Presents
Maddalena Lombardini Sirmen
String Trio No.3 in D Major, Op.1 No.3
For Two Violins and Cello
Information about Maddalena Lombardini Sirmen (1745-1818) varies depending upon which source one consults. Some list her birth year as 1735 and her year of death as 1799. The spelling of her first name appears differently and often she is referred to only by her maiden name Lombardini, while other times her married name Sirmen is used. What is known for sure is that she was born in Venice to impoverished nobility and sent to one Venice's Ospedale, institutions famous for educating poor girls. She was given violin lessons and adjudged a child prodigy and hence was shipped off to study with Giuseppe Tartini in Padua. Back in Venice, the only way girls could leave an Ospedale was either to become a nun or marry. Lombardini married a violinist Ludovico Sirmen, sometimes spelled Syrmen. She and Sirmen toured throughout Europe for a few years, eventually separating. She then performed by herself as either a violinist or a singer or on occasion both. She retired in 1785.
She was not a prolific composer and the Op.1, a set of six string trios dating from the late 1760s. Most likely, they were the only ones she ever composed and in any event, the only ones which attracted attention. That they were popular in their time is supported by the fact that they were brought out by more than one publisher. Another reason for their popularity is the fact that these are not just a vehicle for the first violin, the other voices are also given the lead. As were almost every string trio from this period, they were for two violins and cello. String Trio No.3 is perhaps the most interesting of the set. In two substantial movements, Allegro and Menuetto, it is the second movement which is unusual in that it combines a minuet with highly contrasting allegro assai sections. We have reprinted a clean copy of the first edition.
Parts: $12.95
