Graziadio Antegnati

Graziadio Antegnati (1525, Brescia — ca. July 1590, Brescia) was an Italian organ builder from a third generation of a distinguished family of makers, son of Giovan Battista Antegnati (ca.1490—1559) and grandson of the family's patriarch, Bartolomeo Antegnati (fl.1481—post-1501). Graziadio extensively collaborated with his son, Costanzo Antegnati (1549—1624); both are commonly cited as the most illustrious and significant representatives of the dynasty. Little is known about his early years. Between 1564 and 1566, Antegnati worked on the organs at Basilica S. Maria Maggiore Bergamo. In 1565, Duca Guglielmo Gonzaga hired Graziadio to construct the organ at Chiesa di Santa Barbara, Mantova, his new ducal cathedral. Antegnati worked on this project with his friend and the church organist, Girolamo Cavazzoni. In 1570, when Graziadio Antegnati was ill, he sent 20-year-old Costanzo as his replacement for St Barbara's instrument overhaul. Since then, father and son regularly worked together, constructing organs at Cattedrale di Sant'Andrea in Asola (one of Mantua's provinces), Chiesa di San Giuseppe (Brescia) in 1581, and Chiesa de la Collegiata dei SS. Pietro e Stefano, Bellinzona (1584–86) in Switzerland. The exact date of Graziadio Antegnati's death is unknown, but his final will, discovered in the Notarial Archives of Brescia, was dated 3 July 1590.