Pedro da Silva: Portuguese Baroque Composer and Organist

Pedro da Silva was a significant Portuguese composer and organist active during the Baroque period.Active in Lisbon during the late 17th and early 18th centuries, Silva held prestigious positions as organist at major churches, including the Lisbon Cathedral and the Basilica da Estrela. He is primarily known for his keyboard music, particularly his surviving harpsichord works preserved in important Portuguese manuscripts like the 'Livro de Obras de Orgão'.
  • Very little is definitively known about Silva's early life, training, or exact birth details, a common challenge with musicians of this era.
  • His music, rediscovered in the 20th century, provides crucial insight into Portuguese Baroque keyboard practice, distinct from the dominant Italian and French styles.
  • Silva served as organist at the Royal Chapel (Capela Real) in Lisbon, indicating he held a position of high regard within the Portuguese court.
  • Despite his apparent prominence during his lifetime, Silva's music and legacy faded into obscurity for centuries before modern musicological research brought them back to light. Sources are primarily historical church and court records, and the surviving music manuscripts.