NAXOS CLASSICAL MUSIC LIBRARY: FORGOTTEN GENIUS : George Frederick Pinto

An English composer and violinist who had a high reputation in the early years of the 19th century. He died in 1806 at the early age of 20. His teacher and protector, Johann Saloman had called him 'the English Mozart', he received similar tributes from Samuel Wesley, Ayrton and Davison. Sterndale Bennett edited one of his piano sonatas and performed several times in the 1840s. However, his music has been forgotten for over a hundred years.
Pinto was by far the most remarkable English composer of his generation with a style much common with that of Dussek. It also bear resemblance with the 3 early sonatas of John Field (1 of it posted earlier), but nothing to do with Field's nocturnes. Pinto possessed a strength of purpose not found in Field, an emotional intensity far exceeding Smauel Wesley's, and harmonic and melodic resources that sometimes place him among the masters of the Classical period. His early death is one of those tragedies of musical history whose consequences cannot be measured.
His surviving works include seven piano sonatas ( 3 piano sonatas, 3 piano sonatinas and 1 Fantasia and sonata to be exact) and other music for piano, 4 violin sonatas, nine duets for 2 unaccompanied violins and 16 songs. For now, I will be extracting interesting musical samples from Pinto's piano music to make a deep insight of them. A cd by Michael o'Rourke featuring major Pinto piano works has been recorded years ago.
NT

Grand Sonata in C minor, from 3 Sonatas op.2

sample page from the original edition

INSIGHTS

The main theme of the sonata's 1st movt., blasting fierically with strong V-I chord progressions, sextuplets of semiquavers supporting the chords, produce a dramatic sound effect