On the Origin of Partimento: A Recently Discovered Manuscript of Toccate (1695) by Francesco Mancini

When dealing with the difficult issue of determining when and where partimenti came into use, I conjectured about a Roman origin. That was an elegant solution: in the early years of the Eighteenth century Rome was probably the most advanced musical center in Europe, and the earliest signed partimenti manuscript collection, that by Bernardo Pasquini, originated here about 1707. A migration to Naples occurred later, following Alessandro Scarlatti’s move from Rome to Naples. As it turned out later, after my book “The Art of Partimento” came out, things seem to be more complicated. Newly discovered sources, such as the Regole o vero Toccate di studio del Sig. Abb[at]e Fran[cesc]o Mancini 1695 (F-Pn Rés. 2315) prove that partimenti were in use in Naples already at the end of the Seventeenth century, and possibly earlier. In fact, the Mancini manuscript, and in particular the 21 Toccate for harpsichord, betray an impressive level of sophistication and virtuosity, which would be unlikely to have been reached in a short time. Other manuscripts, such as the coeval Rocco Greco manuscript (I-Nc 33.2.3) show that bass string majors studied partimenti at the keyboard, but also learned how to harmonically improvise diminutions on standard bass patterns on their instruments. Thus, musicological research helps us to better understand the origins of the practice, but also to find a solution for a the problem we face today when teaching partimenti to non-keyboard majors.