Antonio Francesco Tenaglia

Born: 1612
Died: 1672
Education: was praised as an excellent harpsichordist by Severo Bonini in Discorsi e massimo sopra la musica
Career: organist of the basilica of San Giovanni in Laterano

He was born around 1620 in Florence. He later moved to Rome. In September 1644 he was hired in the service of Cardinal Antonio Barberini. In 1648 he was in Brussels at the service of Archduke Leopold William of Austria , showing his dissatisfaction with this post. He was praised as an excellent harpsichordist by Severo Bonini in the Discorsi e Regole sopra la musica which defined him as the best "after Signor Girolamo ". He returned to Rome in 1651. In those years he had frequent relations with the Abbot Elpidio Benedetti, agent of Cardinal Giulio Mazzarino in Rome, who did his best to send Italian musicians to the French court. In a letter to Mazarin, dated November 1654, the abbot Benedetti wrote that «to accompany the cymbal has no paro, and the poor sig. Luigi ». At that time he may have joined the Pamphilj family entourage. In 1656 he composed the "musical drama represented by three bridesmaids" The judgment of Paris , on a libretto by Giovanni Lotti, performed at Palazzo Pamphilj in honor of Queen Christina of Sweden . In 1660 he was in the service of Prince Camillo Pamphilj and later, from October 1668 to January 1669, of his son Giovanni Battista. In 1661, he composed the opera Il Clearco, on a libretto by Ludovico Cortesi, performed in Rome in honor of Prince Agostino Chigi , nephew of Pope Alexander VII. He was organist of the basilica of San Giovanni in Laterano from June 1667 until October 1672, when he probably died. Tenaglia was already an appreciated composer of cantatas in his day. 67 survive with solo voice, 8 with two voices and 1 with three voices attributed to him. Although he had great fame as a harpsichordist, his compositions for the keyboard are unknown.