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Very little is known about Francesco Navara and it appears that these two works are the only pieces to have survived him. He was evidently a composer of sufficient stature to secure the post of Maestro di Cappella to the Gonzaga court of Mantua from 1695 until 1699 when he was succeeded by Antonio Caldara. Paola Besutti’s study of the musical court of the last duke of the Gonzagas reveals a lengthy list of operas and oratorios performed throughout this period, but alas, it is only with the arrival of the eighteenth century that the composers for these grand entertainments are recorded with any frequency. It is therefore impossible to ascertain how many of these were by Navara; his only known opera is Basilio Re D’Oriente, which was performed at the Teatro S. Cassiano in Venice, 1696.
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Two Sinfonias