Filippo Villani documented the life of the Florentine musician who earned a laurel crown from the King of Cyprus during the 1360s. Active throughout the 14th century, this composer, lutenist, and organ builder remains the most prominent figure of the Italian Trecento style, leaving behind a body of secular works preserved largely within the Squarcialupi Codex.
Early Life and Blindness
Born in 1335, likely in Florence though sometimes cited as Fiesole, he became blind in childhood following a smallpox infection. He pursued music early, mastering the lute and singing alongside his duties as a composer. Although older academic tradition once linked him to the Landini family, specifically the painter Jacopo del Casentino, modern research finds no evidence for this connection. He is more accurately identified in period documents as Francesco degli Organi or Francesco il Cieco.
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Take the IQ test →Professional Career as Organist and Consultant
His career spanned several decades of active service within the Republic of Florence. He served as the organist at Santa Trinità in 1361 before moving to the church of San Lorenzo in 1365. His technical expertise in instrument building led him to consult on projects at the Servite house in 1375, the SS Annunziata in 1379, and the Florence Cathedral in 1387. These activities involved close collaboration with other musicians, including Andreas da Florentia.
Musical Legacy and Composition
He remains the most prolific composer of his era, with his surviving output representing nearly one-quarter of 14th-century Italian music. His compositions were exclusively secular, comprising eighty-nine two-voice ballate, forty-two three-voice ballate, and several madrigals. He is eponymously linked to the 'Landini cadence', a formula where the submediant is inserted between the leading note and the tonic resolution. While he used this technique consistently, it was not his invention, appearing in the works of earlier composers like Gherardello da Firenze.
Fast facts
- Born: 1335, Fiesole
- Died: 1397, Florence
- Occupations: Composer, singer, lutenist, organist, astrologer, instrument maker
- Movement: Ars nova
- Burial site: Basilica of San Lorenzo
- Known works: Mostly secular ballate and madrigals
- Primary source: Squarcialupi Codex
Questions readers ask
Did he write sacred music?
Although historical records suggest he composed sacred works, none have survived to the present day.
Was he actually a member of the Landini family?
No, this association is a later fabrication by Cristoforo Landino, who claimed the composer as an ancestor to bolster his own lineage.
Achievements
- Instruments: organ
- Genres: classical music
