Six Flute Sonatas Op. I, 1718

Of all the composers and instrumentalists belonging to English musical society in the first thirty years of the 18th century, Luigi Merci was certainly one of the most unusual and interesting.
Little is known of his life.
John Hawkins in his General History of the Science and Practice of Music, (in 5 volumes, published by Payne, London, 1776) simply states that “Lewis Mercy was a celebrated performer on the flute abec and an axcellent composer for that instrument…his solos for the flute may be ranked among the best compositions for that instrument extant.
“It is now certain that this musician was called to London by the promising opportunities which that city offered in the first years of the 1700s.
Indeed, for at least a generation, many other musicians had found the English capital to be a fertile terrain in which to disseminate the fashionable musical language of their homeland and the use of musical instruments which were popular there, including the recorder.
All of these musicians became naturalized citizens in the new country, at times even anglicizing their names.
English musical life in the early 18th century was also enriched by the presence of many Italian composers and instrumentalists (Bononcini, Barsanti, Geminiani, and others).
They in turn significantly influenced the musical tastes of many English composers active in the first decades of the century who took advantage of this direct contact with musicians from diverse cultures (not only Italians but also Frenchmen, Germans, Moravians, etc.)