The leading (not patriarchal) member of the Italian family of musicians and composers. Giovanni was highly productive in the dramatic genres of opera and oratorio with an exceptionally high yield in cantatas, sacred masses and motets, and a nunber of instrumental pieces including concertos, symphonies and sonatas. In the first thirty years of the 18th century, Bononcini was probably better known to audiences than either Handel or Scarlatti. The arias in his musical scores were elegant and moving. Giovanni was able to give credibility to a text with scores that only accentuated true human drama. His music may not have been as stirring as Handel's in comparison. Bononcini was much more pacific and swooning in his musical adaptations than angry or courageous. ~ Keith Johnson, Rovi