Nicola Matteis Sr.

Nicola Matteis was an Italian violinist and composer who spearheaded the development of violin playing in England. There is little reliable information about his life, but he probably lived between about 1650 and 1700, and was born in Naples, toured Europe as a violinist and guitarist, and settled in London around 1670. Contemporary writers Roger North and John Evelyn testify to his exceptional technique and fierce ego—apparently no one was allowed even to whisper when Matteis played. He only performed his own works, which appeared in four books of Ayres for the Violin (1676 and 1685). The pieces are grouped by key, allowing players to assemble their own suites and sonatas. Matteis exploited a wide range of forms—dances, variations, ground basses, fugues—and made use of imaginative Italian titles and translations, such as “Allemanda in imitation of a stutterer”. Virtuoso challenges include fast articulation and optional double stopping (playing two strings at once), with little use of the violin’s highest register.