Gionovichi may have been a student of Lolli but is defintiely known to have arrived in Paris by 1770. (Not much is certain about his life until this year.) He made his violin playing debut in 1773 which was quite well received. Shortly thereafter he became the city's favorite. Many accounts of his behavior describe him as very difficult to work with (so much so that fictional stories arose in a distorted manner.) In Vienna, 1786, his playing was appreciated by L. Mozart, Dittersdorf and Gyrowetz. He was earlier invited to play at the court of Catherine II. By 1791 Giornovichi was a regular in London. He composed a number of violin sonatas, perhaps his most important works. The descriptions of his style of composition and his playing technique were quite similar. Easy and straigtforward in harmony, lucidly and skillfully arranged, but little pathos occurs in his music or his touch. The concertos were all composed in major keys but were nevertheless popular enough to achieve as many as six editions. ~ Keith Johnson, Rovi