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Carlo Albanesi (22 October 1858 – 26 September 1926) was an Italian-born composer, pianist, teacher and examiner who spent most of his working life in England. His ''Exercises for Fingering'', first published in the early 1900s, are still in use today.Musicroom
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Life and career

Born in Naples, Albanesi received piano lessons from his father, the piano virtuoso Luigi Albanesi (1821–1898), and composition lessons from Sabino Falconi. He established himself in Italy as a pianist before moving to Paris as a recitalist in 1878.Obituary, ''The Musical Times'', Vol. 67, No 1005, November 1926, p. 1037
/ref> From 1882 he settled in London, where he composed and performed widely for the next ten years. In 1893 he was appointed professor of piano at the
Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is one of the oldest music schools in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the firs ...
, succeeding the deceased Thomas Wingham. He remained there until his death.''Royal Academy of Music Club Magazine'' No 76, November, 1926
/ref> Albanesi was appointed Chevalier of the Crown of Italy, and was a long-term member of the London Philharmonic Society. He was also an examiner at the Dublin Royal Academy of Music. His pupils included
Crown Princess of Sweden This page is a list of heirs to the Swedish throne. The list includes all individuals who were considered to Inheritance, inherit the Monarchy of Sweden, throne of the Kingdom of Sweden, either as heir apparent or as heir presumptive, since the ac ...
and her sister,
Princess Patricia of Connaught Lady Victoria Patricia Helena Elizabeth Ramsay (born Princess Patricia of Connaught; 17 March 1886 – 12 January 1974) was a granddaughter of Queen Victoria. Upon her marriage to Alexander Ramsay, she relinquished her title of a British princ ...
, the Duchess Marie of Saxe-Coburg and the Duchess Paul of Mecklenburgh, as well as the English composer
Mary Lucas Mary Lucas (born Mary Anderson Juler, 24 May 1882–14 January 1952), sometimes referred to as Mary Anderson Lucas, was an English composer and pianist.Lewis Foremanée Anderson">'Lucas ée Anderson/nowiki>, Mary', in ''Grove Music Online''( ...
, the Scottish pianist Lilias Mackinnon, Welsh composer and pianist Meirion Williams">Lilias Mackinnon">ée Anderson/nowiki>, Mary', in ''Grove Music Online''( ...
, the Scottish pianist Lilias Mackinnon, Welsh composer and pianist Meirion Williams and the Chilean composer, pianist and writer Norman Fraser. The Royal Academy of Music established a Carlo Albanesi prize for Chopin performance.


Composer

As a composer Albanesi wrote orchestral and chamber music, including a string quartet and trio for piano and strings. But he is best remembered for his piano music and particularly the six piano sonatas, the last of which was composed in 1907. Of those, Number 4 in B♭ minor (1905), with a graceful Barcarolle as its middle movement, achieved the most popularity. A five movement suite for piano, ''Ritmi di danze antiche'', op. 60, was published by Augener in 1897. Albanesi also wrote for amateurs, as in the suite ''Thoughts in Pastels'', which was published by Bosworth's. His ''Exercises for Fingering'' have remained in print. Phillip Sear has detected in his piano music the influence of his Neopolitan near contemporary
Paolo Tosti Sir Francesco Paolo Tosti Royal Victorian Order, KCVO (9 April 1846, Ortona, Abruzzo2 December 1916, Rome) was an Italian composer and music teacher. Today, he is remembered mostly for his light-hearted songs, which are popular among vocal stu ...
, who also taught at the Royal Academy of Music.


Personal life

In 1896 Albanesi married the Australian born, British novelist
Effie Adelaide Rowlands Effie Adelaide Maria Henderson (later Rowlands and Albanesi; c.1859 – 16 October 1936) was a British novelist, better known under the pen names Effie Adelaide Rowlands, E. Maria Albanesi and Madame Albanesi. She was the author of more than 1 ...
. They lived at 3 Gloucester Terrace in Hyde Park,''Who's Who in Music'' (1913)
/ref> and had two daughters: Eva Olimpia Maria Albanesi (1897-????), and Margherita Cecilia Brigida Lucia Maria Albanesi (better known as the actress Meggie Albanesi) (1899–1923). Eva married Austin Henry Williams in 1927 and moved to South Africa in 1948.Felsted Roll of Honour Project
/ref> Carlo Albanesi died at home following a short illness and was buried at St Pancras Cemetery, Finchley.'Signor Albanesi', in ''The Times'', Sept. 22, 1926, p.15


References


External links


Scores by Carlo Albanesi at IMSLP

Performance of ''Romance Sans Paroles'' No.5

Daniele Adornetto plays the Piano Sonatas, YouTube
{{DEFAULTSORT:Albanesi, Carlo 1858 births 1926 deaths 20th-century British classical pianists 19th-century Italian composers 20th-century Italian composers 20th-century male composers 19th-century British composers 20th-century British composers Alumni of the Royal Academy of Music Immigrants to the United Kingdom Italian emigrants