In Copisteria del Conte
Il diletto musicale nei palazzi genovesi
by Jacopo Ristori
In Copisteria del Conte is a project inspired by two quests: to rediscover music that is almost unknown to today’s ears and to evoke Genoa’s soundscape in the second half of the 1700s. The selected pieces come from Count Taccoli’s bustling music-copying workshop, weaving a connection between the compositions, their composers, and the city of Genoa.
This double album showcases a vibrant array of line-ups—from intimate string quartets to delicate trios for violin, cello, and psaltery— featuring luminaries like Boccherini alongside hidden gems such as Gallucci and Ferrari. Although crafted and recorded in the Netherlands, its heart beats in Genoa, led by the talented Genoa-born cellist Jacopo Ristori. The project also showcases the artistry of Nevio Zanardi, a Genoese painter and musician who created an evocative painting inspired by the music, the Count’s character, and the noble coat of arms of his family.
The booklet includes an essay by Professor Carmela Bongiovanni and a link through which the listener can access more content, such as a conversation with Professor Davide Mingozzi, which helps to appreciate the relevance of this repertoire.
Find out more about this exciting project
The pieces and the musicians
Pietro Nardini (1722 – 1793)
Quartetto I in sol maggiore (attr. F. A. Hoffmeister, op. 9)
Quartetto II in do maggiore (attr. F. A. Hoffmeister, op. 9)
The Gut string quartet: Antoinette Lohmann, Giorgos Samoilis, Sara de Vries, Jacopo Ristori
Luigi Boccherini (1743 – 1805)
Sonata per due violoncelli in re maggiore G. 571
Sonata per violoncello solo e basso in fa maggiore G. 579
Jacopo Ristori, violoncello solo. Viola de Hoog, violoncello al continuo e Jesse Solway contrabasso
Carlo Ferrari (1714 – 1790)
“Gara” per due violoncelli in si bemolle maggiore
“Gara” per due violoncelli in la maggiore
Viola de Hoog e Jacopo Ristori, violoncelli
Gaspare Arnaldi (? – ?)
Sonata (I) per salterio, violino e violoncello in sol maggiore
Sonata (II) per salterio, violino e violoncello in sol maggiore
Anna Pontz salterio, Sara de Vries violino e Jacopo Ristori violoncello
Michele Gallucci (? – ?)
Sonata per violoncello solo e basso in re maggiore
Jacopo Ristori violoncello solo, Earl Christy tiorba e Gied van Oorschot violoncello al continuo
Emanuele Barbella (1718 – 1777)
Sonata per due violini soli in sol maggiore
Sonata per due violini soli in fa maggiore
Antoinette Lohmann e Sara de Vries, violini
The Sound
The recordings on this CD were made with a proprietary microphone technique, called ECA, that was developed by our sound engineer in order to achieve maximum sound fidelity, with very good positioning of the instruments in the virtual space that is being created between your speakers. The mixing and mastering process has been performed with an almost fully analog equipment chain in order to maintain the complex tonal character of the sound of the instruments. This results in a musical vividness and three-dimensional sound that is rarely heard in acoustic music recordings.





