My PhD research aims to shed light on the still unknown early musical production of the Italian guitarist-composer Ferdinando Carulli (Naples, 9 February 1770 – Paris, 17 February 1841), in order to expand the knowledge of his work and the guitar repertoire in the classical period. 

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Ferdinando Carulli lived during the golden age of the classical guitar. With more than 350 works with opus numbers and almost the same number of unpublished ones, he was arguably the most prolific guitar composer of all time but, surprisingly, his works are rarely performed. Along with some didactic material for beginners, he is mainly known for his influential “Méthode complète pour guitare ou lyre, op. 27”.. Although he was well known all over Europe, to date there has been no extensive editorial work on his earliest production. A rediscovery of this body of work will prove to be fundamental for a better understanding of the author’s evolution and of the guitar repertoire development during the classical period.
 
Carulli’s manuscripts are spread among several private collections, libraries and archives; my goal is to locate and access them. I expect to find three categories of compositions: concert pieces, didactic material and amateur pieces, all of which will be analysed in this research. I also aim to publish critical editions of selected concert pieces; these editions will include contextual introductions and footnotes to explain possible mistake corrections or personal choices that were made to propose solutions for technical problems. Possible further outcomes are CD recordings, master classes, lectures and concerts.

From a pedagogical perspective, I intend to collect Carulli’s didactic material and publish it as an appendix to his already known method. I will organise it into collections of new studies which will substantially enrich the repertoire for the benefit of the students and the whole international guitar community.