Chronicles of two Piedmontese in Paris: The stage designer Ignazio Degotti and the composer Gian Battista Viotti

This paper will explore the social milieu and mutual connections that linked the stage designer Ignazio Degotti (Turin, 1758 – Paris, 1824) to the violinist and composer Gian Battista Viotti (Fontanetto Po, 1755 – London, 1824). To better introduce the character of Degotti, I will add details on his biography as well as bring to scholarly attention the analysis of his first documented artistic job: an Allegory of the Arts published in a book of poems in 1776. A defining moment in the life of Ignazio Degotti was his choice to move to Paris in 1790, where he established the greatest and most successful part of his career as a decorator and a stage-designer. Through the analysis of unpublished material on Degotti, I will add to current knowledge which comprises nationality, education, and some career choices Degotti shared with Viotti. This undertaking is done so as to chronicle the relationship between two key protagonists of theatrical life in Paris at the turn of the 19th century. It will become apparent through this paper, whose focus is the draft of an unpublished letter, that even though there were many reasons for Degotti’s move to Paris, it was Viotti who played a significant part.