Colista or Corelli? A «waiting room» for the trio sonata Anh. 16

Abstract

Recent research on manuscript and printed sources of Corelli’s output have re-opened discussion on doubtful works and have led to a new revision of Marx’s classification of Corelli’s catalogue.
While the solo sonatas of doubtful attribution have already been reexamined, there is still much to be done on doubtful trio sonatas. In this respect, this essay focuses on a specific case: the conflicting attribution of trio sonata Anh. 16 classified by Marx among Corelli’s doubtful works and attested in a group of English sources, only rarely examined by Corelli scholars. In some sources Anh. 16 is attributed to Corelli, in others to the Roman lutenist and composer Lelio Colista, in others no ascription is reported.
The purpose of this article is to explore the question of authorship of this composition through a comparison of all the manuscript sources, offering an up-to-date survey (some sources have only recently come to light). This comparison and a more wide consideration of the sources not only re-opens the debate on the sonata’s attribution, but also offers a more complete picture of the circulation and manuscript dissemination of Roman trio sonatas in England.