Pietro Denis

Pietro Denis (1720–1790), also known as Pierre Denis, was a French mandolin virtuoso and teacher, and composer. He studied under Giuliano in Naples and established himself in Paris. He is best known for his compositions Sonata for Mandolin & Continuo No. 1 in D major and Sonata No. 3 for Mandolin. He also wrote a mandolin instruction method, Méthode pour apprendre à jouer de la mandoline sans Maître (method to learn how to play mandolin without a teacher), published Paris in 1768.[1][2][3][4][5]

Portrait of Pietro Denis, 1768, taken from the cover of his book Méthode pour apprendre à jouer de la mandoline sans Maître (method to learn how to play mandolin without a teacher).

He wrote another mandolin method, published in Paris in 1792, and was the author also of Four collections of airs for the mandolin; a New system of practical music, issued in Paris in 1747. Denis also wrote a French translation of Tartinf's Tratto delle appogiature si asceudenti che discendeiiti per il violino, under the title of Traite des agremens de la musique, compose par le celebre Giuzeppe Tartini a Padua, et traduit par le Sigr. P.Denis. This volume was published by M. de la Chevardier, Paris.[5]

In his final years, in 1780, he was a music master in a ladies' seminary in Saint Cyr.[5]