Giuseppe Ferlendis

(1755-1802)

Italian composer, and a celebrated virtuoso oboe and cor anglais performer. He had three sons, Angelo Ferlendis, Alessandro Ferlendis, and Antonio Ferlendis, all of whom became excellent oboists and cor anglais players. Both Giuseppe and his sons published compositions for oboe and cor anglais in Paris and London. Giuseppe was held in such esteem and so famous that when he was appointed oboist at the Court Chapel of Salzburg (1777) his yearly stipend of 540 florins was higher than that of Mozart, who, at the same Court, was receiving at the time a stipend of only 500 florins! He was also active in London where he took part in the last concert held in honor of Haydn (1795). He died in Lisbon. The Concerto No. 1 in F Major (c. 1777) by Giuseppe Ferlendis is a Classical Period work in the style of Mozart. When the concerto first came to the attention of musicologist Georges de Saint-Foix in 1919, he came to believe that it was not written by Ferlendis, a mere virtuoso oboist, but rather for Ferlendis. Saint-Foix hypothesized that this concerto was written by W. A. Mozart and that Ferlendis was simply the owner and not the creator of the work. Subsequently, the concerto was examined by Mozart scholar Alfred Einstein. Einstein refuted Saint-Foix's hypothesis on the basis of "stylistic evidence." With the dismissal of Mozart's authorship, the "Ferlendis Concerto" was once again relegated to the library shelf for many years. Regardless of authorship, the musical substance and beauty found in this work make it a valuable addition to the oboe repertoire

Alessandro Ferlendis (1783-c. 1833) toured Europe during the years 1803-1816.





XIIC: From the 'Galant' to the 'Biedermayer'