Gioseffo Guami

Gioseffo Guami (also Gioseffo Guammi, Giuseppe Guami; * 1540 in Lucca, † 1611 ) was an Italian organist and composer.

Life and work

About Gioseffo Guamis youth and education, nothing is safe known, he should have, however, stayed 1550-1560 in Venice and have been there a pupil of Adrian Willaert and Annibale Padovano. 1568 took him to Munich where he was appointed court organist. Kapellmeister at the ducal court at that time was Orlando di Lasso. Guami worked here until about 1579. Between 1588 and 1591 he was the first organist at San Marco in Venice, after which he returned to his hometown, where he also worked until his death at the cathedral organist. There the later well-known composer and music theorist Adriano Banchieri (1568-1634) was one of his students.

In addition to madrigals, masses and motets, he created a number of works for organ and one of the first composers of purely instrumental music of his time.

His brother Francesco Guami (around 1544-1601 ) and two of his sons were also talented musicians.