ALONG THE STEPS OF A LIFETIME

11 - His flight from Padua

The early stages of Giuseppe Tartini's life are somewhat obscure, which is why they are often enriched when legendary elements when solid facts are scarce. This is the case for the period immediately after the wedding. A few months after the marriage, Tartini left Padua and went to the Polesine, close to the mouth of the River Po, and from there to the Papal State, which at the time began along the course of the Po. According to legend Tartini, dressed as a pilgrim, sought refuge in the Convent where his uncle, Father Giovanni Torre da Pirano, lived as caretaker. We do not know with certainty the reason for this transfer, but we know that this stay was fundamental for his musical growth. In the convent at that time lived a Bohemian father, Bohuslav Černohorský, one of the greatest Bohemian composers for organ, and it was probably this Bohemian priest who started Tartini with musical composition.