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Francesco Zappa ([franˈtʃeskɔ dˈdzappa], 1717 most likely in Milan – 17 January 1803 in The Hague[1]) was an Italian cellist and composer who lived most of his adult life in The Hague, the Netherlands.
He was highly regarded for his virtuoso cello playing and his compositions were published and distributed throughout Europe. Zappa was of importance to the musical life of the Netherlands, and made substantial contributions to the quality, vibrancy and international outlook of The Hague's 18th-century music scene as a performer, composer, concert organiser and teacher.[2]
Little is known about Zappa's early life. Zappa was first employed by the Sicilian Count Catani, to whom he dedicated his first work, 6 Trio sonatas. He worked for the Duke of York, giving him music lessons during the Duke's stay in Italy, from November 1763 to the middle of 1764, listing himself as maestro di (musica) to the Duke on the title page of his Trio sonatas Opus 2.
In mid-1764, Zappa and compatriot Ricci embarked on a tour of Europe, visiting Dresden, Frankfurt, Mainz and Mannheim. In September 1764, the two performed concerts around the Netherlands. In this period, Zappa established himself in The Hague, where he was subsequently employed by the Court of the Prince of Orange with regularity for the next four decades, first appearing on the payroll for the court's Winter concert season in 1766.[3]
In 1771 he played a series of concerts in Germany, visiting Danzig and, on 22 September, Frankfurt am Main. It is likely that he was also active in Paris in the 1770s. According to Mendel (1879), he undertook another tour of Germany in 1781, and with "his gentle and beautiful sound" inspired wonder in all who listened.
At the end of the 1780s Zappa was still gainfully employed as a music master based in The Hague (Maître de musique à la Haye), as noted in the 1788 manuscript of his Quartetto concertante. Other documentation confirms his continued presence in the city. He received a permanent Dutch residence permit on 1 August 1791.[4]
In The Hague's Binnenhof on 2 November 1794, Zappa played in the court's last concert before the stadholder's family abdicated, fleeing to England in the face of the invading French army, which put an end to the court's music programme.
Zappa's oeuvre includes symphonies, trios, sonatas, divertimenti and songs. His compositions often feature a prominent role for the cello.
Frank Zappa (1940–1993) found out about him and performed Francesco Zappa's Opus 1 trios and Opus 4 sonatas on a digital synthesizer called the Synclavier. The recordings were released on the album Francesco Zappa in 1984.[5] Frank Zappa described the album as "His (Francesco Zappa's) First Digital Recording in over 200 Years". While assumed by many to have been related, Frank Zappa stated in The Real Frank Zappa Book that in fact they were not.
The first recording of Francesco Zappa's symphonies was made by the New Dutch Academy directed by Simon Murphy; PENTATONE PTC 5186 365, released in 2009. The recording features American Baroque cellist Caroline Kang in the solo role in Zappa's "cello symphonies".
