By ORREA PERNEL SAMMARTlNI, which is of course merely a form of St. Martin, is a very common name in Italy and no one can say how many there have been in the world of music throughout the ages. But there were two who established a real contact with this country, and one of them, Giuseppe, lived here for'many years, playing and composing. For a time he held the post of Director of Chamber Music in the household of the Prince of Wales, and was evidently a welcome figure alike in Society and in musical circles. We call him Sammartini of London, to distinguish him from his brother.
Giovanni, some seven years younger than the London one, is called Sammartini of Milan. Although he himself, so far as we know, was never in London, many of his Sonatas were published here by the old London firm of Simpson. Our Dr. Burntfy speaks of Sammartini's producing as ' an incredible number of spirited and agreeable compositions,' adding that in 1770 ho was master of the music ' of more than half the churches in the city, for which he furnished Masses upon all the great Festivals.' ONE of the most original of present-day Italian composers, Malipicro came under a good many different influences in his early years, and for a time was spoken of as belonging to the ' futurist' school. Modern though his music is in many ways, the description is not an apt one for an artist who finds much of his inspiration in the music of past ages, and who has made a profound study of the very earliest Italian music. Athough he won many successes as a youthful composer, he destroyed all his earlier work, including two operas, one of which had been produced, and symphonic poems which had been played with success not only in his native Italy, but in Paris and Vienna. All these he regarded as out of touch with his mature aims and ideals, not representative of the path which he is carving out for himself. His music is strong and vigorous, with humour in it as well as passion, and, as one expects from Italian composers, he has a keen sense of the dramatic.