Mayr, Marchesi and Pugnani in Venice. A source from the Biblioteca ‘Angelo Mai’, Bergamo

The Civica Biblioteca ‘Angelo Mai’, Bergamo, contains an interesting musical manuscript, handwritten by Giovanni Simone Mayr, originally part of the composer’s personal music archive. This manuscript contains a ‘Scena e Aria’ by the composer Gaetano Pugnani, sung by Luigi Marchesi in the opera Demofoonte, a pasticcio performed at the Teatro San Benedetto, Venice, in 1791. The analysis of the manuscript provides valuable insights into several aspects of Mayr’s early training in Venice, the circulation of Pugnani’s works, and the vocal performance practices of the eighteenth century.