Luigi Legnani - Introduction, Theme, Variations and Finale, Op. 64 (c.1834)

Luigi Rinaldo Legnani (7 November 1790 – 5 August 1877) was an Italian virtuoso guitarist, singer, composer and luthier.

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Introduzione, tema, variazioni e finale, Op. 64 (c. 1834)
Dedication: Johann Georg Stauffer

Introduction (0:00)
Theme. Moderato (0:39)
Var. I (1:37)
Var. II (2:30)
Var. III (3:29)
Var. IV (4:26)
Var. V (5:29)
Largo (6:59)
Tema con sesto ed ultimo var. (8:49)

Giulio Tampalini, guitar

The dedicatee Johann Georg Stauffer (26 January 1778 – 24 January 1853) was an Austrian luthier and the most important Viennese guitar maker of his time. Initially, Stauffer modeled his instruments after Italian masters Giovanni Battista Fabricatore and Gaetano Vinaccia, but he soon developed his own distinctive style — the Viennese guitar — characterized by a longitudinally arched back, narrower waist, and plug bridge. His work was highly regarded in Viennese musical circles, and he was closely associated with Mauro Giuliani, who played and promoted Stauffer guitars.
Legnani visited Vienna in 1820 and 1822, where he gave celebrated recitals and collaborated with Stauffer, whose workshop produced the “Legnani model” guitars that became popular in Central Europe.
The fact that Legnani dedicated a major work to Stauffer underscores the mutual respect and collaboration between the virtuoso guitarist and the luthier.

Born in Ravenna, Legnani was trained as a string player while very young but dedicated himself to guitar and voice. His debut as an operatic tenor was in Ravenna in 1807; his singing career spanned 17 years. His career as a guitarist began with a concert in Milan in 1819 and continued with the 1822 concerts in Vienna and return visits in 1833 and 1839. He tried to continue the guitar tradition established there by Mauro Giuliani.

Legnani is perhaps best known for his 36 Caprices op. 20 for the guitar, which cover all the major and minor keys, and which were probably inspired by Paganini's 24 Caprices for the violin. He and Paganini were friends from the 1830s; while it was once thought that he and Paganini performed together in public (Powroźniak mentions a concert in Northern Italy in 1837), there is no evidence to support this claim. After the 1850s Legnani retired from active performance and became an instrument maker, concentrating on guitars and violins. The "Legnani model" guitar was popular in Central Europe through the middle of the nineteenth century.

Legnani composed some 250 works, which were published in his lifetime throughout many of the major publishing houses in Europe. He died in Ravenna.

As a regular visitor to Vienna, Legnani cooperated with Johann Georg Stauffer and his son Anton to make guitars according to Legnani's design, to be followed by a number of other luthiers.