Ugo Amendola

Ugo Amendola was born in Venice in 1917.

He studied at the Venice Conservatory, where he took his diploma in the piano (1938, with Tagliapietra), in composition (1946, with Gabriele Bianchi, a Malipiero pupil), and choral and orchestral conducting (1947, with Sante Zanon, Sanzogno and Scherchen). He had a concert career as a pianist, and was a coach for the opera seasons at La Fenice, where he also conducted from 1973 to 1985. He was awarded international prizes for composition, and received honours in recognition of his commitment to teaching, which manifested itself in a series of pedagogical texts, many of which remain in manuscript. The influence of the generazione dell'ottanta can be seen in his Sonata for string orchestra (1947), in which rigorous, economical contrapuntal writing is supported by a solid formal awareness. Classical in nature, his melodies cultivate a French kind of archaism, tinged with modality. These elements remained typical of Amendola's work, along with a predilection for the piano, for which he wrote some technically complex works (e.g. Fifth Sonata, 1985) which betray the influence of Prokofiev.

His string quartet, which appeared in 1947, impressed me:

I. Allegro con spirito
II. Allegro giusto ma con spirito
III. Andante
IV. Allegro

Paul Klee quartet
Alessandro Fagiuoli, violino
Stefano Antonello, violino
Andrea Amendola, viola
Luca Paccagnella, violincello.

Besides this, there are seven piano sonatas and two piano concertos; but no symphonies.