of erudition and skill, were extremely numerous, but, with one exception (1697), they were not published, and are still not generally available. Like Benevoli, he excelled in immense compositions for many voices in separate choirs—at his death he was working on a mass for 48 voices in 12 choirs. For St. Peter's he prepared a complete set of masses, motets and vespers for an entire year, including every service in the calendar. Among his masses some are a cappella, some with organ and other instruments. He also left a MS. account of all the Roman polyphonists from 1000 to 1700, on which Baini based his monograph upon Palestrina (1828), besides a small manual on composition (c. 1690). He was an important teacher, as of Durante, Leo and Feo.
A few lesser names may be added, like Francesco Severi (d. 1630), in the Papal Chapel from 1613 and notable as the author of psalms (1615) exemplifying the overlaying of the voice-parts with florid embellishments; Lorenzo Ratti (d. after 1632), nephew and pupil of Ugolini, with motets, litanies, graduals and offertories for the whole year (from 1617); Agostino Diruta (d. after 1668), from 1622 choirmaster at Asola, and from 1630 at S. Agostino in Rome (works from 1617); Giuseppe Giamberti (d. after 1650), pupil of G. B. Nanino and Agostini, in 1629 the successor of D. Allegri at Sta. Maria Maggiore, who was useful as the editor of the new standard antiphonary, besides writing motets (from 1628); Domenico a Pane, pupil of Abbatini, from 1654 in the Papal Choir and from 1669 its leader, whose works (1672-87) include masses on themes from Palestrina; and Giovanni Battista Giansetti, choirmaster at the Lateran from about 1670, whose most noted work was a mass for 48 voices in 12 choirs (1675).
