Biography
An Italian violinist and composer, Valentini may have trained under Corelli during a period spent in Rome. Early pieces by Valentini often carried dedications to Corelli and to other musicians active in that same Roman milieu. Employment followed with Prince Francesco Maria Ruspoli from 1708 through 1713, and he may have served the Prince of Caserta the next year, presenting the opera La finta rapita as a dedication on that occasion. Information about Valentini grows sparse across the decades that followed. Editions of his music began to appear in Paris by 1748, among them four sinfonias and assorted additional instrumental scores. Those publications reveal a preference for remote keys such as A-flat and B, as well as elevated, resonant writing for the violin. Several movements within the instrumental works adopt pastorale form, pointing to an interest in appealing to wider audiences.