Antonio Bertali was a Capellmeister of the imperial court in Vienna. Bertali wrote operas, church music, and instrumental music for the Emperors Ferdinand II, Ferdinand III, and Leopold I, and his music formed the basis for compositional taste and style in German-speaking regions during his life-time. Born in Verona, Bertali came to the imperial court in Vienna during the reign of Ferdinand II in the early 1620s as a violinist, bringing with him the virtuosic instrumental writing of Italy. In 1649 under Ferdinand III he became the imperial Capellmeister, the first new director of music after the end of the Thirty Year’s War. During this time of peace the musical arts flourished, and Bertali’s music found wide distribution throughout Germany and beyond. Today his music is still preserved in historical collections as far away from his personal milieu as Sweden, England, and France.