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Domenico who?
A contemporary of Bach, Domenico Scarlatti was born in Naples, the sixth of ten children. After his early training and career in Italy, he
moved to Portugal in 1720 to work as music master to King John V. In 1729, his patron and pupil Maria Barbara married the Spanish crown
prince, the future Ferdinand VI. Scarlatti followed the royal pair to Madrid where he spent the last 29 years of his life. He was the first
composer to explore the free style of playing the harpsichord. Although he wrote many other pieces like operas and sacred works, he is mainly
remembered for his 555 harpsichord sonatas. The most commonly cited catalog of Scarlatti's compositions was compiled by the American
harpsichordist Ralph Kirkpatrick (1911 - 1984). Hence the prefix letter K attached to each numbered piece.
OK! Fine! So what's the point?
It's my view that Scarlatti may have influenced the evolution of flamenco music. It would be stretching the point to say any more than that
but I think it's fair to give credit where credit is due. Unlike some of the people cited below, I would not go so far as to call his music
flamenco just because of a few isolated passages. Just for fun, let's put our skeptic hats on and go down this path anyway to see where it
takes us. Don't forget to tie your camel first. (It's doesn't pay very well, but I love to be the Devil's advocate)
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