Mordenti and acciature in keyboard basso continuo: sources and performance practice

During the latter half of the seventeenth century in Italy, a new approach to keyboard accompaniment took shape. This practice, referred to here as suonar pieno (literally, “playing full”), was characterized by the harmonization of the bass with multiple voices, creating a dense and sustained texture that produced what contemporaries described as a “perfezzione di Armonia maravigliosa.” Within this rich harmonic texture emerged the so-called mordenti and acciaccature, conceived as expressive dissonances intended to delight the listener. This manner of accompaniment, together with these dissonant notes, soon appeared beyond the peninsula and came to be heard within broader European basso continuo traditions. My dissertation identifies and defines all types of mordenti and acciaccature within a corpus of Italian sources and their spheres of influence, examining their characteristics, classification, and practical application. It presents a comprehensive and critically grounded account of the extant examples preserved in historical treatises, highlighting both divergences and points of convergence among the sources, and offering the first comparative study of these materials. It further considers the contexts in which these figures occur, particularly within the framework of suonar pieno, clarifying what this practice entails and how it is articulated in sources of the period. By analysing primary basso continuo materials and integrating this knowledge directly into the repertoire, this research bridges the gap between historical understanding and performance practice. In doing so, it seeks to make these practices more accessible to performers, scholars, and the broader musical community, thereby contributing to their restoration as distinctive elements of accompaniment in present-day Historically Informed Performance and pedagogy.