Sonata No. 13 for flute and piano
Giuseppe Rabboni: Sonata No. 13 for flute and piano in D minor was written approximately between 1827 and 1856, during his tenure at the Milan Conservatory. Precise dating for individual sonatas is difficult to detect since they were primarily published as a collection by Francesco Lucca (Lucca Press) in Milan. When Ricordi later acquired Lucca Press, much of Rabboni's solo output went out of print and into obscurity.
The pedagogical use of all 42 one-movement sonatas in this collection was central to the Milan Conservatory's curriculum during the mid-19th century. These works were designed to bridge the gap between technical exercises and concert performance, specifically focusing on the Italian Bel Canto style.
The sonatas are known today largely due to the research and editing of flutist Paul Edmund-Davies and pianist John Alley, who found a tattered volume of Rabboni’s music in a second-hand shop in Hungerford (UK), and released a modern edition through Simply Flute.
Rabboni was a pivotal figure in the 19th-century Italian flute school, serving as the first flutist at Teatro alla Scala and the first-ever flute professor at the Milan Conservatory.
Rabboni was a contemporary and associate of Giuseppe Verdi. In 1854, Verdi was so impressed by Rabboni’s transcriptions of Il Trovatore that he personally dedicated an autograph score to him, calling him the "Egregio maestro Rabboni".
"Rabboni also had magpie tendencies, as many of these pieces are arrangements of the music of other composers. The Sonata No. 13 theme is taken from a sketch of the slow movement of an oboe sonata by Donizetti."
Paul Edmund-Davies
Rabboni Giuseppe
Giuseppe Rabboni (1800–1856) was a renowned Italian flutist who is considered a central figure of the 19th-century Italian flute school, distinguished by his dual roles as the premier flutist at Teatro alla Scala and the founding professor of the flute department at the Milan Conservatory.
Born in Cremona, Italy, he received his initial musical education there, in a legendary city known for its instrument-making heritage.
He pursued his further training in Milan, enrolling as the very first student of the Milan Conservatory upon its founding in 1808, established by royal decree in 1807. Rabboni studied in the class of Giuseppe Buccinelli, who was primarily an oboist and bassoonist. At the time of the Conservatory's founding, separate specialized classes for every wind instrument were not yet established; Buccinelli was appointed to teach oboe, bassoon, and flute simultaneously.
By 1827, Rabboni had established himself as a virtuoso, securing the position of First Flutist at Teatro alla Scala. For nearly three decades, he sat at the heart of the Italian opera scene, performing under the baton of major figures.
In 1827, Rabboni was appointed as the first-ever flute professor at the Milan Conservatory. He held this post until his death in 1856. His teaching philosophy centered on "instrumental singing," leading to the composition of his 42 Sonatas and various Metodi (methods) that prioritized tone quality and operatic phrasing. He was a close contemporary of Giuseppe Verdi, who held Rabboni's musicianship in high regard. He also formed a famous duo with clarinetist Ernesto Cavallini, with whom he toured Europe, showcasing the technical brilliance of the Italian wind school.
His compositional style is characterized as a cornerstone of the 19th-century Italian Bel Canto instrumental tradition, emphasizing vocal-like phrasing and expressive lyricism over mere technical bravura. According to research by Paul Edmund-Davies, Rabboni’s works could be described as instrumental "postcards", functioning as instrumental "vocalises" that emulate the human voice.